Rogue Star

Firestar #2

by Michael Flynn

It is the early twenty-first century. There's a space station being built, and the first manned flight to the asteroids is in progress. The grand plan of Mariesa Van Huyten to give humanity a big push back into space, and in the process save the human race from terrible disaster, continues. And there are enemies who will kill to stop it.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Audiobook, Space Opera, Space, Science Fiction Fantasy, Aliens

688 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published April 1, 1998

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. Please see this page for the list of authors.

Michael Francis Flynn (born 1947) is an American statistician and science fiction author. Nearly all of Flynn's work falls under the category of hard science fiction, although his treatment of it can be unusual since he has applied the rigor of hard science fiction to "softer" sciences such as sociology in works such as In the Country of the Blind. Much of his short fiction has appeared in Analog Science Fiction and Fact.

Flynn was born in Easton, Pennsylvania. He earned a B.A. in Mathematics from LaSalle University and an M.S. in topology from Marquette University. He has been employed as an industrial quality engineer and statistician.

Library of Congress authorities: Flynn, Michael (Michael F.)

Reviews

[Jamie Collins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the sequel to the novel Firestar, which tells the story of a wealthy businesswoman's efforts to spearhead a private multinational space program. Expanding into outer space is not so much Mariesa Van Huyten's dream as a palliative for her nightmare: she is obsessed with the fear of a planet-killing asteroid strike, and she is secretly determined to push humanity to develop the technology to defend the planet.

This is very near-future science fiction. The first book begins in the late 90's and covers a decade, chronicling the development of reusable spaceships which are capable of making profitable trips into orbit with small payloads. Rogue Star picks up two years later with many of the same characters. Travel into low earth orbit has become commonplace and construction is underway on a multinational orbital platform. Three astronauts are undertaking a year-long voyage to a large near-earth-orbit asteroid, of the very type Van Huyten fears.

Van Huyten's every move is opposed by an activist group known as the Crusades. They're voiced in the novel by a disillusioned young poet who has a personal vendetta against Van Huyten. The poet is a graduate of a program introduced to improve the deteriorating public schools, and she feels betrayed when she discovers that the program was designed specifically to inspire students to look toward the stars, something she finds manipulative and akin to brain washing.

The characterization of the poet is a little weak. Some members of the Crusades are depicted as fools, such as those who object to "contaminating the asteroid's ecosystem", but the poet is written as thoughtful, intelligent and sympathetic. Her opposition still comes across as irrationally stubborn; it's very obvious where the author's heart lies.

This book was not quite as enthralling as Firestar, but it's still a good read. I'm not quite sure I like one new plot element that was introduced, but I'm willing to see where the author takes it in the rest of the series.

[Peter Tillman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one got an A/A+ rating in my 1998 booklog, where I commented: #2, Marissa van Huyten, asteroid defense. Well done, maybe a reread? See (paper) journal entry 6–17-98.

Gosh, 688 pp.! Well, I know where my old journals are stored....

In the meanwhile, my files yielded this comment from Tor editor Chris Aylott (2000):
" So far, Flynn's storyline has relied on the ambitions of Mariesa van
Huyten, an industrialist heiress determined to drag humanity into the
solar system, for narrative force.

We first meet van Huyten in Firestar [#1] as a teenager, when a chance
encounter with a meteor leads her to design an orbital defense system
to protect Earth from a chance "planet-killing" impact.

The complication arises when she realizes that she'll have to
establish her own space program to launch the system.

Throughout the course of the book and its sequel, Rogue Star, she does
just that, following a Byzantine plan to both build the technology
that will explore space and shape the cultural climate that will
support her other efforts.

Van Huyten tries to control every contingency, even manipulating young poets and artists to provide "inspiration." Several of her pawns grow to resent this, eventually becoming her worst enemies."

I recall enjoying these, and gave this one the highest marks of the series I did read all 4....

[Jim3e8 · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. It’s very dated. Like a lot of very near future SF, it aged poorly when read in the very near future. In particular the neologisms are grating and implausible — “pixure”, “virchhat” (!) and (most unforgivably) “doid” — doid, doiding, doided ad nauseam — the author doesn’t have a gift for coining new words nor simplified ones. The zeitgeist of the book feels very 90s as well. A main character in her 20s does complain about Boomers though, so he did call that one correctly.

Weirdly, not much really happened in 600+ pages. The space construction passages were the most interesting. You won’t be too surprised though that most of the discussion (and indeed plot points) about the women on the construction crew revolves around whether they are slutty, and if not, whether they are lesbians or just frigid.

This is the first book I read in the series and I kind of want to know what happens but overall, I would be satisfied with simply reading a plot summary of the other books.

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. High quality hard science fiction. Even the introduction of potential alien artifacts is handled well.

Potential near-future history handled well.

Satisfactory--if not satisfying--conclusion: well foreshadowed and yet not given away (therefore I won't). The Ayn Randian politics toned down slightly without losing Flynn's distinctive edge.

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Continues shortly years after the first book. If you liked the first, you'll probably like this too. But still feels overly long and drawn out. Lots left for future books to cover with no conclusion here.

[Andreas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Near future SciFi has seldom been done better. Flynn takes us on an epic journey only hinted at in the humble beginnings of the first book. A millionairess has a hidden fear, almost an obsession. She is afraid that an asteroid has the potential to wipe out humanity by striking the Earth. While her fear is no doubt well founded, it takes extreme expressions in her, and she uses her fortune to build up a huge aerospace industry. The series consists of:

* Firestar
* Rogue Star
* Lodestar
* Falling Stars

What really makes this series great is the variety and richness of the many characters (from the second book, a Dramatis Personae is thankfully provided). The antagonisms and alliances flow over decades as Flynn deftly describes human nature, and the many things which make up its facets. Many novels have (too) many characters, but in almost all cases the majority are not fully fleshed out and threedimensional. Flynn’s wonderful character are these things. They have a past, motivations, goals and aspirations.

It is also quite remarkable how Flynn manages to weave together the many strands of his story into one whole, making this more than just a massive work of Science Fiction. It is, in fact, a story about ordinary people who, each in his or her own way, faces extraordinary personal and professional challenges in a changing society.

My only, very small, gripe with the series is how it loses a bit of steam in the third book. However, seen as a whole, the entire story is outstanding.

And yes, the last two covers are horrible and have very little to do with the books. Pah!

http://www.books.rosboch.net/?p=175

[Pat Beard · Rating 4 out of 5]

If this book was 1/3 shorter it would be twice as good. Now this is odd because I usually like long books. I think in this case the problem is that there is too much book for not enough plot development. I don't mean action, I don't require constant shoot-'em-up to keep my attention. But I don't like belaboring plot points to death with unnecessary scenes and verbiage. Maybe the author just likes the sound of his own prose. I gave it the 3.5 rounded up for the last 1/3 of the book when he finally got around to doing something.

[Kevin Phyland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Van Huyten Industries (VHI) have been involved in heavy-lifting and constructon in Low-Earth orbit (LEO) for decades but when Mariesa van Huyten forms an alliance with President Donaldson to install a huge piece of equipment on a Clarke orbit station, she has ulterior motives. Since a teen she has been scared witless of asteroidal impacts, and to this end wants a Skywatch installation in space, to both detect and possibly deflect incoming rocks. A subsidiary plotline involves a construction worker and his companions as they are weeded out through ground-based selection before finally being part of the third crew, Blue Crew, who will handle the construction and welding in space. Finally there is the FarTrip mission, captained by an American, piloted by a Russian and navigated by a Brazilian, as part of a political decision to assure cooperation. Their mission is to investigate a small asteroid, mostly scientific and geological, and to that end it is a mild success. They find standard ores and minerals but on one end a large hole is found. One of the crew thinks it is not a natural formation, one is heavily sceptical and the captain is ambivalent. What the navigator discovers inside the hole changes the ideas of everybody. One of them attempts to eradicate the evidence of interference, but there is now the thought that at one time in the Universe we were not alone. Meanwhile in LEO a confrontation is mounting when it is revealed that the installation is a giant space laser, admittedly useful for deflecting asteroids, but unfortunately more useful to attack Earthly targets. Michael F. Flynn continues his series with a compelling book, full of political and familial machinations, and heroic derring-do. Surprisingly entertaining for a sequel.

[John (JP) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the story of This is a continuation of the story started in Firestar. Its the story of Mariesa van Huyten. She is a billionaire who as a teenager saw an asteroid streak across the sky and hit the Earth.. That caused her to begin to use her fortune to prevent a planet killer asteroid from striking the Earth. Her vision for the future is comprehensive and multifaceted. She creates plans that affect endeavors as diverse as new education systems to single stage to orbit spacecraft.

In this book her plans are close to completion. She has a working platforms for space manufacturing .She has a crew going to a possible planet killer sized asteroid. Despite a seeming good situation the consequences of Marissa van Huyten's past decisions are coming to haunt her. On her space platforms the growing international crisis on Earth is causing poor morale among her workers.On top of all that the asteroid mission has found evidence of alien's having visited it before humans. All this sets the reader up for an exciting sequel for this book.

[Darryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt that the 2nd novel missed some of the excitement and wonder that was in book 1. Part of the problem is that one of the new characters, Flaco, who worked construction on the LEO station was just not as interesting a character as Ned Dubois or Barry Fast, and his story took up a large part of the novel. Additionally, there are some big events happening throughout the novel, yet they are sidelined as Interludes. The overall story is still engaging, it's just missing some of the entrepreneur spirit that drove Firestar. I will definitely read book 3: Lodestar.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

The first book wasn't big on novelty, so there isn't much of it to wear off in the sequel. And the book has similar strengths and weaknesses. Particularly the characters. Just as I become impressed with all the characters Flynn has managed to bring to life, they'll be a cringeworthy sex or infidelity passage. Flynn seems to spend as much time thinking about cheating as space rocks.

[Noah Rosenberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Better than the original. Really enjoyed this book, feel like the 3rd book is going to have a hard time living up to it. The parts with the environmentalist is a bit trying at times, but overall it would be hard to draw the connections to the misguided left without them. Overall I really enjoyed the book.

I DO NOT LIKE THE INTERLUDES - they suck. The rest of it is good. :)

[Juan Sanmiguel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mariesa Van Huyten continues to promote space in order to provide Earth with an asteroid defense. The book continues with a realistic vision of the future. We see this on all levels from the policy makers to the riggers who are constructing a permanent space station. Hopefully some of these ideas will be executed in the real world soon.

[Nathan Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the writing mechanics were fine, the characters well-created, the science solid, the story was...nonexistent. It was as if the author had some ideas, wove them together, but completely forgot to build a story, cohesive or otherwise. The concept about aliens throwing rocks at us was fascinating, though, and could be developed.

[Joanne Pascoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read Firestar before reading Rogue Star. It definitely builds on the previous book. Good hard science fiction, although some tech parts have not aged well. For me, the ideas and the people are the more important parts.

[Dustin · Rating 5 out of 5]

an interesting, very-detailed; sequel. not sure how it fits into the wider series......

[Anatoly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid 3.5 or more stars. Better than the first book in many respects, especially the characters' depth.

[Guido]

Why you might like it: Continuation of Firestar arc. Rubric match: not yet scored. Uses your engineering/rigor/first-contact/world-building rubric. Tags: near-future, space-program

[Marc Goldstein · Rating 3 out of 5]

With no less than two Hollywood blockbusters coming out this summer dealing with the subject of giant asteroids colliding with Earth, Michael Flynn's Rogue Star finds itself in an ideal position to ride the asteroid zeitgeist. In fairness to the author, the danger of asteroid strikes is only one of the themes he takes on in this dense novel of interweaving story threads.

A sequel to the critically-praised Firestar, Rogue Star features returning characters from the earlier novel including powerful, progressive-minded corporate chairman Mareisa Van Huyten. Van Huyten suffers from recurring nightmares of gigantic meteorites smashing into earth. To combat her fears, she covertly initiates a massive project to surround earth with a ring of satellites armed with lasers powerful enough to vaporize any incoming object. Only Van Huyten and her inner circle are aware of the satellites' true purpose, but the President of the United States recognizes their potential. He threatens to shut down the project unless Van Huyten agrees to use the orbital weapons to help stop a politically embarrassing war in the Balkans by bombarding ground targets.

While Van Huyten contemplates the President's "proposal," she must also fend off attacks from a variety of enemies: Ed Bullock, a rival tycoon with a reactionary political agenda, Phil Albright, the leader of liberal political action group called The People's Crusade, and Roberta "Styx" Carson, Albright's girl Friday and lover. An award-winning poet who received a scholarship under a Van Huyten mentorship program, Styx resents her former benefactor, whom she sees as a symbol of corporate manipulation and avarice.

Meanwhile, the world watches the progress of the Far Trip mission, a manned space expedition to a distant asteroid. Enigmatic clues discovered on the asteroid's surface may provide evidence justifying Van Huyten's nightmares.

Another subplot follows the story of blue-collar everyman Eddie "Flaco" Mercado. Flaco leaves his pregnant wife behind on Earth to become an apprentice rigger working in orbit, assembling Van Huyten's space station. Honest, honorable Flaco grows suspicious when a section of the station is sealed off by mysterious military men and struggles with his conscience over whether to blow the whistle.

In Rogue Star Flynn imagines a 21st Century that is neither uptopic nor dystopic, but on the verge of tumbling one way or the other. Flynn weaves his multiple story threads with an eye toward the behind-the-scene machinations of politicians and big businessmen striving to seize control of mankind's destiny. Flynn has an ear for the jargon-heavy speech that becomes increasingly natural as technology permeates our everyday lives. His rich language evokes the look, the sound, and the feel of a future both recognizable and alien with artless realism (though some readers may find it inaccessible at first.)

There's not much real political debate going on as the characters fall too neatly into stereotypes: Van Huyten is a progressive visionary; Bullock is reactionary to the point of fascism; the People's Crusade activists are naïve liberals; and the President is a bipartisan opportunist. However, moral compromise touches all the characters equally and Flynn clearly sympathizes with each of his characters, no matter how corrupt their motives appear on the surface.

Styx emerges as the novel's most complex character. Her personal vendetta against Van Huyten ignites some of the story's most emotionally charged exchanges. She is a bitter, angry young woman, obsessed with revenge, yet beneath her defensive layer of hostility stirs the latent desire to escape out from under the black cloud of her rage. The "rogue star" of the title refers literally to the giant asteroids of Van Huyten's nightmares, but for Styx, the poet, rogue star is a metaphor for those people and events which impact our lives and change us forever.

Apparently planned as the middle chapter of a trilogy, Rogue Star consequently leaves many of the issues it broaches unresolved. Nevertheless, Flynn's vision is powerful because it captures the paradox of anxiety and anticipation we feel toward the future. All the players in the novel's high-stakes game of conspiracy are driven by an almost hysterical sense of urgency, for the prize is control of the future itself. And Flynn's future is vast ocean of limitless horizons and claustrophobic fears, simultaneously awesome and overwhelming, teetering on the precipice.

[Matt aka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rogue Star by Michael Flynn is the very good second book that continues the story started in Firestar. Whereas Firestar began the story of private space flights Rogue Star focuses on a long space flight to explore an asteroid.

I enjoy these books because the stories and characters are so lifelike. For example, a group of three astronauts are on a trip to a passing asteroid and you learn a lot about their personalities and fears along with some secrets that I won't reveal about the asteroid itself. You also find out more about Mariesa van Huyten, the CEO of the conglomerate that kick started a new golden age of space exploration. In this second book she is challenged by the President of the United States himself who wants to start up the "Star Wars"" program of the 1980s again. Her decision will affect her position in her company while her fear of pending asteroid strikes make others question her sanity. You also read about some of the men working on the orbiting space station which gives you a picture of the impact of the new technologies on the "common" man.

I liked Rogue Star as a good continuation of the first book Firestar. The space program has evolved to become a mature industry. The book is a solid, enjoyable read of the near future which will definitely include space exploration. It isn't a fast-paced, thrilling book though so I give it four out of five stars.

[A.J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Blackstone Audiobook performed by Malcom Hillgartner.

Malcom Hillgartner is a talented voice actor who really brings this book to life. He has created realistic accents and voices for each character - better than I could have done in my imagination. He switches accents and voices with dazzling alacrity. This is more like a dramatization than a mere reading. If I was just rating the Narrator, i would give him 4.5 stars. I feel guilty for withholding a half star - there is just a slight harshness to the timbre of Hillgartner's voice that my ears found tiring.

This is a sweeping tale that skillfully interweaves a number of intersecting storylines. Each tale has its own protagonist whose backstory is gradually revealed. The narrative transitions from family drama to gender dynamics to hard science effortlessly. This book would make a great mini series for television.

Unfortunately I found myself admiring the book more than being immersed in it. There were many characters and their family affiliations that just did not capture my interest. Several times, as one plot line got exciting the narrative would switch to some tedious domestic entanglement. For example, Flaco's home life plot with his pregnant wife is cliched and adds nothing to the story. I would rather have heard more about the mysterious aliens who mined the asteroid.

[Snail in Danger (Sid) Nicolaides · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a re-read ... something I hadn't noticed before: there is a reference on page 271 to a McMaster who "wrote the book" on non-destructive testing of welding. I'm not sure if this counts as a Tuckerization, reference, allusion, or homage, but Lois McMaster Bujold's father was a welding engineer, and he did write the book on non-destructive testing of welds (albeit on Earth rather than a zero-gravity environment.)

This is where things get tight and bad and crazy, to steal a line. Or at least, it's the start of that. This is where people start having to deal with the consequence of human failures, and this can't be reduced to even the most complex of FMEA charts. This series scratches some kind of itch for me, but I'm not sure what kind. It is dated in some places and too adventurous in others: Flynn failed to predict the ubiquity of cell phones, but seems to have overestimated where computer tech would be.

[Alex Shrugged · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Rogue Star" is book 2 of the Firestar series by Michael Flynn. This book continues with the construction of the space station and introduces a number of new characters.

The Story: Mariesa van Huyten is building a space station. The supposed goal is to open up profitable space manufacturing and to provide SAT power and laser defense capability for the USA. She has another purpose though. She wants to kill near-Earth asteroids before they hit Earth.

Any problems? If you read the first book and you are hoping for more action you will get it toward the end but you are going to have to wait for it. Mariesa is fighting with her poet-sort-of-adopted-daughter and with her corporation which is getting antsy.

I liked the ending. I also liked some of the new characters introduced.

That all.

I don't think I would read this series again but I am glad I read it.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much like Firestar, I enjoyed this book - but have some reservations. I cannot help but see the parallels with one of the worst books I have ever read: Atlas Shrugged. Much better written, more subtle and not nearly as one sided as Ayn Rand's magnum opus; the Firestar series still shares many of Rand's philosophical and sociological concepts. Overall, I enjoy the characterizations and the ideas, yet I am bothered by the idea of Oligarchs using people as pawns to further their own paranoid goals.

[Sylvia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much better than the first book in the pair, "Firestar". In fact I recommend you skip the first one and just read this one. This one offered more hard science, more adventure, and less emotionalism. Characters were developed more by their actions than their thoughts - and for hard SF, that's a good thing. The ending was anticlimactic and somewhat disappointing, focusing less on science fiction and more on corporate fiction.

[Stephanie Manson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never read a Michael Flynn book that I haven't liked. This book, like all his others, has well-developed, realistic characters whose motivations the reader can understand & identify with. The story was a little slow in places, but those parts were worth sticking with it because the material was important to the story. I'm anxious to read the next one because so many things were set up or introduced in this book that will play out spectacularly, I'm sure, in the next one.

[Brian Maicke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Possibly a 3 star for general consumption, but the book is on topics near and dear to my heart, namely jump starting a spaceflight program. I enjoyed this one more than the first book in the series. The plot is more character driven and there are fewer committee meeting events and more things actually going on. Looking forward to trying to find the rest of the books in the series.

[Paul, · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book. Talks about politics. The dangers and occasional necessity of extreme positions and the ends justifying the means. Can be construed as a application off Hayek's "The Pretence of Knowledge".

[Peter Brander · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't enjoy #2 as much as the first. The schoolchildren are gone, and the idea of US military on an international space-station is stupid (and therefore possible). But still I discovered, that I had read the 700 pages in just two days. It must have been exciting after all...

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

The only obnoxious thing about these two books, is that the male characters can't seem to not cheat on their wives. It gets old, since it happens in both this and the first book. Will have to see about the next one.