About the Book
Never before has a ship so far from home been in so much trouble. Hurtling through space and time like a blur, starship Nebula Express gives truth to a darkly bright motto out of a nightmare: "Nothing seems right...near the speed of light..." Not the ship, not the mission, nor its people - especially not Ridge and Brenna, who are drawn to each other with a deep passion that defies the deadly madness all around - yet their love, too, is a symptom of all that's wrong aboard Nebula Express. It is a saga in the tradition of Ridley Scott's movie Alien - yet scarier, more thoughtful, a heart-stopping romantic story amid the terror, chaos, and horror of a ship gone mad. The six-person engineering crew aboard the starship awaken to a normal morning in the crew quarters aboard a solar system cargo ship named Neptune Express, on a two-year mission to the blue gas giant that will allow each to retire wealthy. They enjoy breakfast, banter, and email home across the vast emptiness of space. But Earth isn't answering. And the captain is nowhere to be found. When Ridge, Brenna, and the other four specialists open the hatch to enter the huge ship, they discover to their horror that nothing is what they thought it would be - not the ship, not the mission, not the engineers themselves--in a heart-rending ultimate discovery for each man and woman that is sure to send cold chills through the reader. You will *not* want to miss this unique twist that takes horror to its ultimate, personal peak. It's a plot twist no writer has ever done before. Be prepared to keep lights on all night. Take a deep breath, take a long walk around the house in the dark, check doors and windows, and look in the mirror to see who or what is looking back at you. Mystery upon mystery compound the terror as the crew find themselves inside an ancient, wrecked starship. Then bodies begin turning up, along with zombie-like Mudmen or Cleaners who hunt both the living and the dead, seeking body parts and food. Then the dying begins. One by one, the engineers fall prey to a strange illness. Not only is everything frighteningly wrong, but one by one, each realizes the most horrific truth of all about him or herself. Ridge, a strong, handsome Chief Engineer, and lovely red-headed Brenna, Senior Engineer, have families back on Earth whom they love very much. And yet, they find themselves drawn into a passionate, overwhelming love that neither sought, but they cannot resist or understand. Somewhere in the rusting, dripping, ghost-ridden bowels of this enormous city flying through the distant galaxy is a magical place called Largo, where answers and help can be found. Ridge and Brenna must find Largo before it's too late, as the clock ticks...Largo itself is only a keyhole leading to either human extinction...or a New Earth that is humankind's only shred of hope. If the two lovers cannot defeat the ship and its monsters (both external and internal to themselves) they will never know as a ghastly array of long-dead, mummified officers on the bridge sails Nebula Express to her ultimate destiny amid distant stars.
About the Author :
John Argo has created a vast, sprawling SF universe of imaginative novels and stories called Empire of Time (EOT. Everything is at stake, and time traveling agents are at work up and down stream (time), observing and tweaking carefully to save the future--the fate of humankind and the universe is at stake, in the grand scheme that must never be forgotten. In the minor key, each novel offers gripping action with compelling characters, often spiced up with an urgent romantic subplot. This is a future history in the grand tradition of Cordwainer Smith (Norstrilia), Isaac Asimov (Foundation), Frank Herbert (Dune), and other masters of the form. Fifty years in process, and still in the making, this mind boggling panorama of infinite universes and time without end already includes over a dozen novels that serve as pinholes to peer into realms beyond comprehension. John Argo, from his home base in San Diego, continues to spin pieces of a vast mosaic that will soon coalesce into an astonishing entirety with a subseries titled Jornade: Chronicles of Metrado. Time traveling monks, military priestesses, female popes of the 38th Century--the innovations are boundless. Metrado journeys back in time to report to the Triune Holy Office uptime about such adepts as Nostradamus, Leonardo da Vinci, Homer, and others who work for HM Sacred Service. Stay tuned. John Argo in 1996 became the first author/publisher to publish entire (full length novel) proprietary (not public domain) digital books on line for download. These included the texts of This Shoal of Space and Pioneers (SF) and Neon Blue (suspense), innovatively released in weekly serial chapters to readers around the world, who sent thanks and kudos. More info at the Museum pages of Clocktower Books.
