Dangerous Evolution

Sector #1

by Gregg Vann

A renowned scientist disappears from her private moon, far out on the fringes of human space—pushing mankind to the brink of war with the only other intelligent species in the galaxy. A war they will lose. Light years away, a madman becomes convinced that nature’s blueprint for life is flawed; setting into motion a misguided plan that will kill billions. An investigator sent to find the missing scientist ties these two events together, cutting through an elaborate web of subterfuge and deception, until finally, the truth is revealed. A horrible truth that blurs the line between friend and enemy, and threatens the extinction of all sentient life in the galaxy.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy

242 pages, Paperback

First published September 4, 2012

About the author

Gregg Vann is a writer, teacher, polyglot, and perennial student. He has a M.Ed. in Teaching English as a Second Language, and a BA in Asian Studies. When not writing, he can usually be found on the sunny beaches of Florida.

Reviews

[Michael Shoemaker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good for the price

This book was good for the price. It was an entertaining idea about how two species would interact and how one would keep the other from infighting. But overall it felt a little underdeveloped compared to more mainstream novels.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the universe of this novel, full of inventive sci-fi elements and futuristic imaginings from a smart author. We can live forever by altering our DNA, thanks to Permalife. But of course everything is vulnerable, even in the future, and that's the theme this book explores. If an evolution in tech has a widespread reach, attacking it or adding a virus to it would similarly have a wide, potentially devastating reach. Scaling advances means scaling risk, and our hero is up against galaxy-huge stakes, making the solving of the mystery in the novel a page-turning, suspenseful adventure full of conflict and tension. He'll find out some medical horrors along the way which are majorly creepy and a bit of a warning siren for us all on the issues of medical tech experimenting.

The book excels during action scenes, with fast-paced dialogue taking us through attacks and other fast-moving plot advances. The themes of senseless revenge and the dire need for diplomacy/cooperation come through brilliantly. In all, in the style of the best, engaging sci-fi, this novel gives readers tons to think about after first taking us on a cleverly wild ride. Great read!

[Mei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good SF. I liked the voice of the hero and how the story eveolved. Has the "taste" of Asimov's Caves of Steel, but without robots.
The only thing that seemed out was the romantic involvement od hero and heroine. It doesn't seem real. Maybe if the book was longer it would have been developed better. This way it was too abrupt.

[Fred Conrad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast paced, good science fiction.

[Kev · Rating 4 out of 5]

A full on First Contact (kinda!)story!

[Andrea]

DNF at 47% Didn't feel like it was going anywhere.