In E. R. Harris’s science fiction novel SURF THE MILKY WAY, Captain Max and his crew take the same approach to cruising through the galaxy as they do to surfing: find the most epic adventures, help others traveling the waves too, and look cool doing it. But when one of the crewmates, Blob, has a vision of a solar system being destroyed, Captain Max and the crew of the Planet Hopper choose to help the Ugovernment Terraformers defend the galaxy against the Giant Beings of Perseus, who use planets as fodder in their precious ballgame. The band of aliens, scientists, and androids work together to save the universe before it’s too late, never forgetting to have fun in the process.
To the enormous Perseans, the “tiny beings” are insignificant, if annoying creatures, smaller than ants are to humans in the grand scheme of the universe. Shifting back and forth between the points of view of Max and his crew, the Terraformers, and the giant Perseans helps put into perspective how culture and life is as important to the tiniest beings in the universe as it is to the largest. While the book does not delve deep into the minute details of each species’ culture, it is able to provide enough of an overview of the politics and values of these beings to make them feel real and relatable. Even the Perseans, as the book’s main villain, are well-rounded individuals who have clashing opinions within their ranks.
Moral conflicts drive the characters and the plot. The act of Terraforming is considered “much-maligned,” even while many of the characters working on those projects side with the book’s protagonists. As one the book’s few female characters, Terraformer Piper Crane provides additional cultural and emotional complexity to the story. Although they are pivotal players in the book’s team of protagonists, Captain Max and the members of his crew also behave as comic relief in the story. They perfectly inhabit the surfer archetype—informal lingo, nomadic attitude, and all—though their personas are layered with science fiction tropes that make them complex. Vern, for instance, is a cyborg who is mute, using telepathic communication to speak to his crewmates, and his search for balance between his android and organic sides provides compelling tension. The ragtag group—Max, Blob, Vern, Claude, and Mike—have a strong bond akin to a brotherhood, and their willingness to do whatever it takes to help each other is commendable and adds yet another layer of reality to the characters.
E. R. Harris’s captivating writing is action and image driven, with characters “bolting” into rooms and “pouring over” documents as conversation “naturally [moves] to those sitting closest together.” Decorated spaceships and extraterrestrial forests emerge as tangible settings as characters use eloquent language to express their physical and emotional landscapes. In the book’s 450 pages, a vast and intricate universe emerges, inhabited by similarly vast and intricate characters. SURF THE MILKY WAY is an immersive science fiction epic that is as gripping as it is fun.
E. R. Harris presents a gang of well-rounded, emotionally complex characters–driven by moral conflicts–in the humorous science fiction novel SURF THE MILKY WAY.
~Aimee Jodoin for IndieReader