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Contact: Book 1 of the Zaftan Troubles
An alien mining ship discovers a planet loaded with rare earth minerals. The aliens, known as zaftans, plan to fill their ship with the mined minerals. Unfortunately, the planet is inhabited by intelligent beings. But what could possibly go wrong with a simple mining operation on a planet with primitive natives?
56 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 26, 2018
About the author
Hank Quense
84 books232 followersHank Quense writes satirical fantasy and sci-fi.
Early in his writing career, he was strongly influenced by two authors: Douglas Adams and his Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy and Joseph Heller’s Catch-22. Happily, Hank has never quite recovered from those experiences.
He runs a self-publishing and book marketing service, where he coaches new and seasoned writers—whether you’re just polishing your first draft or sweating over your book’s launch. If you have questions about getting your book out into the world or making it actually sell, hank is always happy to share what he's learned.
Besides writing novels, nonfiction books and coaching, Hank lectures on fiction writing, publishing and book marketing.
.He has two daughters and five grandchildren all of whom live close by.
For vacations, Hank usually visit distant parts of the galaxy. Occasionally, he also time-travels.
Early in his writing career, he was strongly influenced by two authors: Douglas Adams and his Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy and Joseph Heller’s Catch-22. Happily, Hank has never quite recovered from those experiences.
He runs a self-publishing and book marketing service, where he coaches new and seasoned writers—whether you’re just polishing your first draft or sweating over your book’s launch. If you have questions about getting your book out into the world or making it actually sell, hank is always happy to share what he's learned.
Besides writing novels, nonfiction books and coaching, Hank lectures on fiction writing, publishing and book marketing.
.He has two daughters and five grandchildren all of whom live close by.
For vacations, Hank usually visit distant parts of the galaxy. Occasionally, he also time-travels.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
September 10, 2018
An interesting short that felt a little incomplete. Yes I know this is the first in a series but I still expected more. I was just getting to know the characters and it was over so I didn't fall for them which is a big draw. You've got to love them or hate them to pull you into the story. Still this is well written and has a good flow to it so one scifi buff should love. It also has gross aliens in it, hehehe.
September 13, 2018
Fun, easy, sci-fi read
Contact, Book 1 of the Zaftans series, begins with the introduction of the craziest aliens you can imagine, and gives us an insight into what it is they want. Led by an "ailing" female comander, Yunta, the Zaftans are looking for rare minerals and have found a planet that they want to mine. The Zaftans make a deal with the government of this planet to mine the minerals and promise not to trespass on private property or damage anyone's property. But they have one problem that they haven't considered, the residents of this planet don't take kindly to alien beings on their land.
I'm not one for SciFi, but this book was comical. With all the different types of characters and their magical powers, I found myself picturing little people like hobbits. The author gives us plenty of details to go off of so that we can get a good idea of what each of these characters is like and how they live their lives. Contact is not the type of book I usually read, but it was entertaining, and easy to read. I even love the little hint of romance that Quense throws in there. As I was reading through contact I originally thought it might be a good book for teens, especially with the funny characters, but the more I read the more I realized this still has some mature content and language. I feel it is intended for mature readers and young adults who love scifi. Happy Reading.
Contact, Book 1 of the Zaftans series, begins with the introduction of the craziest aliens you can imagine, and gives us an insight into what it is they want. Led by an "ailing" female comander, Yunta, the Zaftans are looking for rare minerals and have found a planet that they want to mine. The Zaftans make a deal with the government of this planet to mine the minerals and promise not to trespass on private property or damage anyone's property. But they have one problem that they haven't considered, the residents of this planet don't take kindly to alien beings on their land.
I'm not one for SciFi, but this book was comical. With all the different types of characters and their magical powers, I found myself picturing little people like hobbits. The author gives us plenty of details to go off of so that we can get a good idea of what each of these characters is like and how they live their lives. Contact is not the type of book I usually read, but it was entertaining, and easy to read. I even love the little hint of romance that Quense throws in there. As I was reading through contact I originally thought it might be a good book for teens, especially with the funny characters, but the more I read the more I realized this still has some mature content and language. I feel it is intended for mature readers and young adults who love scifi. Happy Reading.
August 10, 2021
First Contact . . .
An alien mining ship finds a planet loaded with rare earth minerals they would like to mine. The aliens, known as Zaftans, make an arrangement with the planet’s government so they can fill their ship with the mined minerals. Now the inhabitants have to deal with these strange aliens and the reader gets to enjoy their interactions and the fallout. Magic versus technology – who will come out ahead if disagreements arise? Does the government have a plan here?
The descriptions of the various inhabitants are written quite well so that the reader has a definite visual of not only physical attributes of the alien species but their behavior as well. That helps to bring the story to life (although maybe you won’t want it to when you meet some of those characters). There is humor throughout and it’s a great way to stretch your imagination and let the story entertain you. Give it a try!
An alien mining ship finds a planet loaded with rare earth minerals they would like to mine. The aliens, known as Zaftans, make an arrangement with the planet’s government so they can fill their ship with the mined minerals. Now the inhabitants have to deal with these strange aliens and the reader gets to enjoy their interactions and the fallout. Magic versus technology – who will come out ahead if disagreements arise? Does the government have a plan here?
The descriptions of the various inhabitants are written quite well so that the reader has a definite visual of not only physical attributes of the alien species but their behavior as well. That helps to bring the story to life (although maybe you won’t want it to when you meet some of those characters). There is humor throughout and it’s a great way to stretch your imagination and let the story entertain you. Give it a try!
August 11, 2021
They have found a planet with rare earth minerals and they decide to mine. There are others there and it all should go smoothly. Will it go smoothly? What will the inhabitants do? See how it all goes
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
August 8, 2019
It’s a little strange to think you’re reading the first of a novel series and discover it’s just the First Act of a Seven Act story.
It is enjoyable and there are plenty of rollicking characters, low humor, and bad smells to entertain. The Zaftans are shockingly weird so we pull for the dwarves and “earthy” types. At the end of the story we’re treated to a seven-part synopsis of the “series” of novellas.
All in all, it’s a fun read and we look forward to the development of the characters.
It is enjoyable and there are plenty of rollicking characters, low humor, and bad smells to entertain. The Zaftans are shockingly weird so we pull for the dwarves and “earthy” types. At the end of the story we’re treated to a seven-part synopsis of the “series” of novellas.
All in all, it’s a fun read and we look forward to the development of the characters.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews