A college student finds himself embroiled in a stand-off that could spark a new World War. Bradley McLanahan isn't just a college student, he's the son of slain spacewarfare veteran General Patrick McLanahan. Brad has tired to move on with his life, but that is going to be tough to do. For one thing, Russia is now run by the son of the Russian Premier killed by his father in a bombing raid. Russian leader Gennadiy Gryzlov wants revenge and one of the ways he wants to do it is by killing the son of the man who killed his father.
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The U.S. has a military space station that is close to be decommissioned, but they are hoping to expand its civilian uses with some new ideas. One of the winning ideas comes from Brad McLanahan and his team of fellow Cal Poly students, who propose a device which will capture sunlight at the station, and beam the energy to Earth where it can be used as electricity. It's an exciting idea, but one that will also cause some problems for the world.
After two attempts on his life, the private security firm who once employed his father provides Brad with training and security as he and his team prep the device. American President Ken Phoenix makes a surprise trip to the space station and then approves a plan for Brad and his fellow students to visit the station in order to test the device. But the plan sets off a paranoid Premier Gryszlov, who demands that America scrap the station and get rid of any space-based weapons.
At the same time, Brad discovers that his father isn't dead. But it so severely injured that he's forced to live inside a robotic unit that keeps him alive and allows him to work online.
President Phoenix agrees to remove the weapons, but balks at decommissioning the space station. Russia and China attack the station when Brad and his crew are onboard. Several people are killed, including one of Brad's friends and the Vice President of the United States. The damage station eventually falls to Earth, and the bad publicity costs President Phoenix the election. But Brad and his group plan to continue they work and return to space. With help from his dad, who seems to be pulling some cyber-strings behind the scenes.
Best part of story, including ending:
The portrayal of an angry and somewhat irrational Russina leader certainly rings true in today's world. It's easy to see where this scenario could easily happen in real life.
Best scene in story:
One of the best scenes was when the Cal Poly student Casey, who is normally stuck in a wheelchair, sacrifices her life to fix the space station's laser weapon.
Opinion about the main character:
For all of his charm, Bradley McLanahan is a more than a bit dense about people's motivations. Which made it hard to root for him sometimes.