Science Fiction shout-out: The Quest for Orichalcum

I'm excited to share that Jemima Pett is releasing a new book in the Viridian System series August 12! As a beta reader and critique partner, I can promise it's a good one.

 

 

 

The Viridian System series #viridianseries

It started with a chase around the alpha quadrant, looking for pieces of orichalcum to make up The Perihelix. First the Federation kidnapped Pete and Lars, then the Imperium kidnapped Lars, and all that left the girls in their spaceship working out how to get home safely. Or not…

Two more books followed – Pete following his destiny to rescue his race on the planet Corsair, but diverted by a wormhole accident to the other side of the galaxy. Four travellers with no apparent way of returning to civilisation – definitely Curved Space to Corsair.

Then there was a galactic disaster – all the orichalcum communications failed. Nobody could contact anyone off planet, or steer their spaceships to a new destination. But how do the Federation manage to get their attack force to leave the outer planet’s ring system to launch a takeover of Lars and Pete’s new homeland? That’s part of the mystery of Zanzibar’s Rings.

 

Now, for all of us who wondered who Pete and Lars are and where they came from...

The Quest for Orichalcum tells how it all started – the revolution that transformed the galactic economy, let alone space travel. How did a postgraduate student–a refugee from an obscure planet–change galactic communications? Why did a talented software engineer take up asteroid mining? Which girls influenced their choices in life? And did Lars really kill a man in cold blood?

 

 A mini-review: 

As a critique partner with Jemima, I got to watch this book take form, and it's been a great trip. Now, I'm a huge fan of Pete and Lars, not to mention Maggie, Dolores, and Aramintha, so I was excited to get more about them, and especially about how those two unlikely asteroid miners became who they are--and how they met. This book answers nearly all the questions, and more I didn't know I had. The book doesn't have quite the narrative arc of the usual novel, being a bit more episodic, but there's a story there, in addition to ALL the stories there. It's a bit like hanging out at Zito's bar with the boys, listening to them tell the things they'd never share if they weren't maybe just a little bit lubricated. Every fan of the series will want to read this. It might be an odd place to start, but I think it could even work that way, if you've never read the rest of the Viridian System series.

 

 

E-book available August 12! But you, dear reader, are special, and can follow this link to get a copy in advance of the general release date! 

Buy The Book

~~Amazon~~ ~~Apple iTunes~~ ~~B&N~~ ~~Kobo~~ ~~Smashwords~~

 

 

Extract from the opening of The Quest for Orichalcum:

Peter Monk’s investigations of the detailed space ship workings were interrupted by a ping from the inboard messaging system. ‘Incoming for you on the bridge.’

That was from the captain, a genial but stern Scanian, as were most of the crew. Since his crew discovered Pete, stowed away in one of the smallest lockers on the Doris Jury, which fortunately he fit with enough air left to breath, Captain Grazki had been remarkably helpful. Pete worked at what he could, they taught him about the world outside his home planet, Corsair, and eventually he accessed the ship’s computer to pass the exams that he’d need to get into college. 

The only likely ‘incoming’ for him would be about his application.

Stomach churning, he sauntered to the bridge.

The door slid open, and the Scanians beyond chorused ‘hah’. 

“I win,” said the second engineer. 

“What was the time?” another asked.

“Forty-three seconds. You were one second early.”

Grumbles and mild swear words accompanied the handing over of small tokens to the winner.

“You ran a sweepstake? On me?” Pete’s astonishment was obvious.

“Yes, you were remarkably slow, I thought.” Captain Grazki grinned at him, and waved him to his comms screen. “Read, digest, and tell us all the news. Pray to Odin that it is good. If not we will have to plan some other way to get rid of you.”

The Quest for Orichalcum © J M Pett 2025

 

 And, finally--enter the drawing for a $25 gift card! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

©Rebecca M. Douglass, 2025   
As always, please ask permission to use any photos or text. Link-backs appreciated.

Don't miss a post--Follow us!