Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda: Paradise Drift [Hardcover]

Sherwood Smith (Author)

Book Description

Series: Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda | Publication Date: October 13, 2005

R and R Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Dylan Hunt and the Crew of the Andromeda Ascendant have been fighting the good fight to re-establish the Systems Commonwealth. They need some serious rest and relaxation. Fortunately, they arrive at Paradise Drift, an ideal spot for a quick vacation. In the drift, the crew can play at pirates, medieval knights, gladiators--almost anything imaginable--in the virtual gaming scenarios concocted for visitors' pleasure.

Since the drift wishes to join the New Systems Commonwealth, the crew is given carte blanche to enjoy all of the drift's facilities for free. This is a welcome gift for the weary crew, but it doesn't take long for complications to arise. First, Trance Gemini vanishes without a trace. Then their tech-wizard Seamus Harper visits a harem, only to be confronted by a woman from his past who has a knife and a score to settle. Even worse, Pilot Beka Valentine is relentlessly pursued by a bounty hunter who desperately wants to claim the price on her head. And Captain Dylan Hunt hasn't been worrying about his losing streak at a glamorous gambling parlor, until he discovers that gambling debts on the drift are anything but virtual. Little does Dylan know, he could end up paying for his debts with his head!

Meanwhile, back on the ship, warrior Tyr Anasazi and ship's AI Rommie are forced to defend the Andromeda Ascendant against aggression from an unlikely source. What follows is an exciting, suspenseful deep-space adventure that will surely satisfy viewers of the TV series and readers with a taste for space opera.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

There's no down time for the crew of the Andromeda Ascendant, even when taking some well-earned R&R, in this sixth book-length adventure based on the popular Gene Roddenberry television series. Shortly after being lured to the Paradise Drift recreational asteroid, Commander Dylan Hunt and his team find themselves ensnared in individual intrigues hidden among its amusements: Capt. Beka Valentine is being stalked by a bounty hunter skilled at blending in with the Drift's many attractions; irrepressibly promiscuous engineer Harper is poisoned by a former lover who tells him the antidote can only be found back on Earth; and Dylan discovers his ship is being targeted for takeover by an approaching Nietzschean warfleet. The multiple subplots keep the action brisk and allow Smith (Inda) to indulge in plenty of space opera pyrotechnics. Fans of the show will find this a perfect between-episodes time-bider.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

In the fifth Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda novel, Captain Dylan Hunt and his crew are at the recreational haven planet, Paradise Drift. Dylan hopes to bring it into the Commonwealth of Planets, and his crew is more than happy to leave the diplomacy to him and enjoy some of the many opportunities for pleasure that the Drift offers. But what they find is far from relaxing. Beka Valentine runs into a bounty hunter who once pursued her and quickly learns that he still wants her dead. Seamus Harper's fantasy is ruined when he runs into an old acquaintance who poisons him and refuses to cure him unless he agrees to help her. Meanwhile, Dylan finds negotiations far less simple than he had imagined when a Drift leader contacts the Nietzscheans, bringing them to face off with the Andromeda. Fans still smarting from the cancellation of the TV show will be pleased to see the series living on in such engaging stories as this one. Kristine Huntley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Tor Books; 1st edition (October 13, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765304880
• ISBN-13: 978-0765304889
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,413,221 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I don't put much personal data on-line, but what there is can be found on my webpage under the FAQ.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars for fans of the series, October 25, 2005

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda: Paradise Drift (Hardcover)

Working long and hard hours to re-link the Systems Commonwealth, the crew of the Andromeda Ascendant deserves some R&R. While Tyr is stuck watching the ship, most of the crew transfer to Paradise Drift, a place where the squad can unwind and have some harmless fun playing in a vast variety of virtual games. Adding to the pleasure is that everything is gratis as the leaders of Paradise Drift want to be become members of the revised Systems Commonwealth.

However the bone weary crew quickly learn that there is no such thing as a free lunch as sh** happens. Harper is attacked by a woman who believes she owes him from a past transgression and a bounty hunter Steeleblade stalks Beka. However, Captain Hunt wants Director Vandat, but worries about political repercussions cause by his desires and to make things even worse, he loses a fortune in real money at the gambling tables while unbeknownst to him the ship is under attack. R&R is proving more harrowing than any operational mission.

The sixth entry, as with the previous Andromeda tales, is a fine science fiction tale that is clearly for fans of the series. The action-packed story line focuses on several members of the ensemble cast as each expects to unwind with a little fun, but instead ends up in some harrowing scenario. This will elate the Andromeda audience, but the multitude of subplots will drive new fans elsewhere. Still Sherwood Smith does a wonderful job with the familiar players as readers will appreciate R&R on Paradise Drift.

Harriet Klausner

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Adventure!, November 2, 2011

By 

Mara Lucia Giangiardi (São Paulo, Brazil) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda: Paradise Drift (Hardcover)

Andromeda's gone forever, but so glad we've got this book to read an be back again inside the ship along with its crew! It's really fun reading for Andromeda fans. Great adventure!