Stardoc [Paperback]

S.L. Viehl (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2000

Dr. Cherijo Grey Veil leaves Earth and accepts a position as a physician at Kevarzanga-2's FreeClinic. Her surgical skills are desperately needed on a hostile frontier world with over 200 sentient species--and her understanding of alien physiology is nothing short of miraculous. But the truth behind her expertise is a secret which, if discovered, could have disastrous consequences between human and alien relations...

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Roc (January 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451457730
• ISBN-13: 978-0451457738
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (85 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #375,974 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Read this one, you won't be disappointed., January 25, 2000

By 

Chris Summers - See all my reviews

This review is from: Stardoc (Paperback)

As an avid reader of Sci-Fi, one of my biggest complaints is that a lot of Sci-Fi books recycle the same plot elements over and over. Not so with this book. This is probably one of the most interesting and entertaining books I have read in some time.

The story starts out as this; Dr. Cherijo Grey Vail leaves Earth to get away from her domineering father and accepts a position on a backwater planet. But not only does she have to adapt to working in a new and alien environment, she has a secret lurking in her past which may have some disastrous consequences.

This is a very entertaining book, with plenty of entertaining and well written characters (human and plenty of aliens too), in an environment which seems like something out of a M.A.S.H. unit. And the way the medical environment is treated by the author is amazing in detail (due, I'm sure, to the author's medical experience).

The plot twists and turns in this novel also add to the enjoyment, as it keeps you guessing. Now, there are some pretty obvious plot elements (such as the big nasty plague which is killing the colonists, however, the way this is resolved is unique), and the way humankind is portrayed is rather bleak (I like to think we would be a little more receptive of alien species). Also, the amount of influence that one person appears to have over an entire "League" of planets seems unusual (maybe the reason for this will become more apparent in the sequel). These are all minor quibbles however, and did not stop me from enjoying this book for a second.

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for something a little different, whether you are a regular reader of Sci-Fi or not. An excellent book!

33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Medical Drama, Science Fiction and Romance with Humor, February 13, 2000

By 

~Pamela~ "Hart of the Movies" (Colorado USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Stardoc (Paperback)

Physician Cherijo Grey Veil needs to get off her world and fast. She hops a space freighter and flies into more trouble -- medical, political and romantical -- than you can shake a stethoscope at. The StarDoc gets herself mixed up with an assortment of weird and wonderful aliens, a plethora of medical emergencies reminiscent of a pangalactic ER, and enough problems of the heart to cause ventricular fibrillation. This fast and entertaining read has plenty of laughs(Cherijo's humor is often wry and self-deprecating which makes her a charming hero), action (requisite battles in the Clinic, on a space ship and in the bedroom) and love interests (so many aliens,so little time!) to make a series -- which is good because this StarDoc isn't finished yet. Reactions from others who have read this book have all been positive. The manager of a large chain bookseller says she doesn't usually read Science Fiction (SF) but was drawn by the Catherine Coulter endorsement on the cover (there is also a nice quote from Anne McCaffrey for fantasy fans). The manager liked the book and recommends it to her romance readers. A librarian I know, an avid SF reader, enjoyed the book immensely and has been recommending it to SF fans. If you are looking for interesting, well-drawn and engaging characters,fast and furious medical action, and all the conventions of SF -- faster than light ships, genetic tampering, aliens of every size and hue, blazing weapons and battles of the sexes -- look no farther than STARDOC. S.L. Viehl is a writer worth following into the vast reaches of black space and the inner working of the beating heart. Now I just have to wait until summer for a sequel! Quick, Healer Grey Veil, pass the tranquilizer hypospray and put me in cryosleep until July!

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Take a pleasant mindless trip into a space/medical/thriller, November 4, 2003

By 

Schtinky "Schtinky" (California) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Stardoc (Paperback)

I am actually a bit embarrassed to give this a five star rating, but cannot deny the fact that I tore through it in an un-put-downable frenzy, quickly picking up the sequel to continue my quest with Dr. Cherijo Grey Veil.

More Sci-Fi than any other genre, this series nonetheless crosses genre borders and has something for everyone; medical thriller, murder mystery, space travel sci-fi, weird aliens, and a bit of romance and comedy for its lighter moments.

This author has brought to us bookworms a series of novels that are purely mindlessly enjoyable reads, perfect for any occasion; travel, curling up on a cold night, staying up all night, whatever you choose. A far shot from great fiction, it still deserves a five star rating for capturing my wandering mind and even diverting me from my own writing.

Dr. Cherijo Grey Veil is a feisty well trained surgeon who flees her homeworld of Terra after finding that her father has not only betrayed her but endangered her by her very existence. She takes a quick shuttle from Terra to K2 where she has accepted a position as a doctor in their free clinic, immediately immersed in treating all types of alien life forms she has never before encountered. She begins her service there under the animosity and hostility of both the clinic's administrator and one of her fellow practitioners. Things go from bad to worse.

She meets and falls in love with Kao Torin, an alien who Chooses her; and also a fellow Terran named Duncan Reever who was raised off world, who she cannot seem to get along with at all. Other friends and enemies are formed among the habitants of K2 during her residency, including a previously undiscovered cluster of sentient beings that call themselves The Core.

Shortly after her bonding with Kao, he becomes infected with an unidentified contagion and she is forced to save his life with dramatic measures, only to discover that they may not have been worth the price. In the meantime, with her newly discovered telepathic ability with Reever, she must find the cure for the contagion.

Her obsessive compulsion to perform her oath as a doctor to the fullest, combined with her previously undiscovered romantic ability, to the clash with her fellow Terran, to the climatic confrontation with those who would persecute her; plus a not inconsiderable amount of medical intrigue and murder mystery, leads to a rapid fire reading pleasure that will suck you into her frantic and outlandish world and leave you turning pages as quickly as you can.

Nothing but warm hearted good old fashioned reading pleasure here, an escape that readers so often seek out, with a cross-genre combination that actually works in that wondrously mysterious way we readers find so pleasing in a purely fictional escape from our cluttered lives. Enjoy!