For April #10 = Been There, Done That
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“Well you certainly look better,” Schober said.
“Much more than just look better,” Liggett assured him. “I had sausage and eggs with biscuits for breakfast a couple hours ago and feel marvelous.”
Schober closed his eyes and cupped his hand over his clutched mouth trying not to think of the smell of greasy sausage, which was like trying not to think of yellow on command. That of course was all that filled his mind.
“I’m sorry,” Liggett said, the memory of how he’d felt the same two days ago as difficult to remember as a toothache. “Anyway it is remarkable after just two days of treatment. Ed Kearney who looked like he was at death’s door is sitting up and taking some soup and declaring he might want to live, conditionally. Dr. Manson joked that if my ears don’t fall off by the end of a week he’ll authorize it for everybody.”
“A week be damned,” Schober said. “I bet he’s taking it already. I’m going down to his sterile little clinic and if he doesn’t treat me on the spot I’ll have them dump him a two hour march in the desert with an hour and three quarters of air.”
Thanks Mackey. Great snippet, short though. Leaves me wanting more. OTOH, I’m up to book 5 in the latest reread. 😉
It’s just so hard to show much and avoid committing major spoilers.
Thanks for the snippet! Looking forward to release day—-around midsummer, did you say?
Waiting with bated breath for April#10. Just tore through vol 1-9 again for the 3rd time, and it was just as much fun as the first time around.
Have you read the Family Law series? Same ‘universe’.
Twice (so far), and looking forward to when FL and April series merge. Also looking forward to when April. Jeff, Heather and the gang encounter their first aliens as they test Jeff’s new superluminal drive.
The little fleet returned with two gravity plates. The Caterpillars use theirs under thrust so presumably it uses a different mechanism that doesn’t create drag. Shouldn’t that be important?
Even though their claims have not been processed shouldn’t there be a lot going on with the technology they brought back? Is it all sitting in storage somewhere? This seems like the kind of business they would just contract with the university or an engineering firm to develop. Not something that would take a lot of their time.
Ooh, interesting can’t wait
when? 🙂
At 103k – Not soon. Need a month top finish up and then to readers for corrections. I don’t have a cover yet but it is promised.
Ah, want to read. Want to read. Waiting is so hard
Thanks for the update, can’t wait
Am enjoying the April series.. Sensing you’re not a fan of the pc world.. New Zealand is currently embracing the worksafe mandate which I feel puts western industry at a disadvantage with Asian and notably, Chinese, industry!
Not just IN the workplace. Their environmental rules allow all sorts of pollution. There has to be a balance between profits and mining the peasants and world as expendable.
Any new update on release date
Past 118,000 words.
On home the children have to spend part of their time in one G. What do they do on the moon?
I’ve neglected to say.
If you have a slanted floor that was higher on the outside, that spins synced to he moons gravity, wouldn’t that generate simulated gravity in the right proportions. The floor would have to be reconfigurable, but it should be doable and if, so would let you have a higher G area.
But with enough of the special material Jeff’s step-mum makes you could generate the same force anywhere or even zero G area.
I suspect that we, humans as a race, would over time adapt to the lower G’s and mutate to handle it..Or maybe a little gene mod, like the stronger bones mod, it the key.
Yet, centrifuge. Getting in and off is not convenient but it works.
A second centrifuge that acts as a “Spin” elevator by spinning up to speed opening a door so passengers could enter a chamber then slow down in a gradual manner to non spun environment then allow passengers to disembark. As you say not convenient but then so would not growing up with strong joints or bones.
Really looking forward to April 10.
Hope your summer is going great!
A question about space stations. Did you use this tool for your set up?
https://www.artificial-gravity.com/sw/SpinCalc/
Hope you had a happy 4th, any update on book 10
I absolutely love your stories, own April series, FL series, pretty much all the Singleton novels, including _Neither Here Nor There_ . All excellent fun work, clean enough for kids to read, yet adult enough for mature folks like me to enjoy.
Thanks! Write more. 😉
Paul
Thanks. I’m still writing – Next April book is at 128,600 words. I’m glad I hit the target with you.
As soon as I send this one off to readers then I have a dozen corrections people have sent me for #6 – “And What Goes Around” so I’m going to fix those and take two days to do a quick read through to see what else I can find to fix. Then I’ll Start Family Law number 5 and write on it and another stand alone back and forth…
What is the stand alone going to about
Be about? A mostly on Earth – some magic is really misunderstood tech – and entirely rational. A lot of out in the desert in Ethiopia stuff, as well as slightly futuristic America. Like all good stories it’s about the people.
I am currently rereading them and am on #4 at the moment and I noticed what i believe is an error in book 3. You keep referring that the ‘HAPPY LEWIS’ is owned by Eddie Persico and not April Lewis. I believe the first time I noticed it was shortly after it took damage from Armstrong, but don’t quote me on that. I had to read it a couple times because I couldn’t remember anywhere that said she gave up ownership of the ship after inheriting it from Bob.
I remember I had her agree to do a lease-back arrangement with him for the new ships where they would operate the shps but they would be owned by his company. Just-in-Time services I think it was. I don’t remember if I ever detailed that he took ownership of the Happy Lewis in the deal too. She had a big talk with him about it before going down to Earth. I’m busy with #10 and don’t want to search through that conversation. It could be an error or it could be an undocumented off scene occurrence.
IIRC it must have been an undocumented occurrence/error as the conversation was all about Eddie’s ships and Bob’s lease terms and alternatives.
A sale of Happy Lewis would have to happen after Bob’s death and the will leaving her full ownership, so after her return from Earth.
I just searched Book 3 The Middle of Nowhere for every mention of Happy Lewis and I didn’t notice a single reference to Eddie owning the ship which fits with my recall of his non ownership.
Ok the facts
It is implied that Happy Lewis is Eddie’s ship.
First the Happy Lewis gets damaged, then Jeff says to Dave on repairs…
“Do it the fast way,” Jeff instructed him. “If Eddie minds the expense,” he stopped and reconsidered. “I’m liable for the whole thing. I busted his ship while leasing it. Even if he has insurance he shouldn’t have to pay,” he realized.
Jeff was obviously more distressed than anyone knew to make such a mistake as it was April’s ship (which he helped design and build) unless she later sold it (but she had plenty of money and assets) so no need to ever sell it.
April took thirty million Euro down to Earth and probably spent less than 2.5 million (the house was just eight-seven-hundred thousand dollars). So she possibly had at least 39,504,763 Euro (including her inheritance of Bob’s money) in addition she had her own previous unknown investment holdings and money after her return to Home.
April had no major expenses but she later bought 0.5G cubic for 3 million and she spent 1 million for a story and some guns. Part funding the lander much later was her only other major expense
. So for a long time April has been much more wealthy that I recalled with over 30-35 million euro/dollars in either cash or investments.
I always assumed it was still owned by April outright. It doesn’t make sense for her to sell that asset as she owned it outright and she, Jeff and Heather use it almost exclusively for projects and moon deliveries I’ll look in FL3 or 4 i think the museum attests it to April.
That’s why I suggested Jeff had a brain mistake.
After Bob’s death April inherited it 100% and before that she owned about half of it.
Dave knows it was not Eddie’s ship but Jeff probably didn’t allow him time to say so and Dave was possibly confused by Jeff’s reference to Eddie (unless thinking that Eddie was running Lewis Couriers for April)..
Hey, go read the public contracts on HomeNet and sort it out. It’s a story and I don’t take it too seriously if it isn’t perfect across 14 books.
One of Eddie’s ships was destroyed when Bob died, so who knows how they distributed that loss afterwards.
It would fit in April’s character to assume full responsibility and practically force Eddie to take the Happy as repayment. Eddie just takes it and would give it back as soon as April asked for it.
Don’t have access to HomeNet for some reason. Anyone now how to bypass the filters?