Signals: The Exploration Chronicles, Book 1

Set in near future Earth, a signal has been received from space whose origin can't be explained. The initial thought is that it comes from one of the planets or moons in this system, or that it's some previously unknown pulsar or other interstellar noise maker. All that is known about the source of the signal is that it is 50 light years away, and that it is heading in Earth's general direction. For a few weeks, the signal is lost; when it is regained, "it" is only 30 light years away, and still heading generally toward Earth. All known attempts to decipher the signal fail; the possibility is that the signal is internal, from ship to ship, and not meant as a message to another species. Meantime, an ambitious American state senator latches on to the issue as a way to propel himself to Washington. Using some very questionable science, and some huge jumping to conclusions, he does a fine job of changing the public's focus from Unexplained Signal From Space to ALIEN INVASION! Panic and rioting spreads all over the world. (If this really is an invasion, how is stealing anything not already nailed down going to help?) The initial government and military response is to look like they are doing something (it's probably nothing, or this will quickly blow over). By this time, "it" is less than ten light years away, and still heading toward Earth. An obsolete space station, already in orbit, is retrofitted with appropriate engines and sent to the edge of the solar system. All they can do is to make themselves as noticeable as possible, and hope the aliens stop and have a look. They do stop, but First Contact ends up being rather anticlimactic. This one is really good. The first of a four-part series, it focuses more on the people involved than on the science or the Contact part. It's a strong, well-done piece of writing.

This is the first book of The Exploration Chronicles. It deals with a simple premise; a signal of most-likely intelligent origin has been detected from space. How will the world react? In Signals, Kevin D. Randle takes a look at the scientific, military, academic, political, and journalistic communities and how they react to the discovery of a signal that is probably intelligent in origin. Members of each of these communities is highlighted as they try to better their careers with the news or get roped in by it. Randle does an excellent job of predicting how some people would react. From the first hours that the signal is detected all the way to a massive grandstand the story moves through believable paces. At first this seems like a hard-science SF novel, but it really deals very little with the science and pays most of its attention to human nature and reaction. I hope that the other books in this series are as good because it certainly started out on the right foot.

This is one of my favorite books about first contact and I've read plenty of them. What I liked most was the real sense that the author gives you that this is really happening. The fact that there aren't names of some places or that the descriptions aren't Dickensian didn't bother me. I have all those classics by Conrad and Faulkner and Hardy and when I want description dripping off the page I can read them. When I want a fast paced novel that makes me think and that entertains I read this book. I've read it twice and enjoyed it even more the second time. And I don't even believe in UFOs. But this book is entertaining and very well written. The way the author breaks chapters down into sub-chapters is really great and keeps you reading. The many different characters are handled well. Overall, I like this book as much as many books by Edgar Rice Burroughs and Philip K. Dick and I probably will read it a third time. Every author has something to offer and Randle being a UFO expert has a real sense of the fascinating aspect of UFOs to offer in this book. Five stars!

Signals is the first novel in the Exploration Chronicles. SETI, the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, has been going on since the mid 1960s and has found many electromagnetic signals coming from space. However, these signals have always fallen into one of the following three categories: 1) produced by man-made devices, either on the ground or in space; 2) produced by natural objects; or 3) nonrepeated phenomena. Future SETI research is likely to extend the range of monitored frequencies, the angular degree of coverage, and the number of samples taken per day. Eventually, the whole sky could be monitored continuously on every frequency.In this novel, a signal is detected in a part of the sky far from any star. Moreover, the signal seems to be moving. A preliminary press release is issued. A local television station decides to investigate and the reporter, Rachel Davies, interviews the project director, Sarah Bakker. However, she only uses portions of the interview to add credence to an alien abduction story. The TV story is picked up by the Army and an engineer officer, Captain Thomas Hackett, is sent to check out the matter; Hackett also develops a personal interest in Sarah Bakker. The TV story soon comes to the attention of a state senator, Jason Parker, who is running for the US Senate; he convenes a press conference with various parties, including a puzzled Sarah Bakker, which leads to an announcement that the signal is coming from an alien ship headed towards Earth.With this pronouncement, the government goes into high gear. The President creates a special agency to handle the crisis, headed by George C. Greenstein, who is also nominated for Lieutenant General. Since Hackett works for the General, he brings in Sarah Bakker. Two other participants at the infamous press conference, Jonathan Travis, an UFO investigator, and Steven Weiss, a maverick PhD candidate, are included within the team, as is Rachel Davies. While the principal aim of the agency is to alleviate public fear by simulating constructive action, the agency does start preparing a vehicle for first contact with the alien and Naval Captain Ray Lewis is brought into the agency as the ship commander.This novel draws upon the author's experiences within the UFO community as well as his military career. The scenes are vivid and immediate, as if we are watching a movie. If this story has any one flaw, it is the contemporary look and feel of the settings and dialogue; one would anticipate that some changes in every day affairs should occur in a few decades! Will Coke still be produced in 2050? An assumption of the current ambiance with minor changes is almost inevitable in a movie, for the settings might otherwise get in the way of the story (with the exception of series like Star Trek or Star Wars). However, SF writers soon learn to introduce changes in unobtrusive ways. The author does this much better in his other SF works, which are set in the far

Post doctorate physicist Sarah Bakker detects the signals that act radically different than anything observed before. Though remaining skeptical, as SETI has had false alarms before, Sarah believes the signal is emanating in an area of space where no star is near enough to cause a natural phenomenon leading to the possibility that intelligent life has been detected.TV journalist Rachel Davies links Sarah's story to a UFO nut case that State Senator Jason Parker sees as an opportunity to add United in the front of his job résumé. He is in a partnership to further the needs of himself, Davies, graduate student Steven Weiss and UFOlogist Jonathan Travis at the cost of the truth. His actions lead to the Army establishing the Galaxy Expedition Team led by Captain Thomas Hackett. As Thomas and Sarah become acquainted and attracted to one another, they seek the truth, which is out there on the edge of the solar system.The opening novel of a quartet is an engaging tale that sets the stage for the remaining books. Manipulators for personal gain battle with those who face the reality that they are coming, but for what purpose and will they stay? Sarah is a delightful idealist who wants to do the right thing. Thomas is a charming career soldier who will follow orders, but do his best to insure the right thing occurs. Jason and his cohorts are a cynical foursome though in some ways Jonathan does not quite fit into the group. Fans of first encounter tales will relish Kevin Randle's book that leaves SIGNALS, the first book in The Exploration Chronicles a Sci Fi junkie's triumph and will have fan eagerly awaiting the next book in this series.Harriet Klausner