by Zoë Sumra
The first book in the Underside series

Sailor to a Siren is a space opera novel with significant nods to the gangland thriller genre.
When Connor and Logan Cardwain, a gangster’s lieutenants, steal a shipment of high-grade narcotics on the orders of their boss, Connor dreams of diverting the profits and setting up in business for himself. His plans encounter a hurdle in the form of Éloise Falavière, Logan’s former girlfriend, who has been hired by an interplanetary police force’s vice squad.
Logan wants a family; Éloise wants to stop the drugs shipment from being sent to her home planet; Connor wants to gain independence without angering his boss. All of their plans are derailed, though, when they discover that the shipment was hiding a much deadlier secret – the prototype of a tiny superweapon powerful enough to destabilise galactic peace.
Soon, crime lords, corrupt officials and interstellar magicians are pursuing them, and Connor, Logan and Éloise realise they have to identify and confront the superweapon’s smuggler in order to survive. But when, one by one, their friends begin to betray them, their self-imposed mission transforms from being difficult to near-impossible.
Sailor to a Siren is a great debut from Zoë Sumra and establishes her as a name to watch in epic space opera. The depth of her characters, the breadth of her world-building, the ambition and longevity of her story-arcs spanning multiple generations of families, all make this a first step in what is likely to be a fascinating and enthralling universe. This is a universe that has more in common with The Galactic Milieu, Firefly or Babylon 5 than with Star Trek or Star Wars. These are stories that Zoë has been thinking about, preparing and crafting for many years; stories that deserve to be told, from a story-teller who deserves to be heard.
We meet Connor et al again in The Wages of Sin, the second book in the Underside series.
Sailor to a Siren, the first book in the Underside series, was published in a digital edition on 17th July 2015 and in paperback on 14th November 2015.
ISBN: 978-1-908168-77-1 eBook Typical price £2.99 / €3.49 / $3.99
ISBN: 978-1-908168-67-2 paperback 288pp List price £9.99 / €11.99 / $17.99
Prices online may vary. eBook price includes VAT (where applicable).
Reviews:
- “excellent in every regard” – review of The Wages of Sin on Risingshadow
- “Outstanding” – review of Sailor to a Siren on Marian L Thorpe’s Words and Birds blog
- “addictive, fast-paced and highly entertaining” – review of Sailor to a Siren on Risingshadow
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