This science fiction fantasy novel features "an intriguing premise-the Islamic conquest of space-and an engagingly ingenuous hero." ( Library Journal)
Abdul Hamid-Jones is under orders to help the Emir of Mars travel to the holy city of Mecca, a task that will all but assure Emir's position as Caliph of the Muslim empire. But developing a fast, safe mode of interplanetary travel is a challenge no one has solved yet, least of a young scientist like Hamid-Jones. But this difficulty is nothing compared to the danger he encounters once caught in a web of court politics that puts his very life on the line.
Autorentext
Donald Moffitt (1931-2014) was born in Boston. A former public relations executive, industrial filmmaker, and ghostwriter, he wrote fiction on and off for more than twenty years, often under one of many pen names. In 1977 he published his first full-length science fiction novel, The Jupiter Theft, under his own name.
Moffitt was a visionary novelist, praised for his scientific accuracy and his high-speed, high-tech stories. He lived in rural Maine with his wife, Ann, until his death in December 2014.
Zusammenfassung
For one thousand years, the Great Awakening has spread the teachings of Islam to all of the far corners of the known universe. Without a Caliph at its head, the great Muslim empire had been a disparate conglomerate of power, for no one ruler had been able to bridge the great interplanetary distances to make the requisite pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca. Then the Emir of Mars announces his plans to undertake this most ambitious of journeys and win the prize of the Caliphate, and Mars is thrust into a frenzy of plots and intrigue. Young scientist Abdul Hamid-Jones is not interested enough in politics to see how any of this could affect him, but he soon finds himself caught up in the web of court politics with his life at stake because of what he knows.