From the Archive, updated a bit, from a happy day for me as an author:
Yesterday (VS NOTE: This occured in 2015) Nalini Singh (who is one of my very favorite authors in the whole world) told me she’d enjoyed Wreck of the Nebula Dream! I was walking on air about that, so here’s a quick excerpt from the book (also known as “Titanic in space…”). The idea of my favorite author reading my book is just….well, FUN.
I was always so sad about all the Third Class children who perished on the Titanic so when I wrote my novel I made sure to have two young children who do get saved and all the adult characters make every effort to be sure it happens. Bythe way, if you’re curious to find out what happened to the kids as grownup survivors Star Cruise Return Voyage deals with Gianna’s decision to take another interstellar trip aboard a sister ship to the one that was destroyed. (See details below)
The first speaker is Paolo, an eight year old Nick has rescued, along with his little sister, from a destroyed cabin, where their mother was killed in the wreck. Their father is MIA. They’re traveling with the rest of their small party in a gravlift inside the damaged ship:
“Why do you call me trooper?”
“Well, because the rest of us are taller than you and we outrank you, but you’re definitely one of the team, which makes you a trooper.” Nick reached out and ruffled the boy’s hair. “First class.”
“I like it.” Paolo glanced shyly at Nick as they continued to descend. “Gianna doesn’t outrank me, does she? She’s just a baby.”
Nick laughed. “No, you rank her by age; relax and watch your feet – don’t want to land wrong and twist an ankle.”
WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM
Traveling unexpectedly aboard the luxury liner Nebula Dream on its maiden voyage across the galaxy, Sectors Special Forces Captain Nick Jameson is ready for ten relaxing days, and hoping to forget his last disastrous mission behind enemy lines. He figures he’ll gamble at the casino, take in the shows, maybe even have a shipboard fling with Mara Lyrae, the beautiful but reserved businesswoman he meets.
All his plans vaporize when the ship suffers a wreck of Titanic proportions. Captain and crew abandon ship, leaving the 8000 passengers stranded without enough lifeboats and drifting unarmed in enemy territory. Aided by Mara, Nick must find a way off the doomed ship for himself and several other innocent people before deadly enemy forces reach them or the ship’s malfunctioning engines finish ticking down to self destruction.
But can Nick conquer the demons from his past that tell him he’ll fail these innocent people just as he failed to save his Special Forces team? Will he outpace his own doubts to win this vital race against time?
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STAR CRUISE RETURN VOYAGE
This book is a re-release of STAR CRUISE RETURN VOYAGE, which was in the Pets in Space® 5 anthology. No new material has been added.
Gianna Nadenoft is a reclusive survivor of one of the worst interstellar cruise ship disasters in the history of the Sectors. Now a renowned artist, she hasn’t left her home planet in decades, not since returning there after the wreck as a traumatized three year old. With her service animal at her side, she’s going to make the effort to travel across the star systems to attend her brother’s wedding and reunite with her fellow survivors.
Trevor Hanson is a security officer aboard the cruise liner Nebula Zephyr with his own traumatic past as a former Special Forces soldier and prisoner of war. He’s assigned to provide personal protection to Gianna during her time aboard the ship but soon finds his interest turning from professional to romantic. The two share more in common than either of them realizes and their attraction grows as the voyage continues.
But powerful enemies including a conspiracy theory-obsessed fellow passenger and sinister individuals with hostile intentions are watching Gianna and making plans to seize this rare opportunity to gain access to her and the secrets they believe she’s still keeping about the wreck.
Can Trevor overcome his personal demons and rise to the occasion to save Gianna from the danger waiting on his ship? Or will she slip through his fingers and suffer a terrible fate deferred from the day her last voyage came to a disastrous end?
More Reviews:5 Star Review from Mark at The Masquerade Crew:
“What a rush!
After a little bit of set up, this story won’t let you go. It’s got action, adventure, and a dash of romance. It pays homage to it’s Titanic origins without being cheesy or overdone. The characters are not only believable but different from one another—like real people—which is sometimes hard to achieve. ”
Such a sweet moment in the midst of tragedy…
Nice touch Veronica. Such a lovely, easy piece of dialogue. So very much like little boys!
Sweet little snippet. I like it …. And, yes, what a huge thrill to have your favourite author read your book. Woohoo!
The rapport he shares with this young child is wonderful and very warm. Very enjoyable.
Cute snippet — had to laugh at him asking if his sister outranked him.
My youngest fan was 8 years old when this book came out and his Mom read it to him, suitably edited-by-Mom for age appropriateness. He’d just gotten fscinated by the story of the real Titanic. He thought I’d gotten the little boy just right. I was highly complimented! Thanks for all the kind words, glad no one seems to mind too much that I’m revisiting my first published SFR this week.
Yay! What a moment for you! And you know I like this book. 🙂
Oh, no snippet for me this week. 🙂
Awe, I love this scene! So cute, reminds me of my youngest son who gets really upset when he is too short to do the things his brother is able to do. (such as rides) Love the snippet!!
It’s a great scene, Veronica, and how cool is that you heard praise from your favorite author. Very nice!
Very cute scene. Nice work!
Congrats on having one of your favourite authors read your book. I think I’d be jumping up and down.
A delightful snippet his week. The detail of Nick ruffling the boy’s hair – just makes it perfect and real.
what a writer’s high. you should be on cloud nine for the rest of 2015 with such a well deserved compliment from Nalini Singh (I love her too) Great snippet which only touches on how good this book is 🙂
I would be crazed-ecstatic if one of my favorite authors read and liked my book. Go you!
I love your snippet- Nick has such a wonderful way with children.
Nick. YUM! What a way with kids and a certain woman. Wonderful book.
This was a great moment IMHO. There’s all kinds of bad stuff happening, and even though the adults naturally want to reassure the kids, I think the adults needed those lighter moments too. Way to go on the compliment from Nalini!
That’s so cool, V! It’s a great book:)
Nick sounds like a friendly uncle.
Awww, what a cute snippet!! I liked the definition of a “trooper”. Nice job! And WOW, you must still be on cloud 9 after winning kudos from a favorite author!! Congratulations. I’m grinning ear to ear for you right now. 🙂
Nick is such a great character! It’s so important for an emergency rescuer to have a calm demeanor and make the people in danger feel like friends.
He does sound just like a little boy. Cute.
Wow, that’s great about Nalini Singh! What a compliment!
It’s nice of him to give that little boy a bit of power amid the struggle.
I loved this scene. Actually, I loved the entire book.
Any man that takes the time to reassure a child gets kudos from me.
Thanks for all the comments, much appreciated. I’m really honored that so many here have read the book,and enjoyed it! I’m late getting to make my visits to everyone’s posts, but I’ll work through them this week, I promise!
Aw, touching moment and wow about Nalini Singh!
“Trooper” is definitely a compliment. A well-captured moment…
Loved the sweet interaction. Enjoyed the snippet. 🙂 How cool to have one of your favorite authors compliment your work. But of course, well deserved. 🙂
That’s so sweet. 🙂
Wow! I would walking on air if I had a response like that too from my favorite author. Congrats on that! (Though I have too many favorite authors to choose from. LOL)
Very cute snippet, I love it. Got a chuckle out of the boy wondering if his sister outranked him. Classic sibling rivalry in all good spirit. Nicely done, I can feel a connection between the three.