Bengal Station — Eric Brown

Jeff Vaughan, a world-weary telepath employed by the spaceport on Bengal Station, discovers a sinister cult that worships a mysterious alien god. The Church of the Adoration of the Chosen One uses drugs to commune with the ultimate - and murder to silence those who oppose their beliefs. Together with Indian cop Jimmy Chandra, Vaughan's investigations take him to the colony planet of Verkerk's World and the terrible secret of the extraterrestrial Vaith. . . . Meanwhile, in Thailand, street-girl Sukara dreams of being reunited with her long-lost sister on Bengal Station. She meets Osborne, a telepath posing as a businessman with his own secrets, who promises to take her away from her life of prostitution in Bangkok. They travel to Bengal Station, and there Sukara learns of her sister's fate, and unwittingly leads Osborne to his target - Jeff Vaughan. The story follows Vaughan as his mistrust of his fellow humans is overturned by his growing feelings for Thai street-girl Sukara, one of the few good people he's ever encountered in a life of reading cynical, jaded minds. Bengal Station is exotic noir - Blade Runner meets Chinatown - with characters the reader will care about, fast action, and thought-provoking ideas.

Eric Brown, born in 1960, is the author of sixteen books, including science fiction novels, collections and books for children. He is married to the writer and medievalist Finn Sinclair and they live in Haworth, West Yorkshire, England.