[STARRED REVIEW] “When the portals open between 21st-century Earth and a place that looks like Tolkien’s Middle-earth, complete with elves, dwarves, and orcs, armies in every country dig in, throw the monsters back through the portals, and defend the planet by making alliances with creatures out of a Dungeons and Dragons handbook. One hard-bitten marine sergeant and his squad of newbies and nerds are escorting an elven princess to Manhattan when a dragon pushes them back from the gate and into an epic quest through forests, deadly blizzards, and evil-infested abandoned mines in order to reach an artifact (which will save the day or get them all killed), in a place far wilder than any gamer ever imagined. The novel takes military science fiction and throws it into a fantasy blender with John Scalzi’s “Old Man’s War,” S.M. Stirling’s “Emberverse,” and David Drake and Eric Flint’s “Belisarius.” VERDICT The collaboration by Buckell (A Stranger in the Citadel) and debuter Klecha is tons of fun and full of geeky references and in-jokes. Will be catnip to readers who love this combination of military SF, alternate history, and fantasy. ”
—Library Journal

“Tobias S. Buckell and Dave Klecha have crafted a portal fantasy that gleefully asks, ‘What if we sent in the Marines?’ Equal parts grounded and tongue-in-cheek, this swiftly moving military adventure will fit in perfectly before your next D&D campaign.”
—Samantha Mills, author of The Wings Upon Her Back

“What would your Dungeons and Dragons campaign look like if the DM let you choose a squad of U.S. Marines for your characters? Most DMs know better, but Klecha and Buckell have shown us how that adventure might go. Spoiler alert: It will be fun, action-packed, occasionally gritty, and full of jokes for geeks and Marines alike.”
—Jim C. Hines, author of Terminal Alliance

“This rollicking military fantasy follows a squad of Marines trapped in a magical Tolkienesque realm and their quest to return home.”
—Kirkus

“Buckell (A Stranger in the Citadel, 2023) and debut novelist Klecha throw a squad of almost-prepared marines into a fantasy adventure when their mission to escort a princess to the portal back to Central Park on Earth goes wrong. As their base is overrun, the marines launch a rescue mission to find the crashed helicopter holding the wood-elf princess Lady Wíela and return her to any one of the portals that will take her back to Earth. This is complicated by Lady Wíela’s disappearance as soon as they reach a village and simplified by a pair of indigenous figures—a trouble-attracting child, Salia, and a mysterious ranger, Peridot—who help them relocate Lady Wíela and necessary supplies. The geeks on the team, educated on Lords of the Rings, Dungeons & Dragons, and related video games, provide vital knowledge about some of the fantasy creatures they encounter, but even those don’t entirely reflect the reality they’re experiencing. Readers will delight in the nerd-culture references in this military-fantasy romp as the squad discusses Stark Ridge, FOB Vimes, and other landmarks named by the visiting humans.”
—Booklist

“Bestseller Buckell (A Stranger in the Citadel) and debut author Klecha, a former Marine, pair their talents and experiences in an impressive military fantasy adventure that combines Middle Earth lore with U.S. marine mystique. When an interworld portal allows elves, orcs, trolls, and other storybook monsters to wreak havoc on Earth’s cities, a squad of Marines under the command of Staff Sergeant Ray Cale is dispatched across the portal with human coalition forces allied to the wood elves. The task: to escort the elven Lady Wíela to safety from the Corrupted One (“a force of evil and mayhem, ancient and brooding, that had been spreading across the world like a virus”), so she can negotiate an alliance between their worlds. Buckell and Klecha provide thrills a minute as Cale, who faced painful choices in Afghanistan and has only a rudimentary knowledge of Middle Earth, overcomes unearthly challenges with street smart know-how. The authors convincingly develop the personalities of both Cale’s squad and the nonhuman characters while offering genre fans an up-close look at Marine training. It’s an unlikely mash-up, but it works.”
—Publishers Weekly

Readers will delight in the nerd-culture references in this military-fantasy romp as the squad discusses Stark Ridge, FOB Vimes, and other landmarks named by the visiting humans.”
—Booklist

“A story stitched from the greatest late-night dorm room debates. Who would win: Black Hawks versus dragons? Marines versus trolls? All the magic of Tolkien arrayed against the 21st-century American war machine?”
—Brian Staveley, author of The Empire’s Ruin

“As a lifelong fan of both nerdy pursuits and action movies, The Runes of Engagement is exactly what I didn’t know I needed! The Marines are a fun mix of jarhead and scholar (sometimes both in one), and the various characters they encounter—an artsy troll, a mysterious ranger, a suspiciously helpful child who attracts danger—are absolutely the kind of characters I hope to encounter every time I play D&D!”
—Rachel Copeland, Boswell Book Company

“Picture Call of Duty meets World of Warcraft with just a touch of comparative mythology for seasoning.”
—Michael Mammay, author of the Planetside series

“Buckell and Klecha tell their story with so much humour and gusto and so much nerd JOY. It has that Aliens vibe, but with a LOTR twist. The whole idea ‘what happens if marines/soldiers end up fighting fantasy monsters’ is handled so well here. I had a blast reading this book, and would not mind reading a sequel.”
—Maria Haskins, author of Wolves and Girls