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Zero Point Light #1
Storm Ring
Centrifugal winds and spinning tsunami-like waves …
Woken from what should have been a short-haul hiberstasis, six travelers discover their starship convoy was attacked by unknown forces. Brought by ship’s computer to a little-known world, Nebura, they have to choose between returning to the last-known location of their convoy, or going onworld, issuing a beacon, and waiting for rescue. A simple plan ... what could possibly go wrong?
Except things aren’t looking so great onworld either – Nebura is succumbing to a virulent environmental stilling. Getting to the only safe place left on the planet means crossing the world-encircling, lightning-filled storm ring – the stuff nightmares are made of.
And given the presence of a megalomanical Siqdori leader with big plans and out for revenge, said ring of storms will be the least of their worries …
“Storm Ring” is the 1st book in the “Zero Point Light” SF series, and promises a roller-coaster ride of hope-killing storms, coercive space exploration, and edge-of-your-seat suspense.
Woken from what should have been a short-haul hiberstasis, six travelers discover their starship convoy was attacked by unknown forces. Brought by ship’s computer to a little-known world, Nebura, they have to choose between returning to the last-known location of their convoy, or going onworld, issuing a beacon, and waiting for rescue. A simple plan ... what could possibly go wrong?
Except things aren’t looking so great onworld either – Nebura is succumbing to a virulent environmental stilling. Getting to the only safe place left on the planet means crossing the world-encircling, lightning-filled storm ring – the stuff nightmares are made of.
And given the presence of a megalomanical Siqdori leader with big plans and out for revenge, said ring of storms will be the least of their worries …
“Storm Ring” is the 1st book in the “Zero Point Light” SF series, and promises a roller-coaster ride of hope-killing storms, coercive space exploration, and edge-of-your-seat suspense.
240 pages, ebook
First published June 15, 2014
54 people are currently reading
64 people want to read
About the author
Stephen J. Carter
15 books6 followersStephen J. Carter lives and writes in the tropical heat of Chiang Mai, Thailand, and often ventures to the even hotter environs of Penang, Malaysia.
My books are introduced at my website:
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+ Reviews posted there.
My books are introduced at my website:
Yo! my website. Check it out.
+ Reviews posted there.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 14, 2017
A little disorientating and a little flat.
Some parts of this book are fantastic while other parts not so much. There were too many characters to follow and I eventually gave up trying to keep track of who was new to the planet and who'd lived there prior to the landing. I also didn't care who died or how because the skipping from character to character along with the surface personalities of each character made it hard to connect.
The last few chapters were better than the first and the images the writing conjured up is what brought this book from a two star to a three star.
Some parts of this book are fantastic while other parts not so much. There were too many characters to follow and I eventually gave up trying to keep track of who was new to the planet and who'd lived there prior to the landing. I also didn't care who died or how because the skipping from character to character along with the surface personalities of each character made it hard to connect.
The last few chapters were better than the first and the images the writing conjured up is what brought this book from a two star to a three star.
August 24, 2021
Painful
The best thing about this is that it ends, although not soon enough. Disjointed, and never makes a connection with the reader
The best thing about this is that it ends, although not soon enough. Disjointed, and never makes a connection with the reader
March 14, 2022
Confusing
The second half of the book is the action and its so confusing you can't follow what is happening. Don't bother reading.
The second half of the book is the action and its so confusing you can't follow what is happening. Don't bother reading.
August 30, 2015
Being a sailor myself and having passed through many storms at sea, I was interested to read this science fiction book on storm. But this turned out to be a story of aliens coming in a space ship and landing on a planet in the solar system which did not have a tilted axis akin to earth but has plenty of water and was abandoned by its civilization due to a natural calamity called ‘stilling’ and a disease without a cure. The aliens find themselves pulled into a fight between the few people still left on the planet, of two warring communities of the planet. There are guns and scooters still available on the planet which aliens use to rescue few people of the clan with whom they first come in contact from the captivity of the other. Aliens could not go back to their own planet and here was ‘Stilling and deadly disease, which forced them to plan for going to polar region of the planet where they believed the effect of stilling would be minimum and they could remain protected from the disease too. They start sailing in a research vessel and after sailing for about a month, they encounter strange bubbles of ‘space-time curvature’ floating in the ocean. This was a funny thought as per my knowledge of ‘space-time curvature’, but the author presented it in such a beautiful way that for me, this was the best part of the book, passing through space-time curvature bubbles. Next, along with the group sailing on the research vessel, we pass through the storm ring, a storm of unusual proportions, possible in fiction only. They decide to enter the storm in small dinghies instead of the bigger vessel contrary to usual choice of the real sailors of earth like me. But their dinghies are equipped to go underwater and the adventure of facing the storm in small dinghies keeps you reading the book and takes you to unknown territories of subterranean cities. You will like reading this book if you think it as fiction only and do not relate with the real world as this book has everything in this book from space ships to subterranean cities.
November 1, 2015
Stephen J Carter's “Storm Ring” is the 1st volume in the “Zero Point Light” Sci-Fi series. The story opens on the starship Arcturus 4 when the ship's computer wakes up its human cargo. Rather unhelpfully, the initial scenes reminded me of 'Alien', but this feeling quickly passed as the story progressed. The six-strong crew discover their convoy has been destroyed and they are now faced with either going back to their last location, or exploring the unknown, but apparently habitable, planet of Nebura.
Naturally, they head down to the planet and soon learn that warring factions headed by Levrock and his partial-synth mutes are not the only thing they have to worry about: an environmental phenomenon known as the 'Stilling' eventually forces the crew and some of their new friends to attempt a sea journey to Polarica, where they anticipate things will be safer. However, they first have to negotiate the mysterious storm ring.
Normally, I'm not a great fan of sci-fi, but Stephen Carter's writing is clever and wonderfully inventive, the story ripping along at a fair pace that, for the most part, held my attention without too much trouble. His descriptions are at times fascinating and thought-provoking and while his writing is always appealing, at times I found myself somewhat besieged by an overabundance of technical language. In addition, I felt that my interest in the characters began to wane slightly towards the end - though whether this was to do with the direction the plot was moving in, or something else, I really can't say.
As with all good novels, the ending leaves us with a bit of a cliff-hanger and the promise of plenty more action in the next book of the series. One for the collection.
Naturally, they head down to the planet and soon learn that warring factions headed by Levrock and his partial-synth mutes are not the only thing they have to worry about: an environmental phenomenon known as the 'Stilling' eventually forces the crew and some of their new friends to attempt a sea journey to Polarica, where they anticipate things will be safer. However, they first have to negotiate the mysterious storm ring.
Normally, I'm not a great fan of sci-fi, but Stephen Carter's writing is clever and wonderfully inventive, the story ripping along at a fair pace that, for the most part, held my attention without too much trouble. His descriptions are at times fascinating and thought-provoking and while his writing is always appealing, at times I found myself somewhat besieged by an overabundance of technical language. In addition, I felt that my interest in the characters began to wane slightly towards the end - though whether this was to do with the direction the plot was moving in, or something else, I really can't say.
As with all good novels, the ending leaves us with a bit of a cliff-hanger and the promise of plenty more action in the next book of the series. One for the collection.
February 20, 2016
Well, Storm Ring certainly is a roller coaster of a SciFi ride. From beginning to end, the world of Nebura is full of unexpected, unsuspected surprises. The further I read into this book, the more Carter seemed to pull back the veil revealing more and more intrigue and excitement.
As you can read in the synopsis, six space travelers end up marooned on Nebura. They promptly find that the world is sick with some kind of stilling that affects both the people and the world itself. To make matters worse, there is something of a crazy man with delusion of grandeur (I always want to use that line, but you really need just the right place.). While fleeing from said delusional man, they find that this world has far more mystery to offer than just the stilling. Without offer too much spoiler, I’m just going to throw out the phrase, “advanced, ancient civilization.”
For me, the beginning of this book almost started too quickly. I wasn’t looking for a prolonged prologue or anything, but I found myself lost a good amount at the start. I would have liked to see a bit more background. Some of the characters actions and interactions felt scripted and unnatural.
About half way through, Carter really seemed to find his writing stride, though. Some of the “big reveal” moments in the last half of this book are really cool. I was on a trajectory to only give this book a 6 or 6.5 out of 10, but the pure “cool factor” toward the end was a nice redemption. I’m excited to read the second book in this series and see how some of the factors discussed toward the end are fleshed out. It’s one of those books that ends with you wanting to flip the page for the next chapter, not a cliffhanger, exactly, just a need to know.
As you can read in the synopsis, six space travelers end up marooned on Nebura. They promptly find that the world is sick with some kind of stilling that affects both the people and the world itself. To make matters worse, there is something of a crazy man with delusion of grandeur (I always want to use that line, but you really need just the right place.). While fleeing from said delusional man, they find that this world has far more mystery to offer than just the stilling. Without offer too much spoiler, I’m just going to throw out the phrase, “advanced, ancient civilization.”
For me, the beginning of this book almost started too quickly. I wasn’t looking for a prolonged prologue or anything, but I found myself lost a good amount at the start. I would have liked to see a bit more background. Some of the characters actions and interactions felt scripted and unnatural.
About half way through, Carter really seemed to find his writing stride, though. Some of the “big reveal” moments in the last half of this book are really cool. I was on a trajectory to only give this book a 6 or 6.5 out of 10, but the pure “cool factor” toward the end was a nice redemption. I’m excited to read the second book in this series and see how some of the factors discussed toward the end are fleshed out. It’s one of those books that ends with you wanting to flip the page for the next chapter, not a cliffhanger, exactly, just a need to know.
September 28, 2015
This book throws you straight into the action and proceeds at breakneck pace through the opening chapters. The main protagonists awake from hibernation to learn that their home planet has been destroyed and that they are orbiting an unknown planet. With nowhere else to go they land on the planet and are immediately thrust into a conflict between two warring factions and also find that the planet is slowly succumbing to a mysterious condition known as the Stilling. The only place on the planet where this condition maybe avoided is at the poles, so they decide to escape with their new found allies. As you may expect, this rapid and almost breathless opening leaves little time to wonder about the deeper history of the planet, the conflict and the stilling as the main protagonists flee to escape the situation. Upon attempting to enter the Storm Ring, the situation changes a little and there is more time spent investigating the mystery of the planet, including a vast abandoned underwater city.
For me I liked that you are initially thrown in with little exposition, as it draws you into the story without being overly heavy in back story and set up as many serial novels often do. Once drawn in to the story Stephen J Carter then sets the scene for the greater story and at the very end leaves you wanting to know more. I have already bought the sequel and look forward to seeing where the journey goes next.
For me I liked that you are initially thrown in with little exposition, as it draws you into the story without being overly heavy in back story and set up as many serial novels often do. Once drawn in to the story Stephen J Carter then sets the scene for the greater story and at the very end leaves you wanting to know more. I have already bought the sequel and look forward to seeing where the journey goes next.
October 17, 2015
As I started reading Stephen J Carter's 'Storm Ring', it brought back those days when I'd wrap myself up in the strangely wonderful universes created by Arthur C Clarke, Ursula Le Guin and the like. Creating something that's realistically out of this world isn't easy. Should one make it really weird, or is it best to include elements that are more intrinsically human and of the Earth? The author takes the latter approach. In fact, the planet Nebura could really be Earth, and it even has plants that are native to the Earth. I found myself thinking 'how?' and 'why?' Eventually, we discover that it's down to some form of terraforming. The story itself is tried and tested: good vs. bad plus a few nasties and some hi-tech and ecological stuff thrown in for good measure. Oh, and I almost forgot the lost civilisation and a stormy boat trip. The human characters seemed a lot like those found on Ridley Scott's 'Nostromo'. Overall, it worked for me, and that's down to the quality of the writing and the descriptions. I didn't have much problem imagining I was there. And the technology made sense, too. I've always wondered how hyperspace sleep would work. The author's idea of a sort of dematerialising takeover by a symbiotic organism seemed a good one. 'Hiberstasis' is a good term, too. But Nebura isn’t the sort of planet one would want to go to for a vacation – unless you want to be stilled for good.
August 24, 2015
A fun read. I really enjoyed it. I enjoyed it enough to immediately get the second in the series. Other's reviewers have mentioned editing errors, which is true they are some but not enough to pull me out of the story. Great characters and great story telling. Storm Ring Stephen J. Carter
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews