WINE DARK DEEP

A spaceship captain defies revolutionaries who have seized crucial fuel in this debut SF novel.

The interplanetary spacecraft Ulysses is on an exploration mission, “the scientific journey of a lifetime,” when everything goes sideways. The ship must be resupplied by tankers based on Ceres, the largest object in an asteroid belt, which possesses abundant ice as well as very low gravity, essential for cost-effective resource transfers. It’s a long-planned rendezvous, but now, Ceres Control is inexplicably denying the Ulysses access to refueling tankers, leaving Mission Cmdr. Calvin Scott with a stark dilemma. The ship has enough fuel to extend its elliptical orbit and let Jupiter’s gravity catapult it back to Earth, a long, slow, resource-taxing journey that would end the voyage. Or, if the ship changes course to orbit Ceres, Cal could risk using the fuel they have to reconnoiter and somehow get refueled. As for why Ceres has taken this step, it could be making the first move in declaring independence from the consortium of companies that owns the base, making the inhabitants “among the wealthiest and most powerful individuals in the solar system.” Cal can’t bear the thought of abandoning the mission, so he ignores Ceres’ warning to stay away and conceives a bold plan to grab the colony’s orbiting automated taxi, reach the base, and figure things out from there. His arrival throws the rebels into a tizzy; they had been sure of foiling the Ulysses and making a strong statement to Earth. Helen Donovan, chief of psychology for the base, is familiar with Cal and adamant that the group’s best course is to kill him, but the renegades dither. Meanwhile, Cal is living up to his ship’s namesake by crafting twists, opportunities, and on-the-fly decisions that—with skill and luck—could get the Ulysses under way.

In this first volume of the Wine Dark Deep trilogy, Keith draws on his work creating museum exhibits that simulate space flight for NASA to convincing effect. Fans of hard SF dramas like the TV series The Expanse will enjoy how the crisp, vivid renditions of technology, procedures, and settings are well thought through, providing a lived-in, utterly real world. The smallest maneuvers are brought home with sensory details, as when Cal can feel the Ulysses and the taxi locking together, “the muffled vibration and clunk of the two vehicles’ union transmitted down the long axis of the ship.” Action scenes, too, have cinematic punch, such as a daring maneuver that requires Cal to employ the landscape as a ramp to gain altitude for his escape vehicle. At the same time, Keith also beautifully evokes wonders, from Ceres’ ice volcanoes to space itself: “A perfect bowl of night. Stars in incalculable number shining through luminous sheets of galactic material. A trillion stars. Maybe a trillion upon a trillion other lives out there. Or none.” Characterization, on the other hand, tends to be sketchy, with little or no backstory. For example, Donovan knows Cal from the past, but readers don’t really learn much about this connection except that she considers him dangerous.

A compelling and exciting tale with an admirably resourceful hero; a fine SF series starter.