Reckoning Infinity

This was a book I randomly picked up due to its cheap price and not having something to read at the moment. Rarely do I get such an amazing surprise as this. Having been an avid reader of Feist, Niven, Anthony, Pavolini, Ashimov, etc., I was amazed to find such an unknown author have such a work of art. You start out cringing (especially if you read the book preview on the back), and then feeling the pain and anguish of the main character. As the story progresses you can see the struggle for a beautiful woman who has partially become a cyborg, deal with her trials, then have to overcome the worst of them to work with the cause of her trauma. While she, he, and several others try to comprehend the mystery that is rapidly approaching earth, she learns to appreciate he special repairs, as well as forgive. While I agree with other reviewers that there are many hints as to what the planetoid is throughout the book, there are also many reasons given to doubt that speculation. In the end many of the answers are given, but many more questions are raised which could have been (and maybe still could be), brought up in subsequent books or prequils. I found this truly to be a diamond in the rough. My only wish is that there was more such as this from this author.

If you enjoy your SF within the realm of possibility rather than fantasy, you'll enjoy John E. Stith's books. In the same category as Clarke.

An excellent book with a very well-thought-out, well-executed plot. And, in the persons of Alis and Kurt, two very well-rendered, sympathetic (and empathetic characters. Stith has taken and old idea -- first contact with an alien species -- and twisted it into a novel of exploration, human conflict, and optimism about the human condition. The 'alien' he's created, a half-living, half-mechanical sphere, 100 km in diameter, that passes thru the Sol system, is imaginative and conveys that most enjoyable (and rare) element of science fiction -- a sense of wonder. This, combined with the story, makes the book a fun and thoughtful read. I have just one complaint, a spot at the end where Stith drops the ball at the epilog. After following four people through 200 pages, how on earth could he forget to tell the reader what happened to Lucy? And how on earth could Kurt Stanton, who worried so much about everyone else, and felt so bad about leaving a colleague's dead body in the alien artifact, not even ask about Lucy? This slip is out of character. Why didn't Stith's editor point it out? Maybe the paper edition will correct the oversight? Otherwise, great book!