BV Larson (David VanDyke) Books in Order
Part ofDavid VanDyke Books in OrderExplore BV Larson and David VanDyke books in order, with shared-series summaries, collaboration notes, reading paths, and clear starting points.
Last updated: July 14, 2026
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BV Larson (David VanDyke) books in publication order
15 books
Swarm
by David VanDyke
2010
Kyle Riggs is abducted by an alien ship and survives its lethal tests, only to learn those aliens are the friendly ones. Earth is dragged into a wider war and forced to build a fleet in a hurry.
Conquest
by David VanDyke
2011
Kyle has broken Earth free of the Macros, and now the machines want him erased. The war expands, the stakes rise again, and humanity finds itself staring at another possible extinction.
Extinction
by David VanDyke
2011
Earth has promised service to the machines, and Kyle Riggs is sent to invade an alien world on their behalf. Suicidal missions, human politics, and Macro demands make a bad year even worse.
Rebellion
by David VanDyke
2011
Kyle Riggs begins to understand the true shape of the war between machines and living races. As Star Force is pushed into uglier battles, loyalty becomes the most dangerous question on the field.
Battle Station
by David VanDyke
2012
The Eden system is finally in humanity's grasp, but Star Force is exhausted and the machine war is far from over. Kyle Riggs goes looking for a lasting answer before the next armada arrives.
Empire
by David VanDyke
2012
Cut off in Eden, Kyle Riggs starts hearing strange, unreliable reports from a suddenly quiet Earth. With enemies gathering and alien alliances shifting, he must decide whom he can still trust.
Annihilation
by David VanDyke
2013
The young human colonies in Eden are taking root, but enemies gather on every side. Kyle Riggs must sort out desperate calls for help, shifting alliances, and growing threats before the whole project is wiped out.
Storm Assault
by David VanDyke
2013
Kyle Riggs turns back toward Earth as Star Force, the Imperials, and the Blues edge toward a three-way war. Revenge, conquest, and survival start looking like the same mission.
Army of One
by David VanDyke
2014
This short Star Force novella follows one nanotized man on a do-or-die mission as machine invaders descend on Earth. It is a focused side story about a future player in the larger war.
Exile
by David VanDyke
2014
Lost far from Earth, Cody Riggs runs into the overwhelming power of the Ancients and finds himself abandoned from every side. To survive, he has to claw his way back into a game rigged against him.
Outcast
by David VanDyke
2014
Fresh from the Academy, Cody Riggs is hurled hundreds of light-years from home aboard the Valiant. Surrounded by hostile aliens and trouble inside his own crew, he is forced into command fast.
The Dead Sun
by David VanDyke
2014
Kyle Riggs has liberated Earth, only to end up sitting uneasily on its throne. As the final war with the machines begins, he must learn who his real allies and enemies have been all along.
Demon Star
by David VanDyke
2015
Cody Riggs flies into a triple-star system where three civilizations are locked in an endless cycle of invasion and survival. Trying to help the wrong side could doom far more than his own crew.
Starship Liberator
by David VanDyke
2017
Derek Straker is a mech assault captain in a grinding interstellar war against the Hok. A mission beyond the front lines promises answers, but the truth behind the conflict is darker than he knows.
Flagship Victory
by David VanDyke
2018
Commodore Straker's young republic faces a two-front war just as mysterious new players enter the game. Fleet battles rage, diplomacy turns slippery, and every ally comes with a question mark.
Series background & context
B. V. Larson and David VanDyke have worked together on several connected military science fiction projects, but the collaborations do not all do the same job. Their books share a taste for fast action, military teams, alien enemies, and decisions made under pressure. The settings, leads, and entry points are different.
The best-known crossover is in Larson's Star Force universe.
VanDyke co-wrote Outcast, Exile, and Demon Star, which continue the larger saga after the first nine books. These novels shift the focus to Cody Riggs, Kyle Riggs's son, as he is pushed far from home and forced to lead in unfamiliar territory. Readers can begin with Swarm for the full Star Force story, or start with Outcast if they want to jump directly into the VanDyke collaboration.
Their other major project is Galactic Liberation. This is its own series, with no homework required from Star Force. Derek Straker and Carla Engels begin as soldiers in the Hundred Worlds' long war against the Hok, only to discover that their side has not told them the whole truth. The books turn into a campaign to free human worlds from the systems controlling them, while Straker's small force deals with mech combat, fleet action, diplomacy, and the problems of building a republic.
Then there is Pax Solis.
This newer series starts close to home, in a future Solar System where Lieutenant Alex "Flex" Callahan flies from the carrier ECS Vanguard. Strange alien probes, a buried threat, and attacks on human colonies pull him into a widening first-contact war. It has the same direct, military-space-opera energy, but its story begins independently of the earlier collaborations.
The common thread is practical people facing overwhelming odds. Larson and VanDyke like pilots, marines, commanders, and reluctant leaders who have to act before they understand the whole picture. Their worlds are full of advanced ships and strange technology, but the immediate problem is usually very human: whom to trust, what to sacrifice, and how to keep a team together when the plan fails.
For a complete shared reading path, begin with Swarm for Star Force, Starship Liberator for Galactic Liberation, or Titan War for Pax Solis. Each is designed to open its own corner of the larger collaboration.
Edited by
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