A Law for the Stars

Del Whitby #4

by John Morressy, Kelly Freas

The Sternverein polices the universe. Criminals dread it; law-abiding citizens esteem it; all respect it. Ryne an orphan from the tiny planet Jadjeel, worships it. The organization rescued him from slavery and trained him to be a man among men, and elite Blackjacket. It gave his life purpose and direction, excitement and adventure. But it is totally corrupt, as Ryne learns in the shattering episode that brings to a climax John Morressy's sweeping odyssey, A Law For The Stars.

192 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1976

Reviews

[Lokrobster · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book, both singly as a classic 'coming-of-age' story, and as an interesting background and world-builder for the wider Sternverein/Del Whitby universe.

Ryne grows up in a post-colonial world that's regressed to a Middle Age level of technology and finds out the hard way that more advanced (and violent) beings exist in the galaxy when some renegade pirates hide out on their planet and carve out their own little fiefdom. He gets recruited to the Sternverein as a Blackjacket trooper and serves well.

Through the course of the book one can see the origins of the Sternverein, upholding Law and Order and getting rid of the scum of the galaxy - but over time, morphing into a tryannical and corrupt group worse than any pirates or slavers as the power the group accumulates corrupts its very core.

"Frostworld and Dreamfire" illustrates more of the Sternverein and its interactions with primitive-but-profitable natives. "Mansions of Space" is a great continuation of this story-line of the Sternverein as an organization, and how it all turns out in the end...

[Bruce Mason]

Good story. The Lasers I've read all have original and gripping stories.