Cygnus Rising: Humanity Returns to Space — Craig Martelle

From space they came, to space they returned, better than before. The people of the Cygnus system were determined to find other life, maybe even return to Earth as they explored the known galaxy. Humanity would not be denied. And they had the company of the intelligent species humans created centuries past, who evolved and became equals, partners in the journey to a better place. They were all the people of Cygnus VII. From the ashes of their past, Cygnus was rising. The motto of the Space Exploration Service was "the ship is life, save the ship." And the crew had done that, repeatedly, even though it cost lives. Everyone on board the Cygnus-12 volunteered for the Space Exploration Service because they believed that the risk was worth it. For all humanity, they went to space, to find what was out there, return with knowledge to improve their civilization. And if they could return with word that Earth was there, alive and well, then that would make every death that much more meaningful. Cygnus Rising is the first book in a Space Opera series based within the Free Trader universe. Here's what some of the first reviewers had to say: "It's an enjoyable space opera ... fast-moving and with an interesting group dynamic." "Old-fashioned space opera. Good guys, bad guys and only a bit of romance to add to the characters." "This is a great "start point" for people who do not read the original books. Taken from the start of your MC coming into Boot Camp and flowing through all the fun and team building games played there. This will help others to see the characters in their strengths and weaknesses as individuals. I enjoyed that the other characters had a chance to shine too." "Readability... very smooth with good transitions from scene to scene. Build-up was gradual and the philosophy of the parent planet's drive to explore seemed very natural. Failures were also points of learning for the society and the blending of the different cross-species into a cohesive group seemed a natural progression of development." "It has all of the elements a good story should have. The characters are well developed, plot line is smooth and progresses consistently and logically. The action is fast paced and the interpersonal relationships believable. Conflict, fear, and the rest of the human emotions are represented." "The worldview was terrific. Well detailed with enough exploration of a possible future for Vii. I kind of got lost on some of the ship stuff, but that's just me. I could understand it, but really isn't why I read space opera books. Lots of other neat techy stuff going on too." "I also have to tell you one of things I truly enjoyed about this story was it wasn't a typical HEA ending - lessons learned were very painful. Pollyanna was on the ship and died. I did feel that they took off with stars in their eyes and a not very realistic attitude about what kind of dire circumstances, other than ship disasters they could face. They came back much wiser than when they left. Bravo - well done"