Ep.#1 - "Deeper"

by Glenn Haddix, Ryk Brown

A mine gone dark. Machines that hunt. Dig in or die trying.

Tamra's last courier run for GogTek nearly killed her. Her next job was supposed to be one stop, one package, one quick exit.

Then the Khepri mine turns on her.

A rogue drill has torn through the command center, driven by something clamped to its drive core. Something insect-like. Something GogTek didn't build.

Now Tamra and Jax—a systems tech cut off from the outside world—are trapped with it. And behind it, a swarm of insectoids learns, adapts... and spreads.

The surface is lost. The only way out is down. And deeper is so much worse.

Deeper is the first book in the Astra Nullus Saga, the first crossover series in the Frontiers Saga Universe.

348 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 25, 2025

Reviews

[Mike Nemeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jax is a lone mine operator on a desolate planet with an unbreathable atmosphere where the only companionship is with his artificial intelligence and a series of mining robots that keep the facility processing ore. Turns out the ore is explosive. Just about everything else is in "Deeper," a novel by Glenn Haddix and part of the universe created by sci-fi legend Ryk Brown. Astra Nullus is part of Brown's Frontier Saga, which already boasts scores of books about the adventures of Nathan Scott and his crewmates from the Aurora. Haddix isn't Brown. Not even close. He's got a distinct style. In Deeper, Jax almost immediately discovers that his day won't be good. He's facing an extinction event, as some ancient evil has been excavated without his knowledge from the many miles of mines beneath the corporate owned planet. Haddix is a good writer. In fact, the action in his debut Frontiers Saga novel doesn't let up. His characters must adapt to survive. At one point one tells the other, "This is the part in the horror flick where people start dying." Another character responds, "They already have." The book ends with a cliffhanger, so expect a followup.

[Trent · Rating 3 out of 5]

An addition to the “Frontier’s Saga”. The story takes place, primarily, on a mining colony where a worker discovers an old weapons system that awakens and runs amok. Again, this is a time when I wish I could give half star (3.5 instead of 3). It was a quick read and I appreciate the few nods/tie-ins to elements of the Saga as well as Haddix’s style of writing. I thought the action and drama was well paced and the characters were interesting. I’m definitely curious as to where this will go. My only criticism was in the editing. There were times when a break was clearly needed between paragraphs to indicate when a story line was changing over. A bit annoying but not to the point where I couldn’t pick up what was going on.

[Mordecai · Rating 2 out of 5]

I Couldn’t WAIT to finish …

I’m only reading this as I’m a fan of the Frontier Saga & it’s space opera … but so not impressed with this spin off series that apparently will play a major part in the future main books … joy …

So many sci-fi films & their plots included in this book. So thus making it nothing new or special.
Too predictable, characters being killed off left, right & centre. Surviving characters boring & predictable …

Just a disaster from start to finish …

Yes I’ll read them to continue the main space opera, but this needs A LOT OF WORK!

Two stars is generous …

[mr.Saunders · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was hard to tell what was hapening

It started out interesting but then got very confusing. As far as I can tell there were at least 6 story lines that the book jumped from one to the other. I would read one or two pages of one story line and at the end of a paragraph the story jumped. And then maybe jumped again in another paragraph or two. I think the book could have been much better with just some organization.

[Dale A Roberts · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not really a frontiers saga book.

It was a nice try at Glenn Haddix trying to get into Ryk's work, to help him out (I guess). The only thing that attached it to the frontiers saga was a few mentions of company names. I tried really hard to read this book, but had to force myself to keep on reading, to give it a chance.. I wouldn't recommend it if you're a frontiers saga fan, as I have been.

[Michael S Siegel · Rating 1 out of 5]

very disappointed

One long battle against an unrealistic enemy. No character development. No real placement in the series universe - Until a hint in the last page of the story. But that final reveal was not worth the long slog that was this book.
Should have been a short story, not a novel.

[David J Arens · Rating 4 out of 5]

the Jung never left

If the Jung were so ruthless as to create AI killing machines then this happened in the 500 years when the aurora was not around. Puts an angle on the Ai control the alliance is pushing so good side story, just Also puts in perspective human nature under stress. We are emotional beings.

[ruby ann clare · Rating 4 out of 5]

Different

Fast moving and at times a little confusing. Worth it most of the time . was a bit longer than necessary I thought but there was so much to be told it was actually necessary . if you read the last two books by Ryk Brown you'd understand .

[Jared Groves · Rating 5 out of 5]

So the spinoff got some pretty harsh reviews, especially early on and it put me off from reading it right away. While I agree that the writing style is a little different, it is still a good read. Additionally, it isn't just a random spinoff story, there is a payoff and it is worth reading before part 4.