"...Epic space opera with depth, heart, and non-stop adventure!"A psi-gifted mercenary warrior faces off both natural and supernatural forces but discovers that the toughest battle may be within her own heart. Triya Noeh discovers an alien artifact on her planet when she's a teenager. Visions she receives in the temple draw her to a mystery world where she hopes to find out why she is different from the people she was born to. Surviving a traumatic childhood, Ciarán Rhys becomes the successful Captain of his family's galactic trade-ship, the Northern Star. Yet puzzling dreams challenge his life's trajectory, suggesting he isn't on the right path. Eventually Ciarán and Triya meet in the most unlikely of circumstances, the shattered remains of a gang turf war. Triya accepts Ciarán's offer to join his crew, and they partner together to find a mystery planet where their destinies may await them. But the inevitable clash of lifestyle and heart's intent threatens to prevent them from reaching the hidden world. Just as they begin to find their way, opposition from cosmic forces and the influence of a dangerous relic imperils the existence of their starship. It takes all of Triya's psi powers and Ciarán's determination to battle the peril. Ultimately, the relic will invade and reconfigure their ideas about their own identity and purpose. PRAISE FOR ALIEN QUEST: AWAKENING "Steven Eckroad's Alien Quest: Awakening weaves together scientific speculation, spiritual intuition, and human longing in a way that immediately reminded me of C. S. Lewis's Space Trilogy. Like Lewis, Eckroad dares to see beyond the limits of physics, using the language of science fiction to ask moral and metaphysical questions about purpose, consciousness, and the unseen dimensions of reality. Eckroad's universe feels inhabited by meaning. It carries the ambition of world-building worthy of Frank Herbert and the inward depth of Lewis's metaphysical imagination." Paulo Ribiero, PhD, Professor of Electrical Engineering, Federal University of Itajubá, Brazil; Life Fellow IEEE. "Alien Quest: Awakening embraces destiny, adventure, calamity, and romance in a tale of overcoming past hurts and finding redemption-played out on a stage of space travel and psychometry. Like two vectors originating from opposite points, we stand by as observers, wondering and hoping that somewhere there might be an intersection and if so what happens next. Mr. Eckroad has a winner here. I can't wait to read the second book!" Chris Valentino, Founder & COO, Pacific Inpatient Medical Group. "The original ideas in Alien Quest: Awakening enrich a plot line that takes multiple twists and turns. There is excellent development of characters and appropriately, only a few words are lost on detailed descriptions of fantastical mechanical equipment, which is a typical failure of some other books in this genre." William V. Hassenzahl, PhD, President, Advanced Energy Analysis.