Gold Star

by Zach Hughes

A SEARCH AND SALVAGE MISSION BEYOND ANY SPACEFARER'S WILDEST DREAMS... 

Stationed along one of the least frequented Blink routes of the known spaceways, Pete and Jan Jaynes never expected to find themselves closer than anyone else to the last known location of the U. P5. Rimfire, the newest, sleekest, most expensive Explorer-class ship to prowl the star systems. 

As for as anyone knew, Rimfire had suddenly disappeared without a trace while heading out on its maiden voyage. But Pete and Jan knew better, for they had stumbled across the one clue that could take them where no space tug had ever been before, on a galaxy-spanning journey with a salvager's pot of gold?Rimfire?hopefully waiting at the end. Yet getting there, it turned out, was only a small fraction of the battle. For before they could even think about rescuing the Explorer ship, they would have to overturn some laws of physics, outrun or outgun some totally unexpected enemies, and conquer on entire planet....

Genres: Science Fiction

173 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1981

About the author

Zach Hughes is a pseudonym of American writer Hugh Zachary.

Reviews

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Average sci-fi. A somewhat far-fetched plot and characters lacking depth, though it’s a quick and not unpleasant read.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one is about Pete and Jan Jaynes, a husband and wife team on a deep space rescue tug. There job is to wait at a Blink route and monitor for distress calls from other spaceships. They are about halfway through a three year contract when they receive a mysterious signal. They soon learn that the U.P.S. Rimfire, a new Explorer Class spaceship has went missing. They embark on a mission to try to find the huge ship and earn a large reward. They have competition from another tug and a hostile planet to contend with before they can accomplish their goal. This is a great example of Space Opera and a very good read.

[Patrick Gibson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a solid Sci-fi story: two competing space salvage operators search for a ship lost while making a hyper-drive leap into uncharted space. If you think this sounds like a good Star Trek episode, you wouldn’t be far off. The author (a pen name for Hugh Zachary) has established a future world where the imaginary space travel ‘physics’ is believable—which he uses in multiple novels. Here, the story moves along quickly, the flashbacks minimal, the action complimentary to the story line, and the character worth investing your time. This is a short novel, and a nice entertaining diversion from your day.

[Alessandro Manini · Rating 3 out of 5]

Riletto a distanza di quasi 30 anni, quando ero un ragazzino in procinto di affacciarsi alla fantascienza. Come racconto è un bel po' invecchiato, ma calarsi nel fascino che suscitava il genere allora è stato fantastico. Un classico da ripescare!

[Ian Hamilton · Rating 2 out of 5]

A page-turner. Not bad. Not memorable.

[John Mccullough · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well-written and entertaining. Good imagination on technical aspects. Outcome we all hoped for!

[Roger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good old-fashion space adventure, but written more skillfully than the old pulps.

[Devero · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rispetto agli altri romanzi di Zach Hughes, questo è decisamente il meno riuscito ed il più debole.