{"product_id":"9781937396244","title":"Freefall: A First Contact Technothriller","description":"\u003cb\u003eFirst contact ... Second chances... Nothing comes without a price.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003eDespite NASA budget cuts threating to put a sharp end to his career as an astronaut, British-born space shuttle pilot Jack Kildare knows without a doubt that his life will never be the same. Photographs snapped from the International Space Station reveal an alien spaceship in orbit around Europa, opening a terrifying new chapter opening in human history, and Jack finds himself in the center of a gigantic international effort to respond to the alien threat.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBut when he is dismissed from NASA over a trumped-up security gaffe, Jack and his close friend Oliver Meeks combine their skills in an attempt to generate an innovative new development: a spaceship drive based on their observations of the alien craft's technology.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith the unknown threat driving international competition and the entire planet's spaceflight resources thrown into the fray, the focus of attention turns toward one single goal... a ship capable of traveling to Jupiter to confront the alien menace... the \u003cem\u003eSpirit of Destiny.\u003c\/em\u003e Amid unknown entities pushing to destroy the project from the inside out, and enemies baying for blood, Jack finds himself submerged in a world of secrets, sabotage attempts and cold-blooded murder.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCan Jack decode the secrets surrounding the arrival of the alien spaceship in our solar system? Or will his dreams of the ultimate space adventure be taken into the ashes with the \u003cem\u003eSpirit of Destiny?\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eABOUT \u003cem\u003eFREEFALL\u003c\/em\u003e: \u003cem\u003eFreefall\u003c\/em\u003e is the first book of a fast-paced quartet of technothrillers. It contains hard science fiction elements in the mold of \u003cem\u003eThe Martian\u003c\/em\u003e and other science-based thrillers. You won't need a calculator to follow the story, but if you'd like to build a spaceship to the \u003cem\u003eSpirit of Destiny's\u003c\/em\u003e specifications, it really will take you to Jupiter! ($3 billion budget not included.)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cem\u003eLifeboat\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eShiplord,\u003c\/em\u003e Book Two and Book Three in the Earth's Last Gambit Quartet, are now available.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Knights Hill Publishing","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47063404347632,"sku":"9781937396244","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781937396244_p0.jpg?v=1763660776","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781937396244","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}