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N-Space: Stories, Poems, and Music of the Future
Far in the future, the merchant ships of the Space Trading Commission fleet travel the space lanes- each on journeys of trade and exploration. As the "Phoenix" "falls through a crack in the sky" after completing one of its many "n"-space jumps, First Officer Jana Maines makes an astounding discovery. Jana detects a derelict-a ghost ship from the forgotten past. Believing this to be an opportunity to advance her career and financially help her parents, Jana attempts to convince her captain that they should investigate, but he insists that they remain on course. Just as they are about to depart, however, a signal is received from the ship-and Jana's adventures begin!
A routine resupply run to a lonely desert world becomes complicated when more than one man expresses greater interest in her than her ship's cargo. While on a mission from an ocean world, she desperately tries to find a way to save millions of fish eggs critical to the survival of an entire planet. Her encounters include an astonishingly ancient woman, a wealthy mystic, and a string of crusty, opinionated captains.
In a series of science fiction stories that span the far reaches of the universe, a courageous captain-in-training faces challenges that test her abilities to the limit as she strives to complete her missions.
A routine resupply run to a lonely desert world becomes complicated when more than one man expresses greater interest in her than her ship's cargo. While on a mission from an ocean world, she desperately tries to find a way to save millions of fish eggs critical to the survival of an entire planet. Her encounters include an astonishingly ancient woman, a wealthy mystic, and a string of crusty, opinionated captains.
In a series of science fiction stories that span the far reaches of the universe, a courageous captain-in-training faces challenges that test her abilities to the limit as she strives to complete her missions.
521 pages, Hardcover
First published April 1, 2011
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About the author
Chris Martin
30 booksLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
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December 1, 2011
If it were possible, would you like to see various worlds in space? Jana Maines is a young woman who grew up on the grain-producing terraformed world Ceres but to escape an abusive relationship has joined the Space Trading Coalition as a pilot in training. The book, said to be didactic science fiction written tactfully from a Christian perspective, consists of “Stories, Poems, and Music of the Future.” There are three stories about Jana. In “The Derelict,” Jana is serving as First Officer aboard The Phoenix with Captain Rif Larkin. After completing an n-space jump on their run from carrying a load of copper from Freeman’s World to the metal-poor planet of Katania, Jana discovers a ghost ship from the past. While investigating, she is reminded of an event from her younger days on Ceres that impressed upon her the importance of always telling the truth.
In “The Prophet,” Jana and Captain Tred Lowe take The Pride of Europa with a load of routine supply cargo to Tachon III, a lonely desert world. She becomes the object of interest on the part of more than one man, including the young Port Authority Officer Harlin Herzog, and the mysterious “Prophet” who lives in the mountains. In “The Two-Hundred Million That Almost Got Away,” Jana and Captain Fesner in the Aegis pick up a cargo of tilapia eggs in a cryogenic state from the tropical world of Oceanus III for transport to the developing planet Blueworld. While on Oceanus she strikes up a friendship with dispatcher Bo Nylen, much to the chagrin of Fesner. Then on the way to Blueworld, she must try to find a way to keep the eggs from getting too warm and being destroyed due to a malfunction in the electrical system. This is made more difficult due to the adversarial relationship that has developed between her and the captain. Will these events keep her from being recommended for a command position?
For many of my generation who were raised on Lost in Space and Star Trek and many of my children’s generation who grew up with Star Wars and Battlestar Gallactica, the concept of travelling through space and visiting different planets is “fascinating” (to quote Mr. Spock). Unfortunately, a lot of the science fiction literature of this nature comes from a thoroughly humanistic background, so it’s nice to read a futuristic space travel novel that presents a Biblical worldview. n-Space is divided into four parts. After the three stories about Jana, a poetry section contains several sagas with background material describing the universe of Jana Maines and some of the details of her early life. The “Technical Notes” section follows, giving explanations of interest to any “techies” who might want to know more about the scientific terms and concepts used in the stories. Finally, music is given to a couple of songs found in the book. There is really nothing objectionable, but with a single reference to prostitution, which Jana certainly opposes, and a few other situations that are more applicable to adults, it is probably not for small children. However, I deeply appreciate Jana’s example of standing up for her faith, resisting worldly temptations, and maintaining self-control in the face of provocation. The book is well written and quite exciting to read.
In “The Prophet,” Jana and Captain Tred Lowe take The Pride of Europa with a load of routine supply cargo to Tachon III, a lonely desert world. She becomes the object of interest on the part of more than one man, including the young Port Authority Officer Harlin Herzog, and the mysterious “Prophet” who lives in the mountains. In “The Two-Hundred Million That Almost Got Away,” Jana and Captain Fesner in the Aegis pick up a cargo of tilapia eggs in a cryogenic state from the tropical world of Oceanus III for transport to the developing planet Blueworld. While on Oceanus she strikes up a friendship with dispatcher Bo Nylen, much to the chagrin of Fesner. Then on the way to Blueworld, she must try to find a way to keep the eggs from getting too warm and being destroyed due to a malfunction in the electrical system. This is made more difficult due to the adversarial relationship that has developed between her and the captain. Will these events keep her from being recommended for a command position?
For many of my generation who were raised on Lost in Space and Star Trek and many of my children’s generation who grew up with Star Wars and Battlestar Gallactica, the concept of travelling through space and visiting different planets is “fascinating” (to quote Mr. Spock). Unfortunately, a lot of the science fiction literature of this nature comes from a thoroughly humanistic background, so it’s nice to read a futuristic space travel novel that presents a Biblical worldview. n-Space is divided into four parts. After the three stories about Jana, a poetry section contains several sagas with background material describing the universe of Jana Maines and some of the details of her early life. The “Technical Notes” section follows, giving explanations of interest to any “techies” who might want to know more about the scientific terms and concepts used in the stories. Finally, music is given to a couple of songs found in the book. There is really nothing objectionable, but with a single reference to prostitution, which Jana certainly opposes, and a few other situations that are more applicable to adults, it is probably not for small children. However, I deeply appreciate Jana’s example of standing up for her faith, resisting worldly temptations, and maintaining self-control in the face of provocation. The book is well written and quite exciting to read.
Displaying 1 of 1 review