Description
One man must stop starship hijackers from using an unusual starship to plunder a wealthy colony. Aboard the Redshift, light moves so slowly you can see its passage, and relativistic tricks are an integral part of shipboard life. Flip a light switch and see the room slowly fill with light. Run fast, and the view ahead shifts into blue, and you can create sonic booms. One component of the book is this slow-light thought experiment, a la Flatland by Edwin A. Abbott or Mr. Tomkins in Wonderland by George Gamow. (The appendix separates actual Theory of Relativity principles from speculation and fabrication.) Science Fiction Book Club selection, HOMer Award winner, Science Fiction Chronicle best of year list, LOCUS recommended Reading List, Nebula Award nominee.
Praise for Redshift Rendezvous
"The list of science fiction authors who play the game the hard way by sticking to the rules of science is all too short. Now to that group which includes Clarke, Niven, Asimov, Bear, and Clement should be added the name of John E. Stith."
-- Dan Simmons
"If you love writers who play techy games with reality...pick this one up."
-- Analog
"Mystery and adventure against a fascinating hard science background. This is without question Stith's best work to date."
-- Science Fiction Chronicle
"Redshift Rendezvous represents an ingenious exploration of an idea in a manner that only science fiction can allow."
-- Locus
"a unique, fascinating hard SF novel. Recommended."
-- Library Journal
"This is absolutely one of the most terrific ideas for an SF novel I've seen in years. My first thought was, `Why couldn't I have come up with this?' My second thought, too."
-- Connie Willis