Liza is pleased to have Stephanie Osborn,
"The Interstellar Woman of Mystery" over today.
In case you don't know Stephanie, she's an award-winning author of the Division One, Gentleman Aegis, and Displaced Detective Series.
Let's get right to her latest book,
Division One Series, book 4:
Tour de Force
Stephanie Osborn
Alpha One is participating in Omega’s very first First Contact diplomatic operation. Unfortunately, it’s going to split up the team—the Cortians, a race from the Sagittarius Dwarf Galaxy, have stringent requirements, and that narrows down the list of “candidate exchange students” to...Echo. ONLY Echo. PGLEIA’s top Division One Agent, the man being groomed to be the next Director...and Omega’s partner. A plum assignment, for the pick of the crop.
But Omega doesn’t see it that way, though she can't—or won't—explain why. She is determined to stop the mission from going forward. At any cost.
Why is Omega trying to scuttle a diplomatic mission? What is she seeing that more experienced Agents aren’t? Why won’t the others listen? Is something bigger, more menacing, happening to her—to them? Will—CAN—Alpha One survive?
Division One series book four, Tour de Force, was released in ebook formats on 10 October 2017, and in trade paperback format on 24 October. Additional installments in the ongoing series are anticipated next year.
Excerpt:
Echo returned to his quarters later that morning from the unexpected meeting with Fox to come face-to-face with a gift. A huge, poster-sized full-color print of the Orion Nebula was propped carefully in the recliner in his living area. Echo stood there studying it for a long moment. The gas filaments in the nebula were sharp and clearly defined, the colors vivid, the stars crisp and bright but not overexposed. The giant sheet of paper on which it was printed was high- quality photo stock. This was no off- the- shelf poster; this was the personal work of a professional astronomer. A skilled professional astronomer.
Thoughtfully he lifted the image and flipped it over to check the photographic paper. It was from the Agency photolab. He nodded to himself, the corners of his mouth curving slightly.
Wow. Just... wow. Somebody, he decided, must have realized I was not happy about being thrown out last night, I think. After all, it wasn’t like I tried to hide it. And I’ll just bet this is an apology. A pretty cool one, too.
He laid the photo back down with care and went to the back door. Upon seeing Omega’s quarters empty, he shrugged, and headed into his own kitchen to grab some lunch.
* * *
Later that day, Omega returned to her quarters from running errands, and knocked on the frame of the connecting ‘back door,’ calling to her partner.
“Hi, Echo, I’m back...” Omega paused as Echo glanced up from re-reading H. G. Wells’ The Invisible Man to look at her from his prone position on the couch.
Over the couch now hung the only adornment on Echo’s walls, the Orion Nebula photo she had made and printed, which had, in the interim, been beautifully matted and framed in jet black. The overall impression created by the framing was that the nebula itself extended onto the wall, while at the same time it highlighted the beauty of the delicate colors. More, Echo’s position on the couch seemed calculated to allow him to glance up at it whenever he was not actively reading.
She studied the framed picture silently for a long moment, startled but pleased, and he watched her reaction equally silently, with dusky brown eyes.
“...Did Fox call?” Omega finally finished.
“As a matter of fact, he did. It’s not anything you have to worry about. But it DOES look like I’ll be going off- planet for a couple days.”
“Just you? What for?” She moved farther into the room, an odd, disturbed sensation running through her being.
“Yeah, it’s a first contact, and they’re scheduled to arrive in a couple of weeks; sorry about that. I know you’re dying to do an exo mission. Especially since the Agency co-opted you just as you made astronaut. But the Cortians are new to us, the Pan- Galactic Council is eager to connect with ‘em ‘cause they’re from the Sagittarius Dwarf Galaxy, and the situation’s a little complex. Seems they follow a strict protocol in making diplomatic overtures. One of the rules they’ve laid down is one agent, and one only. They also had some interesting requirements regarding gender and physical ability.”
“What? Physical...” Omega’s eyes narrowed, and she frowned, as imagery of a particularly unpleasant nature popped into the back of her mind while Echo talked.
* * *
“What’s wrong?” Echo asked, noting her expression.
“I... don’t know,” Omega admitted. “I’ve just suddenly got enough bells ringing in my head for a five-alarm fire. I don’t like the sound of that, Echo.”
“It sounded pretty routine to Fox and me.”
He shrugged. “Nothing really unusual.”
“I don’t think you should go.”
“Why not?”
“Call it a hunch. Women’s intuition. Whatever. Just don’t go.”
Damn, he thought, biting his lip. I was afraid she was gonna take it hard. Especially coming so soon after the South American mission, when she’s still tired. Hell, when we’re both tired. He pondered how to let her down easy.
“Meg, look. I know you’d love to go, but... you can’t. I really am sorry. I’ll try to arrange with Fox to get us both an offworld assignment as Alpha One as soon as I can.”
* * *
She stared at him, shocked, then a little glint of anger kindled in the depths of her eyes.
“You think I’m trying...” Omega turned on her heel and stalked toward the door. Over her shoulder she said, “I thought you knew me better than that, Echo. You’ve sure preached about it enough in recent months. But damn, are you off this time, Ace.”
Sales Links
The ebooks are now available for order at:
Other formats, and trade paper, will be available from your favorite bookseller! (Print release is slated for 24 October.)
Previous books in the series include:
Future books in the series are planned for 2018.
About the author:
Award-winning author Stephanie Osborn, the Interstellar Woman of Mystery, is a veteran of more than 20 years in civilian/military space programs, with graduate and undergraduate degrees in four sciences: astronomy, physics, chemistry and mathematics, and she is "fluent" in several more, including geology and anatomy. She has authored, co-authored, or contributed to some 35 books, including the celebrated science-fiction mystery, Burnout: The mystery of Space Shuttle STS-281. She is the co-author of the Cresperian Saga book series, and has written the critically acclaimed Displaced Detective Series, described as "Sherlock Holmes meets The X-Files," and the award-winning, excitingSherlock Holmes: Gentleman Aegis series. Her newest venture: Division One, her take on the urban legend of the mysterious people who make things...disappear. In addition to her writing, the Interstellar Woman of Mystery now happily "pays it forward," teaching math and science through numerous media including radio, podcasting and public speaking, as well as working with SIGMA, the science-fiction think tank.
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