Seafort Saga

The Seafort Saga is a series of science fiction novels written by American author David Feintuch. The novels are set from the late 22nd century to the mid-23rd century and relate the adventures of Nicholas Seafort, an officer in the (fictional) UNNS|United Nations Naval Service.[1] The series is a collection of personal accounts, usually from the perspective of Nicholas Seafort, describing Seafort's adventures, beginning as a lowly midshipman, to the elected leader of earth, and finally to the captain of the UNNS flagship Olympiad. Although most books in the series are told from a single perspective, usually Seafort's, Voices of Hope is a collection of accounts from several sources: Seafort's son, PT, the son of a friend of Seafort's, and a transient boy named Pook. Additionally, Children of Hope is narrated by Randy Carr, the son of a close friend of Seafort's.[2]

In May 2015, Clover Red LLC started a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign to help fund the development of a screenplay adapting Midshipman's Hope. The kickstarter ended June 12, 2015 falling short of the funding goal.[3]

Characters
Main article: Minor characters in the Seafort Saga

Books

Midshipman's Hope

Midshipman's Hope was published in 1994 as the first book in the saga;[4] it depicts the first voyage of UNNS officer Nicholas Seafort.

Plot

Nicholas Seafort is a seventeen-year-old midshipman who boards the UNS Hibernia on his first space assignment, a three-year interstellar voyage to the colonies of Hope Nation and Detour. He beats back a challenge to his authority as senior midshipman by Vax Holser, the next most senior. During the trip, he strikes up friendships with Third Lieutenant Harv Malstrom and an attractive passenger, Amanda Frowel.

A disastrous rescue of a passenger injured while sightseeing on the wreck of another ship results in the deaths of Captain Haag and his two senior lieutenants, elevating Malstrom to the captaincy and Seafort to second-in-command of Hibernia. When Maelstrom falls ill with a quick-acting cancer, Seafort, believing himself to be unqualified to command, begs him to promote Holser to lieutenant, but Maelstrom dies without doing so.

The other surviving officers (outside the chain of command) share Seafort's opinion of his leadership abilities and try to get him to relieve himself, but he cannot find any regulations that permit it. They back down when Seafort points out the penalty for mutiny.

Seafort is immediately faced with a difficult decision. Malstrom had condemned three crewmen to death for assaulting the sergeant-at-arms in an attempt to conceal their drug-making operation. Their punishment was extremely unpopular with the rest of the crew. However, despite the danger of a revolt, Seafort has two of the men hanged; the third's sentence is commuted to several months' confinement. His resolute handling of the situation quells the unruly crewmen. This action estranges him from Amanda, who feels the executions to be barbaric.

Other dangers follow. By thoroughness and sheer stubbornness, Seafort discovers that the ship's sentient computer, Darla, has been corrupted by careless naval programmers and would have sent the ship hopelessly off-course on the next leg of their journey. Darla was also responsible for the explosion that killed Captain Haag. To fix the problem, Seafort has a backup restored.

When the ship arrives at its next stop, Miningcamp, a small mining colony in an otherwise uninhabitable system, mutineers from the space station try to take over the ship. Seafort single-handedly holds them off until the crew can regroup and deal with the intruders. Eventually, Seafort ends the rebellion and finds out the cause. An ore barge and the starship Telstar are long overdue, which resulted in the panic that led to the trouble.

When the Hibernia reaches Hope Nation, Seafort expects to be relieved, but discovers that not only has the admiral in command of the naval garrison died in a strange viral epidemic, but a captain has deserted, leaving a Hope Nation commanding officer who is junior to Seafort. Seafort finds himself in charge of all naval forces in the system. During a tour of the planet, Seafort, Amanda (with whom he has reconciled) and one of his officers run into the officer who had deserted. He is hiding in the mountains with his wife because he believes he saw meteors spraying something in the sky shortly before the epidemic broke out. Believing the man to be mad, Seafort dismisses his story as fantasy, but does not force the couple to return to civilization.

Seafort recruits several officers from the local personnel, then continues on to the next stop, Detour. He finds that two of the new men are poor officers, dumped on him by their former commanders. However, he manages to deal with the situation.

Then Hibernia's sensors detect the Telstar, adrift in space with massive rents in her hull. Seafort leads a boarding party to investigate and, to his horror, encounters a strange alien life form resembling an amoeba in the ship's corridor. When it attacks, it becomes clear that it was responsible for the disabling of the Telstar and the death of its crew. Fortunately, Seafort is able to escape unharmed. After a stop at Hope Nation to warn the residents, Seafort takes Hibernia back to Earth to report the news.

Feature film

In 2015, Clover Red LLC obtained the rights for the film adaptation of Midshipman's Hope. In May 2015 Clover Red LLC started a crowdfunding campaign to fund the development of the screenplay, the crowdfund fell short of the funding goal on June 12, 2015.[3]

Challenger's Hope

Published in 1995.[4]

Plot

Nicholas Seafort, newly assigned commander of UNS. Challenger and part of Admiral Geoffrey Tremaine's task force, has his ship taken from him when the Admiral decides to make Challenger his flagship, under the command of Captain Hasselbrad. Seafort is given command of the Admiral's far smaller original flagship, UNS Portia. Tremaine's task force has the task of reaching Hope Nation, and eliminating any aliens (called Fish) found on the way.

Portia is given the task of transporting a group of Lower New York 'transpops'—uneducated and often violent street children—to the colony of Detour beyond Hope Nation. Seafort initially sees the transpops as simply a danger to his ship (drugging or imprisoning them were considered as solutions). The squadron is attacked by Fish that board Portia, releasing their lethal virus into the ship and killing dozens of her crew and passengers, including Seafort's baby son. Shortly afterwards. Amanda Seafort, driven insane by grief, commits suicide, and Nicholas suffers a temporary breakdown as a result.

After his recovery, Portia encounters Challenger, crippled by a Fish attack. Seafort is transferred to the ship and is left alone, save for passengers and crew that Tremaine hates, including the transpops, and abandoned in space. After overcoming a mutiny, Seafort sets about preparing Challenger for an eighty-year voyage back to Earth, conscripting passengers into the Naval Service and scavenging from the wrecked sections of the ship. Barely weeks into the trip, radiation from the ship's damaged propulsion systems attracts the aliens, leading to a series of desperate battles in which Challenger is further damaged, and more of her already tiny crew killed. Ultimately, Seafort uses his dying ship to ram an alien, only for it to Fuse (accelerate to faster-than-light speed), taking Challenger with it. For sixty days, Challenger remains lodged in the alien, her crew dying of malnutrition until, almost miraculously the Fish Defuses in Earth's solar system.

In the aftermath of the voyage, Seafort meets his father in a naval base on the moon, and is given command of his old ship, Hibernia, to return to Hope Nation.

Prisoner's Hope

Published in 1995.[4]

Plot

Captain Nicholas Seafort is made liaison to the plantation owners of the lush colony planet, Hope Nation while recuperating from injuries sustained earlier. However, the UN space fleet retreats Earthward after tangling with the space threat discovered by Seafort in his first voyage on the Hibernia. The colonists mount a rebellion. Seafort must avert the rebellion and lead the colonists against the space invaders. To do so, he must turn his back on his oath to the UN Navy and commit high treason.

Fisherman's Hope

Published in 1996.[4]

Voices of Hope

Published in 1997.[4]

Patriarch's Hope

Published in 1999,[4] the book is set approximate 10 years after the events of Voices of Hope

Children of Hope

The seventh book is set several years after the events of Patriarch's Hope and was the last in the series to be published before the death of author David Feintuch.[2][5][6]

Galahad's Hope (unpublished)

Galahad's Hope is the working title of the eighth and final book in the Seafort Saga of science fiction novels, and the sequel to Children of Hope. The manuscript was reported[7] to be completed before the death of author David Feintuch;[8] however, Orbit UK has no current plans to publish this book.[9] According to an Orbit online marketing executive, they haven't been approached by anyone connected to David Feintuch with a view to publishing the manuscript.

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References
  1. John J. Reilly (2015-11-28). "The Long View: The Seafort Saga". www.infinityplus.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  2. Simeon Shoul (2001-12-01). "David Feintuch: Children of Hope - an infinity plus review". www.infinityplus.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  3. "Midshipman's Hope - Script Adaptation of the Sci-Fi Classic". Kickstarter. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  4. "Fantastic Fiction-David Feintuch". Fantastic Fiction. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  5. "Review of Children of Hope by David Feintuch". www.booksforabuck.com. April 2001. Retrieved 2016-01-27.
  6. [Book Review: The Seafort Saga by David Feintuch Archived February 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
  7. X-Forum: Announcements [NEW BOOK Archived October 8, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  8. Mark Poynter (2011-10-11). "Ten Scifi/Fantasy Series Every Nerdbastard Should Read". Nerdbastard.com. Retrieved 2017-03-24.
  9. "David Feintuch Message Board". AllReaders.com. 2011-12-13. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  • Zaleski, Jeff, and Peter Cannon.. "CHILDREN OF HOPE (Book Review)." Publishers Weekly 248.11 (12 Mar. 2001): 67.
  • Green, Roland. "Adult Books: FICTION." Booklist 97.14 (15 Mar. 2001): 1360.
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