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Titanium Rain is a near future military adventure story about a group of physically enhanced American and British fighter pilots and their missions against an Imperial Chinese government over mainland China. This AudioComics production is an adaptation of the 2010 publication of volume one of a graphic novel series of the same name by Josh Finney. Finney adapted the graphic novel for this multicast performance done in the style of the old-time radio show, complete with multiple actors, top-notch special effects and a soundtrack especially written for this production.

The listener discovers that China has suffered a military coup thanks to their Communist leader being killed by an Islamic terrorist. The general who takes over China proclaims himself to be a new Emperor and starts a de-Westernization of China campaign. When he orders a sneak-attack of several ships in a Japanese harbor with a submarine, World War III begins.

America is winning the war but it has come at a terrible cost when it comes to pilots. Quite simply, America is losing pilots for its new ultra-high tech planes faster than they can replace them. So, the American government has come up with a plan called the Phoenix Squadron. They recruit pilots who almost qualified to fly these planes and give them an injection of nanobots that rewire their nervous systems and make them physically and mentally tougher. They go from being "wash outs" to being the best of the best.

Be warned, Titanium Rain is a story about war and there is a lot of explicit language. The audiobook bounces back and forth from military action to interactions among the pilots on the airbase. Both are very well done and a nice ensemble feel develops.

The action is especially gripping and Finney is not averse to killing off characters, which keeps the drama heightened. This is war, after all, and people die. This enjoyable first installment is a strong foundation for what is intended to be a series of stories about the Phoenix Squadron.

Dale Darlage is a public school teacher and a proud lifelong resident of the Hoosier state. He and his wife are also proud to have passed on a love of books to their children (and to the family dog that knows some books are quite tasty). His reviews on all sorts of books are posted at dwdsreviews.blogspot.com.