Captain Steffi Savannah is tired of living the life. The life of a smuggler, that is. She feels much like her ship, the Albatross, looks. Worn out. Her latest smuggling job, freeing three diplomatic prisoners from Royal custody on the planet October, goes awry and her lover dies in her arms. And she’s not sure what to do when she and her crew run across a strange black, cylindrical object floating dead in the boondocks of deep space. The thing is enormous, as big as an entire town. And her instruments show there are some faint signs of life onboard. However, the Royal Guard has to be hot on their Psammeticum trail. Stopping to investigate the curious object, maybe throwing a couple tow cables on it could mean pocketing a hefty salvage payment, but did they dare risk stopping when it could mean their capture by Royal forces?
The lure of the mysterious object and her curiosity about it are too powerful to ignore. What she didn’t count on was finding a man onboard who charmed and beguiled her at first sight. Arne’s more than just a man, however, but exactly what he is, he’s not willing to say. And there are some unbelievable creatures onboard that were heretofore known only through legends and fairy tales. Where they came from shocks and amazes her. When the treachery of one of her own leads the Royals right to them, will Steffi be able to save the creatures and the man she loves from certain exploitation or worse? Whatever she decides will lead them on a wild ride in which someone will give his or her life so the others may live. Could it be Arne’s life or her very own life that she forfeits?
The Mythmakers by sci-fi author Robert Appleton is a truly fascinating space opera with lots of laser fire, clashing spaceships, mythical creatures, death and deceit, secrecy and some easy-to-hate villains in royal uniforms. The story started out at full speed and never let up until the very end. However, while Mr. Appleton did a superb job of telling a really original and innovative sci-fi fantasy, he entirely missed the mark on his first attempt at writing romance. The story is lacking in sexual tension and emotional angst, and there isn’t much in the way of sex scenes, either.
Mr. Appleton successfully portrays Steffi as the kick-ass captain of the Albatross, thoroughly fleshing her out both emotionally and physically. Steffi’s as feminine as any heroine you’ll ever find, but she’s no girly girl. Larger-than-life, she’s a heroine who’s as tough and gutsy as any of her male counterparts. She can take it and dish it out and in between walk-the-walk. However, Arne, her love interest, does not come across as the story’s hero, no matter how hard you try to thrust him into that role. He’s sweet and appealing, even sexy, but the hero hands down is Rex Van Rynn, a big, tough, black man who handles the Albatross’s cargo and is married to Alexandra, another member of Steffi’s crew. The scrappy pilot of the Albatross, known only as McKendrick, is certainly heroine material as well. In fact, not to give away any spoilers, I hope Mr. Appleton’s next foray into sci-fi romance will be a sequel to The Mythmakers, telling McKendrick’s story. I know she has to have one. And like Steffi, I found myself wanting to know more about her.
Whatever comes next, I’m looking forward to reading more from this author, if only to see how he handles his next incursion into romantic space opera. If he can get a handle on the romantic element, his next work should be well worth the wait.
