CARGO HOLD 4

Something monstrous invades a spaceship in Busch’s SF thriller.

Desna, captain of the spaceship Gretel, is quite alarmed by the noise coming from Cargo Hold 4 —especially considering there should be nothing organic in the bay, just samples from the most recent planet they’ve visited. In the fifth year of their multiple-decades-long mission, she and the seven members of her crew (Berlin, Chelsey, Hurd, Karl, Wurther, Skip, and Fawn) are unsure what sort of creature could live in a cargo hold that has no oxygen and manages to make such terrible noise, banging on the doors and knocking on walls. Chelsey, in an attempt to get a look at what might be inside, spacewalks to the outer window; what she sees lands her in a coma (“she was in a spin, moving farther and farther, her mind trying to process what she saw, unable to accept the phantasm as fact”). If this wasn’t enough for them to deal with, the ship is coming up to a supply drop, and all the crew members must focus on the delicate maneuver needed to link up and access the food and other resources left for them. Maybe, just maybe, this is their chance to expel the monster from the cargo hold, even if it means losing some of their samples. The plan goes awry, leaving Gretel damaged and the creature, whatever it is, loose in the ship. In this thrilling SF yarn, the author immediately drops readers into the action from the first disquieting noise. Each crew member is only known by one name, but that doesn’t prevent readers from getting to connect with, and learn the personality, of each. The plot keeps everyone guessing, wondering if what is seen or heard is real. The explosive ending is sure to blow readers away.

An engrossing SF thriller.