Science Fiction Brigade Presents: Homecoming

It’s time for Science Fiction Romance Brigade again. (Click on the logo above for more information and the links to this week’s participants.) I’m still posting from Homecoming, my first book published. Cinda is replying to Marna’s question on what is the relationship between R’il’nians and Humans.

“Parent and child,” she responded, “or maybe parent and teenager would be more like it. All Humans have a little R’il’nian ancestry. A long time ago–over a hundred thousand years, Lai says–my ancestors were just starting to learn to talk. They could communicate, and they were pretty good group hunters, but they weren’t really good at abstract ideas. It’s gotten all mixed up in religion, and history and philosophy, but a R’il’nian got stranded on the Human home planet. My people thought he was a god, because he never got older. And he had children, and those children had children, until all of my people had a little bit of his line behind them. And he taught them, too. Eventually he taught them to build starships, and led some of them back to his people. Those he led were my ancestors. Those who didn’t follow him are still on Earth–or rather, their descendants are.”

Next month I’ll be participating in the A to Z Challenge. I think I’ve figured out how to use the letter of the day for all of my SFRB posts, but I will be jumping around quite a bit from book to book!

Science Fiction Romance Brigade Presents: Homecoming

Click on the logo above for information on the Science Fiction Romance Brigade Presents and a list of links to this week’s posts.

I’m continuing with a passage from Homecoming, my first published book. Marna, preparing to meet the last surviving male of her species, has just realized that Humans have the appearance of being “in heat” all the time.

What effect would living with such a species have had on Lai? Marna glanced down at her own narrow-hipped, breastless body, then looked cross-eyed at a strand of wet hair hanging in front of her eyes. Since that first visit to the city, she had simply lopped off strands of hair that got in her way. There was a mirror in the personal care room, but it had been a long time since she had used it for anything but checking for dirt smudges. If the only male of her species was coming to meet her that afternoon, perhaps she ought at least to even up her hair and find something to wear that was a little more flattering than her usual shorts and ragged tunic. She lay back in the scented water, trying not to think, until Cinda finished her gathering. Then she followed the young Human to the house, where she found herself telling the girl how to use her cooking equipment.

“What’s he like?” she finally asked Cinda, over lunch.

Homecoming is available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and iUniverse.

Science Fiction Romance Brigade Presents: Homecoming

Click the logo above for snippets from other science fiction romance authors.

Today’s snippet, and several to follow, are from my first published book, Homecoming. Marna, who for two hundred years has thought herself the last survivor of her species, has been contacted by a ship crewed by Humans and a survivor of her own species, Lai. Here Marna, preparing for her first meeting with the R’il’nian, is observing the Human who has nursed her through her illness.

Cinda’s pelvis and breasts were well developed–she must be close to ovulating. No, Marna caught herself, Lai had told her enough about Human biology that she should know better. The women of her own people, ovulating once a century at the most, changed visibly when ovulation was near. Sexual relationships were important as a part of bonding between the R’il’nai, and helped encourage the transition to fertility. But the physical changes needed to bear and care for a child occurred only rarely, and generally only after a substantial period of sexual activity. Humans, ovulating once a month, remained physically ready for childbirth and nursing for most of their short life spans.

Homecoming is available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or iUniverse. About the book:

Snowy is a slave, a dancer. His first priority is keeping himself and his friends alive, and this means hiding the odd abilities that could get him killed. How can he cope with being totally paralyzed and sent to school with a group of telepathic bullies?

Lai is the last survivor of the R’il’nai, the species that has kept the Jarnian Confederation going for a hundred thousand years. He is in mourning for his Human lover, Cloudy, but now it seems there might be more R’il’nai somewhere beyond the borders of the Confederation. Can he find them? Should he?

Marna was on an isolation satellite when a plague wiped out all the rest of the population of her planet. Now the life-support system of the satellite has failed, and Marna must try to return to a planet where no other intelligent creature is alive. Is the plague still there? Can she survive? Does she want to?

Homecoming, the first novel of the Jarnian Confederation, won second place in science fiction in the 2010 Reader Views contest.

Reviewers say:

“If you’re looking for a science fiction adventure that has some thought behind it, I highly recommend this story.” Marty Shaw, Reader Views.

“Well-written science fiction expands the imagination. It is a book genre that explores the outer limits of reality, based on the reasoning and endless possibilities of science….

“Homecoming is a truly compelling book. The author has done a superb job of creating characters that are well rounded and emotionally real. The plot is original and thoughtfully crafted, and the supporting science is fresh and exciting.” Catherine Thureson, ForeWord Clarion Reviews. 5 stars.

“Homecoming” is one of those novels that grabs the reader and pulls you in. It flows smoothly, sometime at a breakneck pace, but always making sense. Bowling’s characters are very well developed, with flaws, skills, doubts and dreams.” Libbie Martin, Fairbanks News-Miner

Weekend Writing Warriors: Homecoming

It’s Sunday again, and time for Weekend Writing Warriors (click on the logo above) and Snippet Sunday (click on the logo below.) Today I’m posting 8 sentences from my first published book, Homecoming available in all formats from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and iUniverse.

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This continues Roi’s controlled dream from last week.

Get away! Keep running! But Snowy was frozen in shock just long enough for the gasping giant to grab his arm and swing him against the wall, hard enough that Snowy felt bones splinter. The guard must have felt it, too, and known he was in trouble for damaging his owner’s property. His eyes flicked to the balcony railing, and he made a sudden dive for Snowy. Something in Snowy’s mind knew the guard’s intention and struck out is frantic self-preservation, and at the same instant Snowy was inside the guard’s mind, somersaulting over the balcony railing and falling, screaming, to the stone-paved floor below, while the slave he had intended to destroy before  it could communicate what he’d done huddled on the balcony above ….

If you’ve been wondering about that “I think I killed a man,” this is what Roi remembers.

Next week I’m going back to to the hang gliding in Tourist Trap.

Weekend Writing Warriors: Homecoming

It’s Sunday* again, and time for Weekend Writing Warriors (click on the logo above) and Snippet Sunday (click on the logo below.) Today I’m posting 8 sentences from my first published book, Homecoming available in a variety of formats from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and iUniverse.

This is a continuation from last week, with Roi as he is forced to relive a memory.

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Snowy had learned so early that he could not remember learning that crying, struggling, or any expression but happiness or eagerness to please would bring uncontrollable pain. He knew how to keep his owners happy, if anything he did could manage that.

Still, he hated being a catamite. He wanted to strike out, and kick, and struggle, but he knew better than to think he could get away with it. So he hated and ran, head down and arms pumping as he returned along the balcony to the slave quarters.

Corner ahead – better slow down; one of the guards might be – was! – coming the other way.  But neither his body nor the mind inhabiting it responded in the slightest to his concern. Horrified, he tried to rouse himself, knowing to the smallest detail what was to come, but helpless to do anything except to keep running until his lowered head slammed into the guard’s groin.

Not a good move for a slave.

*Oops, I scheduled this for Saturday instead of Sunday by accident, so you’re getting it a day early.

Weekend Writing Warriors: Homecoming

Photo Source

It’s Sunday again, and time for Weekend Writing Warriors (click on the logo above) and Snippet Sunday (click on the logo below.) Today I’m posting 8 sentences from my first published book, Homecoming, available in a variety of formats from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and iUniverse.

Last week was a break, with an excerpt from the sequel of Homecoming,  Tourist Trap. This week I’m going back to Homecoming, but to a point a little after the scene with Derik and Roi. Just remember that Roi was originally called Snowy.

“If you feel like hitting someone, run it off,” Snowy’s mother had told him. “Just make sure you’re running in the direction your owner wants. You’re not likely to get in trouble that way.”

Snowy had done a lot of running in the six months since he’d been sold away from his mother. Six months? Wait a minute, that had been years ago. Not that he’d liked his mother’s owner, or the overseers who gave most of the orders. But this new owner, and the brutes he expected to keep his slaves in line, left him half sick with fear.

Wondering about the italic portions? The controlled dreaming Roi is being subjected to has that effect — he cannot change the memory, but he is simultaneously remembering and reliving it.

Weekend Writing Warriors: Homecoming

It’s Sunday again, and time for Weekend Writing Warriors (click on the logo above) and Snippet Sunday (click on the logo below.) Today I’m posting 8 sentences from my first published book, Homecoming, available in all formats from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and iUniverse.

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This follows on from last week, when Derik explained to Roi what a poltergeist reaction was and why he was vulnerable to them. Most R’il’noids are blocked as babies; Roi was missed because no one realized he was part R’il’nian.

Roi perked up a little. “Does that mean you can stop me from doing it again?”

“Yes. My guess is you’ve done a pretty good job of blocking yourself, as a result of that earlier episode you mentioned. You just didn’t get the keying quite right. I’m going to have to go into that original block and help you change the keying, and for that I need to know exactly what happened – which means you’ll have to share what’s evidently a very unpleasant memory with me. And you’re strong enough I’d better do it with you under hiControl, which will temporarily knock out all of your esper abilities. If Nik’s right about how you’re moving, that’s unfortunately going to bring back the paralysis, at least temporarily.”

Poor Roi. And poor Derik, whose head still feels like it’s about to explode.

Weekend Writing Warriors: Homecoming

It’s Sunday again, and time for Weekend Writing Warriors (click on the logo above) and Snippet Sunday (click on the logo below.) Today I’m posting 8 sentences from my first published book, Homecoming, available in all formats from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and iUniverse.

Last week, Roi admitted that the attack on Derik and Nik was not the first time he had an uncontrolled reaction, and he thinks he killed an overseer the first time. Now Derik is trying to explain to Roi what happened and why. Kharfun syndrome, by the way is a minor flu-like disease in humans which is paralyzing and eventually lethal if untreated in R’il’nians and some R’il’moids, and has left Roi totally paralyzed.

NGC 2074 (Photo Source)

“Roi,” Derik said, “what happened was a poltergeist reaction. They’re normal in crossbreds, especially around your age. It’s caused by the strength of esper powers increasing at a faster rate than the judgment necessary to control them, especially around puberty. The results can be pretty undesirable – as you demonstrated today – so esper children are normally blocked against using their abilities except in strictly limited self-defense. Then when they’re mature enough to use those abilities responsibly they’re taught to take over control of those blocks. I blocked Coryn when he was a baby, and his esper training for the last couple of years has mostly been on gaining control over those blocks. You got missed on the blocking, for the same reason you weren’t inoculated against Kharfun syndrome – nobody knew you were R’il’noid. Understand so far?

It’s an explanation, at least, but can they stop Roi from doing it again?

Weekend Writing Warriors: Homecoming

It’s Sunday again, and time for Weekend Writing Warriors (click on the logo above) and Snippet Sunday (click on the logo below.) Today I’m posting 8 sentences from my first published book, Homecoming available in all formats from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and iUniverse.

This is a continuation from last week, when Derik joined the boys at the table where they are all eating (or rather cramming in food) to counter esper shock. A little creative punctuation has been used to adhere to the 8 sentence limit.

V838 Monocertis September 2006. (Photo Credit)

Roi’s head was down and he looked miserable.

“Do you understand what happened?” Derik finally asked.

“Something in my head lashed out at Nik and you. It wasn’t deliberate; I thought I’d fixed it so that wouldn’t happen again, but somehow it did anyway. I’m sorry, really I am, but I don’t understand why it happened.”

“Again?” Derik said sharply.

Roi seemed to pull in on himself even more.  “I think I killed a man once, an overseer,” he said tonelessly.

So it wasn’t intentional, but what can they – or Roi – do about it?

 

Weekend Writing Warriors: Homecoming

Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors (click on the logo above) and Snippet Sunday (click on the logo below.) I’m still blogging the same scene from Homecoming, available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and iUniverse. This is a direct follow-on from last week, when Derik realizes that the mental (and to some extent physical) explosion they had suffered was only a fraction of Roi’s potential.

V838 Monocerotis Dec 2002 Photo Credit

[Derik] had told Kaia that a self-trained esper was always cause for concern, but he’d never expected anything like this! None of them had, and as far as he knew none of Roi’s owners had even suspected Roi’s esper abilities. “I’d have thought he’d have reacted to Florian at some point,” he said shakily. “Nik, can you make it back to the table if I help you? Vara’s got some food there, and the boys are already converging on it.”

Coryn and Ander were both shoveling in food and taking turns feeding Roi by the time the two men made it to the table. Derik considered suggesting Roi and Ander change into dry clothes, but it didn’t seem very important in the heat of the summer noon. His own head was still pounding, and he envied the two older boys their resilience.

By the way Derik, Nik and Kaia have been named as Roi’s guardians in the absence of his father, Lai. Nik has also been trying to straighten out Florian, who was a little too much for his parents to handle. It’s a complicated relationship, and you’ll have to get the book to understand all the nuances. It’s pretty reasonably priced as an ebook.