Space Oasis

In the lonely asteroid belt, exhausted rocketmen endure silence, cosmic rays, hunger, and the brutal grind of survival while dreaming of something better. Chet Wallace returns from a mining run to find death lists at Haynes Shipping Office and a company run by the polished but ruthless Norman Haynes, whose control of supply lines keeps the miners trapped in dependence and resentment. Hope arrives through Nick Mavrocordatus, whose family has struck a rich ore deposit on planetoid 439 and chooses not to return to Earth. Instead, Nick unveils a visionary plan to turn asteroid 487, renamed Paradise, into a livable world with soil, water, air, and artificial gravity. With the help of Irene, the Martian scientist Geedeh, and Pa Mavrocordatus, Chet is drawn into the audacious project. But the dream is hounded by sabotage, destroyed ships, murder, and Haynes's quiet campaign to seize control. As the colony struggles toward success, Nick dies saving it, the workforce collapses, and Irene vanishes, leaving Chet and his allies to make a desperate stand for a future worth building. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.