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H.I.V.E.
On the "Best Science Fiction" List on Goodreads!
A retired physicist. A top-secret project that could change everything for humanity. Now no one is safe...
Michael Anderson, a brilliant nuclear physicist, and his wife Sarah stand at the brink of a groundbreaking scientific discovery – their revolutionary propulsion system, if successful, promises not only military advancements, but also a new era of interplanetary travel for NASA.
But when tragedy strikes and a cataclysmic explosion destroys their lab, Michael is left a widower and severely injured.
Sworn to give up his research and now lead a quiet existence with his children, his life is upended yet again when he's coerced back into the world of top-secret research. This time, he’s tasked with salvaging a classified project named RAVEN and introducing a revolutionary propulsion system that uses water as fuel, birthing the Hydrogen Inertia Vector Engine (HIVE).
Once news the HIVE technology has become viable, dark forces within the government use any means necessary to suppress it, and Michael and his new colleagues now find themselves in the fight of their life to preserve this life-changing technology for planet Earth and all of humanity…
And keep it from falling into the hands of those who would seek to use it for their own sinister purposes.
A retired physicist. A top-secret project that could change everything for humanity. Now no one is safe...
Michael Anderson, a brilliant nuclear physicist, and his wife Sarah stand at the brink of a groundbreaking scientific discovery – their revolutionary propulsion system, if successful, promises not only military advancements, but also a new era of interplanetary travel for NASA.
But when tragedy strikes and a cataclysmic explosion destroys their lab, Michael is left a widower and severely injured.
Sworn to give up his research and now lead a quiet existence with his children, his life is upended yet again when he's coerced back into the world of top-secret research. This time, he’s tasked with salvaging a classified project named RAVEN and introducing a revolutionary propulsion system that uses water as fuel, birthing the Hydrogen Inertia Vector Engine (HIVE).
Once news the HIVE technology has become viable, dark forces within the government use any means necessary to suppress it, and Michael and his new colleagues now find themselves in the fight of their life to preserve this life-changing technology for planet Earth and all of humanity…
And keep it from falling into the hands of those who would seek to use it for their own sinister purposes.
348 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 5, 2024
97 people are currently reading
51 people want to read
About the author
J. Randall Christopher
1 bookHeavily influenced by science fiction at a young age, J. Randall Christopher was often taken to the movies by his older brother, beginning when Randall was only six years old. The second movie Randall ever watched was the Battle in Outer Space, a 1959 movie adapted from a story by Jojiro Okami, who was an aeronautical engineer and test pilot at the time of the writing.
Captivated by the imagery and display of technology in this foreign film, this love of science fiction was also rewarded by such films as 2001-A Space Odyssey in 1968, Star Wars in 1977 and the television show Star Trek, the original series. Thank you, Gene Roddenberry.
Other significant influences include H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, Ray Bradburry and many other marvelous stories conveyed in print, television and the movies. There were many favorites, too, many to list here that have contributed to the author’s imagination.
These influences along with his training as an architect is the foundation on which the story of this debut novel is built. A labor of love, HIVE is a story about a nuclear physicist who has a desire to develop an alternate form of energy and propulsion that can benefit all of mankind.
Captivated by the imagery and display of technology in this foreign film, this love of science fiction was also rewarded by such films as 2001-A Space Odyssey in 1968, Star Wars in 1977 and the television show Star Trek, the original series. Thank you, Gene Roddenberry.
Other significant influences include H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, Ray Bradburry and many other marvelous stories conveyed in print, television and the movies. There were many favorites, too, many to list here that have contributed to the author’s imagination.
These influences along with his training as an architect is the foundation on which the story of this debut novel is built. A labor of love, HIVE is a story about a nuclear physicist who has a desire to develop an alternate form of energy and propulsion that can benefit all of mankind.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 7, 2025
Good Story, But LOTS of Side-Tracking by The Author, Getting Off-Topic
This was a good SciFi story (Book #1 of 1, at this point-in-time [mid-2025]), and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in science, SciFi and military applications thereof.
On the other hand, I’ve not previously encountered an Author who can go overboard on details that are more family-familiarization and minutiae — that only peripherally have anything to do with the real SciFi subject of the story — and The Author just continues on and on and on for at least the first 1/3 of the book! Fortunately, the last half of the book is much more ‘on topic’ and enjoyable and interesting.
The Author introduces some suspicious activity throughout his tale, like, for instance, a mysterious dark-colored SUV following the family around — but nothing else was ever written about this issue and it just seems to be dropped like a hot potato [until much later in the book, where more of the sh!t hits the fan …]
Similarly, an act of sabotage occurs, but the culprit was quickly identified and simply whisked away, never to be heard from, again! I don’t doubt that such damage can occur, but I do think it’s a weak link in how The Author handled it … I can’t imagine such a sudden end with no resolution. (Nor any explanation for WHY the sabotage, nor HOW it simply got swept under the rug!)
There were worse weak-links in the plot, but the two most extreme were a military officer simply going berserk, and a deep feeling about how entrenched The Author is, for how powerful the Oil Industry is … this was not the first tale I’ve read where the writers believe Big Oil simply will not allow any other fuel-source to usurp them … (I disagree, but what do I know?)
This was a good SciFi story (Book #1 of 1, at this point-in-time [mid-2025]), and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in science, SciFi and military applications thereof.
On the other hand, I’ve not previously encountered an Author who can go overboard on details that are more family-familiarization and minutiae — that only peripherally have anything to do with the real SciFi subject of the story — and The Author just continues on and on and on for at least the first 1/3 of the book! Fortunately, the last half of the book is much more ‘on topic’ and enjoyable and interesting.
The Author introduces some suspicious activity throughout his tale, like, for instance, a mysterious dark-colored SUV following the family around — but nothing else was ever written about this issue and it just seems to be dropped like a hot potato [until much later in the book, where more of the sh!t hits the fan …]
Similarly, an act of sabotage occurs, but the culprit was quickly identified and simply whisked away, never to be heard from, again! I don’t doubt that such damage can occur, but I do think it’s a weak link in how The Author handled it … I can’t imagine such a sudden end with no resolution. (Nor any explanation for WHY the sabotage, nor HOW it simply got swept under the rug!)
There were worse weak-links in the plot, but the two most extreme were a military officer simply going berserk, and a deep feeling about how entrenched The Author is, for how powerful the Oil Industry is … this was not the first tale I’ve read where the writers believe Big Oil simply will not allow any other fuel-source to usurp them … (I disagree, but what do I know?)
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August 12, 2025Not bad, but...
Reads like it was written by a young person that has little life experience. It's not bad, just way too pat. Most of the technology is way too advanced and never explained. It just is. 23rd century Star Trek level tech... The propulsion system is interesting enough, and can be accepted at face value, but the plasma shields, teleportation and food replicators just jangled the nerves they were so out of place.
Reads like it was written by a young person that has little life experience. It's not bad, just way too pat. Most of the technology is way too advanced and never explained. It just is. 23rd century Star Trek level tech... The propulsion system is interesting enough, and can be accepted at face value, but the plasma shields, teleportation and food replicators just jangled the nerves they were so out of place.
February 23, 2025
Excellent story
First of all, I have to say that the first 3/4 of the book moves very slow. It was so slow that I found myself skipping ahead and even considered not finishing the book. Fortunately, I continued and found that the final 1/4 made the effort worthwhile. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.
First of all, I have to say that the first 3/4 of the book moves very slow. It was so slow that I found myself skipping ahead and even considered not finishing the book. Fortunately, I continued and found that the final 1/4 made the effort worthwhile. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.
December 1, 2024
Enjoyable Read
The characters are interesting and fun to read, especially the Anderson family. The technology imagined is awesome. I found the villains a bit cliche. If there is an another installment, I hope for more crew, especially another friend for Andrew.
The characters are interesting and fun to read, especially the Anderson family. The technology imagined is awesome. I found the villains a bit cliche. If there is an another installment, I hope for more crew, especially another friend for Andrew.
December 13, 2024
It's OK
A good story marred by writing style. Choosing to write in the present tense might be a good differentiation ploy, but it really buggers up the storyline.
A good story marred by writing style. Choosing to write in the present tense might be a good differentiation ploy, but it really buggers up the storyline.
March 8, 2025
WOW
I Couldn't put it down. Read it start to finish. The story kept me absorbed so well that I skipped eating dinner to finish.
I Couldn't put it down. Read it start to finish. The story kept me absorbed so well that I skipped eating dinner to finish.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews