The Man Who Conquered Mars

Ride with Anastasia Konstantinova across hundreds of miles of desert, go spelunking in ancient caves, endure a solar storm, meet a Martian dust devil, and experience life as a Mars Colonist. Ana, along with her friends Andy and Bob, become embroiled in political intrigue, fight in a revolution, explore the natural world of Mars, face the dangers of colonizing a planet using the technology of 2052, and rescue the crew of a crashed spacecraft. Together, Ana and her friends must also solve the mystery of who built a recently discovered alien structure and who left a human artifact there a hundred years before. As the object of the affections of her two young friends, Ana must also resolve the problem posed by a romantic triangle. The reader may be surprised by her solution and will enjoy the action, adventure, and lively dialog in this upbeat, swiftly paced story. Studying to become an aerologist, or Mars geologist, Ana is the oldest person born and raised in Mars Colony and is a leader among her peers. How she will answer this unwanted call to leadership is one of her many challenges. While playing detective, Ana balances the romantic attentions of Andy, her young Mars-born friend, and Bob, a handsome young Colonist from Kansas. Wise beyond his years with a keen sense of humor, Andy is a courageous fighter in the Colony's struggle for independence, as well as a loyal friend. Equally brave and a brilliant scientist, Bob proves himself to be a steadfast friend to both Ana and Andy. No doom or gloom here: This story takes an optimistic view of the next 45 years, during which Mars and the Moon are colonized while Earth prospers. Mars Corporation is a multinational, interplanetary company created for the purpose of colonizing and developing Mars. The major space-faring nations as well as private investors have combined their efforts to establish the Colony and finance it, and the economics of interplanetary exploration and development are an important part of the story. Intertwined with the story is a friendly introduction to areology, areography, Mars planetary science, the mechanics of interplanetary travel, and the many technical problems encountered while establishing a colony on Mars. During the natural course of the story, environmental issues such as the search for water; resource utilization; the use of nuclear power, solar power, and hydrogen power; and the rugged climate on Mars are explored by these capable, likeable, and well-informed characters.