Book Review: The Crying of Ross 128

Reviewed by Scott Cahan for Readers' Favorite
 
The Crying of Ross 128 by David Allan Hamilton is a good mix of scifi adventure and hard science technology. The story is about a hobbyist radio enthusiast named Jim Atteberry who receives an alien transmission. He tries to do the right thing and share his discovery with the scientific community, but his good intentions backfire. Soon, shadowy organizations come out of the woodwork to find out how he made his discovery, including one power crazy scientist who steals his claim to the signal. Mild-mannered Jim Atteberry and his ten-year-old daughter are soon running for their lives, all the while trying to figure out who or what is sending that strange alien signal into space. I enjoyed The Crying of Ross 128.

​Author David Allan Hamilton did an excellent job of bringing his characters to life with strengths, flaws, and idiosyncrasies. The science behind the story sounds authentic, along with the political reactions that result from the science. The story had a sincere sense of realism, from the opening scene where Atteberry hears the first signal to the last pages of the harrowing conclusion. The story is told mostly through the conversations of the main characters as they struggle to do the right thing while so many forces pull on them to do the wrong thing. But, the character interactions were well done and realistic. Overall, The Crying of Ross 128 is a great read for anyone who likes a science fiction tale told through the lens of real science.