About the Author

Mark L. Van Name, whom John Ringo has said is going to be the guy to beat in the race to the top of SFdom, has worked in the high-tech industry for over 30 years and today runs a technology assessment company in the Research Triangle area of North Carolina. A former Executive Vice President for Ziff Davis Media and a national technology columnist, he's published over a thousand computer-related articles and multiple science fiction stories in a variety of magazines and anthologies, including the Year's Best Science Fiction. Jon & Lobo stories have appeared in a Baen anthology and Jim Baen's Universe. He blogs at www.markvanname.com.

Reviews

The third installment of Van Name's space opera saga (after 2008's Slanted Jack) follows the same basic formula as the previous novels: two-dimensional characters are caught up in a straightforward, breakneck-paced and action-packed story line. Manipulated by a beautiful woman, nano-enhanced adventurer Jon Moore reluctantly participates in a scheme masterminded by the powerful Central Coalition, which wants to locate and abduct Jorge Wei, a scientist performing highly illegal nano research on children. Wei works on the planet Heaven inside of a massive tourist attraction called Wonder Island, a near-impenetrable fortress housing all kinds of bioengineered marvels. As Moore closes in on Wei, his sentient assault vehicle, Lobo, offers up some bombshell revelations that heighten the tension. While some major characters are little more than cardboard cutouts, the pedal-to-the-metal narrative and nonstop action will satisfy most adventure SF fans. (June) Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.