Spindrift - by Allen Steele (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

A standalone Coyote Universe story from the Hugo Award-winning author that's "the best first contact novel in a long time" (Rocky Mountain News).

"Spindrift is classic SF in the best sense." --Nebula Award-winning author Jack McDevitt

The year is 2288. Earth scientists have picked up a transmission originating from outside the solar system. Eager to confirm that the signal may have been sent by an alien civilization, Europe dispatches its first starship, the EASS Galileo, to investigate. Its nine-person crew discovers an unidentified object, code-named Spindrift, and begins to unravel its mysteries . . .

In the year 2344, more than five decades have passed since the Galileo vanished on its secret mission. Now, three of the crew's survivors--Ted Harker, Emily Collins, and Jared Ramirez--have returned to Earth. They have not aged in the interim. Each of them claims that they made first contact with an alien species--and that they have been introduced to a larger universe with danger and conflict beyond human experience.

Director General John Shillinglaw must sift through the three very different testimonies of Galileo's surviving crew to uncover the truth of their alien encounter--and what that truth means for humanity's future.

"Fascinating . . . Steele delivers a gripping saga of humanity on the verge of exploring the larger universe." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)

About the Author

Before becoming a science fiction writer, Allen Steele was a journalist for newspapers and magazines in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Missouri, and his home state of Tennessee. But science fiction was his first love, so he eventually ditched journalism and began producing that which had made him decide to become a writer in the first place.

Since then, Steele has published eighteen novels and nearly one hundred short stories. His work has received numerous accolades, including three Hugo Awards, and has been translated worldwide, mainly into languages he can't read. He serves on the board of advisors for the Space Frontier Foundation and is a member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. He also belongs to Sigma, a group of science fiction writers who frequently serve as unpaid consultants on matters regarding technology and security.

Allen Steele is a lifelong space buff, and this interest has not only influenced his writing, it has taken him to some interesting places. He has witnessed numerous space shuttle launches from Kennedy Space Center and has flown NASA's shuttle cockpit simulator at the Johnson Space Center. In 2001, he testified before the US House of Representatives in hearings regarding the future of space exploration. He would like very much to go into orbit, and hopes that one day he'll be able to afford to do so.

Steele lives in western Massachusetts with his wife, Linda, and a continual procession of adopted dogs. He collects vintage science fiction books and magazines, spacecraft model kits, and dreams.