In Darkness Bound, an SF war epic

In Darkness Bound is the first of several novels (in various stages of completion) that are all set within the same universe and revolve around a conflict that arises between the Unity and the Federation. It's part of my "Chronicles of the Earth Empire" future history, of which the freely available Zero-Option and Choices are a part.

The novel has been available for some months through many online book retailers, and is now also available in ebook form from www.mobipocket.com. More details and purchasing links can be found at my website (www.freewebs.com/lindsaybrambles).

Below is a brief teaser synopsis of the novel. Sample chapters can be read on my site. The book is about 702 pages long (approx. 290,000 words) and follows the lives of several characters (including Lhara Jhordel of Zero-Option) during the course of a conflict that centers around the planet Obsidian.

John Carter was born and raised a spacer, his life determined before he was even born. Now a captain in Fleet, he finds himself questioning his commitment to a path in life he did not choose. But Fleet is all the life he has ever really known; and in a world where spacers are ‘crippled’ and essentially outcasts, he is a man with few choices. To leave Fleet would be to leave life itself. But Fleet is old and battered, a pale shadow of the force it once was in the Earth Empire, and its enemies are powerful and growing stronger by the day.

On Inkasar he watches as a mission he should never have had degenerates into chaos. He is lucky to escape alive, and the fleet he commands limps out of the system in need of repairs and R&R. But the political leaders of the Federation have other ideas, and Carter’s ships and crews, beaten and weary after the debacle on Inkasar, are ordered to Obsidian, a backwater world of religious fundamentalists that is located out on the Fringes.

In the Obsidian system the two most powerful corporates in the empire are set to wage war. At stake: an inhabitable planet and the transit point that lies close to it, a gateway to a possible treasure-trove of riches that will make the victor the most dominant force in human existence. But Danielle Grenier, the Secretary General of the Federation Assembly, is determined they will not have it, and she doesn’t care what she has to do to stop them—even if it means bending the very laws that are the foundation of the Federation she so strongly believes in.

Tensions rise as Fleet takes up position around Obsidian and on the surface of the planet. Fleet Marines, under the command of Colonel Suzanne Morrow, prepare to evacuate the population. In orbit, Carter’s ultimatum to the commanders of the corporate fleets lays the groundwork for all out war. As the situation deteriorates, the citizens of Obsidian scramble to secure allegiances.

Back on Isis station near Earth, Grenier wages a silent war with Admiral Christiana Novarro, abetted by her ally Admiral Silas Jackson, the head of Naval Intelligence, a man with ambitions of his own who is determined to replace Novarro and return Fleet to its former glory. Using the resources of his division, Jackson has conspired to send one of his operatives to Obsidian to ensure that Fleet is the victor--regardless of the cost.

As ships battle in orbit about Obsidian and conflict rages below, the odds seem stacked against Fleet. But Carter knows his enemies well, and events are about to take place that will change the face of the Earth Empire forever. The question is, will history remember Carter as a hero or as the man responsible for setting the Federation on the path to destruction?

One thing is certain: lives will be changed, and nothing will ever be the same again.

If you have any questions or comments, contact me.

Happy reading.

-Lindsay Brambles, Ottawa, 2008

Lindsay, great synopsis. Good to see you here.

Thanks, Zada. Now if only it would persuade people to part with their hard earned cash.

-Lindsay
www.freewebs.com/lindsaybrambles

I've recently uploaded to my website (www.freewebs.com/lindsaybrambles) a much more extensive sample of my novel. In short, you can now get 142,000 words of the book for free. Just go to the "Large Sample" section of my website and you can download the book in any of three formats: PDF, DOC, and TXT. That should cover most of the bases for interested readers. If, after having read this much of the novel, you should wish to read the remainder, then you can always purchase the cheaper ebook version of it available from mobipocket.com and other ebook retailers. Or if you're one of those lucky few to have a Kindle you can buy a copy from through that machine's catalog. As for those who prefer a hard copy, that, too, is still available -- but because it's a PA publication, it's very expensive.

Happy reading! Remember: the sample is free and you're under no obligation to buy, so check it out.

--Lindsay