The Berserkers forged him into a weapon. They've regretted it ever since.

When Jack Ames fled the choking sprawl of his dystopian homeworld, he never meant to crash-land in the Berserker Corps—the galaxy's deadliest mercenary outfit. But he found a new home. Strapped into a 135-ton gravtank or leading a power-suited grunt platoon, Ames is a tactical savant and a fearless warrior, turning battlefields into his personal canvas of chaos. Off-duty, his benders and bedroom conquests are the stuff of Corps legend, rivaled only by the cataclysmic hangovers the morning after.

Trouble is, Ames sucks at blind obedience. Clueless officers, light-years from the shrapnel storm, bark orders that bleed good soldiers dry fast. So he shreds the playbook, launching audacious, seat-of-the-pants maneuvers that snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. His troopers hail him as a hero; the top brass brands him a cancer, stripping rank, slamming cell doors, and shuffling him through endless reassignments in a haze of court martials and office hours. Through it all, Ames grapples with the mirror: gifted soldier or architect of his own ruin?

The Berserkers want him gone. But Ames fights dirty—on the field and off. Love him or loathe him, demote him or decorate him; he'll get the job done or die trying.

Orders be damned!

From USA Today bestseller Ryan W. Aslesen comes a blistering military sci‑fi novel that plunges readers into the chaos of futuristic warfare, where defiance can be as deadly as the enemy's guns.

Part of the critically acclaimed Berserkers series, Orders Be Damned is a riveting standalone novel set in the gritty War's Edge universe. Each book in the series is written so listeners can dive into the action at any point. If you're a fan of Hammer's Slammers , Old Man's War , or Starship Troopers , this is the book for you.

For mature listeners.