Brian Enke's 3 favorite reads in 2023

TMiaHM is perhaps the crowning masterpiece of a legendary science fiction author. People have told me to read it for decades, and now I understand why. It completely changes the socio-political outlook of our solar system, or at least Earth’s small neighborhood.

The book begins innocently as a techno-optimist, coming-of-age story exploring the limits of AI (or how AI was envisioned back when Heinlein wrote it in 1966). Interesting characters drive events forward until they snowball into a riveting military logistics thriller.

This story can teach us valuable lessons about the politics of human nature. As a writer, I’m also learning many advanced literary techniques from it. The science remains cutting-edge even today, and the relevance has never been greater, given recent NASA plans to build settlements on the Moon. Will future Lunies be convicts or conquerors? Or both?

This book fits squarely into my ‘realistic space settlement’ wheelhouse. Establishing a colony lightyears from Earth will be hard…really hard. Desperation is a good motivation for early settlers; you’ll find plenty in these pages. Besides natural disasters (floods, predators, disease), our fearless heroes must fight themselves.

Suspicion fuels a rift between the final generation of settlers born on the massive colony ship (the Gens) and the scientific experts who arrived in suspended animation (the Woken). Then, the Guardians arrive from Earth in a faster-than-light starship armed with advanced weapons and technology. They seem determined to save the colony at all costs from an evil naturalist cult seeking the extinction of humanity. But are they a worse threat?

Most characters click, and I love the motivations, deceptions, and outright betrayals in the various subplots. How can our settlers thrive if they can’t trust each other? Don’t expect any fairy tale endings. Living to fight another day is the best we can hope for.

I love books that don’t take themselves too seriously. The Vacuum of Space aims for a zany drama akin to Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, where serious events transpire within a comical context. Toning down the comedy a few notches while ramping up the drama leads to an unexpectedly entertaining murder mystery!

The author avoids stereotypes when developing the characters and slowly revealing their secrets. The main character, a lowly techno-janitor trying to fly under everyone’s radar, hides more secrets than anyone. That’s bad because a murderous psychopath roams the corridors of a realistic, rotating space station. Escape is not an option; you can only run so far. Will it be far enough?

About that space station…, I love it. It becomes another character. Up is in, and down is…perfect for bungee jumping. Yee-hah! They say in space, no one can hear you scream. But perhaps they can hear you snicker and snort.