Derelict for Trade: A Great New Solar Queen Adventure [Paperback]

Andre Norton (Author), Sherwood Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1998

In this brand-new space thriller, the Solar Queen is in real trouble. After saving thousands of lives in a near disaster, the crew are heroes, and they're ready to cash in their newfound celebrity for some profitable trade. But when they come out of hyper and almost crash into a deserted ship, they nearly find themselves dead on arrival. Luckily, the derelict has fuel enough to get both ships to the nearest port - an eerily beautiful space habitat. Three races, human, Kanddoyd, and Shver, share the facilities; but a fourth species - bureaucrats - nearly scuttles the Queen's crew and their claim to the derelict. What started out as a lucky stop at the habitat turns into a series of treacherous misadventures as an alien stowaway, a gang of intergalactic spacejackers, and an ultraviolent clan of aliens threaten to make this the Solar Queen's final run.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

YA author Smith joins the prolific Norton in writing his popular adventure sf series. In Kanddroyd space, the crew of the trading ship Solar Queen find an abandoned ship with only two cats aboard. When they file for salvage rights, the crew becomes embroiled in a hijacking ring. Recommended for sf collections.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

This continuation of Norton's long-lived Solar Queen saga is noticeably superior to the last, Redline the Stars (1993). Free trader ship Solar Queen comes out of hyperspace dangerously short of fuel and saves herself by encountering a derelict starship that it then tows to a three-species space habitat, where the derelict promptly makes the Solar Queen crew the target of legal, financial, and outright homicidal chicanery. It will surprise no one to learn that the good guys and gals win, but it may surprise even old, faithful fans how thoroughly the series in particular and Norton's universe in general have been updated. It is almost unbelievable that this series was in its heyday 30 years ago. On the other hand, in many aspects of sf and fantasy that modern readers have come to take for granted, Norton was 30 years ahead of her time. Read and enjoy. Roland Green --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 283 pages
• Publisher: Tom Doherty Assoc Llc (April 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812552725
• ISBN-13: 978-0812552720
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,375,441 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quite a Good Read, May 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Derelict for Trade: A Great New Solar Queen Adventure (Paperback)

I was surprised to have enjoyed this book so much, even though it was a science fiction with a cheesy cover. Sherwood Smith is great, he needs to send his material to publishers right NOW!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good book by Andre Norton and Sherwood Smith, August 6, 1998

By 

Fred Camfield (Vicksburg, MS USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Derelict for Trade: A Great New Solar Queen Adventure (Hardcover)

This is a somewhat Swashbuckling tale set on the fringes of the galaxy, and is another adventure of the Solar Queen and its crew. Overall the book is quite good, but the authors do not fully develop a good description of the setting for the readers. The orbiting Trade city, Exchange, is developed in pieces that never fully come together into a single picture. Some references are made to information from previous books, but the story line stands alone very well as a separate novel. The crew of the Solar Queen has some interesting adventures on Exchange, and acquire a very interesting new crew member. If you liked Andre Norton's previous books, you will definitely want to read this one.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Don't judge the book by its cover, February 11, 2000

By 

CCG (Phialdelphia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Derelict for Trade: A Great New Solar Queen Adventure (Paperback)

I am a professional woman and much too cool to carry a book with this cover in my briefcase. However, I was interested in the further adventures of the Solar Queen so found myself carrying it with me everywhere - cover be danged.

Better than Redline the Stars, the alien habitat is well conceived, truly different, and yet a place I would love to visit. The aliens themselves are 3-dimensional. That is not to say they could not have been more complex, but I never got the feeling we were simply on another Earth.

The story was also more complex, unfolding over the course of several weeks. This allows time for the development of a few more of the many crewmembers and the a better sense of what it means to be a free trader.

I liked this book. Another fun read but not too challenging. What I did not like were the inconsistencies from the previous book to this one. What happened to their wealth? The promise of their cargo? Their good reputation? That was not credibly explained. And the romance...such potential that was wrapped up in a few pages at the end like an afterthought. Better to tease it into the next book.