Rich Man's Sky
A hard-SF novel about billionaires dominating space development and the people trying to push back. The story centers on private expansion and power struggles across the Moon, Mars, and orbital habitats.
Work Information
Space has become a tycoon's playground.
A 2021 Baen hardcover novel distributed by Simon & Schuster; the English edition runs 320 pages.
Review Summaries
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It is presented as brisk hard SF with a solar-system-scale setting, fast pacing, and strong scientific texture.
Book Information
- Publisher
- Baen
- Published
- 2021-04-06
- Pages
- 320 pages
- Language
- 英語
- Size
- 15.56 x 3.3 x 23.5 cm
- ISBN-13
- 9781982125295
- ISBN-10
- 1982125292
- Price
- 4741 JPY
- Category
- 洋書/Science Fiction & Fantasy/Science Fiction/Adventure
A NEW NOVEL OF REAL SF FROM WIL McCARTHY When billionaires control the space program, where does that leave the rest of us? Space: a tycoon's playground. From a space station full of women to a monastery on the Moon, from a Martian reality-TV contest to a solar shade large enough to cool the Earth, the dreams of a handful of trillionaires dictate the future of humanity. Outside the reach of Earthly law and with the vast resources of the inner solar system at their disposal, the “Four Horsemen” do exactly as they please. The governments of Earth are not amused; an international team of elite military women, masquerading as space colonists, are set to infiltrate and neutralize the largest and most dangerous project in human history. But nothing is that simple when rich men control the sky, as everyone involved is about to discover. About Rich Man's Sky: "Action SF built on a hard foundation of cutting-edge science."—Walter Jon Williams "An action-crammed story that darts at hyper-speed from Burning Man, Nevada to Suriname to a convent on the Moon to an orbiting colony that’s clearly up to something. A jam-packed adventure fizzing with mind-blowing concepts, and a great read!"—Connie Willis "A hard science fiction tour de force, populated by memorable characters in a tale of intrigue, adventure, and irresistible market forces."—Linda Nagata About Antediluvian: “. . . gripping and . . . grounded in archaeology.”— Publishers Weekly “. . . plenty of verisimilitude . . . superbly intriguing and captivating . . . bravura historical recreations, full of conjectural material. . . . Presenting us with a colorful cast of characters from across the millennia who have thick and rich existences, and affirming that the cosmic stream of life flows forcefully despite all small blockades, McCarthy has written a novel that looks both forwards and backwards, thus making a stellar return to the field.”— Locus About Wil McCarthy: "McCarthy is an entertaining, intelligent, amusing writer, with Heinlein's knack for breakneck plotting and, at the same time, Clarke's thoughtfulness."— Booklist “Imagination really is the only limit.”— The New York Times “The future as McCarthy sees it is a wondrous place.”— Publishers Weekly “A bright light on the SF horizon.”—David Brin “Wil McCarthy demonstrates that he has a sharp intelligence, a galaxy-spanning imagination, and the solid scientific background to make it all work.”—Connie Willis “In nearly every passage, we get another slice of the science of McCarthy’s construction, and a deeper sense of danger and foreboding . . . McCarthy develops considerable tension.”— San Diego Union-Tribune “An ingenious yarn with challenging ideas, well-handled technical details, and plenty of twists and turns.”— Kirkus
Engineer/novelist/journalist/entrepreneur Wil McCarthy is a former contributing editor for WIRED magazine and science columnist for the SyFy channel. A lifetime member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, he has been nominated for the Nebula, Locus, Seiun, AnLab, Colorado Book, Theodore Sturgeon, and Philip K. Dick awards. His short fiction has graced the pages of Analog, Asimov’s, WIRED, and SF Age, and his novels include the New York Times Notable Bloom , Amazon.com “Best of Y2K” The Collapsium (a national bestseller), To Crush the Moon , and Antediluvian . He has also written for TV, appeared on The History Channel and The Science Channel, and published nonfiction in half a dozen magazines. Previously a flight controller for Lockheed Martin Space Launch Systems and later an engineering manager for Omnitech Robotics and founder/president/CTO of Raven Brick LLC, McCarthy holds patents of his own in seven countries, including twenty-nine issued U.S. patents in the field of nanostructured optical materials.
Reviews
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Wow. I am hard to impress...but
I probably toss 3 in 4 KU novels less than 50 pages in as not worth my time, but this was a compelling exception. A strongly imaginative but plausible story largely based on potential current trends, extrapolated into a possible future. Characters with real depth, complexity and detail. A plot that MOVES, with fast action spaced with introspection and depth. Good use of known science, relatively "hard" sci fi. I really can't say enough good about this novel. I'm getting the next one ASAP. Disclaimer: I don't know the author and have no connection to him. I just really like his work.
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light fun read
A good beach read, very enjoyable basically a sci fi space novel. As you would expect the book makes some good libertarian points (and does a good job of this). The author puts most of the technical material in an appendix. Or rather an explanation of what he mentions in the text. The technical material is fairly simple (but then I am an astronautical engineer) but I like the way the author uses a main character as a foil to explain additional technical items. Good technique. As I said this was a fun read and I recommend the book.
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Kept me guessing
Usually I'm pretty sure early on which way the hero is going to jump, and the real question is not "which faction do they side with" or "do they survive" but "how do they pull this off" and "what secondary characters die"? This one kept me guessing to the end. The Rich Men and the agents were all nicely distinguished and easy to tell apart, and the main protagonist gave a good feeling of "being in over her head" without "whining about it". Looking forward to the next one.
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Well written "hard" science fiction
Detailed technology combined with suspense set in our own back yard, so to speak. I got the 3-pack which gets even more involved and eagerly look forward to "Thiefs Sky" which I assume will soon follow
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Great new McCarthy!
Wil McCarthy has been one of my go-to authors for over a decade, and this new series opener is no exception.