Fallen Dragon

From science fiction master Peter F. Hamilton comes a standalone novel that is “a fascinating, compulsively readable clash of hardware and ideals”, political intrigue, and space opera at its best (Kirkus Reviews (starred review)).
 
In the distant future, corporations have become sustainable communities with their own militaries, and corporate goals have essentially replaced political ideology. On a youthful, rebellious impulse, Lawrence joined the military of a corporation that he now recognizes to be ruthless and exploitative. His only hope for escape is to earn enough money to buy his place in a better corporation.

When his platoon is sent to a distant colony to quell a local resistance effort, it seems like a stroke of amazing fortune, and Lawrence plans to rob the colony of their fabled gemstone, the Fallen Dragon, to get the money he needs. However, he soon discovers that the Fallen Dragon is not a gemstone at all, but an alien life form that the local colonists have been protecting since it crashed in their area.
 
Now, Lawrence must decide if he will steal the alien to exploit the use of its inherent biotechnical processes — which far exceed anything humans are capable of — or if he will help the Resistance get the alien home.
 
"One of Hamilton's best...undeniably a page-turner." — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
 
For more from Peter F. Hamilton, check out:
 
The Night’s Dawn Trilogy
The Reality Dysfunction
The Neutronium Alchemist
The Naked God