The Ninth Circle, A Novel of the U.S.S. Merrimack by R.M. Meluch

Science Fiction/Space Opera

The Ninth Circle is science fiction written the way I love.  There is action, adventure, great characters and a wonderful plot.  Once I started reading I did not want to put it down.  

There is peace between the Terran and Palatine Empires but that peace is very fragile.  There are problems on the planet Zoe.  Glenn Hamilton is traveling with her husband Patrick, a xenolinguist, where they discover DNA based life and another alien race on the planet.   The expedition leader refuses to take any action so Glenn reports the aliens to Admiral John Farragut.   He sends the Merrimack under Captain Calli Carmel to see what is going on.   Zoe attracts more than the Merrimack.   There is a pirate group made up of exiled Romans, an alien Mother ship, and a Roman ship carrying the Emperor all arriving in Zoe space.

There is a lot going on in The Ninth Circle.  The U.S.S. Merrimack was featured in four previous books.  While The Ninth Circle has some of the same characters it is an entirely new story. It appears to be the start to a new series featuring the Merrimack.  When I went to Meluch’s web site I found that her husband had recently died.  Having been there and done that I know that it changes what was normal in your life.  It takes awhile to find a new normal.  I hope that when she finds that new normal she continues to write.

DAW published The Ninth Circle by R.M. Meluch in 2011.

Book Beginnings on Friday November 11, 2011

Book Beginnings on Friday is a meme hosted by Katy from A Few More Pages. Anyone can participate; just share the opening sentence of your current read, making sure that you include the title and author so others know what you're reading.

Here is my opening sentence this week:

"The blood on the wall was way too crimson."

This from The Ninth Circle, A Novel of the U.S.S. Merrimack by R. M. Meluch.  This is Science Fiction and the fifth book about the U.S.S. Merrimack.  I was surprised when I heard about the book.  It looked like the series was over with book four.  I haven't started it yet so I will see if the series continues to hold up.