Crystal Healer
Table of Contents
Praise for the Novels of S. L. Viehl
StarDoc
"I don't read much science fiction, but I got ahold of a manuscript copy of
StarDoc
and just loved it. Don't miss this one."--Catherine Coulter
"Continuously surprising and deviously written and splendidly full of new characters."--Anne McCaffrey
"Space opera somewhat reminiscent of C. J. Cherryh's early work."--
Chronicle
"An entertaining, almost old-fashioned adventure. . . . The adventure and quirky mix of aliens and cultures make a fun combination."--
Locus
"An excellent protagonist. . . . [Viehl has] set the stage for an interesting series of interspecies medical adventures."
"Space opera and medical melodrama mix with a dash of romance in this engaging novel . . . a rousing good yarn, with plenty of plot twists, inventive scene setting, and quirky characters to keep readers thoroughly entertained. . . .
StarDoc
is a fun adventure story with an appealing heroine, a lot of action, a sly sense of humor, and wonders aplenty."--SF Site
"A fascinating reading experience . . . a wonderful heroine." --
Midwest Book Review
Beyond Varallan
"[Cherijo is] an engaging lead character. . . . Viehl skillfully weaves in the clues to build a murder mystery with several surprising ramifications."--
Space.com
Endurance
"An exciting science fiction tale . . . fast-paced and exciting. . . . SF fans will fully enjoy S. L. Viehl's entertaining entry in one of the better ongoing series today."
--
Midwest Book Review
"[
Endurance
] gets into more eclectic and darker territory than most space opera, but it's a pretty engrossing trip. Recommended."--
Hypatia's Hoard
"A rousing medical space opera. . . . Viehl employs misdirection and humor, while not defusing the intense plot development that builds toward an explosive conclusion."
--
Romantic Times
Shockball
"Genetically enhanced fun. . . . Cherijo herself has been justly praised as a breath of fresh air--smart [and] saucy. . . . The reader seems to be invited along as an amicable companion, and such is the force of Cherijo's personality that it sounds like fun."--Science Fiction Weekly
"Fast-paced . . . an entertaining installment in the continuing adventures of the
StarDoc
."--
Locus
"An exhilarating science fiction space adventure. The zestful story line stays at warp speed. . . . Cherijo is as fresh as ever. . . . Fans of futuristic outer space novels will want to take off with this tale and the three previous
StarDoc
books, as all four stories take the audience where they rarely have been before."--
Midwest Book Review
Eternity Row
"Space opera at its very best. . . . Viehl has created a character and a futuristic setting that is second to none in its readability, quality, and social mores."
--
Midwest Book Review
"S. L. Viehl serves readers her usual highly entertaining mix of humor and space opera. This episode is enlivened by the antics of [Cherijo's] daughter, Marel, and by an exploration of aging and immortality. As usual, I look forward to the next in an exciting series."--BookLoons
Rebel Ice
"Well-drawn cultures and fascinating aliens."
--
Publishers Weekly
"It's fast, fun, character-driven, and left me wanting more . . . one of my all-time favorite sci-fi series."
--Fresh Fiction
"Both gritty and realistic."--
Romantic Times
"A thrilling addition to the series."--
Booklist
"A wonderful piece of space opera."--SFRevu
"Seems very realistic--almost as if the author visited that world and decided to write about it.
Rebel Ice
is a terrific outer space science fiction novel."--Bookwatch
Plague of Memory
"Another exciting adventure in this well-regarded series."
--Monsters and Critics
Blade Dancer
"Fast-moving, thought-provoking, and just plain damn fun. S. L. Viehl has once again nailed it."--Linda Howard
"A heartrending, passionate, breathtaking adventure of a novel that rips your feet out from under you on page one and never lets you regain them until the amazing finale. Stunning."--Holly Lisle
ALSO BY S. L. VIEHL
StarDoc
Beyond Varallan
Endurance
Shockball
Eternity Row
Rebel Ice
Plague of Memory
Omega Games
Blade Dancer
Bio Rescue
Afterburn
ROC
Published by New American Library, a division of
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street,
New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto,
Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Ireland, 25 St. Stephen's Green, Dublin 2,
Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.)
Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124,
Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.)
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New Delhi - 110 017, India
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New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.)
Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue,
Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices:
80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
First published by Roc, an imprint of New American Library, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First Printing, August
Copyright (c) S. L. Viehl, 2009
eISBN : 978-1-101-10820-8
All rights reserved
REGISTERED TRADEMARK--MARCA REGISTRADA
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
PUBLISHER'S NOTE
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
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"To live as a doctor is to live so that one's life is
bound up in others' and in science and in the messy,
complicated connection between the two."
--Dr. Atul Gawande
One
The Iisleg, the people of my homeworld of Akkabarr, never believed in peace. The word itself has no meaning in their language. They name the time between conflicts as either
malatkinin
, an opportunity to recover from the last battle, or
kininharkal
, the chance to prepare for the next.
Until this moment, I thought I had left that sort of idiocy behind on my homeworld.
"You can't do this."
The dark blue faces of the three males watching me remained impassive as I rose from the conference table and moved around the room. Someone clever had worked hundreds of
t'vessna
flowers into various arrangements, doubtless to honor my return. I plucked one small purple flower from a hanging silver basket and held it to my nose. The sweet fragrance calmed me a little.