“A totally new and original work that stretches his talents to their fullest . . . welcome back, champ!”— The Detroit News In the twenty-third century pioneers have escaped the crowded earth for life in self-sustaining orbital colonies. One of the colonies, Rotor, has broken away from the solar system to create its own renegade utopia around an unknown red star two light-years from Earth: a star named Nemesis. Now a fifteen-year-old Rotorian girl has learned of the dire threat that nemesis poses to Earth’s people—but she is prevented from warning them. Soon she will realize that Nemesis endangers Rotor as well. And so it will be up to her alone to save both Earth and Rotor as—drawn inexorably by Nemesis, the death star—they hurtle toward certain disaster.

"In his new book, The Case For Space: How the Revolution in Spaceflight Opens Up a Future of Limitless Possibility, famed astronautical engineer Bob Zubrin talks about the how and the why of our new exploratory era. It's a must-read for anyone interested in the subject, and will probably be read by historians of our era centuries hence. I find Zubrin's arguments compelling, and I think you just might, too. I highly recommend his book, not only for its excellent analysis, but also as a source of perspective on today's news. " -- Glenn Harlan Reynolds, Opinion columnist, USA Today A new space race has begun. But the rivals in this case are not superpowers but competing entrepreneurs. These daring pioneers are creating a revolution in spaceflight that promises to transform the near future. Astronautical engineer Robert Zubrin spells out the potential of these new developments in an engrossing narrative that is visionary yet grounded by a deep understanding of the practical challenges. Fueled by the combined expertise of the old aerospace industry and the talents of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, spaceflight is becoming cheaper. The new generation of space explorers has already achieved a major breakthrough by creating reusable rockets. Zubrin foresees more rapid innovation, including global travel from any point on Earth to another in an hour or less; orbital hotels; moon bases with incredible space observatories; human settlements on Mars, the asteroids, and the moons of the outer planets; and then, breaking all limits, pushing onward to the stars. Zubrin shows how projects that sound like science fiction can actually become reality. But beyond the how, he makes an even more compelling case for why we need to do this--to increase our knowledge of the universe, to make unforeseen discoveries on new frontiers, to harness the natural resources of other planets, to safeguard Earth from stray asteroids, to ensure the future of humanity by expanding beyond its home base, and to protect us from being catastrophically set against each other by the false belief that there isn't enough for all.

"Hella is a planet where everything is oversized--especially the ambitions of the colonists. The trees are mile-high, the dinosaur herds are huge, and the weather is extreme--so extreme, the colonists have to migrate twice a year to escape the blistering heat of summer and the atmosphere-freezing cold of winter. Kyle is a neuro-atypical young man, emotionally challenged, but with an implant that gives him real-time access to the colony's computer network, making him a very misunderstood savant. When an overburdened starship arrives, he becomes the link between the established colonists and the refugees from a ravaged Earth. The Hella colony is barely self-sufficient. Can it stand the strain of a thousand new arrivals, bringing with them the same kinds of problems they thought they were fleeing? Despite the dangers to himself and his family, Kyle is in the middle of everything--in possession of the most dangerous secret of all. Will he be caught in a growing political conspiracy? Will his reawakened emotions overwhelm his rationality? Or will he be able to use his unique ability to prevent disaster?"--Provided by publisher.

Maris of Amberly, a fisherman's daughter, challenges the tradition that only the legitimate children of fliers be allowed to enter the elite ranks of those chosen to carry news between the islands of Windhaven by means of metal wings, but her victory threatens to tear apart the very structure she so wanted to join.

Having barely escaped death at the hands of ruthless corporations who have pursued him across the harsh lunar wasteland, teenager Charles Dingillian faces yet another fateful decision: no longer able to return to his home on Earth, Charles and his two brothers must choose a new planet to call home. But which one? Charles has come into possession of a prototype HARLIE unit so revolutionary and state-of-the-art that corporations will stop at nothing - including murder - to control it. Earth is in a state of social and economic meltdown. The battle for domination between rival corporations has gone interplanetary. Charles and the HARLIE unit escape capture on Earth, but the hunt for them intensifies when they are discovered to be on the moon. The stakes have escalated to full-scale war. For Charles, everyone is his enemy. No one can be trusted. Charles has been at war before: only that was a personal civil war waged between him and his parents. In an effort to end the strife once and for all thirteen-year-old Charles took the drastic step of "divorcing" his parents. When against all odds he succeeded, he won his freedom. He and his brothers are now free to do what they choose. To go where they want. Freedom for Charles and his brothers means passage on a starship to a colony Outbeyond. There they will use HARLIE to help build a better world. But freedom also means exile. From his home. From his friends. From everything he has ever known. And even his chance for a new life on a remote planet is put in jeopardy when a critical malfunction with the HARLIE unit seemingly threatens the integrity of the voyage. However, a faction of passengers on board the Brightliner Cascade may pose an even greater risk. A risk not even an intelligence as powerful as a HARLIE unit can avert.