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The Bright Black Sea: The Lost Star Stories Volume One Paperback – October 27, 2017

by C. Litka (Author)

4.4 212 ratings

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Wil Litang, first mate of the tramp freighter Lost Star, reluctantly accepts the job as acting captain for a voyage, replacing the dying Captain Miccall. Unknown to him, the Lost Star has a mysterious and dangerous past. A past that has caught up with it. Haunted by this deadly past and driven by economic necessity, Litang and the crew of the Lost Star must venture far from their comfortable orbit – out into the lawless asteroid drifts of the Nine Star Nebula.

The Bright Black Sea is not your typical space opera. While it has space battles, it's not military SF. And while it's a tale full of mystery and danger, star empires are not falling and the fate of the galaxy is not hanging in the balance. Rather, The Bright Black Sea is a lighthearted, character-focused adventure novel. Set in a small nebula of nine stars, hundreds of planets and vast lawless asteroid belts, it takes classic space opera motifs – space pirates, sentient robots, and rockets – and incorporates them into a rich, episodic adventure.

For mystery, danger, and romance, join Captain Wil Litang and the crew of the Lost Star as they sail the black and bright space of the Nine Star Nebula in this first volume of the Lost Star Stories.The adventures and misadventures of Wil Litang continue in volume two of the Lost Star Stories – The Lost Star's Sea, which takes as its model the planetary romance, the type of story made famous by Edgar Rice Burroughs, and fondly reinvents the classic story of a stranger stranded in a strange land for the 21st century

C. Litka writes old fashioned stories with modern sensibilities, humor, and romance. He spins tales of adventure, mystery, and travel set in richly imagined worlds, with casts of colorful, fully realized characters. If you seek an escape from your everyday life, you will find no better company, nor more wonderful worlds to travel and explore, than in the stories of C. Litka.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 5th edition (October 27, 2017)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 723 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1978306644
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1978306646
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.61 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.81 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #9,523,290 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #45,139 in Space Operas
- #89,047 in Science Fiction Adventures

Customer Reviews:
4.4 212 ratings

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C Litka

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I write romances. Romances in the old meaning of the word; that meaning being an adventure novel set in exotic locales, remote from everyday life. The fact that I set my stories in the future and in imaginary locales mean that they can be classified as science fiction, but what I really write are first person narratives that feature likable, modern characters, in lighthearted, realistic adventures, told with humor and a bit of that other type of romance as well.

In my teen years I read hundreds of science fiction books and since then many other types of novels; detective and mysteries, humor, adventure, military, sea stories, as well as light literary fiction, many of which were written in the first half of the last century. Having lived a perfectly ordinary and, thankfully, an uneventful life. these are the stories that have shaped the style and themes of my own stories,

I live in a small Wisconsin city. I’ve been married for as long as I can remember, with two grown children and a couple of grandchildren. Besides writing, I paint impressionist landscapes and ride my bike each day, outside when it’s warm and inside during long the Wisconsin winters with the bike on a stand next to a window.

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4.4 out of 5

212 global ratings

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Dr Susan

Excellent sci fi adventure

Reviewed in the United States on July 22, 2021

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The world building is fantastic, the story is wonderful, and the characters are fascinating. But the body count is much higher in this series than in the Nine Nebula mysteries. I've had this book in my TBR pile for 5 years; I'm glad I've finally discovered the joy of reading Litka's books. I enjoyed the continuing story of Rafe of the many names. And I love Botts.

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David Wilkerson

The definition of space opera!

Reviewed in the United States on February 26, 2018

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Should I say again that I do not routinely read fiction, those readers of Amazon book reviews would have reason to call me untruthful! Nine days ago I obtained the Kindle edition of C. Litka's Bright Black Sea, thinking that it would take me months to finish it. I have just finished it, and I want to read more! Fear not, gentle reader, that a mere reviewer could spoil the plot . . . the author has planned too well for you to be disappointed. Wooden, two-dimensional characters? Not on (in) the Bright Black Sea! As one who decades ago pushed cargo through the night sky, I can SO WELL relate to the crewmembers' view of owners. Vessels of sky or sea are firmly bound to the need for profit, which is a recurring theme in this work. Space opera it is, with the need for an editor's guiding hand, but spelling errors or absent words merely remind the reader that the world in which they live may not be one which they truly wish to escape.

One person found this helpful

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sls4ak

Almost perfect, 4 3/4 STARS!

Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2017

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I received a "manuscript copy" of this book for free, and was expecting the typical self published editing errors, what I received was a nearly perfect, well polished sci-fi story of the first order. Letka is rapidly becoming one of my favorite authors. There were only the slightest copyediting errors (the when than was intended, missing small words etc all errors commonly encountered from big publishing house editions) and the early pacing was difficult, otherwise perfection. This author bus absolutely ready for prime time, and deserves to be wooed by an agent and publisher. One of my best reads.

One person found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

A pure joy to read

Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2017

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This is a massive book, really several volumes combined into a single fantastic saga. Something like this could easily collapse under it's own weight, or meander aimlessly, but that never happens in "The Bright Black Sea". I found myself constantly coming back to continue reading this story, first to see what inventive turn the story would take and then later just through the enjoyment of living in this world. I can't wait to read the sequel.

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wxwax

I am longing for a sequel. Very good story, strong ending, could use tightening.

Reviewed in the United States on October 25, 2015

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This is the story of a cautious young man who has the captaincy of a cargo spaceship thrust upon him, and what he discovers about himself as he and his crew face a series of dangerous challenges.

The strength of this long book is its characters and an inventive story. They're engrossing. I cared about these people, many of whom have unusual attributes. And the story, while a bit rambling, is not predictable and remains interesting until the end. Indeed, it ends on a peak. I very much hope that Mr. Litka writes a sequel.

There are two downsides. One is a slightly verbose style. In a fair number of scenes, the same information is repeated twice or even three times. The other downside is the curse of self-publishing on Amazon, and that's the proofreading. A lot of errors.

Still, Mr. Litka has three books on Amazon and as of this writing, they're all free. I think that's extremely generous of him. So I'm not inclined to quibble too much about small mistakes (although rouge instead of rogue is a bit of a pet peeve!)

Thank you, Mr. Litka, and may we have another please?

5 people found this helpful

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T.J.

Absolutely wonderful, a must read for the lovers of the genera

Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2017

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A very good book. A concise and believable universe populated by heroes and villains. Literally a swashbuckling adventure as well as a space opera, a truly great book.

Aside from some minor edition defects that do nothing to take away from the enjoyment of the story, it is a yarn that makes it very difficult to put down. Amply recommended.

Can't wait to read the next boom from this author.

Reviewed in the United States on October 9, 2017

OK

I like Space Opera stories and this one really "fits the ...

Reviewed in the United States on August 28, 2017

Verified Purchase

I like Space Opera stories and this one really "fits the bill". It has a little bit of everything to keep you wondering what is on the next page, pirates, assassins, dragon, wars, robots/AI. You name it, it's there. Volume 1 is written in the form of a journal which is a very good way to present this type of story, It definitely kept me engaged from start to finish.

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