The Duke of Uranium (Jak Jinnaka) - Softcover

The acclaimed author of A Million Open Doors and Mother of Storms, John Barnes presents THE DUKE OF URANIUM, a fast-paced new adventure in the spirit of Harry Harrison and Robert A. Heinlein. In this spectacular tale of action and intrigue, a thirty-sixth century young man discovers that the solar system is far more complex, and deadly, than he'd ever imagined .... on the bad side of entropy.

For eighteen-year-old Jak Jinnaka, life in the Hive space colony is a simple routine of schoolwork and partying. But his world irrevocably turns topsy-turvy one night when strangers viciously attack Jak and kidnap his girlfriend, Sesh. Then Jak learns that Sesh is really a princess from a distant world and that his Uncle Sib is actually a spymaster who is running a covert cabal vying to control the solar system. Adding to his shock, Jak comes to the startling realization that he has been groomed since birth to become a secret agent. And his first assignment is to ransom Sesh from her captor, the mysterious Duke of Uranium. Yet the one truth nobody tells Jak is that the thirty-sixth century itself is based on lies, where no one and nothing are as they seem. And the only way for Jak to make sure his maiden mission is not his last is to discover what his true mission really is!

Barnes' latest is a wildly entertaining homage to the best '60s Heinlein juveniles, an amiable, slangy adventure for the teenager in everyone. Good-looking, athletic Jak Jinnaka, 18, has survived compulsory education with the help of his pretty girlfriend, Sesh, and a generous allowance from Uncle Sib. After Sesh is kidnapped, Uncle Sib explains a few things. Sesh is really the princess of the powerful distant planet Greenworld. Sib is a senior agent of a political cabal, or zybot, planning to rescue and then, possibly, exploit her. Promising Jak will meet no harm, Sib invites him to be an emissary to Sesh's captors. On the long trip to the Duchy of Uranium, Jak befriends a few members of a trading starship's crew, survives his shuttle being shot out of the sky, befriends the duchy's imprisoned heir, and discovers additional details of Sib's career that make joining Sib's particular political group something he should consider very, very carefully. Lots of action, dancing, interesting clothes, hints of sex, and a lovable, laid-back hero. Roberta Johnson
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