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Ben Bova

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Mars Mass Market Paperback – June 1, 1993

by Ben Bova (Author)

228 ratings

Book 2 of 25: The Grand Tour

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Epic in scope, unparalleled in execution, Mars is an unforgettable portrait of space, politics, science, and humanity that captures for all time the mystery and wonder of an alien frontier

It is a world shrouded in mystery—a planet pocked by meteors, baked by ultraviolet light, and covered by endless deserts the color of dried blood.

To this harsh and unforgiving planet travel the twenty-give astronauts of the international Mars mission. Now, as the landers touch down and the base dome is inflated and the robotic explorers are sent aloft, they must somehow come together in a struggle of discovery and survival.

Battling deadly meteor showers, subzero temperatures, and a mysterious “Mars virus,” these intrepid explorers are on their way to the most incredible and shocking discovery of all.

Praise for Mars

“A sweeping Michener-style saga of the first expedition to our neighboring planet . . . the ultimate summer escape.”—People

“In Mars, Ben Bova re-creates for us much of that first excitement we felt in reading about the possibilities of space flight or, later, witnessing the earliest manned exploration.”—Los Angeles Times Book Review

“The definitive novel about our fascinating neighbor.”—Arthur C. Clarke

“An intelligent, entertaining story that may also serve as a rallying cry.”—Omni

“Mars is an exemplary summer read . . . [with] adventurous, brilliant, over-the-edge characters [and] a convincing imaginative core in Bova's carefully imagined, striking, and spooky portrait of the planet.”—Voice Literary Supplement

Print length

560 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Bantam
Publication date

June 1, 1993
Dimensions

4.2 x 1.2 x 6.9 inches
ISBN-10

9780553562415
ISBN-13

978-0553562415
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“A sweeping Michener-style saga of the first expedition to our neighboring planet . . . the ultimate summer escape.”—People

“In Mars, Ben Bova re-creates for us much of that first excitement we felt in reading about the possibilities of space flight or, later, witnessing the earliest manned exploration.”—Los Angeles Times Book Review

“The definitive novel about our fascinating neighbor.”—Arthur C. Clarke

“An intelligent, entertaining story that may also serve as a rallying cry.”—Omni

“Mars is an exemplary summer read . . . [with] adventurous, brilliant, over-the-edge characters [and] a convincing imaginative core in Bova's carefully imagined, striking, and spooky portrait of the planet.”—Voice Literary Supplement

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 055356241X
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bantam; Reprint edition (June 1, 1993)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Mass Market Paperback ‏ : ‎ 560 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780553562415
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0553562415
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.2 x 1.2 x 6.9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,460,860 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #5,337 in Hard Science Fiction (Books)
- #5,946 in Exploration Science Fiction
- #15,878 in Space Operas

Customer Reviews:
228 ratings

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About the author

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Ben Bova

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The author of more than 100 futuristic novels and nonfiction books,

Dr. Ben Bova has been involved in science and high technology since the very beginnings of the space age. President Emeritus of the National Space Society and a past president of Science Fiction Writers of America, Dr. Bova received the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Arthur C. Clarke Foundation in 2005, “for fueling mankind’s imagination regarding the wonders of outer

space.” His 2006 novel TITAN received the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for best novel of the year. Earlier, he was an award-winning editor of ANALOG and OMNI and an executive in the aerospace industry.

Dr. Bova is a frequent commentator on radio and television and popular lecturer.

His website is: http://www.benbova.com

Customer reviews

5 star		60%
4 star		26%
3 star		6%
2 star		4%
1 star		4%

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Top reviews from the United States

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CissaTop Contributor: Baking

WAY better than "White Mars"!

Reviewed in the United States on May 9, 2020

Verified Purchase

his is an excellently done space exploration novel. The characters were mostly very individual, and with their own agendas- both the primary and the secondary ones. The plot was well-paced, with a good blend of physical and interpersonal challenges- not to mention internal ones! These were all balanced very well, I thought.

And it sure kept me reading! This was definitely a page-turner.

Now- it was written in 1992, and a few things did date it. The tech for photography and other communications was very much of its time: videos used tape, and photos used physical film. The communications wasn't badly done, even from almost 30 years later; they had equivalents of Skype and/or FaceTime...but running out of film was a thing, and not one that we need to deal with currently. (Also, even though they used physical film, there was no mention of how or who developed and printed it...)

But that was pretty trivial compared to the casual racism. Our main protagonist was half Navajo, and this was a BIG HUGE DEAL- and people referred to him in very racist ways, casually. I found this odd, because there was not similar casual racism toward the black pilot, nor the Jewish scientist. (I was also a bit annoyed because, while Jamie was half Navajo, Bova seemed to confuse that sometimes with Hopi, and even threw in a reference or 2 to totem poles!)

Also, the illness thing was way more accelerated than is plausible- people got to death's door way faster than is accurate. I mean, (avoiding spoilers) it was a nice twist- but was not ameliorated by stuff the worst victims had ON HAND.

Still, it was mostly a fun read, with engaging and rounded characters, and some interesting premises.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Kindle Customer

Wow!

Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2018

Verified Purchase

I really enjoyed this book, thoroughly. It caught me from chapter one, all the way to the final page. I'm speechless, sitting here, thinking about what I've read.

The early tensions of the political fight to get to Mars, to the tantalizing friction of close quarters in a spaceship, to the excruciating period in the surface of Mars, I read on, and on, and on. I could not put this book down, it's that good.

It is well written, well thought out, and the plot doesn't lag in places like some books. I HAD to know what was going to happen next. Well done, Mr. Bova! Is there going to be a second Mars expedition? And who will be going back? Tony Reed, the doctor who doesn't have a medical conscience? Jamie, the Original American Indian? Joanna, the insecure daughter who had to grow up to break away? Edie? Oh, the possibilities!!!

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

Ryan Sean O'Reilly

Realistic portrayal of foray to Mars

Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2014

Verified Purchase

A very REALISTIC story about man's first trek to mars. The story is dutifully speculative fiction. Painstakingly thoughtful on all the circumstances that would surround such a voyage, from earth-bound politics to interpersonal relationships of the travelers themselves. Lets also not forget the science which Bova provides in generous amounts.

If you love mars and you love scientific fiction about space exploration then you will love this book. I feel the author made a hard choice in keeping away from fantasy and he sticks to it through and through. Its hard to explain without giving away spoilers.

Overall, I felt somewhat unsatisfied with the result. While the work is done masterfully for what it is I felt a tad bit cheated in the end. That said, I will state unequivocally that I was glued to this book throughout my reading. I found myself compelled to keep picking it up and the writing is done well so I was able to plow through it quite swiftly despite its length. So kudos to the author for keeping me quite interested from start to finish.

I did not like the politics of the book or the interpersonal relationships. Which I suppose you were not supposed to like as they serve as potential sources of conflict for the main character. They were done fine. However, I feel like the author kept threatening to derail the mission because of various political problems on the ground or petty jealousies among the chief characters. All of this would be quite good, and it served a purpose of putting this space exploration in a realistic world - yet I felt that the author shied away from really raising the stakes with these things. And because the politics and interpersonal relationships only seemed to threaten thing in a weak way I felt that the peaks and valleys of the story were less dramatic. I guess it felt a bit like the story was sacrificed for the mission. So I wonder if the book could have been shortened if we took out some of the these elements.

I would say this story is really a 3.5 star rating.

And yet, I feel duty bound to leave you with the notion that I could truly not put down the book. So if you are at all interested in Mars missions and realistic science fiction, I would definitely check it out

18 people found this helpful

Helpful

D. Stanley

Very good reading

Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2015

Verified Purchase

Good fiction and good science. Bova is a good writer who obviously keeps up with the latest discoveries and mission planning. The book could have been written today, and most of the science would still be correct, with a few exceptions due to discoveries by Curiosity and MRO (toxic perchlorates in the dust, for example). The sub-plot (politics and economics of off-world exploration) is an important but boring issue; Bova makes it interesting. The characters and their interactions are complex. I like it that the lead character is a geologist; Martian geology is amazing, just check the sand geyser photos on NASA / HiRise website.

Archeology on Mars? Possible but not likely, considering the length of time that's past since Mars had conditions that would have been favorable to surface-dwelling life forms. Any archeology remaining would probably have to have been carved from solid stone, not a convenient method of construction. Same with fossils; the older they are, the harder they are to find. Life on Mars? More likely, considering recent discoveries on Earth and Mars. There are bacteria on Earth that just love those toxic perchlorates.

After reading this book (on kindle), I bought volume two of the trilogy. It's good, too.

4 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Mr Bloke

Unimaginative and dull - warning *** spoilers ***

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 2, 2014

Verified Purchase

It takes a lot of skill to make a book about the first manned expedition to Mars so boring. Maybe it's the fact that the characters are 1 dimensional racial stereotypes. Or maybe it's the lack of anything remotely interesting in the plot (most interesting plot device: the crew get ill from a very trivial source and this is dragged out for hundreds of pages). Or maybe it's the total lack of technical foresight from Mr Bova: the expedition to Mars is still using film camera, floppy disks and fax machines despite the fact that this was written in 1992 when alternatives to all these technologies were becoming quite obvious.

There is also a back story going on. This is just as dull and bogged down in trivia as the main story.

Good sci-fi books usually have interesting plots, good science, good plot and good foresight - this drivel has nothing to recommend it. I would say that there is a decent novella somewhere in the 550 pages but I'm not convinced there is.

Avoid like a dose of scurvy.

3 people found this helpful

BookMan

Mars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 8, 2018

Verified Purchase

Phew, - an experience, as much as a book. I haven't had a read like this for years. Solid facts with marvellous fantasy drawn around them. Hugely enjoyable.

One person found this helpful

Mr. C. J. Wood

Credible Sci-fi

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 3, 2016

Verified Purchase

Well written and backed up with credibility. It is refreshing to read a book that is not full of violence and destruction. A really credible story of how we might reach the mystical Red Planet.

2 people found this helpful

Mr Cyborg

Great read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 9, 2013

Verified Purchase

Having read his Moon novel some time ago I thought I would try this and can say it's a very detailed and believable premise. You really can believe you're on Mars. So engrossed was I with this story that I then purchsed the follow up Return to Mars which is a worthy continuation of this book with the same leading character

Mr. F. Reid

Ahead of his time

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 11, 2013

Verified Purchase

In view of current Mars exploration, this story could well be written again in the future as a reality account. It is fiction, and the characters are just that, enjoy it for what it is and hope that one day we can do some of what he writes about.

One person found this helpful

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