Into the Breach

Name: Into the Breach
Author: D. J. Holmes

Once again, the Flex-aor have rained down nuclear holocaust on Humanity. Led by their escaped High Queen Ala’ron, their fleet poses a deadly threat to every Human colony. Lacking the ships to defend all their borders, the Imperial Fleet has no choice but to hunt down Ala’ron as quickly as possible. Tasked with this mission, Emilie and Georgia will find Ala’ron to be far more cunning than they realise.

Yet the High Queen is but the beginning of the problems coming Humanity’s way. Sent on what is supposed to be a safe exploration mission, Jonathan and

Achilles will soon discover there are greater forces than even the Flex-aor arrayed against Humanity. Mysterious new adversaries with a wealth of intelligence on the Imperial Navy threaten the Empire right at the moment the Karacknid Civil War appears to be coming to an end.

Surrounded by enemies on three fronts, the Imperial Fleet and its commanders will be stretched to their breaking point and beyond. Only by charging into the breach and facing their enemy’s most powerful forces can there be any hope of winning out. Yet attempting such a decisive move will incur a cost in ships and blood the Empire cannot afford.

Into the Breach is the fifteenth book in the Empire Rising series and follows the story of James Somerville and the rise of the Human Empire.

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Published: September 15, 2022

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Empire Rising

The series

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In a future shaped by starships and shifting alliances, Empire Rising delivers a galaxy on the brink—and dares readers to step into its war-torn heart. This expansive military sci-fi series begins not with glory, but with the quiet tension of a commander burdened by duty. At its core is James Somerville, a Royal Space Navy officer navigating the fine line between loyalty and survival as humanity stretches its reach across the stars.

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What sets this space opera apart isn’t just the scope of its interstellar conflicts or the precision of its tactical warfare—though those are delivered with grit and clarity—but the weight of consequence that hangs over every decision. Empires don’t rise without cost, and here, each battle scars more than just hulls. The political games are as dangerous as the dogfights, and the galaxy is far from black and white.

With a tone steeped in realism and a clear respect for naval tradition, the series blends grounded strategy with far-reaching stakes. Readers are drawn into a universe where no victory is simple, and peace is always temporary. As alliances crack and new threats emerge, Somerville and his crew must navigate not only hostile alien forces, but the very ambitions of the human powers they serve.

Tense, deliberate, and steeped in atmosphere, Empire Rising offers a vision of the future shaped by conflict, command, and the unshakable belief that even in the darkest corners of space, leadership matters. It’s a series that rewards those who savor intricate world-building, evolving character arcs, and the moral grey zones of war among the stars.