What do you think?
Rate this book
The Jupiter Theft
The Lunar Observatory on earth is picking up a very strange and unidentifiable signal from the direction of Cygnus. When the meaning of this signal is finally understood, it clearly spells disaster for earth. An immense object is rushing towards the Solar System, travelling nearly at the speed of light, its intense nuclear radiation is sure to kill all life on earth within months. As it moves close the humans can discern that it is an enormous convoy of some sort, nearly as large as a planet. And there is nothing anyone can do to divert such an enormous alien object. Then, unexpectedly, the object changes course and heads toward the dead planet of Jupiter but what could an enormous alien convoy want with such a useless planet?
375 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1977
54 people are currently reading
318 people want to read
About the author
Donald Moffitt
23 books27 followersDonald Moffitt was born in Boston and now lives in rural Maine with his wife, Ann, a native of Connecticut. A former public relations executive, industrial filmmaker, and ghostwriter, he has been writing fiction on and off for more than twenty years under an assortment of pen names, including his own, chiefly espionage novels and adventure stories in international settings. His first full-length science-fiction novel and the first book of any genre to be published under his own name was The Jupiter Theft (Del Rey, 1977).
"One of the rewards of being a public relations man specializing in the technical end of large corporate accounts," he says, "was being allowed to hang around on the fringes of research being done in such widely disparate fields as computer technology, high-energy physics, the manned space program, polymer chemistry, parasitology, and virology—even, on a number of happy occasions, being pressed into service as an unpaid lab assistant."
He became an enthusiastic addict of science fiction during the Golden Era, when Martians were red, Venusians green, Mercurians yellow, and "Jovian Dawn Men" always blue. He survived to see the medium become respectable and is cheered by recent signs that the fun is coming back to sf.
"One of the rewards of being a public relations man specializing in the technical end of large corporate accounts," he says, "was being allowed to hang around on the fringes of research being done in such widely disparate fields as computer technology, high-energy physics, the manned space program, polymer chemistry, parasitology, and virology—even, on a number of happy occasions, being pressed into service as an unpaid lab assistant."
He became an enthusiastic addict of science fiction during the Golden Era, when Martians were red, Venusians green, Mercurians yellow, and "Jovian Dawn Men" always blue. He survived to see the medium become respectable and is cheered by recent signs that the fun is coming back to sf.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
March 20, 2014
This is a very solid and well-written hard s-f novel from the seventies, which has largely been ignored since, perhaps in part due to the lousy title. The title might cause you to think it was a space opera heist story of some kind, rather than scientifically rigorous sci fi. Moffitt is not a trained scientist, however he managed to make predictions which, by and large, do not seem dated almost forty years later. That’s not to say that he predicted i-phones or goodreads, but within the range of technologies he imagined for the mid-twenty-first century, there are few which seem dated now, and many which appear quite prescient, including tablet computers and robot listening devices (drones). His aliens also come across as genuinely original, not as carbon-copies of human beings with a few odd characteristics, and he has given considerable thought to the linguistics of communicating with a species with entirely different vocal arrangements.
I don’t usually spend a lot of time worrying about “spoilers” in my reviews – I figure if you’re reading a book review, you want to know what the book is about. In this case, however, I’m inclined to leave out a lot of the details, because I won’t be able to describe them as interestingly as Moffitt does, and you’ll get more out of seeing his scientific explanations than my re-telling of them. The cover of the book gives a little bit away, however: “The enormous alien convoy was a world unto itself – what could it possibly want from a lifeless planet?” That, plus the title, sets you up at least for the first part of this book.
The book begins very similarly to The Black Cloud, so much so that I suspect it of being a deliberate homage. A few astronomers detect something coming towards our system, and quickly recognize that it is extremely dangerous, possibly capable of destroying all life, on its current trajectory and speed. However, it soon baffles everyone by changing speed and making course corrections. This is the point where Moffitt starts to go his own direction. The object comes from roughly the same part of the sky as Cygnus, and so is dubbed “Cygnan,” and as the blurb suggests it is actually a group of alien ships with a very unique (and still plausible) propulsion system. The convoy parks itself around Jupiter and a human mission is sent to investigate.
Moffitt is very good at “story engineering,” as well as giving precise technical descriptions, a combination that is relatively rare (given a choice, I’d rather have good science than good stories, but I appreciate the combination when it occurs). The plot contains many suspenseful cliffhangers and nail-biters, and the timing of them is perfectly attuned to keep the reader hanging on and wondering how he will resolve this or that issue. Where he seems a bit weaker, at least in this first book, is characterization. Many of the human characters are largely one- or two-dimensional and interchangeable with one another. He had two young women characters named “Maggie” and “Maybury,” and I found it almost impossible to distinguish them right up to the end. At the least, the women in this book were professionals and technicians, not just love/sex-interests for the males, and they actually did things to further the plot. The main character is a solid hero, but not terribly interesting. The technology and alien characters are where a lot of color comes in. One other minor nit-picky point is that I didn’t think his geo-political predictions held up as well as his technological and scientific ones.
The final point I’d make is that as much as I enjoyed it, the ending more or less decided that I couldn’t give it that fifth star. It’s a satisfactory ending, but it leaves a few threads untied and it also fails ultimately to justify the entire book as a discussion of the human condition. It’s very hard to express why without going into “spoilers,” but the book loses its sense of purpose in the final pages and just seems to end because Moffitt was out of ideas. Despite this, it was a genuinely enjoyable read, and something sci fi fans should take the time to rediscover.
I don’t usually spend a lot of time worrying about “spoilers” in my reviews – I figure if you’re reading a book review, you want to know what the book is about. In this case, however, I’m inclined to leave out a lot of the details, because I won’t be able to describe them as interestingly as Moffitt does, and you’ll get more out of seeing his scientific explanations than my re-telling of them. The cover of the book gives a little bit away, however: “The enormous alien convoy was a world unto itself – what could it possibly want from a lifeless planet?” That, plus the title, sets you up at least for the first part of this book.
The book begins very similarly to The Black Cloud, so much so that I suspect it of being a deliberate homage. A few astronomers detect something coming towards our system, and quickly recognize that it is extremely dangerous, possibly capable of destroying all life, on its current trajectory and speed. However, it soon baffles everyone by changing speed and making course corrections. This is the point where Moffitt starts to go his own direction. The object comes from roughly the same part of the sky as Cygnus, and so is dubbed “Cygnan,” and as the blurb suggests it is actually a group of alien ships with a very unique (and still plausible) propulsion system. The convoy parks itself around Jupiter and a human mission is sent to investigate.
Moffitt is very good at “story engineering,” as well as giving precise technical descriptions, a combination that is relatively rare (given a choice, I’d rather have good science than good stories, but I appreciate the combination when it occurs). The plot contains many suspenseful cliffhangers and nail-biters, and the timing of them is perfectly attuned to keep the reader hanging on and wondering how he will resolve this or that issue. Where he seems a bit weaker, at least in this first book, is characterization. Many of the human characters are largely one- or two-dimensional and interchangeable with one another. He had two young women characters named “Maggie” and “Maybury,” and I found it almost impossible to distinguish them right up to the end. At the least, the women in this book were professionals and technicians, not just love/sex-interests for the males, and they actually did things to further the plot. The main character is a solid hero, but not terribly interesting. The technology and alien characters are where a lot of color comes in. One other minor nit-picky point is that I didn’t think his geo-political predictions held up as well as his technological and scientific ones.
The final point I’d make is that as much as I enjoyed it, the ending more or less decided that I couldn’t give it that fifth star. It’s a satisfactory ending, but it leaves a few threads untied and it also fails ultimately to justify the entire book as a discussion of the human condition. It’s very hard to express why without going into “spoilers,” but the book loses its sense of purpose in the final pages and just seems to end because Moffitt was out of ideas. Despite this, it was a genuinely enjoyable read, and something sci fi fans should take the time to rediscover.
October 21, 2016
Fun science-fiction novel that pulled me in with elements of space opera (risky missions! narrow escapes! freaky aliens!), hard-science sci-fi (plausible artificial gravity limitations! freaky alien biology!) and political maneuvering... in space! Published in the 70's, Moffitt's vision of the future now has odd elements of alternate history as well, for someone reading it in 2016.
I'm always happy when a novel presents an alien race that is, well, genuinely alien, and the ones in this book fit that bill. Their biology, society, technology, and means of communication make their cryptic attitude towards humans plausible yet still disturbing.
The book does suffer a little from one of my sci-fi peeves -- characters explaining things to each other. But here it makes a certain amount of sense, as the humans try to deduce the nature and intentions of the aliens with incomplete information.
I'm always happy when a novel presents an alien race that is, well, genuinely alien, and the ones in this book fit that bill. Their biology, society, technology, and means of communication make their cryptic attitude towards humans plausible yet still disturbing.
The book does suffer a little from one of my sci-fi peeves -- characters explaining things to each other. But here it makes a certain amount of sense, as the humans try to deduce the nature and intentions of the aliens with incomplete information.
September 20, 2022
A big surprise. Inventive, compelling, hard to put down, and, like many potential masterpieces, only marred by a pat, too-happy ending. I will definitely search out more by this author, however (if it exists).
February 9, 2012
I admit it. This book is guilty of having clunky characterization, and it's not a great soul-rending exploration of the human psyche. But it deserves classic status within the genre. Here is a premise as incredible as the best of Clarke or Niven, and an alien species both strange compelling. I need nothing more
September 11, 2023
Solid. It isn't trying to reinvent science fiction, or even do anything particularly original, but it does what it wants to do, reasonably well.
In the not-quite-far but not-quite-near future, China has surpassed Russia as the force of world communism, and the U.S. has suffered secession and civil war, becoming totalitarian as it reintegrates itself, and annexes Canada and Mexico (somebody, please locate Moffitt's crystal ball ASAP). Just as a joint American/Chinese mission to Jupiter is readying to launch, a massive object travelling near lightspeed is seen parking itself in Jupiter's orbit. And yes, it's here to steal Jupiter.
The Jupiter Theft takes its time getting to the good stuff. Something like a quarter of the book is spent in the leadup to the Jupiter mission leaving, as observations of the approaching object trickle in, and showing off life in a strangely changed America. These segments are a little puzzling, because I couldn't discern any obvious message Moffitt was trying to push with his totalitarian America, except that the U.S. and communist China end up not being so different. I think it might just be a sincere attempt to extrapolate into the future.
The meat of the story is first contact with the Cygnans, here for a pitstop to steal Jupiter. There's a lot of cool stuff going on, technologically and biologically. The Cygnans have a more detailed than usual evolutionary history contributing to their morphology, even managing to pack something of a twist into their reproductive system. The technological ideas are huge scale and extremely cool, with 15 mile long generation ships being the small part of their astrological engineering (sadly, it seems the conceit of them using relativistic mass to move planets wouldn't work, since relativistic mass was only a ever a poorly named pedagogical concept, that doesn't affect gravitation the way its name would imply). Luckily reality has never been a barrier to coolness in scifi.
Great entry in Barlowe's Guide, with Barlowe giving the limbs and "tail" petals semi-triangular cross-sections, and some slight segmentation in the torso. The limbs look appropriately weak for how they're described in the story, but he makes the tail look almost like three legs, when it's never used that way in the story. The parasite is also described as being more camouflaged in the story, but I can see why he wouldn't want to draw it and not have people notice it.
In the not-quite-far but not-quite-near future, China has surpassed Russia as the force of world communism, and the U.S. has suffered secession and civil war, becoming totalitarian as it reintegrates itself, and annexes Canada and Mexico (somebody, please locate Moffitt's crystal ball ASAP). Just as a joint American/Chinese mission to Jupiter is readying to launch, a massive object travelling near lightspeed is seen parking itself in Jupiter's orbit. And yes, it's here to steal Jupiter.
The Jupiter Theft takes its time getting to the good stuff. Something like a quarter of the book is spent in the leadup to the Jupiter mission leaving, as observations of the approaching object trickle in, and showing off life in a strangely changed America. These segments are a little puzzling, because I couldn't discern any obvious message Moffitt was trying to push with his totalitarian America, except that the U.S. and communist China end up not being so different. I think it might just be a sincere attempt to extrapolate into the future.
The meat of the story is first contact with the Cygnans, here for a pitstop to steal Jupiter. There's a lot of cool stuff going on, technologically and biologically. The Cygnans have a more detailed than usual evolutionary history contributing to their morphology, even managing to pack something of a twist into their reproductive system. The technological ideas are huge scale and extremely cool, with 15 mile long generation ships being the small part of their astrological engineering (sadly, it seems the conceit of them using relativistic mass to move planets wouldn't work, since relativistic mass was only a ever a poorly named pedagogical concept, that doesn't affect gravitation the way its name would imply). Luckily reality has never been a barrier to coolness in scifi.
Great entry in Barlowe's Guide, with Barlowe giving the limbs and "tail" petals semi-triangular cross-sections, and some slight segmentation in the torso. The limbs look appropriately weak for how they're described in the story, but he makes the tail look almost like three legs, when it's never used that way in the story. The parasite is also described as being more camouflaged in the story, but I can see why he wouldn't want to draw it and not have people notice it.
January 15, 2019
[MULTIPLE SPOILERS DISCUSSED, PROCEED WITH CAUTION]
Ok so this is, overall, a good fun sci-fi romp which introduces some genuinely interesting alien life and major-scale science, and it's cool that, even though the plot revolves around the destruction of our solar system's biggest planet, the overall vibe is still upbeat and optimistic.
The book does fall down a bit for me though. Part of it is entirely personal because it was maybe the third book in a row I'd read where Jupiter gets destroyed. Not sure if this is a surprisingly common sci-fi plot element or just an extremely unlikely coincidence, but it was a bit grating. It's obviously going to be hard for a book to keep you completely onside when you're in the frankly-ludicrous mindset of feeling sorry for gas giant, but there we have it
But the main issue that really got to me is one that means I struggle with a lot of sci-fi, classic or modern. A great deal of it seems, to me, to lead with the cool science idea, then add the human characters later, almost as an afterthought, or even as a necessary evil to 'justify' the science stuff the author really wants to talk about.
This often results in characters that come across as shallow or poorly developed, or saying and doing things that no actual human would ever say/do. Because the author isn't too concerned with them, they're just means to an end. This causes serious derailment of suspension of disbelief, especially since the characters are basically what drives every story. It really takes me out of the book when it happens.
And it happens in TJT quite a lot. The most glaring one is as follows. Towards the end, the large group of astronauts that had been sent to Jupiter to investigate, have been captured and are being held captive in the alien zoo, where they keep samples of creatures that inhabited the planets and systems they visited/destroyed. Our main protagonists aren't captured, they're trying to save the day so to speak, but they find the captive humans.
The captive astronauts have decided to travel with the aliens, so they can explore the galaxy, which is nice of them. But they've all been left naked and unprovisioned because the aliens, who aren't evil exactly, don't realise what humans need. A primitive way of speaking to the aliens has been worked out, and the nominal head of the captured group asks the protagonists to find and tell the aliens they're happy to go with them, but need supplies.
The line is something like "Tell them we need food, water, clothing, birth control..."
And that took me right out of it. Birth control?!?! A group of *qualified astronauts* are captured on an alien spacecraft, naked, reduced to the status of zoo exhibits, know for sure they won't see Earth ever again, have maybe one chance to get a message to their quasi-captors, and their priority is to make sure they can have casual sex without worrying?
This would be ridiculous enough by itself, but a major plot point of the story is one where weird parasitic growths on the aliens are revealed to be the males of the species, mindless symbiotes who provide essential substances as well as fertility as and when needed.
Basically, these aliens have *no concept of sex*, casual or otherwise. Exactly how the heroes are supposed to use their very limited alien vocabulary knowledge to explain what birth control is and why it's needed, is anyone's guess.
The idea that experienced astronauts would do this just threw a total spanner in the works for me. Others may not feel the same, and that's fine, but this is my review and I felt it needed saying.
Ok so this is, overall, a good fun sci-fi romp which introduces some genuinely interesting alien life and major-scale science, and it's cool that, even though the plot revolves around the destruction of our solar system's biggest planet, the overall vibe is still upbeat and optimistic.
The book does fall down a bit for me though. Part of it is entirely personal because it was maybe the third book in a row I'd read where Jupiter gets destroyed. Not sure if this is a surprisingly common sci-fi plot element or just an extremely unlikely coincidence, but it was a bit grating. It's obviously going to be hard for a book to keep you completely onside when you're in the frankly-ludicrous mindset of feeling sorry for gas giant, but there we have it
But the main issue that really got to me is one that means I struggle with a lot of sci-fi, classic or modern. A great deal of it seems, to me, to lead with the cool science idea, then add the human characters later, almost as an afterthought, or even as a necessary evil to 'justify' the science stuff the author really wants to talk about.
This often results in characters that come across as shallow or poorly developed, or saying and doing things that no actual human would ever say/do. Because the author isn't too concerned with them, they're just means to an end. This causes serious derailment of suspension of disbelief, especially since the characters are basically what drives every story. It really takes me out of the book when it happens.
And it happens in TJT quite a lot. The most glaring one is as follows. Towards the end, the large group of astronauts that had been sent to Jupiter to investigate, have been captured and are being held captive in the alien zoo, where they keep samples of creatures that inhabited the planets and systems they visited/destroyed. Our main protagonists aren't captured, they're trying to save the day so to speak, but they find the captive humans.
The captive astronauts have decided to travel with the aliens, so they can explore the galaxy, which is nice of them. But they've all been left naked and unprovisioned because the aliens, who aren't evil exactly, don't realise what humans need. A primitive way of speaking to the aliens has been worked out, and the nominal head of the captured group asks the protagonists to find and tell the aliens they're happy to go with them, but need supplies.
The line is something like "Tell them we need food, water, clothing, birth control..."
And that took me right out of it. Birth control?!?! A group of *qualified astronauts* are captured on an alien spacecraft, naked, reduced to the status of zoo exhibits, know for sure they won't see Earth ever again, have maybe one chance to get a message to their quasi-captors, and their priority is to make sure they can have casual sex without worrying?
This would be ridiculous enough by itself, but a major plot point of the story is one where weird parasitic growths on the aliens are revealed to be the males of the species, mindless symbiotes who provide essential substances as well as fertility as and when needed.
Basically, these aliens have *no concept of sex*, casual or otherwise. Exactly how the heroes are supposed to use their very limited alien vocabulary knowledge to explain what birth control is and why it's needed, is anyone's guess.
The idea that experienced astronauts would do this just threw a total spanner in the works for me. Others may not feel the same, and that's fine, but this is my review and I felt it needed saying.
October 1, 2023
De Planeten Rovers, geschreven door Donald Moffit
ISBN 90 290 1491 1
Vertaling door Annemarie Kindt
Omslag Chris Foss
Copyright Nederlandse vertaling 1979 door Meulenhoff SF, nummer 152.
Copyright 1977 by Donald Moffit.
Start 6/9-2023
Finish 20/9-2023
Er wordt een stralingsbron ontdekt in het sterrenbeeld Zwaan en deze stralingsbron beweegt zich naar ons zonnestelsel. De gemeten straling is zo hoog dat de verwachting is dat al het leven op de aarde vernietigd zal worden. De stralingsbron remt echter af en komt in een baan rondom Jupiter.
Vanaf de aarde wordt een ruimtemissie opgestart waarbij de Amerikanen zorgen van de aandrijving van het Jupiterschip en de Chinezen voor de constructie. Alle functies van de bemanningsleden zijn dubbel en worden door zowel een Amerikaan als een Chinees ingevuld. Er heerst een precair evenwicht tussen de Chinezen en de Amerikanen tijdens de bouw van het Jupiterschip (en de Callisto-lander).
Voor mij ****.
Hieronder een korte opgave van de karakters welke voorkomen in dit boek, waar ik er vast een aantal van vergeten ben te noteren.
Maanbasis Achterop, gesitueerd in het Korolov Bekken:
Kerry, Aspirant Astronoom.
Mizz Chirl Maybury, Astronoom en Tech (technician) van dienst.
Dr. Herando Ruiz, directeur van de Maanbasis.
Dr. Chevchenko.
Dr. Horace Mackie, Hoofdastronomm van de Sagan-koepel.
Dr. Larabee, directeur van het Marsstation.
Internationaal Ruimtestation, de voorbereiding voor een gezamenlijke Jupitermissie:
Overste Tod Jameson, commander van de Callisto-lander.
Li Cheng-Yung, Co-commander van de Callisto-lander.
Sue Jarowski, Verbindingsofficier.
Grogan, lid van de reparatieploeg.
Ray Caffrey, Veiligheidsdienst.
Mike Berry, Fusie-specialist.
Omar Turtle, Geoloog.
Dimitri Galkin, assistent Bioloog en Leefsystemen Tech.
Kapitien-Luitenant Jameson, Officier van de Betrouwbaarheidscommissie.
Maggie McInnes, Computer Tech.
Kiernan, Hydroponicus.
Het Jupiterschip:
Kapitein Boyle, Captain.
Kay Thorwald, tweede officier.
Dr. Brough, Scheepsdokter.
Kapitein Hsieh. Chinese Captain.
Yeh Fei, eerste officier.
Emmet Klein, Fourier.
Chia Lan-Ying, Chinese Fourier.
Jack Gifford, Ruimtesonde Tech.
Beth oliver, Hoofd-scheikundige.
Sorg, nieuwe assistent van Mizz Maybury.
Majoor Dexter B. Hollis, bevelvoerend officier van de Nucleaire aanvalseenheid Lambda 1.
Dr. Chu, Astronoom.
Piere, Astronoom.
Het Buitenaardse ruimteschip:
Drieklank en Tetracord, Cygniërs
Overmaat, verzorger.
De Aarde:
Harrison Richards, directeur van het Ruimteprogramma.
Fred van Eyck, Assistent-directeur van het Ruimteprogramma.
ISBN 90 290 1491 1
Vertaling door Annemarie Kindt
Omslag Chris Foss
Copyright Nederlandse vertaling 1979 door Meulenhoff SF, nummer 152.
Copyright 1977 by Donald Moffit.
Start 6/9-2023
Finish 20/9-2023
Er wordt een stralingsbron ontdekt in het sterrenbeeld Zwaan en deze stralingsbron beweegt zich naar ons zonnestelsel. De gemeten straling is zo hoog dat de verwachting is dat al het leven op de aarde vernietigd zal worden. De stralingsbron remt echter af en komt in een baan rondom Jupiter.
Vanaf de aarde wordt een ruimtemissie opgestart waarbij de Amerikanen zorgen van de aandrijving van het Jupiterschip en de Chinezen voor de constructie. Alle functies van de bemanningsleden zijn dubbel en worden door zowel een Amerikaan als een Chinees ingevuld. Er heerst een precair evenwicht tussen de Chinezen en de Amerikanen tijdens de bouw van het Jupiterschip (en de Callisto-lander).
Voor mij ****.
Hieronder een korte opgave van de karakters welke voorkomen in dit boek, waar ik er vast een aantal van vergeten ben te noteren.
Maanbasis Achterop, gesitueerd in het Korolov Bekken:
Kerry, Aspirant Astronoom.
Mizz Chirl Maybury, Astronoom en Tech (technician) van dienst.
Dr. Herando Ruiz, directeur van de Maanbasis.
Dr. Chevchenko.
Dr. Horace Mackie, Hoofdastronomm van de Sagan-koepel.
Dr. Larabee, directeur van het Marsstation.
Internationaal Ruimtestation, de voorbereiding voor een gezamenlijke Jupitermissie:
Overste Tod Jameson, commander van de Callisto-lander.
Li Cheng-Yung, Co-commander van de Callisto-lander.
Sue Jarowski, Verbindingsofficier.
Grogan, lid van de reparatieploeg.
Ray Caffrey, Veiligheidsdienst.
Mike Berry, Fusie-specialist.
Omar Turtle, Geoloog.
Dimitri Galkin, assistent Bioloog en Leefsystemen Tech.
Kapitien-Luitenant Jameson, Officier van de Betrouwbaarheidscommissie.
Maggie McInnes, Computer Tech.
Kiernan, Hydroponicus.
Het Jupiterschip:
Kapitein Boyle, Captain.
Kay Thorwald, tweede officier.
Dr. Brough, Scheepsdokter.
Kapitein Hsieh. Chinese Captain.
Yeh Fei, eerste officier.
Emmet Klein, Fourier.
Chia Lan-Ying, Chinese Fourier.
Jack Gifford, Ruimtesonde Tech.
Beth oliver, Hoofd-scheikundige.
Sorg, nieuwe assistent van Mizz Maybury.
Majoor Dexter B. Hollis, bevelvoerend officier van de Nucleaire aanvalseenheid Lambda 1.
Dr. Chu, Astronoom.
Piere, Astronoom.
Het Buitenaardse ruimteschip:
Drieklank en Tetracord, Cygniërs
Overmaat, verzorger.
De Aarde:
Harrison Richards, directeur van het Ruimteprogramma.
Fred van Eyck, Assistent-directeur van het Ruimteprogramma.
July 10, 2017
Maybe 3.5 stars. Lots of science ficiton elements. Unique central premise. Not so much for character-oriented readers.
Spoilers below
The central concept is an alien society which is using gas giant planets as fuel for interstellar travel. They stop at our solar system to "refill their gas tank" by preparing their process to enlist Jupiter as their fuel for the next leg of their journey. As the aliens approach the solar system, their deceleration from near-light-speed creates an x-ray source noticed by human astronomers. A human space mission intended to study Jupiter goes to investigate. From there, a considerable part of the story is about most of the human crew being treated like zoo animals, how crew factions fight over what to do, and the crew's concerns if the exit of Jupiter from the solar system will harm Earth. Plausibility is stretched by one crew member being treated differently - who just happens to have perfect pitch and is capable of re-programming a conveniently available moog organ to be able to communicate with two aliens...
Spoilers below
The central concept is an alien society which is using gas giant planets as fuel for interstellar travel. They stop at our solar system to "refill their gas tank" by preparing their process to enlist Jupiter as their fuel for the next leg of their journey. As the aliens approach the solar system, their deceleration from near-light-speed creates an x-ray source noticed by human astronomers. A human space mission intended to study Jupiter goes to investigate. From there, a considerable part of the story is about most of the human crew being treated like zoo animals, how crew factions fight over what to do, and the crew's concerns if the exit of Jupiter from the solar system will harm Earth. Plausibility is stretched by one crew member being treated differently - who just happens to have perfect pitch and is capable of re-programming a conveniently available moog organ to be able to communicate with two aliens...
July 14, 2018
This is a fun little book full of lots of hard science (or some real solid attempts at it), traditional SF characters, some backstabbing, a hero and a liberal dose of Red Scare.
The story centers around a human expedition to Jupiter that ends up being rerouted because of surprise visitors from outside our solar system. First Contact ensues and the reader is taken on a journey through their massive interstellar craft, given a detailed exposition of their anatomy, science and language, and then finally shown what their goal is. Throw in some man versus man subplots and you have yourself a fun read.
Oddly enough, the thing I liked most about this book was that the women weren't all 10's, as is common in SF. Annoyingly, though, the women tended to be the only characters whose physical characteristics were described at all (other than the square jaw of a man, for example), but the fact they weren't stereotypically beautiful was a nice change.
The story centers around a human expedition to Jupiter that ends up being rerouted because of surprise visitors from outside our solar system. First Contact ensues and the reader is taken on a journey through their massive interstellar craft, given a detailed exposition of their anatomy, science and language, and then finally shown what their goal is. Throw in some man versus man subplots and you have yourself a fun read.
Oddly enough, the thing I liked most about this book was that the women weren't all 10's, as is common in SF. Annoyingly, though, the women tended to be the only characters whose physical characteristics were described at all (other than the square jaw of a man, for example), but the fact they weren't stereotypically beautiful was a nice change.
December 6, 2018
Rating this book was harder than I expected. It was hard to weigh up overall: On one hand the dystopian future is rich and interesting on the other this gets completely ignored in the surprise optimistic ending. On one hand the physics is simply beautiful and makes amazing use of relativity on the other this gets really bogged down and over explained. On one hand the alien biology is detailed and original on the other a pair of deus ex machina aliens turn up when needed to speed up the plot. On one hand the characters each get their own backgrounds and motivations on the other they are all utterly forgettable and hard to keep track of. See what I mean? There is a lot to like for hard sci fi fans it just seems to set high standards and then fall short of them. Strangely there is such a richness of ideas it is a shame they were not explained over several stories rather than all crammed into one.
July 30, 2022
Aliens arrive in megastructure ships, with plans to steal Jupiter as fuel for their huge-scale ramjets. And, by the way, they don't care about humans and might kill us with the X-ray ramjet emissions. And, oh, they're kidnapping the investigation party sent out from Earth.
The plot could be told well. Unfortunately, I don't think the author's done it. The characters aren't painted with multiple dimensions and don't grab my sympathies. What's more, human society (in this near-term future setting) is painted with such miserable colors of totalitarian government that my emotions almost want to say it isn't worth saving. (To my disappointment, the author doesn't deal with that plothook well.)
I did finish the book. There are some nice moments, but I wouldn't recommend it.
The plot could be told well. Unfortunately, I don't think the author's done it. The characters aren't painted with multiple dimensions and don't grab my sympathies. What's more, human society (in this near-term future setting) is painted with such miserable colors of totalitarian government that my emotions almost want to say it isn't worth saving. (To my disappointment, the author doesn't deal with that plothook well.)
I did finish the book. There are some nice moments, but I wouldn't recommend it.
June 1, 2020
An astronomer would love this book; too much detail for me.
This book was a little bit too much ; there were a lot of things that didn't make sense, especially when the aliens showed up. About the only thing that did make sense was the fact that there were government agents spying on the scientists aboard the Jupiter spaceship and they were willing to "nuke" whole planets of people including some of their fellow space travelers.
This book was a little bit too much ; there were a lot of things that didn't make sense, especially when the aliens showed up. About the only thing that did make sense was the fact that there were government agents spying on the scientists aboard the Jupiter spaceship and they were willing to "nuke" whole planets of people including some of their fellow space travelers.
September 28, 2021
A really interesting book. When I read SF, I'm looking for big ideas and action, not so much character development and relationship subtleties. So this was right up my alley.
Long detailed discussions on relativistic physics and exobiology.
Plenty of action.
The politics of US and China relationships are kind of dated since the book was written in the late 1970s.
I also think it was a bit long.
So I recommend it.
Long detailed discussions on relativistic physics and exobiology.
Plenty of action.
The politics of US and China relationships are kind of dated since the book was written in the late 1970s.
I also think it was a bit long.
So I recommend it.
December 28, 2020
This is a space opera, pure and simple.
The aliens are friggin awesome, and quite believably alien.
A lot of the book shows its age, but there's interesting things like trying to describe the weird dance music of the future (slipbeats?) that just draw you in and take you along for a gung ho mystery adventure.
It's really worth the trip.
The aliens are friggin awesome, and quite believably alien.
A lot of the book shows its age, but there's interesting things like trying to describe the weird dance music of the future (slipbeats?) that just draw you in and take you along for a gung ho mystery adventure.
It's really worth the trip.
June 10, 2020
Science fiction has come a long way since this book was written. I picked it up on Amazon on free book day. It was still pretty fun to read, but I probably wouldn't have paid money for the book today. This book came out right before Star Wars did and it reads with a Heinlein, Asimov flavor.
July 14, 2019
a rousing tale of super science with bizarre aliens and deadly intrigue .
April 6, 2022
A great first contact story.
October 12, 2024
good read. didn't love the oh-so-happy ending. great aliens.
April 20, 2016
The blurb likened this book to the work of a favourite of mine, Arthur C Clarke, and in style, it definitely came close. Honest, hard science formed the solid foundation of this 1977 sci-fi and made for a convincing, interesting series of events. The main character, Jameson, was likeable and his defining ability of perfect pitch was introduced gently enough that I didn't roll my eyes when it became pertinent to the success of the mission.
Unfortunately, this fantastic foundation is not enough to create an actual story, and while Moffitt develops an awesome story universe, he then does very little within it. Characters spend months building a spaceship (its specifications, functions and components all painstakingly explained, all very interesting) and then spend months learning about an extra-solar alien species (again, very interesting and carefully thought out, from anatomical differences to social motivations) but not much else *happens* in that time. The ending is reasonably satisfying but the journey isn't entirely, so the book lost a star from me at this point.
The other star I took from my rating of The Jupiter Theft came away due to the peppering of sexism that moved me from good-natured eye-rolling to frowning by about halfway through the book. The opening scene is spaced across the POVs of two male characters, who both note the female character's attractiveness and make mention of her breasts in their internal monologue. This while a dangerous new x-ray source is being discovered in the sky and is taking up everyone's attention, supposedly. Descriptions of female characters throughout the book never fail to comment on breast size, and it was about the point when a female character was encouraged to share herself around among the male crew on the spaceship that I took a break from reading. I realise that this book is as old as the first Star Wars and I appreciate that works are reflective of the views of their times, but it's still disappointing that in the same year that Lucas gave us modestly-dressed, independent and capable Princess Leia, Moffitt was describing how Maybury's breasts behaved in the moon's low gravity.
So, three stars.
If you enjoy good hard science fiction world-building and can overlook some olden days commentary, I expect you would thoroughly enjoy this book.
Unfortunately, this fantastic foundation is not enough to create an actual story, and while Moffitt develops an awesome story universe, he then does very little within it. Characters spend months building a spaceship (its specifications, functions and components all painstakingly explained, all very interesting) and then spend months learning about an extra-solar alien species (again, very interesting and carefully thought out, from anatomical differences to social motivations) but not much else *happens* in that time. The ending is reasonably satisfying but the journey isn't entirely, so the book lost a star from me at this point.
The other star I took from my rating of The Jupiter Theft came away due to the peppering of sexism that moved me from good-natured eye-rolling to frowning by about halfway through the book. The opening scene is spaced across the POVs of two male characters, who both note the female character's attractiveness and make mention of her breasts in their internal monologue. This while a dangerous new x-ray source is being discovered in the sky and is taking up everyone's attention, supposedly. Descriptions of female characters throughout the book never fail to comment on breast size, and it was about the point when a female character was encouraged to share herself around among the male crew on the spaceship that I took a break from reading. I realise that this book is as old as the first Star Wars and I appreciate that works are reflective of the views of their times, but it's still disappointing that in the same year that Lucas gave us modestly-dressed, independent and capable Princess Leia, Moffitt was describing how Maybury's breasts behaved in the moon's low gravity.
So, three stars.
If you enjoy good hard science fiction world-building and can overlook some olden days commentary, I expect you would thoroughly enjoy this book.
May 16, 2014
Very much a hard sci-fi from the 70s, it includes a great deal of information on space travel and the physics of life in space.
The story starts slow, with that peculiarly-70s style of detached writing and is much more "tell" than "show". I almost gave up on it until the Cygnans show up, which is when the narrative becomes interesting.
If you like sci-fi it's worth the read, just don't give up on it.
The story starts slow, with that peculiarly-70s style of detached writing and is much more "tell" than "show". I almost gave up on it until the Cygnans show up, which is when the narrative becomes interesting.
If you like sci-fi it's worth the read, just don't give up on it.
May 19, 2012
I read this book because it uses the idea of a language that requires absolute pitch. The aliens were somewhat interesting, their technology and history somewhat more so, but the stultifying presence of stupid governments throughout most of the book was almost overwhelming.
January 6, 2012
One of the books I read in the 80s. It somehow made an impression because I still remember even after I've forgotten other, more popular titles.
February 18, 2013
Fast-paced, scientifically literate, hard SF. Much better than the average rating would suggest, imo, with plenty of interesting aliens, facts and ideas.
August 14, 2020
This is very good read!
I thoroughly enjoyed my secondly reading of this story. It was a very satisfying read. I can recommend it to anyone.
I thoroughly enjoyed my secondly reading of this story. It was a very satisfying read. I can recommend it to anyone.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews