Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

Commander Andrews #1

Defense of the Commonwealth

Rate this book
An explosive military science fiction thrill ride from #1 Amazon Bestselling author John Spearman.

A New Technology. A Looming War. A Captain Forged in Battle.
Commander Perseverance Andrews of the Royal Navy is unexpectedly offered command of one of the first five ships in the fleet equipped with revolutionary new impenetrable paraboloid plasma shielding and devastating photon cannons.

This promotion catapults her and a handful of other junior commanders to the forefront of an impending interstellar conflict with the Rodinan Federation and Chinese Republic. Intelligence reports that they're developing the same shielding technology and could strike at any moment.

Andrews and her hand-picked crew must master these advanced systems quickly when the first test comes sooner than anyone expected.

A surprise attack by their enemies throws Andrews into the first battle of this new era. The untested Commonwealth fleet must rely on officer's like Andrews to meet the enemy head on and claim victory.

The Defense of the Commonwealth is a gripping military sci-fi adventure that showcases tactical ingenuity and the unyielding spirit of those who stand on the front lines. Fans of starship combat, strategic warfare, and compelling leadership will be captivated by this thrilling tale.

362 pages, Paperback

Published January 27, 2026

Loading...
Loading...

About the author

John Spearman

45 books52 followers
John Spearman is an award-winning author. In the past, he served a Latin teacher and coach at a prestigious New England boarding school. Before joining the world of academia, Spearman had been a sales and marketing executive for 25 years.

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
145 (51%)
4 stars
99 (35%)
3 stars
25 (8%)
2 stars
6 (2%)
1 star
4 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
1 review
March 22, 2026
Unlike other books from this author, there's so little action. It's all description of action, rather than action itself. The book reads like the author wrote an outline and then fed it to an AI agent to write.

Other books from this author have a very different tone and are much more pleasant to read. I will jto be continuing with this series.
Profile Image for Andrew Baxtrom.
22 reviews2 followers
February 7, 2026
This book has no soul.

The story jumps right in with no character development and no backstory. Without that there was just nothing to draw me in.
Profile Image for Tony Hisgett.
3,071 reviews38 followers
March 22, 2026
I was pleased that the author had continued Perseverance story and in general I enjoyed the story. However I got a bit irritated, actually disappointed, when author resorted to the cliché of the mentally disturbed, incompetent admiral as a storyline.
Then there are issues with the combat and tactics which are poor, but overall I was happy to give the series the benefit of the doubt and I hope there is improvement in the next book.
If possible I would have given 2.5 stars.
66 reviews1 follower
April 13, 2026
Brave new worlds, but same issues

Nicely done, created a new po!itical
and military system in interstellar space! Interesting individual personalities abound, but, the same old failures of diplomacy and civilized conduct plague the settled worlds! Predictable of course and it forms the whole premise of the book! But, depressing nonetheless! Good story, too many players but entertaining!
Profile Image for Edwin.
69 reviews
February 18, 2026
Reads like it was written by a talented high school student during study period. Lots of unnecessary descriptions and a few lackluster battle scenes. Written at what seems to be a 11th grade reading level that stops to define terms like haute couture . Vastly underdeveloped characters and 1 dimensional world views. Maybe it was a short story inflated to fill the pages of a novel. I'm finishing it but won't bother to read subsequent volumes.
688 reviews1 follower
March 31, 2026
Good read.

This book was an interesting read , there was plenty of action and a lot of new development in technology . The ships and weapons have come a long way in a short time and the battle is on to see who can out do the other . This book had a lot going on so you have to pay close attention to what's happening.
48 reviews
March 23, 2026
Opinions

I thoroughly enjoyed this space opera. The story moved right along with likeable characters. I look forward to the next of this series.
6 reviews1 follower
May 10, 2026
A Pleasant Surprise

Love it. I was not familiar with this author so didn’t expect such a complex, realistic, and engaging story. Great world building. Keeps me up at night.
7 reviews
June 15, 2026
weird but intriguing

The English royal family rules the galaxy lol. Very weird and funny premise but oddly enjoyable. The characters are a bit paper thin, but storyline is gripping
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews