Leaving Meridiana

Uncharted #1

by J.A. Mortimore

Everyone knows there are no aliens – so what’s attacking the planet Meridiana?

To save their civilisation, the decision Zaran and Cristal must make will change their lives forever.

Zaran has it all. He’s flight lieutenant on the space cruiser Atria , promised to a woman of impeccable lineage. But the decision he’s being forced to take threatens both his career and his relationship with his mother, Fleet Admiral Nashira.

Cristal is losing her home and her family, and on top of that is faced with a daunting responsibility. Now she finds that the one man who can mend her broken heart is promised to another.

Together, Zaran and Cristal must find a way to save their people. With the planet under attack and the substream closed to them, they have no choice but to risk taking the survivors through the perilous, uncharted depths of space to find a way home.

And if that’s not dangerous enough, someone in the fleet is trying to kill them. Who would jeopardise their chances of getting home?

Enjoy this classic space adventure with a dash of romance.

266 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 21, 2023

About the author

Judith Mortimore is legendary, but isn't admitting what for. She started writing fiction at a young age and has never stopped. She has run UK fan clubs for Star Trek and the A-Team and written in a number of fandoms, predominantly pre-internet. Now retired, she lives in Gloucestershire with two friends, four cats and far too many books. She writes space opera with heart,but is an expert procrastinator so watch this space ...

Reviews

[Kathy Strobos · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great book! It had me hooked and rooting for our main protagonist to both date the woman he loved and to live through all the escapades. The sci fi aspects were so clearly explained that it was easy to follow (which is something I don’t always find when I read sci fi romance) and I felt like I was along on a space escapade! I also really loved the author’s sense of humor. I thought it was hilarious that “blobs” were attacking. I am looking forward to the next book in the series!

[Ben Jeapes · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first in a very promising series of novels that just might owe a lot in concept to Battlestar Galactica (both versions), but which takes the idea and runs in a whole new direction. Following an alien attack on the colony Meridiana, and the shutting down of the substream network (which can essentially be described as the hyperspace jump network, in the common fan lingo), the star cruiser Atria must escort a ragtag fleet by pluslight (i.e. warp speed, faster than light but still much slower than substream) to the nearest world with a substream gate. Which will take ten years - plenty long enough for adventures, a little romance, and a good dose of sfnal speculation about what happens to civilisation and technology when we have it too easy. As the substream network carries you instantly from A to B, our heroes are now in the uncharted space between with no idea of what they will encounter. The aliens disappear quite soon on, but they are sufficiently mysterious that I sincerely hope they will reappear and be resolved by the end of the series.

[Geoff Nelder · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the story although I was disappointed at the sudden denouement. I was eager to see how the humans coped with the blobs and the even bigger space whales (shades of Star Trek IV and The Mandalorian space whales in Star Wars) but the blobs were hardly mentioned after the humans escaped, nor the whales.
I know movies often have spaceships weaving in between asteroids but scientifically it wouldn't happen. Gravity pulls together loose rocks and debris in space. The average distance between the asteroids in the solar system's asteroid belt is over twice the distance between Earth and the Moon! However, this is fiction so lets suspend our belief in science a little more.
I enjoyed the characterisation with the against-the-rules romancing and tensions. Good to see in hard SF.
I’m sure many readers will enjoy this novel.

[Marina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Voor mij is dit boek 3,5 ster. De belofte is er, de uitvoering is wat gehaast in dit boek. Naast een konvooi aan schepen dat vanuit Meridiana moet vluchten via een omweg van jaren door onbekend terrein is er ook een romantisch element dat in dit verhaal voorkomt. Het geheel voelde een beetje gehaast, hopelijk komt dit in een volgend deel goed. Ik proefde wel de druk en angst bij de personages tijdens hun vlucht en de aanvallen van een onbekende entiteit in de ruimte.

[Susan Peak · Rating 3 out of 5]

An engaging, high-stakes and interesting story. The lead characters - Zaran and Cristal - are convincing as is their relationship., and other main characters also mostly come over well. Some secondary characters - even one who plays a key role - are rather one-dimensional. The only real flaw is a tendency to tell rather than show

[Herman Steuernagel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful read from this debut author. I'm excited to see what Mortimore brings to this universe next!
With an intriguing concept, high stakes and well developed characters, Leaving Meridiana is very well written, and perfect for fans of classic science fiction.