StarScout Rising: First Trail by Gary Darby

I downloaded StarScout Rising: First Trail by Gary Darby onto my Kindle and had myself a good read.

The Golden Age of Science Fiction is 12. One of the reasons that I love SF is because, as a boy, I discovered Heinlein, Asimov, and Clarke in the back of the village library. I became addicted to anything with that Atom or Rocket Ship sticker on the spine of the book.
Today, my favorite SF books are still the Heinlein Juveniles like Farmer in the Sky or Have Spacesuit, Will Travel.
This is why I enjoyed Gary Darby's book StarScout Rising: First Trail.
First Trail is the story of a group of teenage space explorers as they travel through space, discover new worlds, and barely survive dangers at the edge of the known universe.
The protagonist is a Star Scout named Del Baldura. We follow Del through dangers, some from the dangerous worlds that he explores and some from dangerous political sub-plots. A rich texture of intrigue and suspense moves the novel forward. Del is character that we can truly like and care about.
The novel, if anything, can be too intense at times. There are many sub-plots and the fascinating Star Scout cast of characters alternate chapters with darker themes of corruption and crime. I found myself skimming some of the chapters, eager to get back to the more interesting main plot.
At 557 pages, the book is longish for a young adult novel. Some weaker readers will have trouble with it. The concepts may be too complex for less mature readers.
I have discovered that this is a three part series and I eagerly look forward to the next book by Gary Darby!

One Comment

  1. Gary Darby wrote:

    Keith, thanks for your positive review of my novel. I very much appreciate your insight and perspective. I too grew up reading Heinlein, Norton, Asimov, Clarke and Bradbury. Even today, ever so often I just have to pick up an early Heinlein or a Norton novel to enjoy and relish. Again, thanks and my best to your own literary efforts.

    Gary Darby

    Thursday, May 26, 2011 at 2:07 am | Permalink