SPACE STATION ICE 3 [Paperback]

Bruce Coville (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1996

Discovering an anonymous dead body just before it is dissolved in the Waste Converter Tanks of Space Station ICE-3, Rusty McPhee is unable to make anybody believe his story, until he meets an eccentric scientist.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Simon Pulse (October 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671536419
• ISBN-13: 978-0671536411
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 3.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,109,711 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Suspense makes up for the lack of description., March 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Space Station Ice 3 (Hardcover)

It was June 27, 2018 when Rusty Mcphee found the body in the waste tank. This started an adventure that would take him all over the space colony he calls home. Whose body was it? Where was it from? Read the book to find out.

The power from this book came not from it's rather primitive description, but from it's undying suspense. I'm afraid saying, "One more chapter and I'm done reading for tonight," is not a thing you can say and then do. Instead of answering questions, Bruce Coville simply piles more on. Eventually, the story becomes more of a mystery than the science fiction it appears to be, while retaining an almost "spooky" sci-fi atmosphere. I don't care much for mysteries, but this book, which you could almost call one, really got my full attention. Perhaps this had something to do with the fact that it isn't every day you find a boy who discovers a body, works for a "mad scientist" on a space colony, and, to top it off, finds that the body he surely saw is alive and accounted for by the colony's massive computer. This means one of two things: He's wrong, or perhaps something malfunctioned in the computer. However, Rusty fears that someone in the colony is an intelligent murderer who can cover up his, or her, footsteps. All questions are revealed by the end of this read.

I would reccomend this book as a shorter story between long novels for avid readers or as a laid back book for those who don't read as often. I definitely enjoyed this book, despite the description it lacked. I would suggest this book to a late elementary or middle school student and possibly even an adult. This book ought to be a "must read" for suspense fans.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Space Station ICE 3, May 29, 2000

By 

cm (Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: SPACE STATION ICE 3 (Paperback)

Space Station I.C.E. 3

Imagine yourself in a space station in the middle of nowhere. You find a body in the waste disposal tank, but when you call the space police they find no remains of the body. To make matters worse the computer says that all 25,000 are alive and accounted for.

Rusty Mcphee is a working teenager who has a new job: To try to find out who put the body in the waste disposal tank. While he is the killer is now trying to kill him! Will Rusty make it out alive?

The rest of Bruce Coville's book is about Rusty's daring escapes from the deadly traps.

Space Station I.C.E. 3 is my favorite book by far because of its action, horror, suspense, space adventure and a tad of that `mushy' stuff. I recommend this book to whoever is into space. I also recommend adults to give this book to their kids (at least it will keep them quiet).

I've read this book 3 times and it gets better each time. The only part I find confusing about it is when Rusty is in a room with the killer and his assistant- I just can't seem to remember who is talking to who.

So start reading and have a whole lot of spaceman fun.

3.0 out of 5 stars Good outing for Coville -- nothing truly remarkable, June 16, 2001

By 

Mike London "MAC" (Oxford, UK) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: SPACE STATION ICE 3 (Paperback)

This YA novel by Coville reads more like a mystery-thriller dressed up in a Science Fiction setting, much like Star Wars, which essentially deals in the fantasy world and fantastical elements but set in the realm of Science Fiction.

There are several types of Science Fiction, but there are two dominant schools in terms of form and focus. One is the H. G. Wells version, which bases more emphasis on the story and less so on science, whereas the Jules Vern school of writing Science Fiction dictates heavy emphasis on "plausible" science. Where does this one fall into? The former. Throw in the Hardy Boys and an bit of intrigue aimed at the YA market and you've got this novel

Rusty McPhee discovers a murdered person inside a waste converter, introducing the conflict right off the bat.. Beings as how no one else saw it, and he's only a young person, he wants to say it simply didn't happen and that his eyes were playing tricks on him. There is no evidence because the body has been converted in terms of waste disposal. So the conflict sets itself up well. In the end, he must uncover this mystery by obtaining help from the eccentric authority of the space colony and some others. It's a well crafted mystery set in science fictional setting for the YA reader, and Coville is a wise enough rider to give Rusty certain characteristics and mannerisms (such as having a consistent habit of being late) to help maintain an aura of a person the average YA reader can relate too and want to root for him.

Conclusion: Enjoyable bit of fiction from a good writer. Personally I'd like to see him do some stuff in the adult markets.

Mike London

P. S. For some reason, I could have swore I had posted this a long time ago.