Keiree

by C. Litka

Keiree is a 34,000 word novella set on Mars. Yet another Mars story. It almost seems as if every writer of speculative fiction pens at least one Mars story. I suspect that one of the reasons Mars stories are so popular with authors is that to be even considered for membership in the Fraternal Order of the Aether, a writer must submit a Mars story to the committee. It’s in their bylaws. So… Keiree is my Mars story. Keiree is the story of the brilliant and wealthy engineer, Keiree Tulla, her chauffeur and love, Gy Mons… (Ssh! I’m getting to you.) ...and the silka cat, Molly. Deciding to escape scandal and start a new life on the distant planet of Fara V, they sign on as expedition crew members. Keiree as the director of the initial construction section and Gy, along with Molly, as a pilot with the advanced survey team. Upon completing their training, they were put in stasis pods to “sleep” away the centuries long voyage to Fara V. and stored on Mars awaiting their scheduled time to be uploaded to the vast settlement ship in orbit. The expedition never sailed. After they were put in their stasis pods, but before they were uploaded to the settlement ship, a deadly plague swept through the solar system, laying waste to its planets and moons. Mars was not spared. Gy and Molly’s storage facility was quickly abandoned and then forgotten for seven hundred Martian years. When it was finally rediscovered, and Gy and Molly revived, they find that Keiree’s section had been stored elsewhere on Mars. Gy and Molly set out to find her so they can face a familiar, and yet strange, Mars together. Keiree takes place in the far future, after Mars having been extensively terraformed into an Earth-like world, but with its own unique quirks. The story is set in the fictional universe that includes The Bright Black Sea, The Last Star’s Sea, Beneath the Lanterns, Sailing to Redoubt and The Prisoner of Cimlye. C. Litka writes old fashioned stories with modern sensibilities, humor, and romance. He spins tales of adventure, mystery, and travel set in richly imagined worlds, with casts of colorful, fully realized characters. If you seek to escape your everyday life, you will not find better company, nor more wonderful worlds to travel and explore, than in the stories of C. Litka.

Genres: Science Fiction

112 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 17, 2020

About the author

I write romances. Romances in the old meaning of the word; that meaning being an adventure novel set in exotic locales, remote from everyday life. The fact that I set my stories in the future and in imaginary locales mean that they can be classified as science fiction, but what I really write are first person narratives that feature likable, modern characters, in lighthearted, realistic adventures, told with humor and a bit of that other type of romance as well.

In my teen years I read hundreds of science fiction books and since then many other types of novels; detective and mysteries, humor, adventure, military, sea stories, as well as light literary fiction, many of which were written in the first half of the last century. Having lived a perfectly ordinary and, thankfully, an uneventful life. these are the stories that have shaped the style and themes of my own stories,

I live in a small Wisconsin city. I’ve been married for as long as I can remember, with two grown children and a couple of grandchildren. Besides writing, I paint impressionist landscapes and ride my bike each day, outside when it’s warm and inside during long the Wisconsin winters with the bike on a stand next to a window.

Reviews

[Richard M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first C. Litka story. Delightful. I read for escape, to be entertained and to be introduced to characters that make me care about them. This story succeeded on all counts. I’m on my 5th book now and love the way his primary character becomes more “care worthy” as the story progresses. Thank you Mr. Litka. My greatest regret is that I’ll someday in the near future finish all of you stories and have to search for a new favorite author.

[Kia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even though this book was a cute sentiment regarding wives that had passed away It was hard for me to not fall asleep... The beginning was good, the middle was boring and I loved the ending.

Two Stars.

[Torfinn Ingolfsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked it.

[Audrey Driscoll · Rating 4 out of 5]

Imagine waking up to find that centuries have passed since you entered a state of suspended animation. Not months or even decades, but centuries. Seven of them. The mission to another planet never happened. You're still at home, but home has utterly changed.
That's what happens to Gy Mons. The changed world is Mars, a terraformed, bio-engineered planet where rain happens on a schedule. Because of the plague, the population is much reduced, with many ghost towns and cities full of deserted buildings. Salvaging of technology from the before time is big business, and Gy's skills as a pilot may be in demand as well. But his first task is to find his wife Keiree, who was to be on the same interstellar mission as he, and who may still be in a stasis pod in some long-abandoned facility.
As Gy pursues his search, the reader gets to travel along and discover the strangeness of this world. It's full of mysteries and possibilities: bio-engineered monsters, weird automata, nonconforming tribal cultures, and Gy's silka cat, Molly. She's an interesting character.
This is a short novel that starts out feeling like a much longer one. The setting is intriguing, as is Gy's backstory. Unfortunately, it ends all too soon.

[Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Out of this world, literally. A love story. With subtle trappings of sci-fi that enhance the narrative rather than getting in the way of it. Set on Mars, it features an engineered cat, and protagonist who are awakened from sleep after more than 700 Mars years, which is about 1400 or so Earth years.