Power Challenges - by Ben Bova (Hardcover)
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<p/><br></br><p><b> About the Book </b></p></br></br>"It is time to start the colonizing the solar system. Ex-astronaut, current space advisor, and all-out trouble shooter for the President, Jake Ross, is determined to make it happen. And what better way to return to America's glory than by returning to the moon and setting up a permanent moon-base which can then serve as the launching pad for Mars and beyond. But as usual, political intrigue and conflicting priorities are threatening the whole program. Add to that a President who is about to die, a strong contingent in the legislative body which thinks that money spent on a moon-base is money wasted and the general apathy of the public, and you have an almost impossible task. Even NASA, natural enthusiasts of a project like this, are dragging their feet because they have lost control of the top spot in the project. However, none of those opposing forces have contended with the resolve and the skill of Jake Ross. He will create the base on the moon. He will send humans out to many worlds"--<p/><br></br><p><b> Book Synopsis </b></p></br></br><p></p><p><br><b>"Far-thinking ideas and the characters' determination to grab the last hope are characteristic. Fans won't want to miss this coda to Bova's prolific literary life."--<i>Publishers Weekly</i></b></p><p>It is time to start the colonizing the solar system. Ex-astronaut, current space advisor, and all-out trouble shooter for the President, Jake Ross, is determined to make it happen.<br></p><p>And what better way to return to America's glory than by returning to the moon and setting up a permanent moon-base which can then serve as the launching pad for Mars and beyond.<br></p><p>But as usual, political intrigue and conflicting priorities are threatening the whole program. Add to that a President who is about to die, a strong contingent in the legislative body which thinks that money spent on a moon-base is money wasted and the general apathy of the public, and you have an almost impossible task.<br></p><p></p><p>Even NASA, natural enthusiasts of a project like this, are dragging their feet because they have lost control of the top spot in the project.</p><p>However, none of those opposing forces have contended with the resolve and the skill of Jake Ross. He <i>will</i> create the base on the moon. He <i>will</i> send humans out to many worlds.<br></p><p></p><p></p><p/><br></br><p><b> Review Quotes </b></p></br></br><br>Bova took readers to Mars and himself onto bestseller lists. Last year's <i>A Return to Mars</i> also sold well. So a narrative about manned exploration of Venus seems an obvious step for this popular author, and Bova's new novel will indeed please his fans, as it offers his usual mix of solid science, serviceable (if sketchy) characterizations and lickety-split plotting with plenty of cliff-hangers. It's late in the 21st century. Three years ago, the first human to visit Venus, Alex Humphries, son of decadent multibillionaire Martin, never returned. Now Martin is offering $10 billion to whoever will retrieve Alex's remains from that planet's hellish surface. Racing against one another for the prize are Alex's aimless younger brother, Van (the story's narrator, who's just been disowned by Martin), and legendary asteroid-miner Lars Fuchs, who detests Martin as much as Martin detests Van. Van's expedition goes bad early on; high above Venus, colonies of alien bugs eat through his ship's hull, forcing him and his crew--several of whom die--to seek refuge on Fuchs's stronger craft. Personality conflicts rampage there, particularly between domineering Fuchs and mild-mannered Van, and there's romantic tension between a young female biologist and Van. The real drama, however, arises from revelations that explain the roots of the hatreds among Van, Fuchs and Martin, and during Van's dangerous descent in a small ship to the surface of Venus, which Bova depicts with strong visual imagery as a deadly inferno--albeit one inhabited by an unexpected life form. This novel clicks along only predictably as Van's coming of age tale, but as a voyage to an unknown world, it excels.<br><br>Far-thinking ideas and the characters' determination to grab the last hope are characteristic. Fans won't want to miss this coda to Bova's prolific literary life.--<i>Publishers Weekly</i> <p><br>
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