First published 1975
The Balduin brothers flee the crowded human hive of Atlanta with what appears to be a noble assignment. They must travel to the distant planet Trope, make contact with the indigenous Ouemartsee tribe, and transport them to Glaparca for what they believe serves a beneficial purpose. The mission offers escape from Earth's suffocating urban existence and the chance to do meaningful work among the stars. But the brothers soon learn the horrifying truth. Their humanitarian expedition is nothing more than a slave trading operation. The Ouemartsee they were meant to help have instead elevated one of the brothers to godlike status, creating a dangerous power dynamic that threatens everything. What began as an idealistic venture into space becomes a moral nightmare that forces the brothers to confront their complicity in exploitation and the true cost of their escape from Earth.
Genres: science-fiction, adventure, space-opera
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, moral-dilemma
Setting: Atlanta, Trope, Glaparca
Period: 20th-century
294 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Ballantine
Content warnings: slavery