Reach for the Stars

Ever since Ethan Richards was a boy, he dreamed of flying to the stars, but he didn't understand what it would end up costing him until now.When he develops the warp bubble drive for faster than light space travel, he sees the means of fulfilling his dream.He just has one problem. He needs an element stable only on Iapetus, a moon of Saturn. So, he must first fly there to collect a supply of it beforehand.With a team of experts, he builds the drive and installs it in a space ship ready to travel to Iapetus.However, when Loki Mason, a businessman, hears of the drive and the mineral it needs, he recognises the potential wealth begging to be made for his business empire. He lusts for possession of the mineral's mining rights. And Loki always gets whatever he wants.With Ethan and Loki locked in a race to Iapetus, they speed towards it, both knowing they must get there first to satisfy their goal. But what will it cost? I'm a dreamer…always have been.I have dreamed of flying to the stars since I was a child, looking up at the Milky Way on a moonless and cloudless winter's night, wondering what's out there.I started writing in 2016 and now write full time. Ten published books later, I'm still writing strong with many more stories in my head for others to enjoy. My stories revolve around science fiction, primarily space based stories with as strong an element of hard science as I can place into the stories. This means they usually occur in the near future (next one to two hundred years). But I do delve into the fantastic sci fi for stories of intrigue and adventure other than hard science based ones.Before taking up writing, I undertook chemical engineering in the steel industry for 35 years.So I now write, drawing on my many experiences in exotic places throughout my working life. These were incredible at times! I also draw on many other experiences. Some are funny and interesting.Being an avid reader, I read almost anything. It is common for me to read three or four books at the same time on completely differing topics, both fiction and non-fiction. I mainly enjoy reading science fiction and fantasy books, my favorite authors being Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke and J.R.R. Tolkien. I also enjoy crime mysteries. Ancient and medieval history in Europe fascinate me and I use extrapolated facts from this history in my stories at times.Cosmology, general relativity and quantum physics intrigue me. New concepts and understanding continually develop in these fields. This is exciting to me and is the way of the future. Humanity is finally escaping the shackles of Earth and seriously reaching out into space.I rarely use aliens in my stories as the aliens I encounter in the stories I read are usually humans dressed up as aliens. So why not use humans. I do delve into genetic engineering. That is a realistic scientific development worth exploring in science fiction.You can get to know me better by viewing my website and subscribing to my emails, where I provide more information on my activities and explore interesting topics. Or follow me on Facebook.I live in Wollongong, Australia with my wife and family. Ethan Richards dreams of reaching for the stars. How will he fulfil his dream? Who will stand in his way and what will he do when he reaches the stars? Follow Ethan's journey from developing the first faster than light space drive to finding new planets for humanity to live on. What is out there? Did we originate on Earth? What will the future bring for Ethan and humanity?The Reach For The Stars book series traces the development of the first faster that light space drive, the first flight to another star and the first colonisation of another planet in a different star system.

Something happened… two million years ago.Ethan Richards heads off to Alpha Centauri on his first interstellar adventure with a hand-picked team of experts. Arriving at the star they find two planets potentially suitable for life, but when they start exploring the most promising one, they may have found a threat to the existence of humanity.A geological expedition discovers a closed off cave that contains a shocking surprise hidden inside it. When his own people start falling ill and dying, Ethan knows he has a catastrophe on his hands.Jade Powers is the woman Ethan loves, and when she falls ill, Ethan despairs, knowing she will also succumb to the potency of the exotic virus… unless they find a cure in time.What is this virus… where did it come from… and can they develop a cure in time to save Jade? I'm a dreamer…always have been.I have dreamed of flying to the stars since I was a child, looking up at the Milky Way on a moonless and cloudless winter's night, wondering what's out there.I started writing in 2016 and now write full time. Ten published books later, I'm still writing strong with many more stories in my head for others to enjoy. My stories revolve around science fiction, primarily space based stories with as strong an element of hard science as I can place into the stories. This means they usually occur in the near future (next one to two hundred years). But I do delve into the fantastic sci fi for stories of intrigue and adventure other than hard science based ones.Before taking up writing, I undertook chemical engineering in the steel industry for 35 years.So I now write, drawing on my many experiences in exotic places throughout my working life. These were incredible at times! I also draw on many other experiences. Some are funny and interesting.Being an avid reader, I read almost anything. It is common for me to read three or four books at the same time on completely differing topics, both fiction and non-fiction. I mainly enjoy reading science fiction and fantasy books, my favorite authors being Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke and J.R.R. Tolkien. I also enjoy crime mysteries. Ancient and medieval history in Europe fascinate me and I use extrapolated facts from this history in my stories at times.Cosmology, general relativity and quantum physics intrigue me. New concepts and understanding continually develop in these fields. This is exciting to me and is the way of the future. Humanity is finally escaping the shackles of Earth and seriously reaching out into space.I rarely use aliens in my stories as the aliens I encounter in the stories I read are usually humans dressed up as aliens. So why not use humans. I do delve into genetic engineering. That is a realistic scientific development worth exploring in science fiction.You can get to know me better by viewing my website and subscribing to my emails, where I provide more information on my activities and explore interesting topics. Or follow me on Facebook.I live in Wollongong, Australia with my wife and family. Ethan Richards dreams of reaching for the stars. How will he fulfil his dream? Who will stand in his way and what will he do when he reaches the stars? Follow Ethan's journey from developing the first faster than light space drive to finding new planets for humanity to live on. What is out there? Did we originate on Earth? What will the future bring for Ethan and humanity?The Reach For The Stars book series traces the development of the first faster that light space drive, the first flight to another star and the first colonisation of another planet in a different star system.