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Mars
Series · 3 books · 1992-2008

Books in series

Mars book cover
#1

Mars

1992

Epic in scope, unparalleled in execution, Mars is an unforgettable portrait of space, politics, science, and humanity that captures for all time the mystery and wonder of an alien frontier It is a world shrouded in mystery—a planet pocked by meteors, baked by ultraviolet light, and covered by endless deserts the color of dried blood. To this harsh and unforgiving planet travel the twenty-give astronauts of the international Mars mission. Now, as the landers touch down and the base dome is inflated and the robotic explorers are sent aloft, they must somehow come together in a struggle of discovery and survival. Battling deadly meteor showers, subzero temperatures, and a mysterious "Mars virus," these intrepid explorers are on their way to the most incredible and shocking discovery of all. Praise for Mars "A sweeping Michener-style saga of the first expedition to our neighboring planet . . . the ultimate summer escape."—People "In Mars, Ben Bova re-creates for us much of that first excitement we felt in reading about the possibilities of space flight or, later, witnessing the earliest manned exploration."—Los Angeles Times Book Review "The definitive novel about our fascinating neighbor."—Arthur C. Clarke "An intelligent, entertaining story that may also serve as a rallying cry."—Omni "Mars is an exemplary summer read . . . [with] adventurous, brilliant, over-the-edge characters [and] a convincing imaginative core in Bova's carefully imagined, striking, and spooky portrait of the planet."—Voice Literary Supplement
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#2

Return to Mars

1999

Jamie Waterman is returning to the Red Planet, this time in charge of an expedition in which he hopes to demonstrate that one can study Martian life not only for the sake of the pursuit but more, that it can be profitable. Waterman also hopes to revisit a part of the canyon where he thought he spied a primitive cliff dwelling during the first Martian mission. But this second voyage to Mars brings trouble right away as Waterman clashes with Dex Trumball, the son of a billionaire who is backing the expedition. Dex wants to turn the planet into a tourist attraction, while Waterman wants to preserve the planet solely for scientific research. To further complicate matters, both men are attracted to the expedition's beautiful psychologist, Vijay Shektar, who can't seem to decide which of the two men she prefers. On top of all of this confusion, it seems that another member of the team may be trying to sabotage the mission while the elder Trumball is pulling strings in order to force Waterman to step down as the expedition's leader.
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#3

Mars Life

2008

Jamie Waterman discovered the cliff dwelling on Mars, and the fact that an intelligent race lived on the red planet sixty-five million years ago, only to be driven into extinction by the crash of a giant meteor. Now the exploration of Mars is itself under threat of extinction, as the ultraconservative New Morality movement gains control of the U.S. government and cuts off all funding for the Mars program. Meanwhile, Carter Carleton, an anthropologist who was driven from his university post by unproven charges of rape, has started to dig up the remains of a Martian village. Science and politics clash on two worlds as Jamie desperately tries to save the Mars program and uncover who the vanished Martians were.

Author

Ben Bova
Ben Bova
Author · 115 books

Ben Bova was born on November 8, 1932 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1953, while attending Temple University, he married Rosa Cucinotta, they had a son and a daughter. He would later divorce Rosa in 1974. In that same year he married Barbara Berson Rose. Bova was an avid fencer and organized Avco Everett's fencing club. He was an environmentalist, but rejected Luddism. Bova was a technical writer for Project Vanguard and later for Avco Everett in the 1960s when they did research in lasers and fluid dynamics. It was there that he met Arthur R. Kantrowitz later of the Foresight Institute. In 1971 he became editor of Analog Science Fiction after John W. Campbell's death. After leaving Analog, he went on to edit Omni during 1978-1982. In 1974 he wrote the screenplay for an episode of the children's science fiction television series Land of the Lost entitled "The Search". Bova was the science advisor for the failed television series The Starlost, leaving in disgust after the airing of the first episode. His novel The Starcrossed was loosely based on his experiences and featured a thinly veiled characterization of his friend and colleague Harlan Ellison. He dedicated the novel to "Cordwainer Bird", the pen name Harlan Ellison uses when he does not want to be associated with a television or film project. Bova was the President Emeritus of the National Space Society and a past President of Science-fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA). Bova went back to school in the 1980s, earning an M.A. in communications in 1987 and a Ph.D. in 1996. Bova has drawn on these meetings and experiences to create fact and fiction writings rich with references to spaceflight, lasers, artificial hearts, nanotechnology, environmentalism, fencing and martial arts, photography and artists. Bova was the author of over a hundred and fifteen books, non-fiction as well as science fiction. In 2000, he was the Author Guest of Honor at the 58th World Science Fiction Convention (Chicon 2000). Hollywood has started to take an interest in Bova's works once again, in addition to his wealth of knowledge about science and what the future may look like. In 2007, he was hired as a consultant by both Stuber/Parent Productions to provide insight into what the world is to look like in the near future for their upcoming film "Repossession Mambo" (released as "Repo Men") starring Jude Law and Forest Whitaker and by Silver Pictures in which he provided consulting services on the feature adaptation of Richard Morgan's "Altered Carbon". http://us.macmillan.com/author/benbova

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