What do you think?
Rate this book
Abundance
Asteroid mining promises untold riches for those willing to take the risks… but in the race to gain first-mover advantage, the price of failure can be severe.
The crew of the first commercial space mission to retrieve an asteroid for mining purposes has been killed in a catastrophic accident. Washed up ex-astronaut Charles ‘Chuck’ Sorrel is hired to look into the affairs of Abundance, the company behind the mission. He asks a few questions, makes a few conclusions, and writes some recommendations... but never gets a chance to collect.
Sorrel's easy-money gig turns sour when rival Chinese asteroid mining company Yangshen is implicated. The discovery triggers an international incident and thrusts an unwilling Sorrel into a trip across the Pacific, dinner with Yangshen’s CEO, confrontations with the Mission Commander's widow Jen, and pressure to “hurry up and get to the bottom of things”. Trapped in a high-level cover up, Sorrel must navigate a web of lies and deceit to uncover the truth – and make peace with his past in order to save the future.
Abundance is a cross-genre sci-fi thriller that spans the world and the heavens above… offering a glimpse into the messy near-future world of commercial space exploration and militarization, emergent AGI and geopolitical intrigue – where the ground truth is all-too-human and wholly unpredictable.
The crew of the first commercial space mission to retrieve an asteroid for mining purposes has been killed in a catastrophic accident. Washed up ex-astronaut Charles ‘Chuck’ Sorrel is hired to look into the affairs of Abundance, the company behind the mission. He asks a few questions, makes a few conclusions, and writes some recommendations... but never gets a chance to collect.
Sorrel's easy-money gig turns sour when rival Chinese asteroid mining company Yangshen is implicated. The discovery triggers an international incident and thrusts an unwilling Sorrel into a trip across the Pacific, dinner with Yangshen’s CEO, confrontations with the Mission Commander's widow Jen, and pressure to “hurry up and get to the bottom of things”. Trapped in a high-level cover up, Sorrel must navigate a web of lies and deceit to uncover the truth – and make peace with his past in order to save the future.
Abundance is a cross-genre sci-fi thriller that spans the world and the heavens above… offering a glimpse into the messy near-future world of commercial space exploration and militarization, emergent AGI and geopolitical intrigue – where the ground truth is all-too-human and wholly unpredictable.
- GenresScience Fiction
418 pages, Hardcover
Published October 17, 2024
17 people are currently reading
993 people want to read
About the author
Alan Chan
4 books12 followersAlan Chan is a thirty-year visual effects veteran whose career spans multiple Clio advertising awards and film credits on multiple Academy Award winning projects such as James Cameron’s “Titanic“, Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” and Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland“.
Occasionally he moonlights as a writer-director, shooting short films and indie features. His shiny awards are on display in his home office next to the LEGO Millenium Falcon and Eagle Transporter model.
Occasionally he moonlights as a writer-director, shooting short films and indie features. His shiny awards are on display in his home office next to the LEGO Millenium Falcon and Eagle Transporter model.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
September 15, 2024
So much fun! Great characters, awesome action set pieces, impressive tech! Chan’s first novel is a barn burner! Recommended!
June 10, 2025
What I Did Like:
+The characterization of AI for this book is interesting. It sort of plays on the sentience discussion that was often popular in old school Scifi but brought forward in an interesting way.
+The political drama is realistic, which makes it terrifying. It’s like glimpsing our futures and realizing this political stuff never stops. Depressing, but realistic.
+The action scenes are well written and easy to picture. They don’t bog down the story, instead adding descriptions that bring it to life.
Who Should Read This One:
-Readers who want near future scifi dealing with politics around asteroid mining and space exploration in general. This one is well researched and rooted in accuracy.
My Rating: 3 Stars
For Full Review: https://alltherightreads.com/2025/06/...
+The characterization of AI for this book is interesting. It sort of plays on the sentience discussion that was often popular in old school Scifi but brought forward in an interesting way.
+The political drama is realistic, which makes it terrifying. It’s like glimpsing our futures and realizing this political stuff never stops. Depressing, but realistic.
+The action scenes are well written and easy to picture. They don’t bog down the story, instead adding descriptions that bring it to life.
Who Should Read This One:
-Readers who want near future scifi dealing with politics around asteroid mining and space exploration in general. This one is well researched and rooted in accuracy.
My Rating: 3 Stars
For Full Review: https://alltherightreads.com/2025/06/...
October 17, 2024
The author’s background as a visual effects designer for major motion pictures makes this novel portrayal of the near future of space mining and exploration richly vivid and cinematic.
Asteroid mining by billionaires and its high stakes risks and geopolitica implications is not hard to connect to recent events.
Chan’s ability to craft such a world feels rooted in his deep understanding of visual storytelling and technological realism. His intricate knowledge of effects design results in stunning descriptions of spacecraft and asteroid mining operations.
The characters include a former astronaut who has great resilience and vulnerability, reminding me of Jodie Foster in Carl Sagan's Contact, one of my favorite books.
Asteroid mining by billionaires and its high stakes risks and geopolitica implications is not hard to connect to recent events.
Chan’s ability to craft such a world feels rooted in his deep understanding of visual storytelling and technological realism. His intricate knowledge of effects design results in stunning descriptions of spacecraft and asteroid mining operations.
The characters include a former astronaut who has great resilience and vulnerability, reminding me of Jodie Foster in Carl Sagan's Contact, one of my favorite books.
October 16, 2024
I'm absolutely fascinated by the commercial space race and the possibilities of asteroid mining — can't read enough about these in the news — so, I found Alan Chan's sci-fi thriller ABUNDANCE really gripping.
In addition to the engaging style of his prose, Chan brings real depth to his characters. He is one of those rare male authors who crafts realistically dimensional female characters who are so much more than a love interest for the protagonist. Chan's AI characters are also exceptionally well-written.
I highly recommend ABUNDANCE to anyone interested in near-future science fiction. This is a fabulous read and will be a great movie someday.
In addition to the engaging style of his prose, Chan brings real depth to his characters. He is one of those rare male authors who crafts realistically dimensional female characters who are so much more than a love interest for the protagonist. Chan's AI characters are also exceptionally well-written.
I highly recommend ABUNDANCE to anyone interested in near-future science fiction. This is a fabulous read and will be a great movie someday.
October 9, 2024
A journey to mine on asteroids is going to be hard fought as they try to be the first. When an accident happens an investigation will be conducted to find out what happened. It is not going to be easy for them to find the answer that are needed to find the answers at last
I received an advance copy from hidden gems and a great journey to the stars
I received an advance copy from hidden gems and a great journey to the stars
December 4, 2024
It’s definitely intriguing to think about space exploration in terms of national sovereignty.
It’s easy to imagine it becoming a new kind of “wild, wild space.” It reminds me a bit of Stranger in a Strange Land.
I’d love to see this book adapted as a graphic novel! ;)
It’s easy to imagine it becoming a new kind of “wild, wild space.” It reminds me a bit of Stranger in a Strange Land.
I’d love to see this book adapted as a graphic novel! ;)
April 25, 2025
Won from Goodreads Giveaway. Not my usual genre (sci-fi/futurisric). Didn’t hold my interest at all.
October 27, 2025
Call it 3.5. Really good for a self published novel. Parts of the plot felt forced to me, but others were very good. there were things that surprised me.
February 2, 2026
2* - just interesting enough to finish.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews