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StarBridge #4
Serpent's Gift
THE FUTURE JUST GOT A WHOLE LOT HARDERSerge LaRoche was a gifted musician, until a freak accident took away his hands. Now he’s focusing on his career as an instructor at StarBridge Academy. His newest student, brilliant but undisciplined Heather Farley, is looking forward to StarBridge being her first chance at the security and stability that she has lacked her entire life. But now an archaeological find beneath the cold surface of the school’s asteroid base threatens their hopes for the future…and possibly the future for StarBridge itself.''PRAISE FOR THE STARBRIDGE SERIES“These novels challenge our understanding among intelligent races…Readers will care about these characters.” — Library Journal“...the series is batting a thousand!” — Dragon“This is the type of rousing adventure story which Heinlein made so popular a generation ago…Excellent!” — Andre NortonBOOKS IN THE STARBRIDGE SERIESBook 1: StarBridge - Earth discovers they are not the only sentient beings in the universe and their first contact turns deadly in an unfortunate turn of events.Book 2: Silent Dances - Deaf since birth, Tesa is the perfect ambassador to the alien Grus whose sonic cries can kill. Has earth made its own discovery of a new sentient species?Book 3: Shadow World - A young man learns how to cope with death from a golden-eyed race of beings with tragically short lives.Book 4: Serpent’s Gift - A young girl creates a mind-link with the StarBridge computer, and a series of deadly accidents threatens all life on the asteroid.Book 5: Silent Songs - Amphibious beings from a distant world land on the planet Trinity, threatening the native creatures and the StarBridge ambassadors.Book 6: Ancestor’s World - When a member of an archeological team on the planet Na-Dina is brutally murdered, Mahree Burroughs arrives to find the killer, no matter the cost.Book 7: Voices of Chaos - The feline beings known as Arrekhi have requested admission into the Cooperative League of Systems, but they are harboring a secret that could have deadly consequences.
295 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 1992
8 people are currently reading
119 people want to read
About the author
A.C. Crispin
70 books316 followersAnn Carol Crispin (1950-2013) was an American science fiction writer, the author of over twenty published novels. She wrote professionally since 1983. She wrote several Star Trek and Star Wars novels, and created her own original science fiction series called Starbridge.
Crispin also served as Eastern Regional Director, and then Vice President, of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. With Victoria Strauss, she founded Writer Beware, a "watchdog" group that is part of SFWA that warns aspiring writers about the dangers of scam agents, editors, and publishers. Writer Beware was founded in 1998, and has assisted law enforcement and civil authorities in tracking and shutting down writing scams.
Crispin, who also wrote a prequel providing the back story for the popular Pirates of the Caribbean movie series, died on September 6th, 2013 at the Hospice of Charles County in Waldorf, aged 63.
She was married to science fiction author Michael Capobianco.
Crispin also served as Eastern Regional Director, and then Vice President, of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. With Victoria Strauss, she founded Writer Beware, a "watchdog" group that is part of SFWA that warns aspiring writers about the dangers of scam agents, editors, and publishers. Writer Beware was founded in 1998, and has assisted law enforcement and civil authorities in tracking and shutting down writing scams.
Crispin, who also wrote a prequel providing the back story for the popular Pirates of the Caribbean movie series, died on September 6th, 2013 at the Hospice of Charles County in Waldorf, aged 63.
She was married to science fiction author Michael Capobianco.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
December 13, 2019
The first StarBridge novel to actually wholly take place at StarBridge, we follow a strange archeological mystery and perhaps a more contemporary plot involved. According to the author herself, it's her first attempt at a mystery, and I think it only mostly worked--I don't think the red herrings herringed as much as they could have.
The cast was larger here, too, following four separate people, instead of the usual one or two, so it sometimes made for a scattershot narrative, but it all sort of comes together at the end. I do wish that the motivations of the antagonists were a bit different, though: . I'm still mad about the fate of one character, though.
Its datedness is definitely showing through, but it probably won't bother most people who pick this up.
The cast was larger here, too, following four separate people, instead of the usual one or two, so it sometimes made for a scattershot narrative, but it all sort of comes together at the end. I do wish that the motivations of the antagonists were a bit different, though: . I'm still mad about the fate of one character, though.
Its datedness is definitely showing through, but it probably won't bother most people who pick this up.
May 27, 2020
This was a good addition to the StarBridge series. It started off a bit rough for me as I couldn't really connect to any of the characters or the plot but I persevered and I am glad I did. About a 1/3 of the way through it started to pick up and then kept my attention no problem after that. I don't want to spoil anything but I was taken aback by the bittersweet ending. I still enjoyed the book but the twist had taken me by surprise.
March 20, 2021
A very interesting change of pace for this book, with a protagonist that could be a threat to the Academy, and a murder mystery at its heart. It introduces two supporting characters whose fate is touching and heartrending, as well as the return of some old friends.
It's a shame that the e-book suffers from a marked lack of proofreading with missing words and some mangled sentences.
It's a shame that the e-book suffers from a marked lack of proofreading with missing words and some mangled sentences.
September 22, 2017
Again, I am ever thankful my sister got me to read this series---it only gets better and better.
April 24, 2018
I didn't warm up to characters as much in this one as I did in some previous books in this series, but it was still a strong story.
August 6, 2020
Very nice to see a story set at Starbridge academy. Interesting characters and situations.
January 22, 2013
I like the Starbridge series concept. I've read and enjoyed two books dealing with a deaf Starbridge inter-relator. An inter-relator is like a diplomat who becomes part of the culture and lives in their community.
This book takes a different perspective. It takes place at Starbridge academy, and it deals with an important archaelogical find in the vicinity of the academy. I am always interested in books that deal with archaeology.
One of the protagonists listed on the back cover is Serge LaRoche a musician who lost his hands in an accident. They had been replaced by prosthetic hands. Reading this, I was reminded of Olympic athlete Oscar Pistorius who runs on prosthetic legs. I read his memoir, Blade Runner, last year. I was anticipating an inspiring tale of a differently abled musician who triumphed after what seemed like a career ending event. This was not that story. I found Serge sympathetic, but he was not the character at the heart of this novel.
I felt that Rob Gable, Starbridge Academy's psychotherapist, was the character on which the plot centered, and that he was the most compelling. His dedication to Starbridge and to the psychological well-being of its students was impressive. Without him, the other protagonist listed in the back cover blurb, a traumatized eleven year old telepath, would have descended into madness.
This book takes a different perspective. It takes place at Starbridge academy, and it deals with an important archaelogical find in the vicinity of the academy. I am always interested in books that deal with archaeology.
One of the protagonists listed on the back cover is Serge LaRoche a musician who lost his hands in an accident. They had been replaced by prosthetic hands. Reading this, I was reminded of Olympic athlete Oscar Pistorius who runs on prosthetic legs. I read his memoir, Blade Runner, last year. I was anticipating an inspiring tale of a differently abled musician who triumphed after what seemed like a career ending event. This was not that story. I found Serge sympathetic, but he was not the character at the heart of this novel.
I felt that Rob Gable, Starbridge Academy's psychotherapist, was the character on which the plot centered, and that he was the most compelling. His dedication to Starbridge and to the psychological well-being of its students was impressive. Without him, the other protagonist listed in the back cover blurb, a traumatized eleven year old telepath, would have descended into madness.
October 25, 2012
A really good look at the school itself, I found. You get a peek at how some of it is set up, though not quite as much as you would expect. The plot itself was a good mystery, and it wasn't quite revealed until the very end, like a good mystery should be. Some of the characters were abrasive, and it could be off putting at times, but on the whole, it was another book that I enjoyed a lot. I would have liked a little more background on a couple of people, but that might be still to come in further works...
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews