Wine Dark Deep

By: Jamie Steinberg

A lot of talk and not much action. Wine Dark Deep takes the reader on a journey through space as Captain Cal Scott attempts to refuel his ship, The Ulysses. While author R. Peter Keith uses his vast knowledge of space to ground the tale in realism, readers will find themselves waiting far too long for anything of substance to start.

Captain Cal Scott finds his ship in dire need of refueling. Unfortunately, the only way of snagging what he so desires is from a band of rebels. This means Scott must force their hands by entering their airspace in hopes that the rebels won’t refuse him and create bad press for their cause.

Interestingly, author Keith has a unique perspective on space travel as he is the creative director of museum exhibits that replicate various space travel aspects in collaboration with NASA. You can truly see his vast insight when it comes to the technical aspects of The Ulysses and much later in the novel when a brawl between two characters ensue in space. Keith clearly puts his knowledge to good use as he roots the propulsion and dynamics needed for an astronaut to handle any melee.

What the story lacks is captivating the reader. The chapters are so brief and the majority of Wine Dark Deep is focused on who the characters are and the issues between the two sides. Readers are more than half way through the book before any true interaction face-to-face happens between the two factions and the real fight begins.

Sadly, Wine Dark Deep fails to fascinate and captivate the reader enough to invest in this sci-fi space adventure. There are two other books coming in the series, so readers can hopefully find the action they crave now that true bad blood has been shed. For those unwilling to invest early, you’ll probably want to skip Wine Dark Deep and wait for the others to bring you the true intergalactic mayhem you desire.