Billed as Ocean’s Eleven meets John Scalzi, The Misfit Soldier is a fun, action-packed sci-fi adventure. Sergeant Gastovsky—known to everyone as Gas—is not a model solider. In fact he and his crew are more a little shifty, often responsible for carrying out less than honest activities, but one thing you can say about Gas is that he’s loyal. So when his squad is forced to retreat and one of his men is left behind he’s determined to do whatever it takes to rescue him.

Thus begins a wild adventure where there is way more going on than meets the eye with Gas constantly being forced to adjust his plans to rescue his missing solider. Great characters, an excellent story, solid action, and just the right amount of humor. I'll definitely be checking out more of Mammay's books. 4.5 stars.

Thanks to Harper Voyager and NetGalley for the chance to read and review an eARC of The Misfit Soldier.

This is not my usual genre to read, but when I won a copy from the publisher, I was excited to try something new. I have to admit to being pleasantly surprised by this book. The main character is snarky and crafty and definitely skates the edge of good with all the cons he runs. But he does get things done...mostly. The overall storyline was fun and interesting and fast-paced. I just might give this genre another try.
3.75 stars

Many thanks to HarperVoyager and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. My thoughts and opinions are my own and without bias or favor or expectation.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. The main character is a rogue you almost hate to love; his motives are correct but his methods are questionable. The supporting characters were well written and I genuinely cared about their fates. This is a good light sci-fi story that wraps itself up but leaves plenty of room for sequels.

I really wish that I enjoyed this book more, but I think it might be mismarketed a bit. I’ve seen references that this is like Ocean’s Eleven in space, and it’s really not. The synopsis makes reference to all of the cons he runs, but they are talked about very little in the book. Given the cover you would assume a space setting, but it doesn’t read that way. Take any U.S. Army base, give them a few fancy toys, and that’s the setting. I could see military personnel really enjoying this book.

Thank you to NetGalley & Avon and Harper Voyager for this advanced reader copy. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I absolutely love when you can tell an author either took the time to really try to get the "feel" of their setting right or approaches the story with personal knowledge and understanding - Michael Mammay's The Misfit Soldier feels so authentic to military SF that it wouldn't surprise me if he was drawing from actual experience (in the crime/con sense, not just Mammay's military experience which suffuses the novel expertly) and just setting it forward into the future. His characters quickly differentiate themselves and you find yourself rooting for each one in their own way. The action is terse and vivid without being over-the-top, and the story moves along quickly. Definitely going to have to check out the rest of Mammay's works; if The Misfit Soldier is anything to go by, there should be plenty more great military SF to come.

A bad reputation is hard to turn around. However that’s just the story being told in The Misfit Soldier by Michael Mammay. Yet Sergeant “Gas” Gastovsky seems to be the opposite of a misfit in his actions, and only seems to receive that title from his smart mouth. In fact the whole novel is about a heroic rescue that he creates and leads on another planet. Gas has to secretly gather a crew and intelligence while preserving his smart aleck personality to keep his higher ups guessing. Set in an advanced army working a time and life wasting war on another planet, this novel is infused with futuristic tech and medicine. The story is told in first person by Sergeant Gas with humor, love for his fellow soldiers and one eye open for what big brother is doing in the background. The writing is fast paced and exciting, although a bit too detailed for me when the rescue actually takes place. I recommend this book for those that like super soldier armor, crews with varying skills and personalities, and a bit of comedy in their science fiction. I highly enjoyed Mammy’s descriptions of Gas’ fellow soldiers, making me root for their success early on. I have read several military sci fi books that are very depressing with death and characters that are unrealistic jerks, and this one is basically the opposite. I really liked it. Thank you to NetGalley for an ecopy of this book for an honest review.

I tend to read at night, mostly because the daytime has too many distractions. I've also become a much slower reader than I used to be, and generally take a couple of weeks to finish a book. All that changed this week, when I started reading The Misfit Soldier. Not only did I find myself waking up and immediately opening my kindle so I could pick up where I I left off reading the night before, I finished the book in a matter of days. It's such a fun, action-packed sci-fi adventure full of exciting twists and turns. Gas, the main character, is supremely endearing as a con man turned grunt with a heart of gold. He's funny, irreverent, and intensely protective of his squad mates even if it means altering his carefully crafted plans. Watching him outfox everyone is supremely satisfying, especially as the story progresses from a seemingly normal if unsanctioned rescue op to a massively important mission with galaxy-wide implications. This book needs to be on everyone's radar.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for proving me an eARC.

I've read all of Michael Mammay's books so far, and I've enjoyed all of his books so far. This one is every bit as good as the others. I do think that Planet Side is better, I simply had a more fun time reading Planet Side. With that being said, there's nothing wrong with this book it has all the hallmarks of Michael Mammay's style and humor. I think a lot of readers are going to enjoy this read both fans and new readers alike. The tagline of Ocean's Eleven and Scalzi is apt, although I think it is more Ocean's than Scalzi.

I have to admit I only step into sci-fi from time to time, when I need a change of genre. But I always love a good military action-adventure. Set in space with cool tech only adds to the experience, and this book delivered.

The main character Gas didn't remind me of Danny Ocean as others mentioned. Radar from M.A.S.H. came to mind, but more like Radar's street-wise, darker cousin with shadier ulterior motives.

The story began a little slower for me as Gas gathered his team. At first the pacing bugged me, then I appreciated getting to know each character better in anticipation of their later roles of the "rescue." Pacing picked up as did my page-turning. I loved the twists and unexpected turns, and how Gas pivoted each time after his failure to adequately plan, well, uh, failed. Which were several.

I never knew what would happen next. The unpredictability was refreshing, and I was there for it all. My only regret is I can't climb into one of those special armor suits and try it out. Maybe one day.

I read a galley of The Misfit Soldier by Michael Mammay because I really enjoyed Planetside, his debut military sf/mystery. The new book, out in February 2022, is essentially a military sf heist novel, except the heist is organized to rescue an abandoned soldier from the war zone, and also accomplish a spoiler. The first-person narrator, an unenthusiastic soldier who joined the military to hide from gangsters, has a knack for choosing the right people for the right job and is always a few steps ahead of the plot.

[goes live 11/17/21]

I didn’t realize it was military sci-fi when I got it, which is not a genre I usually read, but this was an action-packed adventure. The banter was funny, and the world-building was immersive. The narrator, Gas, is a snarky, seat-of-the-pants kind of guy, but he’s serious when it comes to the politics of war. It’s a fun planet-side romp if you’re looking for something fast-paced.

A decent read. Prose was good and had enough humor to keep a smile on my face all through. Good action scenes and excellent world building.

But I was not a fan of the MC. For a purported con man, he just jumps into situations without any forethought and whatever plan he makes are ridiculous at best and suicidal at worst. I'm ok with that if those were backed by smartness/intelligence, rather than jump first and worry about parachute later type stuff, which happens a lot here. One eye roll moment follows another as they just wing their way past dire situations by seat of pants armored with misplaced optimism and unhealthy dose of sarcasm.

The big twist at the climax was simply the lack of one. I was expecting political machinations but got a vanilla climax whick lacked the mind bending twist, I expected from Ocean's Eleven tag in blurb.

Tropic Thunder pretending to be Ocean's Eleven but lacking either of those movies charm and falling into a grey area in-between.

Really loved the prose and writing style, but the weakness of plot took away a lot of attraction. Still a decent time pass read.

Rating: 6/10.