Product Description
Jo Camerata, the ambitious young student who fell in love with Stoner, is now head of Vanguard Industries, which has recovered the alien ship. As a result, her company is now in control of its vast new technology and the fortune it reaps-and in control of Keith Stoner. What Camerata doesn't know, however, is that someone else has been awake, someone who dwells within Stoner's mind. The alien presence that has kept Stoner alive all this time is now free and intends to explore our world, letting nothing stand in its way. ... Read more

Product Description
Grant Archer only wanted to study astrophysics. But the forces of the "New Morality," the coalition of censorious do-gooders who run 21st-century America, have other plans for him.

To his distress, Grant is torn from his young bride and sent to a research station in orbit around Jupiter, to spy on the scientists who work there. Their work may lead to the discovery of higher life forms in the Jovian system-with implications the New Morality doesn't like at all.

What Grant's would-be controllers don't know is that his loyalty to science may be greater than his desire for a quiet life. But that loyalty will be tested in a mission as dangerous as any ever undertaken-a mission to the middle reaches of Jupiter's endless atmosphere, a place where hydrogen flows as a liquid, and cyclones larger than planets rage for centuries at a time.

What lurks there is more than anyone has counted on...and stranger than anyone could possibly have imagined.
Amazon.com Review
He made planetfall on Venus and all but colonized Mars, so it's not surprising that SF don Ben Bova finally set his sights on our solar system's swirling, red-eyed sovereign.

As with his previous planetary exploration books, Jupiter plants you right in the heart of the action, witness to the speculative science and political intrigue--and in this case, religious machination--that surround a fast-paced, dangerous, and technically fleshed-out mission. Our unlikely hero on this touchdown is an earnest, likeable, hard-working grad student named Grant Archer, a frustrated astrophysicist who's been shanghaied aboard Jupiter's Gold space station to fulfill a ROTC-style public-service commitment. What's worse, this devout young man has been ordered by the New Morality--the American flavor of the conservative religious order that runs Earth nowadays--to spy on some suspicious research involving alleged Jovian life forms.

Bova begins his book with an A.C. Clarke quote: "The rash assertion that 'God made man in His own image' is ticking like a time bomb at the foundation of many faiths." This tells you pretty much everything you need to know about where this book's going, and who, respectively, will be wearing the white and the black hats (unfortunately, some of the characterizations don't get much deeper). That the central protagonist is both a Christian and a scientist makes for some fertile character development, but Bova's not exactly gunning for God here--he's happy just to blast away at narrow-minded ideologues and other assorted religious fanatics. (But that, of course, is about as easy as making teenagers depressed.) --Paul Hughes ... Read more

Customer Reviews (56)

Post Tenebras Lux
I don't have a lot to say here except that based on the author's reputation I was expecting a much more interesting book. Truthfully I was bored and finished Jupiter by sheer power of will. The book never took off or found its footing and the payoff was not worth the effort of investing a few hours in this story. There were a few good moments here and there when it came to its descriptions of Jupiter, the titular planet that is "stranger than we can imagine" but overall this novel was a lot like a car without an engine.

Great Sci-Fi
I was looking to read a good hard Sci-Fi story and Jupiter fits the bill.I enjoyed how Grant maintained his belief and challenged the idea that God could not create intellegent alien life.This novel brings up many interesting questions but at it's heart it is still a Sci-Fi adventure into Jupiter.Bova does a good job of making the reader want to find out what is going to eventually happen when the expedition gets deep into Jupiter.

Very well imagined!
Reading this novel, I felt like I was transported to a science station orbiting Jupiter.Then, to the roiling sea and storms of Jupiter itself.Bova does a spectacular job of envisioning Jovian life in its extreme environment.The image of the alien protagonist Leviathan will stay with me for quite some time.Jupiter is not without its narrative and character development flaws, but these pale in the broader setting of a story very well told and richly detailed.

How would you react to the discovery of intelligent alien life?
John Campbell, arguably the best known editor in the history of science fiction, once demanded of his writers, "Write me a story about an organism that thinks as well as a man, but not like a man." Probably the best known successful response to that challenge was Stanley Weinbaum's pseudo-ostrich Tweel in "The Martian Odyssey". It's only my opinion, of course, but I believe that Hal Clement's Mesklinites, the bizarre natives of a world of frozen methane and ammonia crushed with a gravity over 700 times that of earth also completed Campbell's imaginative challenge.

But, that was then and this is now. If John Campbell were still alive, I'm sure he would agree that Leviathan, Ben Bova's sentient colossus swimming the storm tossed globe-girdling oceans of Jupiter, a planet so massive that it is within an ace of self-igniting into a star, would also qualify as a winner in his alien life-form fiction sweepstakes.

As part of the continuing "Grand Tour of the Universe" series, "Jupiter" is certainly high falutin', rootin' tootin' space opera replete with all the high-tech gadgets, personalities, heroism and skulduggery that one would expect of any self-respecting member of this venerable sci-fi sub-genre. The basic plot idea is simple. It's the story of mankind's establishment of an experimental space station orbiting Jupiter, the development of research programs investigating Jupiter's large moons - Io, Ganymede, Europa, Callisto - and, ultimately, the first tentative exploration of the amorphous surface of Jupiter, the discovery of Jovian lifeforms and the realization that at least one of these species is sentient, intelligent and capable of communication. Bova has transformed a very basic scientific idea into an exciting plot-line with plenty of edge of the seat moments and lots of imaginative science that isn't entirely off the radar screen of credibility.

But, for me, what really pulls "Jupiter" into the 5-star range is Bova's portrayal of the ultra-right wing religious opposition to this basic scientific research and the philosophical discussion of humanity's conflicted reaction to, first, the possibility and, finally, the reality of sentient extra-terrestrial life.

Bova's "Grand Tour of the Universe" series is a continuing joy. Naturally, with such an extended series, some of the novels are much better or much worse than their siblings. "Mercury", for example, was much more soap opera than space opera. But "Jupiter" definitely fired on all cylinders and was an all out success. Highly recommended.

Paul Weiss

Great cover, interesting premise, poor execution
I came across Jupiter in a used book store, read the back cover, and bought it. The tag line: A novel of a planet stranger than we can imagine... and that is certainly true, though I would query the adjective and verb choice. A silly, unimaginable world is more apt. Like Alice in Wonderland the characters and landscape are absurd, but in Jupiter not intentionally so.

This would be forgivable if the world was explored and revealed in a compelling way, or if the adventure itself produced scenes and images not quickly forgotten. The curtain is removed only late in the novel, and the exploration is completely unsatisfying. The 'discovery' not yet made by the characters is already known to the reader and the outcome of the mission is never in doubt. At no point does any scene, image, or idea arrest the reader.

Threads are spun in the beginning pages that neither thin, thicken, cross, or tangle, until the last 50 pages, and the resulting knot is unraveled more quickly than a slip knot. The main (and only) character is never in any danger and the 'villain' is impotent and offstage until the end. The protagonist struggles briefly with torn loyalties which are resolved in the most obvious way. Anything trying to be said, any theme trying to break through the story, is buried by the absurdity of the 'scientific' speculations on the future.


Extraterrestrial life? Intelligent life? Really no more than a gimmick to the entire novel.
... Read more

Product Description
hen corporations go to war, standard business practice goes out the window. Astro Corporation is led by indomitable Texan Pancho Lane, Humphries Space Systems by the rich and ruthless Martin Hum-phries, and their fight is over nothing less than the resources of the Asteroid Belt itself. As fighting escalates, the lines between commerce and politics, boardroom and bedroom, blur-and the keys to victory will include physics, nanotechnology, and cold hard cash. The lives of thousands of innocents hang in the balance, including the rock rats who make their living off the asteroids and the inhabitants of Selene City on Earth's moon. As if matters weren't complicated enough, the shadowy Yamagata corporation sets its sights on taking advantage of other people's quarrels, and space pirate Lars Fuchs decides it's time to make good on his own personal vendetta. It's a breakneck finale that can end only in earth's salvation-or the annihilation of all that humankind has ever accomplished in space. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (16)

Ben - you've done better!
The plot does not work for me.I do not believe that the head of an entire corporation is going to tour some strange place all alone, then get out by herself.I do not believe that someone as paranoid as Humphries isn't going to make sure there is a phone and food stocked in his panic room.I don't really buy the way the war played out. The entirety with Furch & Amanda was just ridiculous.If Furch wants to kill Humpheries, he surely didn't plan very well, didn't execute it, and should not have been able to just slip away.Un-be-liev-able!

The ending was atrocious.The rest of the plot was bad enough, but then it just runs into that absurdity of an ending and we're all supposed to believe it?I don't think so.

And what was that nonsense about the artifact?It had nothing to do with anything.The first and last chapters in italics had nothing to do with this book and does not make me want to read whatever next book is supposedly coming after it.

Add to this the wooden, one-dimensional characters that, honestly, I didn't like very much.Add to that, the fact that the story would jump rapidly from one scene to another but NOTHING would be added to the storyline.The story became boring as the plot wasn't progressing, just jumping to show "action."

Nope, did not like this at all.It started very well, but it ended poorly.

Very immature SciFi
I have to say the entire Asteroid Wars series and the Saturn/Titan books are very disappointing. They're filled with cardboard characters and illogical plots. None of the characters are likeable and gone are the exploration spirit in the Mars/Jupiter books. Here's some plot points making reading this book really painful:
1. The alien artifact: What's the point of introducing this big revelation? It has no relationship to the main plot at all.
2. The kidnap: Yes, we want to stay hidden when our enemies fight amoung themselves, but wait, let's grab the enemy's leader and show her our true intentions, she'll forget it afterwards. (NOT!)
3. The love: Pancho & Jack, where did that come from? It just jumps out of the blue.
4. The nano weapon: We only have one chance in hitting the enemy base with it, let's make the nanites only eat metals so that our enemy can stop it. After all this is just a diversion to get our robotic weapons platform online, but wait, didn't the platforms already come online, why do we need this diversion at all?

Love him or Not, It's a Bova
I've been reading his stuff for quite a while, and more recently tried (someone unsuccessfully) to read all of his novels about the planets and the asteroid wars which, actually, form a continuous chain of events(and characters).

Readers who are A-type as I am should know that the series is not to be read in the order published; if you go by that, the characters who died before are suddenly alive again.

The 3rd installment of the asteroid wars takes place just before his novel Venus, but finishes off a trilogy; in some ways, this is the weakest of the 3 because the plot gets a bit repititious - and the characters are pretty well frozen in place. His descriptions start to get repititious as well.

But if you like his style (simple, right wing space opera out of the Heinlein tradition, but without the sense of satire), it's good summer reading.

More Action in the Asteroid Belt
The Asteroid Wars continue to rage in this third installment by Ben Bova.

Martin Humphries and Pancho Lane continue to battle it out over control of the asteroid belt and its tremendous mineral wealth.Humphries Space Systems and Astro Corporation continue to blast each other's ships into oblivion, and each side has hired mercenaries to combat the other.However, a new player has emerged in the war; Yamagata corporation.The Yamagata corporation has been silently watching as Astro and Humphries Space Systems battle each other.Then, when both are ready to collapse, Yamagata will zoom in and take full control of the belt.At least that's what the plan was.

Lars Fuchs continues to be a thorn in the side of Martin Humphries.After being exiled from Ceres, Fuchs has lead the life of a pirate; secretly destroying Martin Humphries' ships in the belt.However, Martin seems to have won the ultimate prize; Amanda, Lars' beloved wife, has divorced him and married Martin.She's even pregnant.But whose child is it, Martin's or Lars'?Sadly, Amanda dies in childbirth, leaving Martin with a handicapped son.Martin never bonds with the child, instead, he sends his new son to Connecticut to live.

Dorik Harbin is still on Humphries' payroll and is determined to find Lars.Lars has even tried to kill Martin in his own home.He sneaked into Martin's home in Selene and set fire to the entire compound.Martin managed to survive by hiding in a concealed fire-proof closet, but his house and many of his security team were destroyed.Pancho helped Lars escape by giving him one of Astro's new ships.But, Humphries has sent Harbin looking for him.

Meanwhile, Doug Stavenger's wife Edith has left Selene to fly to Ceres to report on the war.But, Harbin has chosen the same path to track Fuchs.Once at Ceres, Harbin demands that Fuchs be turned over to him.He is rebuffed and told that Fuchs is not there.Enraged, Harbin destroys the habitat surrounding Ceres.Meanwhile, Doug Stavenger has convened a meeting of Pancho, Humphries, and Yamagata in an effort to stop the war.Will he be successful, or will the Asteroid Wars continue to rage on?

This book is the best one of the series.The action is non-stop, and I enjoyed the way Bova expanded the storyline by adding the Yamagata corporation into the war.Of course, its still fun to watch Humphries and Pancho battle it out.Plus, the beginning and ending, which deals with an alien artifact, is good, too.

I give this book my highest recommendation.The action is fast-paced, and the character development is excellent.Will the Asteroid Wars finally come to an end, or will Pancho, Martin, and Yamagata continue to fight it out?Read this great book and find out!

War Is Hell
The Silent War (2004) is the third SF novel of the Asteroid Wars series, following The Rock Rats.In the previous volume, Lars Fuchs was caught in an ambush by HSS mercenaries, was returned to Ceres, and then was exiled by the Rock Rats.Amanda Cunningham divorced him and married Martin Humphries to keep Lars from being hurt by any HSS goons.But Amanda also has plans to implant an embryo fertilized by Lars within herself and to carry it to term.

In this novel, Yamagata Corporation is moving back into space ventures after years of rebuilding Japan.Saito Yamagata is leaving corporate management to his son Nobuhiko, but providing advice as requested.Saito has insisted that the corporation should remain in the background until their position is assured.Most of their efforts have been focused through Nairobi Industries, an African conglomerate with little overt experience in such ventures.

Covertly, Yamagata Corporation is picking off freighters from both Humphries Space Systems and Astro Manufacturing.Now each of these corporations blames the other for their losses.Martin Humphries and Pancho Lane are ready to make war of each other.The Humper is reestablishing the base on Vesta and equipping it with a dozen attack craft.Pancho is arming her freighters.

Lars Fuchs is unaware of most of these warlike preparations, but he is continuing his war against HSS.Dorik Harbin, commander of the HSS mercenaries, is still trying to lure him into a trap, but without luck.Still, Lars has learned about Amanda's pregnancy, but not about the heritage of the embryo.

Eight years after her marriage to Humphries, Amanda makes her first move in the long held plan to implant herself with the cryogenically preserved embryo of Lars and herself.She is supposedly carrying Humphries's baby and only Douglas Stavenger and Pancho Lane know that the embryo's heritage is quite different.She has even changed the DNA codes in Humphries's medical records to throw off suspicion of another paternity.Now if she can just carry the baby to term without the Old Humper learning of her duplicity.

The characters in this novel have well developed, but trite motivations.Of course, trite means commonplace and they are very common personality types.Especially Humphries, who learned early that his father cared nothing for him;now he is marking people notice him by force (mostly economic).Pancho is a white-hatted cowboy, out to do good in the world, but otherwise liable to play practical jokes and other highjinks.Lars Fuchs has been forced into a psychological corner by the Old Humper and differs greatly from his previous self-image.All are what they are due to circumstances beyond their control, just as are you and I.

The prologue and epilogue to this work occur six years after the body of this novel.An alien object, thought to be an artistic work, has been discovered and sold to Martin Humphries.Except for the discovering family and the initial security detail, no one else has seen the object.The results of viewing the object are variable, but profound.

This novel is the final volume in the Asteroids Wars series, but the consequences carry throughout the Grand Tour universe.Some of these effects have already reached publication in other works, most notably Venus, which is a direct sequel, although taking place over a decade after this volume. Others are still to come.

Recommended for Bova fans and for anyone else who enjoy tales of high adventure, technical warfare and naked slaughter.

-Arthur W. Jordin ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (5)

Drab and dull
I've been reading Ben Bova for long enough that I don't worry that his next book that I pick up will be a clunker...but unfortunately, for my money, that's what "The Immortality Factor" is.

It's an OK-enough premise: stuffed shirt scientist Arthur Marshak cracks the biology of organ regeneration, which triggers all sorts of emotional mayhem not only in the general populace, but within those near and dear to him.

But that strong premise is dressed up in unconvincing flim-flam, like the 'trial' that acts as the narrative structure for the plot. For reasons that are unconvincingly presented, Arthur must defend 'the science' of his breakthrough in what can only be described as a Kangaroo Court. The outcome of said trial is to "...determine the scientific validity of organ regeneration in human beings [and] making a recommendation of public policy to the highest levels of government."

It's tenuous stuff indeed, and even Arthur recognises that "It's going to be a circus". (And I have to admit, I missed the rationale that convinces Arthur - and more importantly, his Board of Directors - to participate in the trial in the first place.)

Of itself, the trial is annoying, but it's ultimately a forgivable scene setting device.

But what I could not forgive, and it's what makes "The Immortality Factor" drab and dull for me, is the word smithing.

Bova opens the book in the third person for Chapter 1 and 2, then falls back into first person mode at Chapter 3, with each chapter then from a different character's viewpoint. It's a jarring thig to do, quite frankly, but OK, let's get over that.

No, the real shame is that the "voices" of the characters are identical. Male, female, young, old...they all sound the same. It drains away the tension and anticipation, and levels the emotional landscape to the point that you don't really care who's doing what to whom.

It does not - and should not - have to be this way. Counterpoint Bova's monotonal characters with the eloquence of fellow scifi writer, L. E. Modesitt Jr in his outstanding novel "The Eternity Artifact". Chapters of first person voices and each character is wonderfully unique in content and context.

So, we have an experienced author writing on a contentious topic that deserves deep consideration. That's to be applauded. But the outcome failed to inspire any real reflection on the issues. And that, for me, is a disappointing waste of both Bova's time, and mine.

A Tale Of Science, Politics, and More
Although Ben Bova is one of the Greats of science fiction, this is not a science fiction novel. I wouldn't exactly call it a "thriller," either, since the biggest weapon involved is an animal tranquilizer dart. In terms of genre, "medical fiction" seems to come closest. The novel is really a drama about the issue of animal and human experimentation in medical research, where morality, science, business, politics, and religion collide.

The protagonists are two brothers, one a physician and the other a commercial research lab director, who find themselves on opposite sides of the issues as the lab races to develop a method of growing replacement human organs. Conflict between the brothers is heightened by a love triangle that is intricately woven into the well-plotted story. The climax of the plot is a "science court" to try the issue, an idea that has been mooted for several years now in the science policy community, and whose pros and cons are illustrated here in fictional form.

Bova makes no secret where his sympathies lie; he is 100% pro-science, to the extent that readers who feel strongly about animal rights may actually dislike the book. One of the characters in the book is a thinly-disguised send-up of Jeremy Rifkin, the anti-technology activist; other satirized characters include venal politicians and anti-stem-cell-research preachers.

There are enough plot reversals and personal conflicts to keep the book interesting and well-paced throughout. The heros are given enough flaws to make them seem like real people, warts and all, and the science, politics, and business issues are worked out in a pretty realistic fashion. People who enjoy reading issue-oriented fiction may like to give this one a try.

A Revamping of an Earlier Book That Doesn't Deliver
Ben Bova's latest novel, The Immortality Factor, is his earlier book Brothers, restored to its original length.

Two brothers and the woman they both love are at the center of the novel, which looks at common events from each person's point-of-view. One brother, Arthur, runs a research lab. The other brother, Jesse, is a medical doctor. Between the two is Julia, who was originally engaged to Arthur but married Jesse.

In addition to their battles over Julia, the two are also at the center of a Science Court hearing. Though not one with legal standing, this court--which is based on fact, though not yet implemented--is supposed to look at the science behind the brother's desire to restore mobility to quadriplegics. Other issues, such as the right to life and harvesting stem cells from human embryos, are also brought into the mix.

While The Immortality Factor blends all of these issues, it does it in a very choppy, drawn-out manner. It also provides a highly-detailed, behind-the-scenes view of modern science, which is as much about making money as it is acquiring knowledge.

Reviewed by Dave Reynolds

Exellent reading!
You can always rely on this author to give you a solid novel.Ranked with the classic "fathers" of science fiction, I expected an entertaining, diverting afternoon with a good summer book.

What I got was a riviting story centered on a debate about whether scientific feasibility or ethical concerns about the science should be primary considerations -- or if the two can be brought together.

This book is a reissue of a book issued some years ago that, at that time, was edited rather heavily.The Immortality Factor brings in previously deleted chapters, giving a fuller story.We have two brothers who come up on rather different sides of an issue about organ regeneration.In addition, we have strong secondary characters who support or oppose the research.All of this centers on a "trial" of the science itself, set in Washington, DC.The book has an interesting structure, with chapters alternating between the viewpoint of different characters, and the research itself.

I don't want to create a spoiler; let me just say that any thinking reader will have to confront and consider his or her own feelings on the matter.While it is true that the author clearly has an opinion, this book would make an excellent "book club" addition that would generate lots of interesting debate.

I hope any lover of science fiction (although that really isn't the correct genre for this particular book), medical thrillers, or future science thrillers reads and enjoys this excellent book.

insightful exciting medical thriller
Grenford Laboratory Director Arthur Marshak discovers a method for human organ regeneration that enables the host body to replace ailing parts.The announcement causes a tsunami of support and criticism.Some called him God's agent on earth while others claimed he was a blasphemer.

Arthur agrees to appear before a Congressional "science court" in Washington, D.C. so that his project is not destroyed by politicians pandering their political base as he believes strongly that his achievement is a great gift to mankind.On the science court board is Arthur's estranged brother, Jesse, a winner of humanitarian awards for his work with the poor in the Bronx.Jesse opposes the technique claiming another example of money buying health as only the wealthy would be able to afford it.He has personal reasons to be against it too as he and Arthur fell in love with Julia, but he married her and then there is their late mother to split them further.

This is an insightful exciting medical thriller that makes a strong case to keep politics out of scientific research.The story line is at its best during the tribunal hearings as all sorts of irrelevant headline grabbing sound bites is tossed continually including by the "judges".The relationship triangle feels stiff and out of place as means to add sibling conflict.On the other hand a hostile business takeover attempt though not as explored like the politics intervening in science is interesting as the other firm has agenda to squash certain unacceptable research.Fans will enjoy Ben Bova's latest tale as he argues politics and science research are a bad combination.

Harriet Klausner
... Read more

Product Description
John O'Ryan is not a god...not exactly. He is an eternal warrior destined to combat the Dark Lord through all time for dominion of the Earth. Follow him, servant of a great race, as he battles his enemy down the halls of time, from the caves of our ancestors to the final confrontation under the hammer of nuclear annihilation.
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Customer Reviews (19)

Amazingly awful
Full of idiocy. O'Ryan (get it, Orion?) jumps on the girl when a grenade is thrown in a restaurant. Sorry, but you have to jump on the grenade to save the girl. You can't just lie on the floor. Grenades are made to fill spaces with shrapnel. It just gets dumber from there. Fusion lasers out of control? Ooh, crawl INSIDE the machine to block them with your body! That would sure work! You could just crawl around and get comfy while they cut you to ribbons. This is the first book I have ever thrown away in my life.

Super Reader
Orion is man made more than a man, as he is given superhuman abilities to act as a warrior avatar in the conflict between one god, and another supposedly dark god Ahriman.

His life is lived as he is sent to various periods throughout time, and he quickly has to learn to live and adapt here, as well as overcome Ahriman's influence.

jacket summary
from the back cover of the April 1985 Tor paperback edition:
cover art by Boris Vallejo
John O'Ryan is not a god...not exactly.He is an eternal warrior destined to combat the Dark Lord through all time for dominion of the Earth.Follow him, servant of a great race, as he battles his enemy down the halls of time, from the caves of our ancestors to the final confrontation under the hammer of nuclear annihilation.

interesting and disappointing.
It's the second time I am reading this novel, and I got myself the next issues to read them too. There is something that I like about it, and yet I keep ranting about the weaknesses of writing, plot building, soundness of the treated issues etc. It feels like Ben Bova is 1/ cheaply educated, I mean full of prejudices and ignorance although they've probably been acquired in expensive schools anyway, 2/ trained by secret societies (indirectly) in conventional theology and history, 3/ not willing to dedicate much time and energy to build a story, yet willing to use as tricks all the good ideas that he grabbed elsewhere, that were basically told to him by others. The result is kind of annoying, there IS good stuff in there, but to dig it out one must put up with heaps of cheap tricks, and cheap writing. I'll dig them out, but I know this is no litterary masterpiece, just cheap writing with a few good ideas that are not his.
I just wish Mr Ben Bova did some real work with these ideas, or that i found another author who does it. In the end it doesn't matter that much. I'll use this messenger as I'd use another one who would be a real artist.

A very interesting, fun novel
Orion is a very interesting fun novel.After a present day incident where Orion (the Hunter) preserves the invention of fusion power, he travels back through time to critical junctures in the development of mankind to foil the plans of Ahriman, who is bent on destroying the human race.Orion seems to have no unearthly powers (he is sent back in time by God or his equivalent), and Ahriman seems to be able to control time and space, but Orion manages to perserver.Between the sequences where Orion travels backwards through time Bova also sheds some light on the god who is managing this process.I actually found that substoryline to be the most compelling part of the story after a while.It appears that this god is convinced the universe will be destroyed should Ahriman succeed and thus he needs Orion to stop him.Sounds kind of trite I know, but the historical and mystery aspects of the novel were very well done.Orion is a real page turner (turns out it is a series also). ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (13)

by the seat of your pants
The Aftermath, like all of Bova's Grand Tour books, is a page turner.

Bova writes 2 to 5 page chapters that each have a different character's point of view. The plot is fired by constant conflict.

Aftermath is more towards the classic science fiction side of things opposed to hard science, but has both mixed in there in this space opera.

Even if a reader hasn't read any of the other Asteroid books or any of the other Grand Tour books a reader could read Aftermath as a standalone book and find it enjoyable, entertaining, and thrilling.

An Eventual Reunion
The Aftermath (2007) is the seventh SF novel in the Asteroid Wars series and the fourth in this sequence, following The Silent War.In the previous volume, an alien Artifact was found and worked its changes upon various humans.It brought out the insanity in Martin, but changed Dorn and Elverda in other ways.The Artifact was moved to hide it from the rest of humanity.

In this novel, Victor Zacharias is a former architect from Earth who has become a belter.He and his family operate the ore ship Syracuse, buying ore from rock rats and transporting it to the smelters.

Pauline Osgood was born on Luna.She met Victor in Selene and then married him on Earth.She has borne two children for him.

Angela is the eldest child of Victor and Pauline.Angie is about eighteen and has a boyfriend on Chrysalis, the habitat at Ceres.

Theo is the second child in the Zacharias family.He is almost sixteen and interested in science and technology.Yet he is a terrible klutz.

Dorik Harbin was born in the Balkans and became a soldier in his teen years.He also became a drug addict to escape his dreams of death and destruction.Eventually he attempted suicide and was rebuilt as a cyborg.Since his exposure to the Artifact, he has changed his name to Dorn.

Elverda Apacheta is a sculptress from an Andean background.She is very well known for carving The Rememberer, a two kilometer long asteroid in Earth orbit.After her exposure to the Artifact, Elverda became Dorn's partner.

In this story, Victor is having problems adjusting to the teenage Theo.He forbids Theo from touching any of the ship controls because of his destructive way with machines.Theo believes that his father doesn't trust him at all.

Pauline points out the problem to her husband and Victor lets Theo watch the controls as long as he doesn't touch them.Theo is standing watch one day and notices a confrontation between an attack ship and Chrysalis station.He summons his father and they watch as the attack ship destroys the station.

Victor tries to change course away from the station like the other ships around Ceres, but somehow attracts the attention of the attacker.It fires on the Syracuse and damages the antennas and releases most of the fuel. Victor drops his cargo to shield the Syracuse from the attacker's weapons.

Then the attack ship moves around the released rocks to approach them.Victor jettisons the control pod from the Syracuse and flees to draw the attack ship away from his family.The attacker follows the pod and leaves Pauline and her children stranded in the Syracuse.

The ore ship is moving toward Jupiter without any communications.Theo cuts thrust and determines their orbital parameters.The Syracuse will return to the vicinity of Ceres in slightly more than eight years.The ship only has sufficient fuel to reduce the orbital delay to about four years.

Theo and Angie cease their juvenile bickering and learn to cooperate during their long voyage.Angie even learns to do technical tasks and to backup Theo in his spacewalks.They become a team.

This tale frustrates Victor for years after his rescue from the control pod.It provides Theo and Angie with an opportunity to mature as they try to keep their family alive in the slowly returning Syracuse.It also takes Dorn and Elverda out to reclaim bodies from the Asteroid Wars.

The story portrays the immediate aftermath of the Asteroid Wars.It brings all these characters -- and a few others -- together in a grand conclusion.Read and enjoy!

Recommended for Bova fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of space misadventures, persevering parents, and the maturation of young folks.If anyone has not yet read this tetralogy, the first volume is The Precipice.See my listmania for other books in the Asteroid Wars Series.

-Arthur W. Jordin

Right up there with Jupiter
I'm a big Bova fan now.This is up there with Jupiter.I loved the story of Dorn and sculptor, and the Zacharias family.It was just good from beginning to end.
This is the 4th book of the Asteroid Wars.I read The Precipice, the 1st book and enjoyed it, but it was too much like a soap opera- who is in love with who?.And from reviews, I saw that the next few books had the same characters and the same bubble-gum soap opera throughout.In fact, I was so tired of the characters created in The Precipice, that I wanted all of them, except for Pancho and Ambrose, to just die or go away.I just wanted no part of that of the original cast.

I am happy to say that this book starts with a clean slate of new characters and it is well done.The best thing about Ben Bova's books is the pacing.I like the constant scene changes and different perspectives.With several story lines going on and coming together.It's keeps the book very readable.It's a nice format for him.Sometimes Bova writes average quality books and sometimes he hits home runs.In this book, Bova is at his best.Well played Ben Bova.

A moral question
I will not add anything to the summaries given by other reviewers, but I will state that I, like most of them, found this novel an excellent read and well worth purchasing.

For those of you who do read this book, pay particular attention to Bova's approach to murder, justice, and self-defense; he develops this theme towards the end of the novel.He seems to lack a moral distinction between the three concepts, while I am utterly certain there are very real differences.Read what he has to say, then think about what you believe.

Kudos to Ben Bova for writing a novel that does not merely entertain, but also poses extremely worthwhile moral questions for his readers' consideration.The best sort of storyteller!

The Aftermath: Book Four of The Asteroid Wars
I got books one through three of Ben Bova's Asteroid Wars series at a clearance price and when I finished them I realized that there must be a fourth so I scooted out to Amazon and sure enough there it was.Bought it!

I enjoyed the audios a lot.The series is laid out in an epic format with interesting characters if a little thin and one dimensional in motivation.But this is space opera after all.The fact that I popped the full price for the fourth tells you how much I liked the first three ...
The good thing is something is always happening, but Bova writes episodically in a way that overlaps themes and characters ... so I'm still wondering what happened to some of the characters and there's a kicker in the 3rd volume (don't want to put in a spoiler) which is only partly resolved in the fourth volume.Another issue is that some characters are left dangling and even those that are tied up without too many loose ends, there are unresolved issues -- Pancho Lane's clean up had the feel of "... I can't kill her off, but I want to move on, so I'll just do something quick and expedient to get her out of the story line."So right now, too many loose ends for a five star review, but for keeping me interested for four volumes and entertained the whole way ... four stars are well earned. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (8)

If you have read one of the Grand Tour you know what you are getting.
To be honest I don't remember this book specifically that well.It is on par with his other Grand Tour books.Personally I read these during my vacation time and tend to finish them after a few days.To me they are a bit like action movies, pretty mindless fun for a couple hours.Honestly pick one up from the library see if you like it.I am not sure if I would buy any of them for my shelf though...maybe if they all came in a nice box set for not too much.

Not BB's Best
Okay, I'm type A compulsive. I've been a Bova fan since Heinlein died; while he is a bit less political now than he was in the 80's and 90's, Bova has also become more predictable.

In trying to do the kind of future history saga others have attempted (Asimov most successfully, I think), Ben seems to have gotten a bit tired with this one. The plot echoes several of the previous ones; character development is kind of lacking. The hard science part is not new; there's quite a bit of repitition from some of the previous planetary stories in the series.

I got the sense he wrote this one becauise he felt he needed to; I guess "Neptune" and "Pluto" will follow (well, maybe not Pluto since it seems to have lost planetary status). And I'll read them because I'll want to finish the series. But this is not thought-provoking, and at best is very light summer time reading in the backyard hammock, or maybe airport reading while waiting for the delayed plane to eventually take off.

(By the way, how come there never seem to be delays in his flights?)

Science plays second fiddle to fiction in this "soapy" space opera!
Mance Bracknell is the chief engineer on the Sky Tower in Quito, Ecuador - a construction mega-project which will lift payloads to the altitude of geosynchronous orbit via elevator at a cost of pennies per pound instead of the current cost of hundreds of dollars if the load is lifted by standard rocket launch into orbit. But when the tower collapses killing over four million people and causing untold billions of dollars of property damage in a globe-girdling disaster, Mance Bracknell is found guilty of negligent homicide and exiled for life to a criminal penal colony in the asteroid belt. After a serendipitous encounter with an injured scientist fleeing for his life in which he learns the Sky Tower's collapse was the result of terrorist sabotage, Bracknell escapes and wends his way to a scientific outpost on the planet Mercury where he plots his revenge.

The good news is that "Mercury" is a soundly entertaining story that reads like a blockbuster five-star motion picture screenplay. The elements are all there - disaster, a love triangle, explosions, terrorism and sabotage, murder, the inscrutable Oriental tycoon, jealousy, hatred, suicide, right wing fundamentalist religious groups, mobs, courtroom trials and prisoner riots! The bad news is that the science and the setting of the book in the asteroid belt and on the surface of the hostile planet of Mercury is all but incidental to the plot. I can't help but feel that Bova had a plot in mind. All he actually needed to force fit that plot into the "Grand Tour of the Universe" theme was a planet which had virtually no chance of harboring life forms at any stage of development. Mercury fit the bill so Mercury got selected!

There is some inescapable science to be sure which is reasonably well done - a passable explanation on the geometric structure of bucky-ball molecules; the distinction between slow inertial coasting routes or high speed accelerated routes for interplanetary travel; the idea of a space elevator; the unique mechanics of Mercury's orbit that causes a false dawn, a brief retrograde sunset and then a return to full day - but, if you're looking for the "hard" in "hard sci-fi" at the level that Bova achieved in Mars or Venus, for example, you're doomed to be disappointed. On the other hand, if a fast-paced easy reading brain candy tale in the style of Sidney Sheldon, Jeffrey Archer, or Irving Wallace tickles your fancy, then you're in luck. "Mercury" will definitely work for you.

Provided you adjust your expectations appropriately, a recommended easy going read for a few days!

Paul Weiss

Not what I expected
After reading numerous blurbs about how Ben Bova's novels were a return to the "hard" science fiction popularized by Heinlein, Asimov and Clarke (my personal favorite), I have to say I was really let down by this book.While the science may be more or less sound, the fiction leaves much to be desired.

The main problem is that Mercury is essentially a story about betrayal and vengeance that, almost as an afterthought, happens to take place on or around the planet Mercury.The main revenge plot is spelled out for the reader early on, so there's no real mystery and only a minor bit of suspense to keep the story moving.

Other reviewers have stated that the book is not Bova's best, and I might be willing to give him another try.Hard sci-fi has been on life support (or maybe suspended animation?) for years.I'm just grateful that, as of this writing, we still have Arthur C. Clarke alive and still writing.

Betrayal and Vengeance
Mercury (2005) is the fourth SF novel in the Planet Novel series, following Saturn.In this novel, Mance Bracknell was exiled from Earth when the Sky Tower that he constructed split at the geostationary level and the lower portion fell on the planet.Coming down to the west of its base at Quito, the tower wrapped around the Earth, with the far end coming down into the mid-Atlantic.Over four million people were killed as it fell.

During the trial, Mance was desolate, blaming himself for the disaster.He became agitated when Elliot Danvers, the New Morality minister at the site, stated that he had reported something like nanomachines being used to construct the tower.Then he became angry when his associate Victor Molina implied that Mance had ignored warnings about this new construction method.

Years after exile to the Belt, Mance learns from Danvers that his fiancee, Lara Tierney, had married Molina. Later he discovers that the Yamagata Corporation had sabotaged the tower.He becomes obsessed with plans of vengeance on Danvers, Molina and Yamagata.After his ship is destroyed by Yamagata assassins, Mance alters his name and face, opens a construction consulting company on Selene, and looks for an opportunity for revenge.

This novel is a study of ambition, vengeance and jealousy as well as loyalty and atonement.The three targets are brought together on Mercury with Mance, in his new identity, setting the stage.First Victor is led to believe that there is life on Mercury and then the plot unfolds.

Recommended for Bova fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of space ventures, ambition and betrayal.

-Arthur W. Jordin ... Read more

Product Description
It is the most desolate place in the universe. With a surface blasted by temperatures hotter than any oven and an atmosphere heavy with sulphur, months from Earth by even the fastest spacecraft, Venus remains almost unknown even after a century of space travel. But Alex Humphries, son of ruthless space tycoon Martin Humphries, disappeared along with his ship Phosphoros into Venus' infernal atmosphere, and now Humphries has offered ten billion dollars to anyone who can bring his son's body home. Two ships are soon racing against each other to Venus. But when they enter the poisonous hurricane winds of the unknown planet they find something so surprising, so unexepected, that it will change the whole course of space exploration.Amazon.com Review
Ben Bova picked his villains well for this fast-paced, popcorn-and-Milk-Duds matinee: Topping the playbill is our sister planet, Venus itself, which Bova matter-of-factly describes as "the most hellish place in the solar system." Sci-fi authors (Bova included) have all but colonized Mars by now, but few have boldly gone to the aluminum-melting, sulfuric-acid-soaked surface of the Morning Star. Venus proves a mighty, unthinking antagonist indeed--frustrating the efforts of sickly but likable rich kid Van Humphries to land there and recover the remains of his older brother Alex, who died two years earlier on another ill-fated mission.

Van gets pushed back and forth between the book's two lesser villains--his mean old cuss of a father, Martin Humphries, who's posted the $10 billion Venus Prize to the first person to return Alex's body, and Lars Fuchs, a belligerent asteroid miner and Martin's arch-nemesis, who's also decided to make a go at the purse.

Characterizations ride coach on this high-adventure flight, but remember that we're talking about Ben Bova here. It's hard to dispute the master's choices as you're following Van's well-researched, thrills-and-chills descent through Venus's pressure-cooker atmosphere. With solid science, a palatable environmental message (how could you resist commenting on greenhouse gases in a book like this?), and an inspiring character arc for unlikely hero Van, Venus delivers guilt-free, man-against-nature SF in a tight, page-turning package. --Paul Hughes ... Read more

Customer Reviews (59)

Gripping, but Bad
From a purely entertainment point-of-view, Ben Bova's "Venus" is certainly a gripping book.Unfortunately, the technical aspects of the book are just flat-out bad.If the book didn't try to take itself so seriously, you could think of it as being written in the style of the Golden Age of Science Fiction.But, Bova seems to have tried to update the book's style to better match today's books and failed:he lost the charm of the GAoSF and missed the boat technically.All he got was bad sci-fi.Some of the worst problems:

- The main character is a scientific dilettante.He brings nothing to the mission he's on and, really, shouldn't have been on it at all.
- The main character suffers from some kind of anemia.If he doesn't get his medication twice a day, he basically drops dead after a couple of days due to a lack of red blood cells.Yet, the life span of red blood cells is about 4 months.
- The prize for getting to Venus is $10 billion.It sounds like a lot of money, but in today's dollars, the cost of the spacecraft alone for the Apollo project was around $85 billion.There's no way that $10 billion dollars could even come close to covering the expenses of landing on Venus.And, the timeline for producing such ships is nonsensical.
- The time it takes to get from the asteroid belt and Earth to Venus doesn't seem to be correct.
- Even granting the existence of the problem-causing agent on Venus, it could never act as fast as it does.
- And (the big one), the characters throughout the book are just plain silly.No one behaves like this.This is especially true for the people who would be performing the missions described in the book.You could call the characters cardboard cut-outs, but that would be an insult to cardboard everywhere.The main character might be a useless dilettante with silly faults that would disqualify him for everything the book is about and who brings nothing to the book.But, he's orders of magnitude closer to a real character than anyone else in the book.

That's a lot of badness.But, because I found the book so riveting to read, by the end I felt I should upgrade my rating to something tolerable.So, overall, instead of giving the book the Bad rating I initially intended to, I'm upgrading that rating to an OK 3 stars out of 5.

Book became more interesting as I read further
When I first started reading this novel, the storyline seemed somewhat simplified - and a throwback to the pulp sci-fi stories (which isn't necessarily a bad thing). Bova's story is a quest to explore Venus, but thankfully turns into an interesting page turner.Yes, things seem to happen to easily in the beginning, but the characters and plot grow on you. By the middle of the book, it becomes a page turner.It's definitely worth picking up!

Good Drama, Unreal Characters, Seamful Integration
I am a great fan of SF and some parts of this book are excellent. The descent to the surface of Venus and the speculation about what could be there are great stuff. The story is well written and gripping in its drama. However the main character is completely unbelievable and Bova's politics are bolted on to both ends without any real connection to the story.

The protagonist is a spoiled degenerate who lives off his dad's wealth. Through a few unlikely twists he ends up on his way to Venus. After disaster, our young man becomes a hero. This deus ex machina may be necessary to the story, but given the man's demonstrated physical, emotional, and moral shortcomings it is unbelievable. The ending paragraph is laughable. Overall the ending reads like, "Oh, I've hit the publishers word count, time to wrap it up."

Many SF writers put their apparent political beliefs into their stories. Some are noticeably trotted out, while others are woven more subtly into the story. But at least they are an important part of the story, sometimes they are the story.Bova's opinion that the human race is destroying life on Earth is not an uncommon opinion and would be a good basis for an SF story, but has nothing to do with the story here. The obvious attempt to reference global warming is transparently contrived and is not a part of the story except it happens to be written there.

So, why 2 stars and not 1? I almost threw this book away (a Christmas present) after starting it. The paid ad political presentation, the unbelievable hero really are annoying. Something pulled me back to it. Good writing, he tells the action part of the story well.

Hard sci-fi pioneering space exploration at its very best!
Martin Humphries, a fabulously wealthy industrialist living on a lunar colony, passionately despises his second son, Van. Cruelly labeling him as "the runt" and bullying him relentlessly as a directionless, untalented weakling, Humphries blames Van for the death of his wife during Van's birth and, in fact, resents him for even being alive. Humphries' beloved eldest son, Alex, who Van also loved dearly, lost his life in the first manned exploration of the surface of Venus. When Humphries announces that he is terminating his son's stipend and that he is offering a $10 billion prize to the first person who recovers his beloved Alex's remains from Venus, it is quite clear that Van, who is without any other means of support, is being manipulated and forced by his own father into choosing a path that will likely lead to his death. The waters become muddied and the fight for that almost unimaginably large prize becomes a heated race when Lars Fuchs, a rock rat from the Asteroid belt and Humphries' long time corporate foe, announces he is also making a play for the prize.

"Venus" won't win any prizes when it comes to literary status. Nor does it convey any subliminal moral messages, political satire, mystical symbolism or any of those other things that deep thinkers often consider necessary for a novel to be deemed truly great. But if you're looking for a hard-driving plot with palpable suspense and superb hard science fiction supported by a wealth of current hard scientific fact, then "Venus" is a novel you'll want to read. Bova's ability to weave science seamlessly into a fast-paced plot is simply wonderful - orbital and celestial mechanics, plate tectonics, volcanism, planetary evolution, chemistry, biology, physics, aerospace engineering, rocketry and more. In fact, it's safe to say that Venus, with a hostile surface environment straight out of Dante's Inferno, is the major character in the novel!

But, let's take nothing away from the rest of the novel. Bova's characters, in a word, succeed! They evoke emotions in a reader fully ensnared in the action who will care about what happens. His heroes have their flaws and weaknesses but they're likable and they develop meaningfully over the course of the novel. His villains are despicable but they too evolve in an understandable human way. The dialogue is appropriate to the environment of a quasi-military space exploration vehicle. And the twist ending - well, suffice it to say that there is one! Let's not give anything away other than to say it will bring a smile to most reader's faces!

Highly recommended.

Paul Weiss

A Great Book From One Of Sci-Fi's Great Authors
Legendary science fiction author Ben Bova has created a thrilling and exciting tale about the planet which is most compared to earth: Venus.

Van Humphries is a spoiled rich kid who is detested by his father, multi-billionaire Martin Humphries.As much as Martin hates Van, he loved his older son, Alex, who disappeared three years earlier while exploring Venus.His ship disappeared, and he was never heard from again.Desparate to find out what happened to his beloved son, Martin decides to offer 10 billion dollars to the person who can bring back Alex's remains.To Martin's surprise, Van decides to take him up on the offer.Van is determined to rid himself of his father's wrath and find the brother he truly loved.But there's another challenger to the prize: Lars Fuchs.Lars is an asteroid miner who has a long and dubious past of his own with Martin Humphries.He's just as determined as Van is to win the prize money.

Van has his own ship constructed and begins the two-month long journey to Venus.Upon arriving, His ship begins its descent through the thick clouds to the surface and, hopefully, to his brother's remains.But something unexpected has appeared in the clouds; millions of bugs who chew on the outside of the ship.Soon, Van and his crew are falling through the thick Venusian atmosphere.But, Lars' ship comes to the rescue and takes Van and his surviving crew members aboard his ship.Once on board, Lars wastes no time in declaring himself the leader of the mission, and Van and his crew are to follow all of his orders.

What happens throughout the remainder of the book is a collection of involvements between Fuchs, Van, and Marguerite, a biologist who came from Van's ship.Each of their lives will be forever changed as the ship begins its descent to the rocky surface of Venus.Will they find Alex's remains?What other secrets will be revealed between Lars and Van?

This is an excellent novel.The story is well-conceived and the characters are very life-like.Its exciting to watch the transformation of Van and Lars as the story goes along.This book is definitely a page-turner.If you're a fan of good science fiction, then you'll definitely want to read Venus; it's hot!



... Read more

Product Description
It is the most desolate place in the universe. With a surface blasted by temperatures hotter than any oven and an atmosphere heavy with sulphur, months from Earth by even the fastest spacecraft, Venus remains almost unknown even after a century of space travel. But Alex Humphries, son of ruthless space tycoon Martin Humphries, disappeared along with his ship Phosphoros into Venus' infernal atmosphere, and now Humphries has offered ten billion dollars to anyone who can bring his son's body home. Two ships are soon racing against each other to Venus. But when they enter the poisonous hurricane winds of the unknown planet they find something so surprising, so unexepected, that it will change the whole course of space exploration.Amazon.com Review
Ben Bova picked his villains well for this fast-paced, popcorn-and-Milk-Duds matinee: Topping the playbill is our sister planet, Venus itself, which Bova matter-of-factly describes as "the most hellish place in the solar system." Sci-fi authors (Bova included) have all but colonized Mars by now, but few have boldly gone to the aluminum-melting, sulfuric-acid-soaked surface of the Morning Star. Venus proves a mighty, unthinking antagonist indeed--frustrating the efforts of sickly but likable rich kid Van Humphries to land there and recover the remains of his older brother Alex, who died two years earlier on another ill-fated mission.

Van gets pushed back and forth between the book's two lesser villains--his mean old cuss of a father, Martin Humphries, who's posted the $10 billion Venus Prize to the first person to return Alex's body, and Lars Fuchs, a belligerent asteroid miner and Martin's arch-nemesis, who's also decided to make a go at the purse.

Characterizations ride coach on this high-adventure flight, but remember that we're talking about Ben Bova here. It's hard to dispute the master's choices as you're following Van's well-researched, thrills-and-chills descent through Venus's pressure-cooker atmosphere. With solid science, a palatable environmental message (how could you resist commenting on greenhouse gases in a book like this?), and an inspiring character arc for unlikely hero Van, Venus delivers guilt-free, man-against-nature SF in a tight, page-turning package. --Paul Hughes ... Read more

Customer Reviews (59)

Gripping, but Bad
From a purely entertainment point-of-view, Ben Bova's "Venus" is certainly a gripping book.Unfortunately, the technical aspects of the book are just flat-out bad.If the book didn't try to take itself so seriously, you could think of it as being written in the style of the Golden Age of Science Fiction.But, Bova seems to have tried to update the book's style to better match today's books and failed:he lost the charm of the GAoSF and missed the boat technically.All he got was bad sci-fi.Some of the worst problems:

- The main character is a scientific dilettante.He brings nothing to the mission he's on and, really, shouldn't have been on it at all.
- The main character suffers from some kind of anemia.If he doesn't get his medication twice a day, he basically drops dead after a couple of days due to a lack of red blood cells.Yet, the life span of red blood cells is about 4 months.
- The prize for getting to Venus is $10 billion.It sounds like a lot of money, but in today's dollars, the cost of the spacecraft alone for the Apollo project was around $85 billion.There's no way that $10 billion dollars could even come close to covering the expenses of landing on Venus.And, the timeline for producing such ships is nonsensical.
- The time it takes to get from the asteroid belt and Earth to Venus doesn't seem to be correct.
- Even granting the existence of the problem-causing agent on Venus, it could never act as fast as it does.
- And (the big one), the characters throughout the book are just plain silly.No one behaves like this.This is especially true for the people who would be performing the missions described in the book.You could call the characters cardboard cut-outs, but that would be an insult to cardboard everywhere.The main character might be a useless dilettante with silly faults that would disqualify him for everything the book is about and who brings nothing to the book.But, he's orders of magnitude closer to a real character than anyone else in the book.

That's a lot of badness.But, because I found the book so riveting to read, by the end I felt I should upgrade my rating to something tolerable.So, overall, instead of giving the book the Bad rating I initially intended to, I'm upgrading that rating to an OK 3 stars out of 5.

Book became more interesting as I read further
When I first started reading this novel, the storyline seemed somewhat simplified - and a throwback to the pulp sci-fi stories (which isn't necessarily a bad thing). Bova's story is a quest to explore Venus, but thankfully turns into an interesting page turner.Yes, things seem to happen to easily in the beginning, but the characters and plot grow on you. By the middle of the book, it becomes a page turner.It's definitely worth picking up!

Good Drama, Unreal Characters, Seamful Integration
I am a great fan of SF and some parts of this book are excellent. The descent to the surface of Venus and the speculation about what could be there are great stuff. The story is well written and gripping in its drama. However the main character is completely unbelievable and Bova's politics are bolted on to both ends without any real connection to the story.

The protagonist is a spoiled degenerate who lives off his dad's wealth. Through a few unlikely twists he ends up on his way to Venus. After disaster, our young man becomes a hero. This deus ex machina may be necessary to the story, but given the man's demonstrated physical, emotional, and moral shortcomings it is unbelievable. The ending paragraph is laughable. Overall the ending reads like, "Oh, I've hit the publishers word count, time to wrap it up."

Many SF writers put their apparent political beliefs into their stories. Some are noticeably trotted out, while others are woven more subtly into the story. But at least they are an important part of the story, sometimes they are the story.Bova's opinion that the human race is destroying life on Earth is not an uncommon opinion and would be a good basis for an SF story, but has nothing to do with the story here. The obvious attempt to reference global warming is transparently contrived and is not a part of the story except it happens to be written there.

So, why 2 stars and not 1? I almost threw this book away (a Christmas present) after starting it. The paid ad political presentation, the unbelievable hero really are annoying. Something pulled me back to it. Good writing, he tells the action part of the story well.

Hard sci-fi pioneering space exploration at its very best!
Martin Humphries, a fabulously wealthy industrialist living on a lunar colony, passionately despises his second son, Van. Cruelly labeling him as "the runt" and bullying him relentlessly as a directionless, untalented weakling, Humphries blames Van for the death of his wife during Van's birth and, in fact, resents him for even being alive. Humphries' beloved eldest son, Alex, who Van also loved dearly, lost his life in the first manned exploration of the surface of Venus. When Humphries announces that he is terminating his son's stipend and that he is offering a $10 billion prize to the first person who recovers his beloved Alex's remains from Venus, it is quite clear that Van, who is without any other means of support, is being manipulated and forced by his own father into choosing a path that will likely lead to his death. The waters become muddied and the fight for that almost unimaginably large prize becomes a heated race when Lars Fuchs, a rock rat from the Asteroid belt and Humphries' long time corporate foe, announces he is also making a play for the prize.

"Venus" won't win any prizes when it comes to literary status. Nor does it convey any subliminal moral messages, political satire, mystical symbolism or any of those other things that deep thinkers often consider necessary for a novel to be deemed truly great. But if you're looking for a hard-driving plot with palpable suspense and superb hard science fiction supported by a wealth of current hard scientific fact, then "Venus" is a novel you'll want to read. Bova's ability to weave science seamlessly into a fast-paced plot is simply wonderful - orbital and celestial mechanics, plate tectonics, volcanism, planetary evolution, chemistry, biology, physics, aerospace engineering, rocketry and more. In fact, it's safe to say that Venus, with a hostile surface environment straight out of Dante's Inferno, is the major character in the novel!

But, let's take nothing away from the rest of the novel. Bova's characters, in a word, succeed! They evoke emotions in a reader fully ensnared in the action who will care about what happens. His heroes have their flaws and weaknesses but they're likable and they develop meaningfully over the course of the novel. His villains are despicable but they too evolve in an understandable human way. The dialogue is appropriate to the environment of a quasi-military space exploration vehicle. And the twist ending - well, suffice it to say that there is one! Let's not give anything away other than to say it will bring a smile to most reader's faces!

Highly recommended.

Paul Weiss

A Great Book From One Of Sci-Fi's Great Authors
Legendary science fiction author Ben Bova has created a thrilling and exciting tale about the planet which is most compared to earth: Venus.

Van Humphries is a spoiled rich kid who is detested by his father, multi-billionaire Martin Humphries.As much as Martin hates Van, he loved his older son, Alex, who disappeared three years earlier while exploring Venus.His ship disappeared, and he was never heard from again.Desparate to find out what happened to his beloved son, Martin decides to offer 10 billion dollars to the person who can bring back Alex's remains.To Martin's surprise, Van decides to take him up on the offer.Van is determined to rid himself of his father's wrath and find the brother he truly loved.But there's another challenger to the prize: Lars Fuchs.Lars is an asteroid miner who has a long and dubious past of his own with Martin Humphries.He's just as determined as Van is to win the prize money.

Van has his own ship constructed and begins the two-month long journey to Venus.Upon arriving, His ship begins its descent through the thick clouds to the surface and, hopefully, to his brother's remains.But something unexpected has appeared in the clouds; millions of bugs who chew on the outside of the ship.Soon, Van and his crew are falling through the thick Venusian atmosphere.But, Lars' ship comes to the rescue and takes Van and his surviving crew members aboard his ship.Once on board, Lars wastes no time in declaring himself the leader of the mission, and Van and his crew are to follow all of his orders.

What happens throughout the remainder of the book is a collection of involvements between Fuchs, Van, and Marguerite, a biologist who came from Van's ship.Each of their lives will be forever changed as the ship begins its descent to the rocky surface of Venus.Will they find Alex's remains?What other secrets will be revealed between Lars and Van?

This is an excellent novel.The story is well-conceived and the characters are very life-like.Its exciting to watch the transformation of Van and Lars as the story goes along.This book is definitely a page-turner.If you're a fan of good science fiction, then you'll definitely want to read Venus; it's hot!



... Read more

Product Description
It is the most desolate place in the universe. With a surface blasted by temperatures hotter than any oven and an atmosphere heavy with sulphur, months from Earth by even the fastest spacecraft, Venus remains almost unknown even after a century of space travel. But Alex Humphries, son of ruthless space tycoon Martin Humphries, disappeared along with his ship Phosphoros into Venus' infernal atmosphere, and now Humphries has offered ten billion dollars to anyone who can bring his son's body home. Two ships are soon racing against each other to Venus. But when they enter the poisonous hurricane winds of the unknown planet they find something so surprising, so unexepected, that it will change the whole course of space exploration.Amazon.com Review
Ben Bova picked his villains well for this fast-paced, popcorn-and-Milk-Duds matinee: Topping the playbill is our sister planet, Venus itself, which Bova matter-of-factly describes as "the most hellish place in the solar system." Sci-fi authors (Bova included) have all but colonized Mars by now, but few have boldly gone to the aluminum-melting, sulfuric-acid-soaked surface of the Morning Star. Venus proves a mighty, unthinking antagonist indeed--frustrating the efforts of sickly but likable rich kid Van Humphries to land there and recover the remains of his older brother Alex, who died two years earlier on another ill-fated mission.

Van gets pushed back and forth between the book's two lesser villains--his mean old cuss of a father, Martin Humphries, who's posted the $10 billion Venus Prize to the first person to return Alex's body, and Lars Fuchs, a belligerent asteroid miner and Martin's arch-nemesis, who's also decided to make a go at the purse.

Characterizations ride coach on this high-adventure flight, but remember that we're talking about Ben Bova here. It's hard to dispute the master's choices as you're following Van's well-researched, thrills-and-chills descent through Venus's pressure-cooker atmosphere. With solid science, a palatable environmental message (how could you resist commenting on greenhouse gases in a book like this?), and an inspiring character arc for unlikely hero Van, Venus delivers guilt-free, man-against-nature SF in a tight, page-turning package. --Paul Hughes ... Read more

Customer Reviews (59)

Gripping, but Bad
From a purely entertainment point-of-view, Ben Bova's "Venus" is certainly a gripping book.Unfortunately, the technical aspects of the book are just flat-out bad.If the book didn't try to take itself so seriously, you could think of it as being written in the style of the Golden Age of Science Fiction.But, Bova seems to have tried to update the book's style to better match today's books and failed:he lost the charm of the GAoSF and missed the boat technically.All he got was bad sci-fi.Some of the worst problems:

- The main character is a scientific dilettante.He brings nothing to the mission he's on and, really, shouldn't have been on it at all.
- The main character suffers from some kind of anemia.If he doesn't get his medication twice a day, he basically drops dead after a couple of days due to a lack of red blood cells.Yet, the life span of red blood cells is about 4 months.
- The prize for getting to Venus is $10 billion.It sounds like a lot of money, but in today's dollars, the cost of the spacecraft alone for the Apollo project was around $85 billion.There's no way that $10 billion dollars could even come close to covering the expenses of landing on Venus.And, the timeline for producing such ships is nonsensical.
- The time it takes to get from the asteroid belt and Earth to Venus doesn't seem to be correct.
- Even granting the existence of the problem-causing agent on Venus, it could never act as fast as it does.
- And (the big one), the characters throughout the book are just plain silly.No one behaves like this.This is especially true for the people who would be performing the missions described in the book.You could call the characters cardboard cut-outs, but that would be an insult to cardboard everywhere.The main character might be a useless dilettante with silly faults that would disqualify him for everything the book is about and who brings nothing to the book.But, he's orders of magnitude closer to a real character than anyone else in the book.

That's a lot of badness.But, because I found the book so riveting to read, by the end I felt I should upgrade my rating to something tolerable.So, overall, instead of giving the book the Bad rating I initially intended to, I'm upgrading that rating to an OK 3 stars out of 5.

Book became more interesting as I read further
When I first started reading this novel, the storyline seemed somewhat simplified - and a throwback to the pulp sci-fi stories (which isn't necessarily a bad thing). Bova's story is a quest to explore Venus, but thankfully turns into an interesting page turner.Yes, things seem to happen to easily in the beginning, but the characters and plot grow on you. By the middle of the book, it becomes a page turner.It's definitely worth picking up!

Good Drama, Unreal Characters, Seamful Integration
I am a great fan of SF and some parts of this book are excellent. The descent to the surface of Venus and the speculation about what could be there are great stuff. The story is well written and gripping in its drama. However the main character is completely unbelievable and Bova's politics are bolted on to both ends without any real connection to the story.

The protagonist is a spoiled degenerate who lives off his dad's wealth. Through a few unlikely twists he ends up on his way to Venus. After disaster, our young man becomes a hero. This deus ex machina may be necessary to the story, but given the man's demonstrated physical, emotional, and moral shortcomings it is unbelievable. The ending paragraph is laughable. Overall the ending reads like, "Oh, I've hit the publishers word count, time to wrap it up."

Many SF writers put their apparent political beliefs into their stories. Some are noticeably trotted out, while others are woven more subtly into the story. But at least they are an important part of the story, sometimes they are the story.Bova's opinion that the human race is destroying life on Earth is not an uncommon opinion and would be a good basis for an SF story, but has nothing to do with the story here. The obvious attempt to reference global warming is transparently contrived and is not a part of the story except it happens to be written there.

So, why 2 stars and not 1? I almost threw this book away (a Christmas present) after starting it. The paid ad political presentation, the unbelievable hero really are annoying. Something pulled me back to it. Good writing, he tells the action part of the story well.

Hard sci-fi pioneering space exploration at its very best!
Martin Humphries, a fabulously wealthy industrialist living on a lunar colony, passionately despises his second son, Van. Cruelly labeling him as "the runt" and bullying him relentlessly as a directionless, untalented weakling, Humphries blames Van for the death of his wife during Van's birth and, in fact, resents him for even being alive. Humphries' beloved eldest son, Alex, who Van also loved dearly, lost his life in the first manned exploration of the surface of Venus. When Humphries announces that he is terminating his son's stipend and that he is offering a $10 billion prize to the first person who recovers his beloved Alex's remains from Venus, it is quite clear that Van, who is without any other means of support, is being manipulated and forced by his own father into choosing a path that will likely lead to his death. The waters become muddied and the fight for that almost unimaginably large prize becomes a heated race when Lars Fuchs, a rock rat from the Asteroid belt and Humphries' long time corporate foe, announces he is also making a play for the prize.

"Venus" won't win any prizes when it comes to literary status. Nor does it convey any subliminal moral messages, political satire, mystical symbolism or any of those other things that deep thinkers often consider necessary for a novel to be deemed truly great. But if you're looking for a hard-driving plot with palpable suspense and superb hard science fiction supported by a wealth of current hard scientific fact, then "Venus" is a novel you'll want to read. Bova's ability to weave science seamlessly into a fast-paced plot is simply wonderful - orbital and celestial mechanics, plate tectonics, volcanism, planetary evolution, chemistry, biology, physics, aerospace engineering, rocketry and more. In fact, it's safe to say that Venus, with a hostile surface environment straight out of Dante's Inferno, is the major character in the novel!

But, let's take nothing away from the rest of the novel. Bova's characters, in a word, succeed! They evoke emotions in a reader fully ensnared in the action who will care about what happens. His heroes have their flaws and weaknesses but they're likable and they develop meaningfully over the course of the novel. His villains are despicable but they too evolve in an understandable human way. The dialogue is appropriate to the environment of a quasi-military space exploration vehicle. And the twist ending - well, suffice it to say that there is one! Let's not give anything away other than to say it will bring a smile to most reader's faces!

Highly recommended.

Paul Weiss

A Great Book From One Of Sci-Fi's Great Authors
Legendary science fiction author Ben Bova has created a thrilling and exciting tale about the planet which is most compared to earth: Venus.

Van Humphries is a spoiled rich kid who is detested by his father, multi-billionaire Martin Humphries.As much as Martin hates Van, he loved his older son, Alex, who disappeared three years earlier while exploring Venus.His ship disappeared, and he was never heard from again.Desparate to find out what happened to his beloved son, Martin decides to offer 10 billion dollars to the person who can bring back Alex's remains.To Martin's surprise, Van decides to take him up on the offer.Van is determined to rid himself of his father's wrath and find the brother he truly loved.But there's another challenger to the prize: Lars Fuchs.Lars is an asteroid miner who has a long and dubious past of his own with Martin Humphries.He's just as determined as Van is to win the prize money.

Van has his own ship constructed and begins the two-month long journey to Venus.Upon arriving, His ship begins its descent through the thick clouds to the surface and, hopefully, to his brother's remains.But something unexpected has appeared in the clouds; millions of bugs who chew on the outside of the ship.Soon, Van and his crew are falling through the thick Venusian atmosphere.But, Lars' ship comes to the rescue and takes Van and his surviving crew members aboard his ship.Once on board, Lars wastes no time in declaring himself the leader of the mission, and Van and his crew are to follow all of his orders.

What happens throughout the remainder of the book is a collection of involvements between Fuchs, Van, and Marguerite, a biologist who came from Van's ship.Each of their lives will be forever changed as the ship begins its descent to the rocky surface of Venus.Will they find Alex's remains?What other secrets will be revealed between Lars and Van?

This is an excellent novel.The story is well-conceived and the characters are very life-like.Its exciting to watch the transformation of Van and Lars as the story goes along.This book is definitely a page-turner.If you're a fan of good science fiction, then you'll definitely want to read Venus; it's hot!



... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (16)

Could have been better with editing.
I recently checked this book out from my local library because the story sounded intriguing. I couldn't make it beyond the 7th chapter due to the high concentration of curse words. I felt that the over abundance of swearing detracted from what could have otherwise been a good read. If the writer could remove all or most of the cursing and have it reprinted, I would be more than happy to give this novel another try. But I doubt that will be happening. If you have no issues with the main character having a severe potty mouth, you may still enjoy this read for the intriguing mystery that it strived to be. However, I think it would have been better with less foul language.
I hope this review helps!

Not Science Fiction but worth the read
Bova has always been one of my favorite authors, and still is. However, as many reviewers have stated, this is not one of his most exciting novels. I think his motive was neither another book nor more income. He, like many Americans, feels that he MUST add his voice to the rising chorus calling for an emphasis on renewable energy and the need to free ourselves of oil dependence. His messages gets out because he has a name, and he wants to use it.

The plot and characters ARE two-dimensional, but by design. He wishes the reader to focus on the theme, not the plot or characters. He wants each reader to ask himself, over and over, "Gee, why are we in this energy mess? Could it really be that bad a prognosis? Can science, or more appropriately, technology, help us out? How might that happen in a realistic way, not something exotic like launching satellites to capture solar energy and beam it back to Earth?"

In fact, his science is flawed. As an engineer, I can spot several technical problems ignored by the author. But again, that's not his point.

His point is simple. We cannot continue for long to gobble oil. It WILL eventually destabilize global culture, and we're near the tipping point. His message is, yet another, clarion call for thought, plans, and action. He is perhaps reaching an audience that doesn't read the news or listen to politicians.If he does that then the book is worth publishing.

A Timely "What-If..."
Michael Cochrane is a microbiologist who makes a remarkable discovery...and then is murdered by unknown forces.His brother Paul, a professor at the University of Arizona, is determined to find and bring his brother's killer to justice.Along the way, he clashes with hired thugs of redoubtable indefatigability, a billionaire who will do anything to control Michael Cochrane's breakthrough, and a sultry industrial spy with a determination that leaves the other players on the stage far behind.

I've got to admit, despite being a big fan of much of Bova's work, some of his more recent yarns have been less than engaging.The Green Trap pales in comparison to earlier work such as Mars, Moonrise, Moonwar, The Exiles Trilogy and even his Orion tales.That being said, this is the first work of his in long time that has held my interest relatively easily.The characters' motivations are clear, the villain is no cardboard construct, barely there until he is needed to move the plot along and the overall theme of the world's energy woes was woven well throughout the tale, was exceedingly apropos, and, most of all, believable.

This account of Paul Cochrane seeking his brother's murderer is recommended to anyone interested in a very plausible "what-if."And there is no suspension of belief necessary.....

The Quest for Independence
The Green Trap (2006) is an SF novel set in the near future.The search for new sources of oil has not produced any new wells and the demand is increasing.The cost of oil in now over $110 a barrel and gasoline is over $7 per gallon and still going up.Other energy technologies are either too polluting, too wasteful or too immature to replace oil.

In this novel, Paul Cochrane is a professor of astronomy at the University of Arizona in Tucson.He has fled from the death of his wife Jennifer in an automobile accident, getting as far as possible from the events surrounding her death in Massachusetts.His mother-in-law still considers him responsible for the accident.

His brother Michael calls Paul with hints of a very profitable find in his research, but refuses to tell him over the phone.Paul finally agrees to come to Palo Alto to meet with him.But Mike is murdered in his office within the Calvin Research Center as Paul is waiting at the reception desk.When Michael doesn't answer his phone, Paul leaves and looks elsewhere for his older brother.

The next morning, two policeman come to his hotel to question him about the murder.Learning of his brother's death is shocking and Paul isn't really tracking the conversation as the policemen imply that he has killed his brother.Yet he remembers an odd occurrence that should prove his innocence and the police leave to check his story.

Irene is Mike's widow.Paul tries to contact her, but only gets the answering machine.Eventually she calls him and he agrees to help with the funeral arrangements.

Elena Sandoval finds Paul in his office and introduces herself as an agent for the Department of Justice.She questions him about his brother's research, but Paul knows nothing except that it involves cyanobacteria.Later, she flies to California with him to attend his brother's funeral.

Mitsuo Arashi is a "facilitator", arranging deals for big corporations.He is waiting in the hotel room when Paul gets back from helping Irene with the arrangements.Arashi offers Paul fifty thousand dollars for information on Mike's research.He also tells Paul that Elena is not a federal agent.

Lionel Gould is the principal stockholder and chairman of the board of Gould Energy Corporation.He had made an offer to buy the Calvin Research Center, but then dropped the offer and went straight to Mike to make a deal.Now that Mike is dead, Gould is looking for other ways to get information on the research.

Kensington is a thug who is works for Lionel Gould.He scares both Arashi and Sandoval.Later Kensington "accidentally" kills Arashi during his interrogation of the man.

In this story, Irene tells Paul that her husband had been unfaithful to her.Naturally, Mike carefully concealed his affairs because Irene has two big and brawny brothers who are likely to react violently to such news.Paul wonders whether they killed his brother.

Paul also wonders if Kensington has killed Mike.The thug is also big and brawny and not at all reluctant to use violence.Gould disagrees with this idea since Mike was working for him.So who did kill Mike?

This tale follows Paul and Elena as they look for a missing laptop containing Mike's research notes.Finally finding the data, Paul takes steps to pass the info on to Gould.Then he learns that Gould wants to suppress the findings, so Paul and Elena flee with the data.

In many respects, this story is not really science fiction, but rather a technothriller.The situation it addresses is too much like the present day.The main fictional element may be motives of the oil company executives, but maybe not.Certain elements of the population would have no quarrel with this conspiracy premise.

This fictional expose of the oil industry is very much like the prior works by this author.It shows a good understanding of the scarcity of petroleum as well as the base nature of mankind.However, it is just not as exciting as his other works and has a depressing ending.

Recommended for Bova fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of monopolistic conspiracies, fleeing innocents, and doubtful romance.

-Arthur W. Jordin

A Great Read
I haven't read a book by Bova that I haven't enjoyed and this book didn't disappointing me.It's more of a thriller/mystery than a SF book, but I found it very interesting and entertaining. ... Read more

Product Description
America Has Ceded The Heavens To The Tyrants -- And The Renegades.

The U.S. has abandoned its quest for the stars, and an old enemy has moved in to fill the void.The potential wealth of the universe is now in malevolent hands.Rebel billionaire Dan Randolph -- possessor of the largest privately owned company in space -- intends to weaken the stranglehold the new despotic masters of the solar system have on the lucrative ore industry.But when the mineral-rich asteroid he sets in orbit around the Earth is commandeered by the enemy, and his unarmed workers are slaughtered in cold blood, the course of Randolph's life is changed forever.Now cataclysm is aimed at the exposed heart of America -- a potential catastrophe that Randolph himself inadvertently set in motion.And the maverick entrepreneur must use his skills, cunning, and vast resources to strike out at his foes hard, fast and with ruthless precision -- and wear proudly the mantle that fate thrust upon him:space pirate!

Customer Reviews (9)

Fantastic Novel
This is a wonderful book with great character development. I found an old copy of it in my hotel on my vacation to Mexico. I didn't put it down the entire vacation. Read this book.

Although a little dated in its politics this is still a good
The story works with technology that is nearly possible today and may be reality in the not so distant future, it not a far fetched space opera nor a silly fantasy story.The story also deals with private enterprise challenging governments for domination of space which is a theme I enjoy.There is enough tech. adventure and intrigue to make for a good Ben Bova story.

A fun, quick read
OK, the story itself is now a little dated (among other things, the Soviet Union is still around), but aside from that this is a nice little brain-dead novel.Don't expect the kind of hard-SF extrapolation you'll find in most of Bova's other novels; rather, this one is more or less a James Bond movie in space, complete with over-the-top villians, femme fatales, and enough plot holes to fit an asteroid or two in.It's popcorn of the printed variety, not meant to make you think but just to have a good time.Read it on the beach.

My first Bova book - A great read!
It's not romping, wide-flung space battles or huge space-going battle ships.It takes place in the near future, on the Earth, Moon and inbetween. Sure there's politics. The `hero` is a playboy self-made millionaire.The nasty is a Russian meglomaniac.Toss in the hero's affair with the first lady, piracy in near space, and a great plot, and we have a pretty good book!

Trys to put 007 to shame.
For somebody looking for realism in Science Fiction this book is not for you (despite the “Riveting Account of the Future” accolade claimed to be by the Wall Street Journal on the front cover). My main problem was the central character, who must have been a Ben Bova wannabe at the time this was written. Try this: He’s young. He’s already a billionaire. He has a “hard” well-toned body. His sexual success puts 007 to shame: He sleeps with a new secretary every other week (all are physical goddesses as it so happens), top Hollywood actresses (two at the same time even), and even the United States woman President who just so happened to be the wife of his now deceased best friend. He seduces a young, innocent and of course beautiful woman who so happens to be the daughter of the soon to be Venezuelan president. He’s a brilliant military tactician, and can somehow transform his corporations’ technical employees into becoming a spacefaring SWOT squad able to covertly rescue comrades from a heavily armed Russian prison facility. He’s also a tactful politician, influential and connected at the highest levels. He has time to run a huge business empire by himself, as well as frolic with women and attend lavish cocktail parties. Achievement to say the least, but lets get a bit real Ben.

There is a common theme in his other books (again the Moon, Mars and Venus sagas); all seem to have a central character with loads of money and incredible sexual success. This seems to be the main vehicle by which the author can get the things done he wants to use in his plots, and it gets a bit boring after a while. ... Read more

Product Description
Bestselling novelist and former editor of Analog Science Fact/Science Fiction and Omni Ben Bova teaches science fiction writers not only how to create and run a universe, but also how to write by the rules that will get a book published.Amazon.com Review
Ben Nova, best-selling novelist and former editor ofAnalog and Omni magazines, guides youthrough the major elements of science-fiction storytelling: character,background, conflict, and plot.Bova has received the Hugo Award forBest Professional Editor six times. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Short Fiction or Novel, SciFi or Other, Read This Book
I found this book to be most instructive.It offers practical advice and a checklist of things to look for when writing a novel.In fact, it is valuable advice for any type of novel, not just a Science Fiction novel.But if you are interested in writing Science Fiction, there are valuable details that you won't find in other books.If you want to write either a novel or fictional short story, this is a must-read.

Read this if you're serious about writing Science Fiction
I have read the negative reviews on this site.I'd like to say that those reviewers don't know what they are talking about.Perhaps they are hack writers who think the label "Science Fiction" means there are no rules to follow.If so, they are wrong.There are tons of bad science fiction stories written by people who don't take their craft seriously.Unfortunately, some of the bad stuff winds up getting published.However, if you seriously want to write quality science fiction then you need to read this book.

This book is an excellent guide in how to create stories.It somewhat focuses on short stories, but also has chapters on novels.Ben Bova does cover the special requirements of science fiction and ways to work with them.

This book discusses what good writing actually requires.And Ben Bova is someone who ought to know, given his career.Good writing is good writing, no matter the genre.Ben Bova spells out what is good and what is not.I think this might have bothered some of the other reviewers.

Another review mentioned Orson Scott Card's book on writing Science Fiction, and I suggest reading that one as well.But, Card's book focuses on the special requirements of Science Fiction and Fantasy and does not cover the basics of how to write something that people will actually pay their hard earned money to get a chance to read.Ben Bova's book does cover that.

don't buy this book
Don't buy this book! This is no more than a short story collection with Bova comments. He only showed you how to write the story of his kind. BTW, this book taught you how to write a story rather than write a SF.

If youwant to learn how to write a story, buy Syd Field's Screenplay and RobertMckee's Story Structure.

Then, if you want to learn how to write sciencefiction, buy Orson Scott Card's How to write SF&F. Card shows you howto build your own world and setting.

how to write fiction that sells!
The title of this book should be like the one in the heading of this article instead of what it prints! Ben Bova is a good writer but did not show you how to write good SF in this book. If you really want to write SF,go Orson Scott Card's "how to write science fiction and fantasy"

Good advice on the craft of writing
Though I admit I'm not so keen on Bova's writing style in itself, he offers good advice on the actual mechanics of building a story: character, plot, conflict, etc.He rightfully recognizes that most budding writers have the talent but are rejected because of poor *craft*, which he says can be taught.The book goes a long way in doing so. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (6)

A Nice Recap of the Grand Tour Novels
Over the years, Ben Bova has become famous for his "Grand Tour" novels about the solar system.Through this fine series of books, Bova has introduced readers to numerous different characters, including Jamie Waterman (Mars), Van Humphries (Venus), Lars Fuchs (Venus, Asteroid Wars), and Sam Gunn (The Sam Gunn Omnibus).Each of these character has played an integral role in Bova's novels, and in "Tales of the Grand Tour", we get to revisit some of these characters' most exciting moments.

Rather than a stand-alone novel, this book is a collection of short stories from the entire Grand Tour series.The reader gets to experience once again Van Humphries' harrowing descent through the atmosphere of Venus with his ship breaking up all around him only to be rescued by none other than Lars Fuchs.Also, Jamie Waterman's experience on Mars, along with Dex Trumball and his future wife Vijay is retold again.I was also introduced to some characters I haven't read about before, including Sam Gunn and the Great Rolando.Some of these characters were introduced before the more well-known Grand Tour novels were written, so I especially enjoyed reading about them.

Some of the material in this book is simply re-printed directly from the novel from which it originally came, namely Jamie Waterman's and Van Humphries' adventures on Mars and Venus respectively, but I still enjoyed re-reading this material a second time, because I really enjoyed these characters originally.The added chapters with the characters I hadn't read about before are enjoyable and contain Bova's trademark style of writing, which includes strong character development and excellent storytelling.

I recommend this book to all fans of Ben Bova's "Grand Tour" novels.Sure, the reader might end up re-reading some material but, as I did, they may encounter some new adventures along the way as well.

A Disappointment
I was rather disappointed.Instead of a book of shorstories, all this book is is reprints of chapters from each of the "Grand Tour" books.Quite a let down

Excellent Primer to the Grand Tour Series
This is a tasty collection of stories and excerpts from Bova's Grand Tour series. You get a little bit of everything including a Sam Gunn story and a snippet of JUPITER, MARS, and VENUS. I think the Grand Tour Series has shown Bova to be a writer who has clearly matured in his later years rather than peaking very early (such as Heinlein and Bradbury).His writing gets better and better. This is an excellent introduction to both Bova's writing and this particular series. I should also say that this "series" is not serial in any manner. You don't need to read one story ahead of another, though many characters overlap. This, of course, is what William Faulkner did throughout his career. Bova is no Faulkner and I'm no Harold Bloom, but this is science fiction at its absolute best.

Not Really Into the Space Opera However....
I want to mention one of the stories in here.It's buried and without fanfare or a clue about what it's really about and it's a gem.'Fifteen Miles' would represent the Moon part of the 'Tour' and it is a beautiful human story.An astronaut finds himself having to undertake a highly risky mission on the Moon to save a colleague who is stranded - and finds that the man he is trying to save somehow seems to know of the terrifying secret he has hidden in his past.This is not so much science here as a great psychological tale and it will touch the reader in a way the other stories won't.

5 stars!
Awesome sci fi! Hard to put down. I cant wait to check out his other books. ... Read more

Product Description
Ben Bova's extraordinary Moonbase Saga continues with a breathtaking near-future adventure rich in character and incident. The action begins seven years after the indomitable Stavenger family has realized its cherished dream of establishing a colony on the inhospitable lunar surface. Moonbase is now a thriving community under the leadership of Doug Stavenger, a marvel of scientific ahievement created and supported by nanotechnology: virus-size machines that can build, cure, and destroy. But nanotechnology has been declared illegal by the home planet's leaders. And a powerful despot is determined to lay claim to Stavenger's peaceful city...or obliterate it, if necessary. The people of Moonbase--a colony with no arms or military--must now defend themselves from earth-born aggression with the only weapon at their disposal: the astonishing technology that sustains their endangered home.Amazon.com Review
Ben Bova can really turn out the space sagas. Moonwar, the sequel to Bova's popular 1996 Moonrise, continues the story of Douglas Stavenger, the Kennedy-esque scion of Moonbase's founding dynasty. Moonbase is flourishing under Stavenger's management, but its existence--and Stavenger's very life--depends on nanotechnology, outlawed on Earth in response to a wave of Luddite fear and violence. United Nations peacekeepers arrive on the moon to enforce the anti-nanotech laws, accompanied by intrepid network news reporter Edith Elgin, who promptly falls for Doug. In the meantime, Doug's mother Joanna chooses to return to Earth, but once there she's held hostage by the secretary-general of the UN, who wants Doug to surrender to his forces (and be killed). Smarmy politicians, beautiful TV babes, calculating corporate barons--it's like Washington in the space age, with nonstop action and cool technology. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (26)

More Classic Sci-Fi From Ben Bova
Moonbase, overseen by Douglas Stavenger, has flourished by employing nanotechnology; micro-sized machines that can build, refine, cure, and destroy.Doug's base relies on nanotechnology to survive.However, nanotechnology is outlawed on Earth.And, to make matters worse for Moonbase and its inhabitants, Georges Faure, Secretary-General of the United Nations, has sent a force of Peacekeepers to Moonbase to enforce the nanotechnology treaty signed by the nations on Earth.

But, Doug has decided to declare Moonbase's independence and set up an independent government free of the constraints of earth.This manuver has infuriated the U.N. even more, and Faure has vowed to destroy Moonbase and its inhabitants.

Aboard the Peacekeeper's ship is Edith Eglin.Edith is a reporter from Global News who is determined to tell the story of Moonbase.Once on the Moon, she meets Doug and they instantly fall for one another.But the base has bigger problems to worry about, as the Peacekeepers have promised to launch a nuclear missile to destroy the base.To make matters even worse, there is an assassin among the population who has tried unsuccessfully to kill Doug.Will Faure and his force of Peacekeepers succeed in taking Moonbase, or will Doug and his followers manage to hold out against seemingly insurmountable odds?

I've read many of Ben Bova's books, and I enjoyed this one very much.The character development is very good, and the story is exciting.I became so involved in the book that I read it in a few days.

I highly recommend this book.If you're a fan of good science fiction, then be sure to read Moonwar; you won't be disappointed.

A Poorly-Written Flop
A dreary, emasculated shadow of Heinlein's classic work, rendered even sadder by its occasional sly references.

Bova's story is, of course, more probable, but his workmanlike writing fails to excite or convince.Read "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" if you're looking for a story worth caring about.

GREAT STORIES; AVERAGE STORYTELLING
I shall write of both "Moonrise" and "Moonwar."

These are the stories of Moonbase, a permanent lunar settlement built by an American corporation in the mid-21st century.These tales chronicle the political and societal tension wrought by unpopular scientific endeavors, and the unforeseen consequences thereof.The books portray a future wherein a new fascism creeps across the entire globe, embraced by a superstitious public, and at dire odds with the free-thinking scientists living on the Moon--men and women who journeyed there to escape the shackles of Earthside ignorance and fear.You will find intrigue, betrayal, villainy, sexual bartering, rugged individualism, and even love within these books' pages.

But Ben Bova's vocabulary is disappointing.His dialog is often uninspired and even predictable.His narrative, his pacing, his exposition, his character development, and even his plot development are all very Saturday matinee.Even worse, his understanding of relationships is shallow.

But what gets these books off the ground and keeps the reader till their last pages is Ben Bova's love of space exploration.The man fervently believes that space exploration will benefit all of mankind, and not just the bureaucrats or big business.When Ben Bova describes an exclusively astronomical scene, his passion is undeniable.In the first book, there's a scene wherein an 18-year-old walks upon the lunar surface for the first time, and it borders on epiphanous.Ben Bova brings the Moon's unique beauty into sharp focus; sometimes, you can actually feel the regolith beneath your boots.It's this passion, I believe, that makes these books worth reading--in spite of their shortfalls.

Murder and War between the scientists and the fanatics
Moonbase has expanded, and now is host to over two thousand employees and researchers.Doug Stavenger lives on Moonbase as Earth is too dangerous for him because the Luddite extreemist factions are out to kill anyone who uses nanotechnology.

The UN is determined to stamp out use of Nanotechnology on the surface, but thier ulterior motives are to gain controll of Nanotechnology for use as they see fit.

Moonwar is a bit predictable, and the 'bad guys' are just way too disfunctional as people to have attained the positions of power in government they have achieved.The 'New Morality' which is quickly gripping the world in a theocracy, opposes nanotechnology, and will use Murder and terrorism to attain thier goals.

Soon, forces culminate into a battle at Moonbase, those in Moonbase thwarting two different attacks and flushing out suicide bombers.It's a bit too easy for them though.

Overall, a nice book if you've read the first one, but not as realistic as it could be, and not very beliveable.

Ben Bova at his best and worst...
MOONWAR exemplifies Ben Bova at both his best and his worst. As a sci-fi thriller, it is near first-rate. Moonbase continues to face resistance from Earth's nano-Luddites-religious fanatics who fear the nano-tech used to sustain the luna colony-and from U.N. Secretary General Georges Faure, who has an agenda of his own. Bova keeps the action and suspense rolling, as the hero of both this and the previous Moonbase novel, Doug Stavenger, struggles to counter these overwhelming odds. Bova proves something of a master of page-turning suspense, keeping his reader on the edge of the seat. Unfortunately, Bova seldom develops his characters beyond anything more than the bare bones, one-dimensional heroes and villains in whom it is very difficult to invest emotionally, even when their lives are on the line. Faure remains a moustache twirling villain throughout the novel when he could well have been developed into a complex figure of real politick. Stavenger proves a near Christ-like entity, finding himself resurrected again and again thanks to the nano-bugs introduced into his system in the previous novel. Worse is Killifer, a vindictive former Moonbase employee, who becomes so monstrous in his actions that he rivals Greg Masterson, Doug's ludicrously evil half-brother from MOONRISE. It is frustrating that a writer with such a great sense of pace and suspense should indulge again and again in such unsatisfying plot devices. As a prose stylist, Bova has his strengths-terse and immediate at times, lavishly descriptive at others-but weaknesses, as well. His physical description of characters especially-laden with tried and stale observations-almost always make me wince. One female character is "vigorous and feisty" with "steel-gray eyes," another has "Texas cheerleader's looks," another is a "petit brunette with video-star looks." On the other hand, Bova's descriptions of the luna surface and of Moonbase's infrastructure are often masterful and enthralling, though there is more of both in the first novel than the second. Both Moonbase titles are quick, decent reads, but lack the sense of real wonder that Bova captures in his Mars novels. ... Read more

Product Description
John O'Ryan is Orion--more than human, less than a god, cast away on the seas of Time to do battle among the Creators for the future of mankind.

Now the eternal warrior finds himself separated from his great love, Anya, and marooned in Macedonia under the reign of Phillip--fighting alongside the young Alexander, and at the mercy of a Queen Olympias who is far more than she seems.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

NIce idea. Thin soup
Hey, I liked the concept, but the execution is spread out as if it were an epic but there isn't enough beef. The opening scene of battle between the mercenaries and Phillip of Macedon's troops runs well enough and acts as if Bova actually did some historical research. The episodes in Phillips castle seem to be good history, but it starts to drag and its as if Bova did not want to cut out the middle sections, but did not know where the plot was supposed to end up. The arguments with Demosthenes appear to be childish, and in the end they are. The repeated angst for Anya becomes tedious, and the ominous threats of the impending end of the world are silly with no context. The episodes with Hera are like a bad Harlequin in which one of the couple can't control themselves. This book is more about loyalty and its betrayal than anything else. You really have to read the rest of the series to put it in context, and it is another of those endless series in which the plot only advances by tiny steps in each book....so be prepared to find the rest of the story if you really want to know what is happening, (too bad Amazon dosen't list the books in a series so we can find them more easily) or enjoy this for the historical content, not the science nor the fantasy, of which there really isn't much.

Orion is put back into the thick of world history
Orion and the Conqueror puts our hero Orion back into the thick of world history as a royal guard to Philip of Macendonia, the father of Alexander the Great.As Philip struggles to conquer/unite Greece, Alexander's mother, who is one of the Creators, struggles to ensure the ascension of Alexander to the throne.This is Orion at his best, fighting with swords and knives as he struggles with his personal loyalties versus the desires of the Creators.As Orion's powers develop, he continues to try to find the mystery behind the intentions of The Golden One.A quick fun read, Orion and the Conquerer is definitely worthwhile despite the one shortcoming of Orion's constant whining about finding Anya, the Creator he loves.

Entertaining
I can't vouch for the historical accuracy of this one, but I will say that I was quite entertained.A fast, fun read, no more--but sometimes that's exactly what I want.

Another winner in awesome series!
This is fun and exciting reading. Ben Bova is a literary giant in this genre.

Not terribly impressive
Well-known classicist Sir Kenneth Dover once described Hans Licht's absurdbook on Greek sexuality as a "very bad book."One can't *quite*call Bova's book "very bad"--that honor has to go to DavidGemmell's two forays into ancient Macedonia, LION OF MACEDON and THE DARKPRINCE--but this is far from a *good* book.For a man known to complainabout bad science in novels, this reviewer finds it terribly ironic to seesuch bad and/or outdated history in this one.Bova might do well to takehis own advice and stick to what he knows:science, not history. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (6)

JDHAYS
THIS IS TYPICAL Ben Bova with real life people in every quandry you can imagine but in a SciFi setting.I was unable to put itdown and it lifted my dire mood about the economy!

Sam Gunn, Unforgettable
The Sam Gunn Omnibus (2007) is an omnibus edition of ALL the Sam Gunn stories.It includes stories from Sam Gunn, Unlimited and Sam Gunn Forever.It also contains a very interesting -- and rather old fashioned -- framing story tying the others together.

The following short stories concern Sam Gunn himself.Many were previously published and then incorporated into the Sam Gunn collections:

"The Supervisor's Tale" (F&SF, 1983) tells of a stranded group of NASA astronauts on the Moon who have to wait for a rescue mission.The physicians suggest using tranquilizers, but Sam finds an alternative.

"The Long Fall" relates the story of a sadistic space station commander and a video company technician.When Gloria Lamour iss rumored to be coming to Freedom station, everybody aboard gets excited.

"Diamond Sam" (F&SF, 1984) uncovers the relationship between Sam and the Russian space station crew.Once Sam gets his foot in the door -- or airlock -- the Russians are beguiled by his words.

"Tourist Sam" (Analog, 1998) depicts an early enterprise created by Sam to encourage rich tourists to experience space.Suspicious of his requested leave of absence, Sam's boss turns loose his niece -- a DEA agent -- to check out his operation.

"Isolation Area" (F&SF, 1988) recounts the time that Sam is kept in quarantine within the Mac Dac Shackwith a patient undergoing an experimental treatment for AIDS.Sam definitely impresses Malone with his total lack of fear of the disease and his efforts to seduce the nurses.

"Vacuum Cleaner" (F&SF, 1989) shows the development of Vacuum Cleaners Inc. by Sam Gunn.Sam hires two graduate students who have come up with a different way of removing orbital debris.

"Nursery Sam" (Analog, 1995) involves Sam with a US Senator, a teenaged boy and a sixteen month old child who loves microgravity.Sam is trying to steal a space sickness medication, but ends up a hero instead.

"Sam's War" (Analog, 1994) exposes the beginning of Sam's partnership with Ecuador.It all starts with the Presidential daughter who goes to work for Sam as a spy and saboteur.

"Grandfather Sam" extols Sam's role in the construction of a free and unstructured playground within the New Chicago habitat.A large construction company wants to build a giant condominium on the lot, so Sam gains the permit by winning a game of sandlot baseball on the disputed field.

"Two Years Before the Mast" discloses the events of the voyage of Sam and his partners to the asteroid belt.After the first month of a two year voyage, the partners are ready to kill each other as well as Sam.Then the sabotage becomes evident.

"A Can of Worms" conveys the conflicts between the Peruvian sculptress Elverda Apacheta and a Moralist Sect building a space habitat.The sect tries some underhanded manipulations with the International Astronautical Authority to evict Elverda from her asteroid to use it for building material.

"Einstein" (Omni, 1990) expounds on the discovery of a small black hole.Sam gets a little too close to the event horizon.

"Acts of God" (Science Fiction Age, 1995) divulges the reasons for Sam suing the Pope -- really the Vatican -- for the events that destroy property belonging to his company.After all, the Pope is God's Vicar on Earth, so why shouldn't he reimburse people for God's negligence?

"(Sam and the) Prudent Jurist" (Science Fiction Age, 1997) states the circumstances that led to Sam being tried for genocide and other crimes by the Interplanetary Tribunal.Naturally, Sam was only trying to rescue the Porno Twins.

"Piker's Peak" explains the origins of the Hell Crater entertainment complex.Rockledge Industries invests in Sam's idea, but plans to freeze him out of the deal.It doesn't quite work out that way.

"The Mark of Zorro" concerns the efforts of the Interplanetary Security Commission to regulate the commodities market.Sam Gunn was obviously cheating and Carole C. Chatsworth is out to get him.

"The Flying Dutchman" reveals the visit of Amanda Cunningham Humphries with Sam.She asks him to deliver an encoded message chip to Lars Fuchs.

"Takes Two to Tangle" describes the return of Sam from a black hole and the construction of a matter transmitter.Many think that one of him is bad enough, so what about two or more Sams?

"Orchestra(ted) Sam" is the last story in this volume.It is almost certainly the first story about Jane Avril Innocu.Jade is a reporter who has produced videos about Sam.In this story, Sam is hiding from Jill Meyers and Jennifer Marlowe, the Beryllium Blonde.Both claim to want to marry him, but Jennifer is more motivated by revenge than romance.She would much prefer to sue him for everything he has.

This volume actually contains thirty-one more short segments of the framing story, featuring Jade.A young woman born on the Moon, Jade is forever barred from going to Earth due to brittle bones.

Jade is a truck driver in the vacuum of the Moon when she hears the first story about Sam Gunn from her supervisor.She is so intrigued that she sets out to become a news reporter and then starts tracking down people who know Sam Gunn for a video biography.So the longest tale in this collection is really the framing story about Jade rather than the ones about Sam Gunn.

Highly recommended for Bova fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of womanizing astronauts, spacegoing entrepreneurs, and defenders of the common justice.

-Arthur W. Jordin

Good collection but sometimes repetitive
This 700 page collection contains many stories about the fabled Sam Gunn.They are set as interviews taken by a person doing a story on him, so each story (interview) is preceded by a segue from the last interview to the next person.It appears that they were originally done individually in separate publications and at different times, so the repetitiveness of them may not have been apparent at first, but if you get tired of hearing the same references to "copper wire hair," "jack-o-lantern smile," or a description of face freckle patterns, maybe you should pass on this one.

Fun Read - Sometimes Idiosynchratic
Large Collection of Short Stories revolving around the exploits of a strange/short semi-likable character Sam Gunn, who manages to get involved in all of the events surrounding the initial exploration of the Solar System.

These are generally fun short stories, although there are a few duds in the mix.One of the duds occurs rather early in the series (the fake "Space Ride" Adventure), it is quite unbelievable; and, while it plays a pivotal role in the sequence of stories, the fact that it is unbelievable detracts from the whole collection.

The Definitive Sam Gunn Anthology
Described by author Ben Bova as "a combination of Huckleberry Finn and Long John Silver with a bit of Chuck Yeager thrown in," Sam Gunn is one of the most important literary heroes of the Space Age.For the first time ever, all of the Sam Gunn stories, about 50 in total, are together between the covers of one book, The Sam Gunn Omnibus.

The tales of the legendary Sam Gunn are told bya journalist named Jane.As reporter Jane learns more about Gunn, she keeps her readers informed about his exploits ranging from suing the Pope to building a giant statue of himself to be placed on the Moon.Truly, Sam Gunn was a legend of his futuristic time.

Sam Gunn is a capatalistic hero who comes across as a sort of private free enterprise version of James Bond except that Gunn basically worked for himself.Gunn goes from failed NASA astronaut to becoming a futuristic space jockey who becomes the most controversial figure of his time.

Sam Gunn is author Ben Bova's greatest creation. If you have never tried one of Bova's books before, then The Sam Gunn Omnibus is a great work to try. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Burnt Earth
Fifty years ago the sky burned.The sun released an enormous giant flare, more powerful than anything humanity had ever seen before.Virtually everything alive on the daylight side of the planet was scorched to oblivion.Those that didn't die by the flare were killed in the subsequent nuclear blasts, the burning sky misinterpreted as a preemptive nuclear strike by nations that possessed nuclear weaponry.But, despite the terrible toll both the flare and nuclear strikes took, some managed to survive.....

Alec Morgan is a member of the lunar settlement.Because the lunar settlement is -- except for some scientific equipment -- entirely underground, the disaster that exacted such a heavy price on Earth hardly effected those living on the moon at all.Now, decades after the sky burned, the lunar settlement has a problem.Their entire community is powered by nuclear reactors.The only fissionable material available is on Earth.Alec Morgan's job is to return to Earth and retrieve as much fissionable material as possible from a dilapidated power plant in Tennessee.But what Alec doesn't realize when he lands on Earth is that his father -- who left the lunar settlement a decade earlier on the same mission that Alec is now on but did not return -- has other plans.

Published in the early 1970's, When the Sky Burned is classic Ben Bova.Characterization is mediocre but the story moves along quickly enough and there is plenty of action to hold your attention and keep you turning pages.When the Sky Burned is a fun read, with just enough of the "I can believe that might happen," factor to make the story relatively plausible.This tale is definitely worth picking up for a light, easy read or if you are a fan of Bova's. ... Read more