SOLOMON'S ARROW

A sci-fi action-adventure story about humanity’s attempt to colonize a distant planet.

Dr. Solomon Chavez has a plan to save the human race. Nobody had ever even heard of him until his father, the world’s first trillionaire—a man to whom he bears an eerily close resemblance—died. But he and his spacecraft, Solomon’s Arrow, are soon the focus of the whole world’s attention. Not all of that attention is positive—terrorists known as the Christian Republican Army consider the mission a threat to God’s plan and will stop at nothing to disrupt the launch. Meanwhile, the world’s best and brightest gather to prepare for the 10-year journey to what they expect will become their new home. Soon, astronaut Richard Allison, famous author and psychic detective Bram Waters, and the Arrow’s driven designer and engineer, Dr. Mona Levin, will all be drawn into Chavez’s orbit. Debut novelist Jennings packs in plenty of action, but the main thrust of the plot takes much too long to become clear amid this jumble of activity. The latter half of the book develops an agreeably over-the-top atmosphere reminiscent of a classic Star Trek episode, but underdeveloped characters and awkward, exposition-heavy dialogue make the first half of the book a bit of a slog.

The material for an enjoyable old-school sci-fi adventure is here, including big questions about humanity’s ultimate purpose in the universe, but most readers won't be able to get past the book’s flaws long enough to consider those questions.