Welcome back space travellers as we head back into the Foundation Greater Universe with The Galactic Empire series (book 2 of 3) The Currents of Space by Isaac Asimov.

Incase you need 'em here is the monster list of Asimov books we have read so far on r/bookclub and links to their schedules. - I, Robot - Caves of Steel - The Naked Sun - The Robots of Dawn - Robots and Empire - Foundation (book 1) can be found here, - Foundation and Empire (book 2) can be found here, - Second Foundation (book 3) can be found here. - Foundation's Edge (book 4) can be found here - Foundation and Earth (book 5) can be found here - Prelude to Foundation (book 6) can be found here - Forward the Foundation (book 7) can be found here - Galactic Empire book 1: The Stars, Like Dust

In saying that please be aware that not everyone here has read all these books therefore any reference outside of the Galactic Empire trilogy should be treated as a spoiler.

Please use spoiler tags for anything outside of the chapters in this book we have covered so far, including series spoilers and the previous r/bookclub read of Robot Series and Foundation series

You can add a spoiler tag by enclosing your text with > ! Your Text Here ! < (no spaces).

The Schedule can be found here and the marginalia here. Right let's get down to business.

Chapter Summaries

Prolog

An Earthman is getting worked up because another man is preventing him from getting his calculations to the I.S.B to stop the planet Florina being destroyed, killing all the people on it. The Earthman has been drugged and the other man uses a psychic probe. The effects of which will take a long time to even begin to lift.

1. THE FOUNDLING

Rik remembers his job from before the beginning was Analysing Nothing. He is currently a millworker and people call him "Crazy Rik" and mocks his way of speaking. Valona 'Lona' March had been charged with protecting him. Lona recognises that Rik must have been an educated man 'before'. She is afraid he will leave her if he remembers everything. His memory is recovering slowly from his thorough treatment with a psychic probe. Lona doesn't tell him this. She had tried to bribe the doctor not to report Rik, but he refused. He had, however, died in a gyrocrash. Rik has remembered that everyone on Florina is going to die.

2. THE TOWNMAN

Lona arrives at Townman Myrlyn Terens' home, past curfew, to tell him Rik is remembering things. Myrlyn remembers back to the day they found Rik, nearly naked, traumatised and child-like. Ull Jencus, the closest thing they had to a doctor came to help transport Rik into town to clean him up. They speculate on how the man ended up in this state in their town. The patrollers, mercenaries from off Florina, decide it's not worth making a report about and advise them to "get rid of him". The men argue about what to do and eventually settle on helping Valona have Rik in her meagre living area. Lona tells the Townman Rik said he used to analyse Nothing, and he interprets this as meaning he used to analyse space. The Townman goes with Lona back to Rik. They must be subtle so Rik doesn't get taken away.

3. THE LIBRARIAN

The city is split into Upper City and the Lower City with the Upper built upon the Lower...literally. Rik is scared and Terens feels hatred for Galaxy as the make their way to the library in the Upper City. Terens' role of Townman allows special priviledges and access into the Upper City. He claims Rik is his assisstant. Terens introduces Rik to the e-reader system. The act helps Rik remember and he reads out the article about Spatio-analysis. He had been a Spatio-analyst before. Rik's searches alert the Librarian and then a Patroller. They have no choice but to lie. The librarian and then the patroller insist they wait for the requested books. Terens regrets his reckless choice to go to upper City when Valona arrives and neutrilises the patroller.

4. THE REBEL

To remain inconspicuous the trio fight the urge to run as they pass plenty of people in uniform. Whilst they make their way through the crowd Valona confesses to following them. They use the hospital that is connected to both Upper and Lower City to escape back to the Lower City. There are patrollers in a ground car looking for them. Luckly a broad man suggests they head to Khorov's bakery. An old man helps them escape through a dummy oven into a small, poorly ventilated room. The baker knows that they are in trouble and it's only a matter of time till the patrollers find out their identiy. They rest at the bakery. Velona cannot sleep. Terens leaves in the night after warning her not to trust the baker. The baker says Velona she is free to leave too, but Rik, however, is not.

5. THE SCIENTIST

Dr. Selim Junz, a Spatio-analyst, has been frustratingly waiting for a year. He has learnt there's no hurrying the Sarkite Civil Service. Townmen are native Florina governors chosen for their abilities young and sent to Sark to train. Dr. Junz is Libair, and like all Libairians, highly pigmented. Dr. Junz has, for the last 11 or so months, been searching for a Spatio-analyst who disappeared. The I.S.B. analyst had sent a message, but his ship's hyperatomic motor's energy pattern was never registered as landing anywhere. Due to the psychopathic episode they believed he suffered he is likely to be amnesiac and lost somewhere on Florina. Dr. Junz insists Ambassador Abel find the missing man. In the end it was Junz's own man (a library Clerk) that informed him that the man was found. He now knows that Rik is at Khorov's shop. Khorov is a known Ambassador of Trantor.

6. THE AMBASSADOR

Terens thinks back to how, during childhood, everything was so black and white. After performing well in school and getting sent to Sark he learnt this was not really the case. He made himself useful, and studied hard for 10 years. He learnt an uprising against Sark was coming and that Trantor, with the help of the Florinians would destroy Sark. He wondered, however, if this would just be switching one Tyrannical rule for another! The rebels Terens knew slowly disappeared one by one. Now he knows that he has to keep Rik safe from the Trantorians. Terens also knows that Rik's memory is back, and that his knowledge is explosive. He is aware that Khorov is a Trantorian agent. Trantor has been expanding rapidly. From the few planet of the Trantorian Republic to the Trantorian Confederation and then the Trantorian Empire. Ambassador Abel isn't loyal to Trantor per se. He is loyal to peace and the comfort it bought him. He will do what needs to be done to protect that, and that means protecting Trantor. Abel doesn't understand Dr. Junz's focus on single planet when a Galactic Empire would come with peace. Dr. Junz explains that Florians are at the (opposite) extreme of skin pigmentation. Libairians, with a lot of skin pigmentation, therefore, feel a kinship with the Florians who also experience exclusion due to being different. Junz is furious with Abel that he never told the truth about Rik's discovery. They are both annoyed they wasted so much time assuming Rik was on Sark and not using that time to look in Florina. It all makes no difference now though. Khorov has apparently been killed and Rik and Lona have escaped.....

Until next week stardust friends when u/Lachesis_Decima77 will lead us through chapters 7 - 12. See you then 🌌✨️📚

Welcome back space travellers as we head back into the Foundation Greater Universe with The Galactic Empire series (book 1 of 3) The Stars, Like Dust by Isaac Asimov.

Incase you need 'em here is the monster list of Asimov books we have read so far on r/bookclub and links to their schedules. - I, Robot - Caves of Steel - The Naked Sun - The Robots of Dawn - Robots and Empire - Foundation (book 1) can be found here, - Foundation and Empire (book 2) can be found here, - Second Foundation (book 3) can be found here. - Foundation's Edge (book 4) can be found here - Foundation and Earth (book 5) can be found here - Prelude to Foundation (book 6) can be found here - Forward the Foundation (book 7) can be found here

In saying that please be aware that not everyone here has read all these books therefore any reference outside of the Galactic Empire trilogy should be treated as a spoiler.

Please use spoiler tags for anything outside of the chapters in this book we have covered so far, including series spoilers and the previous r/bookclub read of Robot Series and Foundation series

You can add a spoiler tag by enclosing your text with > ! Your Text Here ! < (no spaces).

The Schedule can be found here and the marginalia here. Right let's get down to business.

Chapter Summaries

One: The Bedroom Murmured

Sander Jonti calls and wakes Biron Farril at 3.15am but the visiphone is malfunctioning. As is the ventilation and lighting. Biron is soon to graduate and leave radioactive Earth behind for good. Biron concludes it's all a practical joke and thinks this is confirmed by the discovery of the can of Hypnite (an anesthetic used to keep him asleep). The building is secure against nuclear blasts meaning he is pretty stuck. Then he hears the Earth’s death rattle and his checks his watch strap indicator. It shows the boue of radiation. He discovers a radiation bomb with no idea how long he has left before it goes off. Through the thick door he hears Jonti and Esbak, the superintendent. They must evacuate the building. Jonti warns Biron that he is a marked man and they will try again to kill him.

Two: The Net Across Space

Jonti reveals he knows Biron's father, the Rancher of Widemos, and that he is in danger after being taken into custody by the Tyranni. Jonti confesses to being from Nebular Kingdoms, and that he escaped a year ago from the Tyranni. He wants the Kingdoms to be free of the Tyranni. The Tyranni rule fifty worlds, but are outnumbered by 100s:1, therefore have become clever and conniving. Jonti suspects Biron and his father are to be executed to prevent a revolution. Biron wants to go to Nephelos but Jonti says he needs to got to Rhodia where the Director Hinrik V can protect him. Biron thinks about the document he was to have obtained from Earth’s archives. There is no time now. Back in his room Jonti uses some advanced tech to connect mentally with others where he learns Biron's father has actuslly already been executed. Biron is also expendable. Things are playing out as expected.

THREE: Chance and the Wrist Watch

Biron Farrill told no one he was leaving. He is travelling under the name Mr. Malaine towards Rhodia. He feels vulnerable and alone. He is informed by a robot that his room has been changed. He confronts an officer about the change. Captain Hirm Gordell explains that it was a medical necessity where a passenger required his original, lower gravity, room. The Captain invited Biron to eat at the Captain's table. In the meantime, he visits his old room using the key he had yet to return. It was unoccupied. He suspects they are bribing him with the upgrade in to the more luxurious room. After dinner the ship jumps into hyperspace travelling one hundred light-years in a fraction of a second. Biron notices his watch strap radiation indicator is white not blue and suddenly things become clear. When he goes back to his room he discovers they've removed all his ID...he is in serious danger!!

FOUR: Free?

Rizzett and Jonti are discussing a document missing for 20 years (meaning it couldn't have been Biron). They don't know what the document contains only that the Rancher has called it the most dangerous document. It's been stolen and anyone could have it. Simok Aratap is the most dangerous Tyrannian. His father had headed a squadron that had conquered worlds in the Nebula 50 years earlier. As the Rancher of Widemos Biron's father would pay the annual taxation for the planet Nephelos. Biron now faces Aratap the Commissioner of the Great King (the Khan of the Tyranni). He denies being Biron Farrill and claims to be on Rhodia to claim a reward for information about a plot to assassinate the Director. Aratap lets Biron thinks he believes him and orders the Major to watch him and Hinrik.

Five: Uneasy Lies the Head

Rhodia maintained a lengthy stability under the able dynasty of the Hinriads until the Tyranni arrived establishing a universal Trans-Nebular Empire. Director Hinrik is arguing with his daughter Artemisia aka Arta. She is pretty repulsed by an old Tyrannian who Hinrik suggests she marry. She talks about taking lovers which Hinrik is horrified by. She insults the Khan to his shocked horror. Arta would be the man's 4th wife and she refuses to prostitute herself this way. Hinrik recieves a call that someone has information about an assassination attempt. Hinrik is terrified even though it's been 6 months since the Rancher was there. Arta decides to meet the man (Biron) herself to judge if it's safe for her father. He agrees.

Six: That Wears the Crown

Biron knows the Comissioner didn't believe him, and is nervous as he's escorted to the Director. Arta wastes no time questioning Biron. He decides to be honest that there is no assassination plot and begs sanctuary. Gillbret oth Hinriad (Arta's uncle) arrives after eavesdropping. Biron reveals his true identity and Arta goes to get her father. Biron is attracted to Arta. He feels safe. Hinrik, however, does not. He is sure that it's a trap that Aratap sent Biron to him.

SEVEN: Musician of the Mind

Gillbret takes Biron to see his library-laboratory (want!!). He creates illegal equipment like the visisonor and things to spy. Gillbret tells how, to be safe, he has always presented a specific self to the world. He and Arta have been talking about Biron's abilty to pilot a ship. He has set things up so that Biron and Arta can leave Rhodia. Biron refuses and this angers and frustrates Gillbret. Arta is the most desperate to leave in order to avoid a political marriage. The thought of Arta makes him ask about the availability of a ship, when suddenly officers arrive and he is arrested for high treason

EIGHT: A Lady’s Skirts

Outnumbered and out armed Biron surrenders. Gillbret orchestrates the chance for Biron to use the visisonor on the guards. The guard whips Biron on the foot with his crazy whippy weapon, but Biron and Gillbret still manage to best them. He heads to Atra's room bruised and ruffled. Biron and Arta argue before Gillbret rings to inform them that the Palace is being searched. Gillbret joins the search and is able to warn them when the Captain is approaching Arta's door. Biron hides in her closet behind Atra's skirts and thinking about how lovely she is.....(because of cpurse he does !)

We 'll have to leave Biron here with his stolen wicked whippy weaponry in each hand until next week when u/Lachesis_Decima77 will lead us through chapters 9 - 15. See you there star dust people ✨️📚

Congratulations readers on making it to the final discussion for Isaac Asimov's "The Currents of Space. I hope you enjoyed the read and are looking forward to continuing along in the Galactic Empire series with us.

Chapter Summaries

13 The Yachtsman
Terens has made his way to a yacht port where the ship of Deamone (the Squire he murdered and is now impersonating) is docked. He doesn't know how to fly the ship, but engages in a conversation with someone, Genro, there that is interested in acquiring a ship. Terens invites him to test out the ship to see if he likes it, and they even agree that a test flight all the way to Sark is a good idea. Terens falls asleep, only to wake later with a gun pulled on him and Genro explains that he knew he was the native that murdered a Squire and that he is taking him to authorities. He then reveals that he is a double agent working for Trantor and intends to turn him over to them instead.

14 The Renegade
Dr. Junz, a spatio-analyst, and the Trantorian Ambassador, Abel, engage in discussion of espionage and deception between Trantor and Sark, noting that Sark is often blind to it's own internal rebellious groups. Squire Steen arrives and wishes to align with Trantor to save Sark from the threat of Squire Fife, who he believes is scheming to consolidate power and rule over all of Sark.

15 The Captive
Rik and Lona are now on Sark and Lady Samia (Squire Fife's daughter) is desperate to ensure that they are treated fairly and is convinced that Rik has told her the truth. Her father is skeptical and has put in orders to keep her away from them and the arriving ship that contains the exposed Townsman, Terens. Genro and Terens have come up with a scheme so that Terens can "escape", which will actually put him into the hands of Trantor, but upon leaving the ship, Samia has worked her way near the port and flags him down to get in her car. Samia believes Terens to be a crewmember, not the fugitive Townsman, and is asking him questions as they drive. They are followed by the Trantorian agents that were to capture Terens, who capture photographic evidence of Terens and Samia kissing! The agents of Trantor quickly use the photographs as blackmail to move the needle into their favor.

16 The Accused
All of our current players are brought together for a round of political maneuvering and accusations. Steen has accused Fife of trying to consolidate power, Abel is using the photgraphs as blackmail to can an advantage. Rik is recalling more memories and in discussing his time before the psychic probing, he remembers one name...FIFE!

17 The Accuser
Tensions rise as Fife tries to defend himself and Steen vehemently looks to further his suspicions of Fife making a power grab. Rik remembers more details about the psychic probing, specifically that the man, Fife, was looking down upon him; it is at this moment that Fife reveals that he has a deformity in his legs and walks over to Rik to show that he is no taller than Rik is while seated. The discussion continues as the players try to determine who the mysterious X could be, and they determine it would be a Squire that would keep a close eye on him. Lona has a revelation that the only person that fits the description of X is, in fact, Townsman Terens!

18 The Victors
Terens readily admits that he is the one that has been behind Rik's condition all along. He explains how he learned of the spato-analyst and was trying to help him, but misused the psychic probe and started this chain of events, all because he wanted to save his home planet Florina. Rik recalls that he discovered the carbon current going through space is what will ultimately cause Florina's sun to go supernova and destroy the planet. They also link this condition to why kyrt is only created on Florina and nowhere else. After explaining the economic benefits and likelihood of further kyrt riches being discovered elsewhere, an agreement where Trantor buys all of the planet Florina and begins a large scale evacuation is put into place.

Samia, Rik, Lona, and Terens all play a part in the resettlement effort and Terens has made special arrangements that he stay on Florina, as he doesn't want his home planet to die alone.

Hello, Earthlings, Rhodians, and Tyranni! Welcome to our second discussion on The Stars, Like Dust by Isaac Asimov. When we last left our surprisingly buff hero, he was hiding in Arta's dressing room in the middle of the night. Surely nothing could possibly go wrong in this scenario! Will Biron escape the Palace? Will he have another argument with Arta? Will he skip Leg Day? Let's find out!

The discussion schedule is here, and the marginalia post for the Galactic Empire series is here.

Summaries

Chapter 9: Arta opens her bedroom door and feigns shock when she finds Gillbret and a bunch of guards, who have come looking for Biron. When the guard captain says he needs to search her room for the escaped prisoner, she gets huffy about it and gets him to back off. Gillbret has a guard posted outside her door, and this guard is conveniently about the same size as Biron. Arta calls Biron out of the dressing room and summons the guard inside so our plucky hero can choke him unconscious and steal his uniform. Gil joins the two as they make their way to the Palace Field. However, Gil sees the Tower lit up and realizes something's very wrong: the Tyranni have just landed. Biron convinces the two runaway Hinriads to steal the ship.

Aratap arrives at the Palace and he's less than enthused with Hinrik summoning him about his woes with Biron. The captain of the guard barges into the meeting and announces that Biron has escaped and has taken Arta and Gil with him. Aratap persuades the captain not to sound the general alarm and to let Biron go, as he believes the young hero was never after Hinrik anyway. Aratap realizes the runaway trio has stolen his cruiser, but he's unconcerned, convinced they're going to ruin themselves.

Chapter 10: Biron pilots the Tyranni cruiser, the Remorseless, out of the Rhodian atmosphere with all the skill of a student driver who's behind the wheel for the very first time. Tensions rise as the trio debates what to do about the Tyranni prisoner on board. Biron suggests dropping him off on the surface, since they have to land and pick up provisions, anyway. After unloading the prisoner, loading the goods, and Arta griping about the disgusting texture of said goods, they take off again. Gil tells Biron he's preparing a bunk in the pilot room so Arta can have the cabin to herself. Yet another argument ensues between our hero and heroine, and Gil, who's clearly had enough of their bickering, tells them to shut up already. The trio discuss their destination. Arta wants to leave the Nebular area, Biron wants to reclaim Widemos Ranch, but Gil has another idea: find a mysterious planet he'd stumbled upon when the Tyranni ship he was on 20 years ago was struck by a tiny meteor.

Chapter 11: Gil continues his story about the mysterious planet, which he believes has been planning a rebellion against the Tyranni for decades. He doesn't know where the planet is, but he knows someone who might: the Autarch of Lingane. Gil also tells Biron that his father was on Rhodia six months before his execution and spent a whole day in the library. However, Gil knows nothing about the dangerous document Biron was supposed to find on Earth. Eventually, Biron agrees to go to Lingane.

Our hero is busy doing the math to make the Jump to Lingane when Arta interrupts him and confesses she's scared. Biron tells her some of what could go wrong, and this inexplicably makes her feel better. She asks if Biron believes Uncle Gil's story, and our manly man says it's worth a shot before kissing her. A few hours later, the cruiser successfully makes the Jump.

Chapter 12: On Lingane, a sort of trading hub and rest stop world, the Autarch and his aide Rizzett discuss what to do with that Tyranni cruiser they found orbiting the planet. The ship had a message for the Autarch with a single word: Gillbret. After a lesson on the history of Lingane, where we learn the planet managed to stop the Tyranni but not defeat them completely, the Autarch wonders if the cruiser is a sign of trouble on the horizon. Eventually, he decides to board the ship alone.

On the Remorseless, Biron and the gang have been waiting two days and they're getting antsy. They finally pick up signs of the Autarch's yacht approaching, and Gil works the radio to contact it. After some time, the yacht begins the boarding procedure via space line. The Autarch finally boards the Tyranni cruiser and removes his helmet to reveal a familiar face: it's Jonti!

Chapter 13: The Autarch says hi nonchalantly, but Biron is angry. He accuses Jonti/the Autarch of planting a fake radiation bomb in his room, orchestrating his flight to Rhodia, and his capture when he landed there. The Autarch admits to everything. Biron tries to kick him off the ship, but the Autarch convinces him otherwise at blaster point. He explains that Lingane has been trying to fight the Tyranni for years and that Biron's father was actively involved, consequently getting himself killed. The Autarch maneuvered Biron's actions to get the Tyranni off Lingane's back, and he mentions he knows about the document Biron was sent to find, though he doesn't have it. Biron tries to have the Autarch kicked off again and threatens the Hinriads that they can join him if they have a problem. Arta convinces Biron to back down, since the Lingane ships outnumber him. The Autarch asks the trio to let him use their names and abilities, and in exchange he'll take them to Planet Rebellion, which he believes is hiding inside the Horsehead Nebula. The Autarch reveals he went to Earth and posed as Jonti to research the Nebula. After a few calculations, he's narrowed the location down to five stars. Biron agrees to come, but he refuses to leave the cruiser. The Autarch grants our hero's request, but wants Arta to come aboard his yacht. When both Biron and Arta refuse, the Autarch wonders why our hero would trust the daughter of the man responsible for his father's death.

Chapter 14: The quartet stand around awkwardly after that last revelation until Rizzett radios the cruiser to make sure his boss is still in one piece. The Autarch answers Rizzett back and tells him he's taking Arta with him, but Biron insists that she stay. The Autarch admits he has no direct proof that Hinrik had Biron's father murdered, but he says the Rancher of Widemos talked too much during his visit. The Autarch was warned of the danger, but let Biron's father cut off contact and life his life. Eventually, the Autarch agrees to leave the cruiser alone. Biron tries to get some alone time, but Arta follows and asks if he believes what the Autarch said about her father. She decides this is the perfect moment to confess her love for him and tries to embrace him, but he pulls away because it turns out that the possibility of her father having his killed is a real turn-off.

Chapter 15: Rizzett boards the cruiser and introduces himself enthusiastically to Biron before they start making arrangements for a trailer and supplies. Arta leaves the pilot room, and Gil follows her once the arrangements have been finalized. Rizzett stays on board to supervise and chats to Biron about his father, whom he admired and respected for his down-to-earth attitude. In contrast, the Autarch is all brains and inscrutable, but his people still trust him, even if his plans (such as having Biron sent to Rhodia) are risky.

Arta's sulking in the cabin and Gil enters, knowing she had a falling-out with Biron. She says she hates Biron for how he suspects Hinrik of having his father killed. When asked, Gil is unsure if Hinrik did it, but reminds Arta that her father did try to give Biron up to the Tyranni at the first opportunity and tried to pressure her into an arranged marriage. She insists her father had no choice and wouldn't help the Tyranni if he had a backbone.

Finally, the trailer is hitched, and both ships head to the edge of the Nebula before making the Jump inside. Unbeknownst to them, Aratap and ten armed cruisers are not far behind.

Welcome to the third and final discussion of this book. We left off with our main characters on the search for the rebellion world, with Tyrannis in secret pursuit of them.

The discussion schedule is here, and the marginalia post for the Galactic Empire series is here.

Chapter 16 - Hounds!
The Tyrannians are early in their pursuit of Biron and the ship he's on, the Remorseless. Aratap and Andros don't agree fully on the path forward. With Aratap wanting to project the impression that this is a Rhodian operation, and to approach things carefully and with few ships, while Andro wants a large ship contingent that can strike fast and guarantee extra security.

Chapter 17 - And Hares!
Biron and his crew are exploring stars in the nebula, looking for planetary systems. After coming up empty several times, they locate a start with a promising planetary system, even containing a planet with oxygen in the atmosphere. Gillbret and Biron discuss how the relationship with Arta has become strained, allowing the Autarch to swoop in and make advances on Artemesia. Gillbret encourages Biron to refocus his attention on building a relationship with Artemesia, but Biron moves forward with his tasks and the land on the planet with a breathable atmosphere.

Chapter 18 - Out of the Jaws of Defeat!
Biron and the Autarch head out to set up a radio transceiver on the surface. Artemesia stays behind, but her concern grows as she realizes that trying radio on the ground isn't better than what they have already done with the radio from space. She catched a glance of Rizzett following Biron and the Autarch, sneaking through rocks while holding a blaster! She quickly prepares and leaves the ship, running to save Biron.

Chapter 19 - Defeat!
The situation between the Autarch (Jonti) and Biron reaches a high point as Biron confronts him with the knowledge that he believes he wants to kill Biron. Jonti denies this and continues to argue with Biron, and eventually he surprises Biron with a blaster pistol. He tries to shoot Biron, but finds that the blaster has been disabled through Biron's cunning, a physical fight ensues. Rizzett arrives on the scene and the Autarch tells him to shoot Biron, but it is revealed that the Autarchs secret communications have actually been broadcast to everyone and his treachery has been exposed, Rizzett is aligned with Biron.
Artemesia had collapsed from her rush to save Biron because the atmosphere made her body forget to breathe. She comes to and Biron confesses to her that he manipulated her to help expose Jonti, and confesses feelings for her, which she reciprocates.
They return to the ship and Biron addresses the crew to try to get them to align to him instead of Jonti, when all of the sudden a Tyranni force shows up to take everyone prisoner.

Chapter 20 - Where?
Aratap is addressing his captives, trying to get information. He tries to play them all against each other to get more information about the rebellion world he has learned of while eavesdropping on the radio transmissions. Jonti agrees to tell him the information if Aratap agrees to kill the others, especially Biron. Aratap gives the information, Rizzet in a rage of frustration manages to get a blaster and shoot Jonti, killing him. In the commotion, Gillbret has gotten away, an alarm is activated on the ship and Gillbret is found hiding in the engine room. Biron is sharing a cell with Gillbret, who has lost some of his mental stability at this point, and learns that Gillbret wasn't just hiding in the engine room, he had shorted the hyperatomic engines so that they will explode the next time they perform a jump.

Chapter 21 - Here?
Biron is desperate to prevent the impending explosion from the hyperatomics. He tells the guard to get Aratap because Gillbrett is very sick, instead the guard brings a doctor. Biron then gets physical and take ahold of the guard neuronic whip, which he uses to incapacitate the guard and the doctor. He rushes to the engine room, whipping people along the way. He tries to convince the engineers to check the engines for the short, but they refuse. Just as they are closing in on Biron, Aratap's voice comes over the intercom and orders the jump delayed and for the engines to be inspected. Biron is brought to Aratap and they soon learn that what he was saying is true, so they begin repairing the engines. Biron defends Gillbrett as being mad and not in control of himself. They then learn that Gillbrett has died of his condition, causes Biron considerable grief. Aratap discusses the logic of Biron giving them the warning or allowing them to all die to protect the rebellion world, and then reveals that the coordinates lead given by Jonti lead to a system that has a white dwarf star, the result of a supernova that wiped out all planets/life in that system.

Chapter 22 - There!
There is a notable shift and Aratap realizes the best political move is to let everyone go, he even encourages Biron to marry Artemesia. They are delivered to Rhodia, where Brion has an epiphany that the rebellion world was actually in the Rhodian system all along, and that must mean that Arta's father, Hinrik, was in on it. Hinrik confirms this is true and reveals that he has been hiding his true self from everyone, even his daughter. Hinrik gives his blessing and Biron and Artemesia are married. Hinrik and Biron discuss the powerful and dangerous document that Biron's father wanted him to find on Earth. Hinrik reveals that he has had the document all along, and read it many times. He then recites the start of it from memory, revealing that it is none other than the Constitution of the United States of America

Greetings, fellow Biblio-analysts! Welcome to our second discussion on The Currents of Space by Isaac Asimov. Last time, trouble was potentially brewing for our hapless hero and heroine. Will they manage to survive, or will their situation go from bad to worse? Let's find out!

The full discussion schedule can be found here, and the marginalia post is here.

---

Chapter summaries

Chapter 7: Rik is slowly starting to remember more about his past, particularly about a ship. With Terens gone, Khorov tells the two that he had informed "proper authorities" about them and that they would need to move. He provides them with new clothes, fake names, and backstories as siblings from Wotex. Khorov is killed by a patroller's blaster soon after the three of them leave the bakery. Rik and Lona run and blend in the crowd, but eventually Rik decides he wants to use their cover stories. He finds what is eventually revealed to be a passport in his pocket and realizes Khorov wanted to get them off Florina entirely. Rik eventually convinces Lona to come with him, and he finds himself longing to be in space.

At the spaceport, the poor sap at the gate lets them through with little trouble and points them toward the ship they're supposed to take. Rik leads Lona instead to a ship with its airlocks open and explains to Lona why it's being aired out, though he's not sure how he knows this. They board the ship, stock up on food and water in the galley, then hole up in an emergency supply room. Rik can hardly wait to be out in space, and his memories start flooding back in. He tries to comfort Lona as the ship leaves Florina. He suddenly remembers he used to live on a spaceship for years at a time and hated landing on planets, but can't remember why, so he tries to ignore that memory gap. Rik explains to Lona that "Nothing" refers to the extremely small amounts of chemical elements in space, and the flow of these elements (called the "Currents of Space") is studied to learn how the universe was created. Rik trails off and realizes they've made a grave error in boarding the ship. He suddenly remembers that the patroller who shot Khorov was actually Terens.

Chapter 8: We join a couple of new characters, Samia of Fife and Captain Racety, in an argument over whether or not Samia should leave Florina. Samia, who is on the planet to research a book she wants to write on the history of kyrt, refuses to believe there's any danger just because a patroller was found dead. We learn what kyrt actually is: a crop that yields a variety of cellulose that can only be grown on Florina. Eventually the Captain convinces her to come along, though he's not impressed that a woman would want to write a book.

Some time later, on the ship, Captain Racety suggests that Samia stay in her room: not only has another patroller been murdered in the City, he suspects there are stowaways on board, judging from the unusual heat radiation coming from Emergency Stores. After Samia complies, the Captain orders his crew to capture their unwanted guests.

Back on Florina, we join Terens after he kills Khorov. Though he's tempted to follow Rik and Lona, he instead goes back to the bakery, reminiscing about how he'd walked into a patroller station and whacked the guy on duty upside the head before stealing his uniform. At the bakery, he threatens the Baker's assistant for information on Khorov's whereabouts and eventually finds out about the reservations on the ship to Wotex. Terens heads to the spaceport to see if he can't beat Rik and Lona there. The gatekeeper confirms he saw a man and a woman from Wotex, but says they never boarded the ship. In fact, the only ship that's left the spaceport is the Endeavour, which is the one taking Samia back to Sark.

Chapter 9: The action turns to Sark, where one year ago, the Squire of Fife called the other four Great Squires--Rune, Balle, Steen, and Bort--to a Zoom meeting to discuss an anonymous message Fife had received about Florina's impending doom and threats to announce that destruction to the entire Galaxy if the Squires didn't hand over the majority of their estates. When Rune objected to Fife's Florinian secretary being present, Fife revealed he'd been psycho-probed into obedience, a practice that is technically frowned upon but still performed to varying degrees of ick. Fife asked if the other Great Squires received a similar message; Bort said he did, but tossed it out with the rest of his junk mail. Fife reminded the others of the Spatio-analyst who foretold Florina's destruction and promptly went missing. Fife believed Trantor had sent the threatening message in an attempt to gain Florina and their precious kyrt crops for themselves without resorting to war. Fife determined to find the Spatio-analyst if possible and suppress all propaganda and rumours about Florina's destruction with extreme force. After almost a year with no progress, all of a sudden things on Florina are shaking up, and at this new Zoom meeting, Fife suspects one of the Great Squires of treason.

Chapter 10: Terens walks away from the spaceport and finds himself in the Lower City. He approaches one of the better-looking houses, enters, and demands to see every member of the household. The head of the house, Jacof, is better educated than most Florinians, and is able to give Terens a list of everyone on the block. Terens uses this time to calm his nerves. He realizes he can't use his patroller disguise for much longer and he's no longer safe on Florina. He leaves the house and makes his way to the City Park in the Upper City, where he finds a Squire waiting in a side cave, tazes him with a neuronic whip, switches clothes, then blasts him to smithereens before picking up some charred pieces of silver from the remains of the patroller's uniform. Terens walks back to the fountain and slips the silver pieces into the water. He rummages through the Squire's pockets, where he finds some ID, a photo of a young boy, some credit vouchers, and a yacht license. An older Squire gives him directions to Port 9, where he can find the dead Squire's yacht. Too bad Terens can't actually pilot it.

Chapter 11: Captain Racety and Samia are at loggerheads again, this time over her insistence on being present when the Captain interrogates Rik and Lona so she can use it for her research. They reach a compromise: the Captain will be the only officer present, and he won't be armed. They visit Rik and Lona in the brig. Lona shields Rik's eyes because they're not supposed to look at a Lady like Samia; however, this proves her identity as a Florinian, since they're the only ones who are subject to this stupid rule. Lona insists that Rik is not Florinian, though. Samia speaks to Rik directly, and he eventually remembers he's originally from Earth and that he used to be in space because Earth is radioactive. Captain Racety is at first sceptic, but he realizes Rik just might be telling the truth, as he's heard of a radioactive planet in the Sirius sector, though he doubts the existence of Earth itself and the claims that it's the home planet of humanity. He asks why Rik was psycho-probed, and our poor Spatio-analyst remembers that he'd come to Sark to warn the local IBP office about how the currents of space are putting Florina and the entire Galaxy in danger. He now believes his message was intercepted and remembers meeting someone from Sark before everything is blank again. Captain Racety receives a communication, and he and Samia leave the brig.

After dinner, Samia tries to visit the brig again, intrigued by all the mystery. However, she's denied access on the Captain's orders. Captain Racety wants Rik and Lona to be questioned by the proper authorities on Sark and still doesn't quite believe Rik's story. Samia wants to bring Rik to her father, the Squire of Fife, but the Captain is adamant. He informs her of a second murdered patroller and believes the killer was an accomplice who committed the crimes so our dynamic duo could escape Florina in the ensuing chaos. He believes Rik is an impostor and not the real missing Spatio-analyst, and that he could be a spy or assassin sent to kill the Squire of Fife. Captain Racety reveals that the message he'd received while they were in the brig told him not to take action and to deliver the stowaways to the Depsec (the Department of Security) under extreme secrecy.

Chapter 12: We return to our regularly scheduled Zoom meeting. The Squire of Fife speaks of recent disturbances on Florina, including the death of two patrollers and a newly discovered body of a Sarkite in the City Park. He connects the dots between these incidents and last year's missing Spatio-analyst, and he claims three people are now in the picture: the Townman Terens, Lona (whose parents were involved in a failed conspiracy), and the missing Spatio-analyst who was psycho-probed. Clearly relishing roleplaying as a detective, Fife turns the case around and examines it from the Spatio-analyst's point of view. He claims the Spatio-analyst's message was intercepted by a mysterious third party referred to as "X," who lured the Spatio-analyst to a secret meeting and sent those threatening letters to the Great Squires last year. X used the psycho-probe on the Spatio-analyst and dumped him on Florina. Steen wonders who this X could be, and Fife believes it's one of the other four Great Squires, which the others take about as well as you'd expect. Fife insists they can defeat X if the five of them present a united front and reveals he's taken control of the Sarkite Navy. He expects to learn X's identity within the next 24 hours. The Squires leave the Zoom meeting, with Steen staying a tad longer until Fife basically accuses him of being X. After the meeting, Fife's secretary reports that Samia's ship, which is also carrying Rik and Lona, has landed, and that Terens is also in custody and en route to Sark.

Greetings, spacefarers and people of Earth! We'll be concluding our readthrough of the Isaac Asimov's Galactic Empire series with Pebble in the Sky starting in mid-June. Check out the Goodreads blurb to find out what's in store in this final installment.

One moment Joseph Schwartz is a happily retired tailor in 1949 Chicago. The next he's a helpless stranger on Earth during the heyday of the first Galactic Empire. Earth, he soon learns, is a backwater, just a pebble in the sky, despised by all the other 200 million planets of the Empire because its people dare to claim it's the original home of man. And Earth is poor, with great areas of radioactivity ruining much of its soil--so poor that everyone is sentenced to death at the age of sixty.

Joseph Schwartz is sixty-two.

This is young Isaac Asimov's first novel, full of wonders and ideas, the book that launched the novels of the Galactic Empire, culminating in the Foundation books and novels. It is also one of that select group of SF adventures that since the early 1950s has hooked generations of teenagers on reading science fiction. This is Golden Age SF at its finest.

The marginalia for the series can be found here.

Links to the first two books:

The Stars, Like Dust

The Currents of Space

Schedule:

• June 15: Chapters 1-7 with u/nepbug
• June 22: Chapters 8-14 with u/fixtheblue
• June 29: Chapter 15 to end with u/Lachesis_Decima77

Hope you'll join us for another adventure!

Classic sci-fi lovers, unite! After reading through the entire Foundation series, we'll be continuing to explore the oeuvre of Isaac Asimov with the Galactic Empire series, starting with The Stars, Like Dust.

Goodreads blurb:

Biron Farrell was young and naïve, but he was growing up fast. A radiation bomb planted in his dorm room changed him from an innocent student at the University of Earth to a marked man, fleeing desperately from an unknown assassin.

He soon discovers that, many light-years away, his father, the highly respected Rancher of Widemos, has been murdered. Stunned, grief-stricken, and outraged, Biron is determined to uncover the reasons behind his father’s death, and becomes entangled in an intricate saga of rebellion, political intrigue, and espionage.

The mystery takes him deep into space where he finds himself in a relentless struggle with the power-mad despots of Tyrann. Now it is not just a case of life or death for Biron, but a question of freedom for the galaxy.

The marginalia for the Galactic Empire series can be found here.

Schedule:

• February 13: Chapters 1 through 8 with u/fixtheblue
• February 20: Chapters 9 through 15 with u/Lachesis_Decima77
• February 27: Chapters 16 through the end with u/nepbug

Hope to have you along on our next adventure through the Galaxy!

Calling all classic sci-fi fans! We'll be continuing our journey through Isaac Asimov's œuvre with The Currents of Space, the second entry in the Galactic Empire series. You can check out the Goodreads blurb below:

High above the planet Florinia, the Squires of Sark live in unimaginable wealth and comfort. Down in the eternal spring of the planet, however, the native Florinians labor ceaselessly to produce the precious kyrt that brings prosperity to their Sarkite masters. Rebellion is unthinkable and impossible. Not only do the Florinians no longer have a concept of freedom, any disruption of the vital kyrt trade would cause other planets to rise in protest, ultimately destabilizing trade and resulting in a galactic war. So the Trantorian Empire, whose grand plan is to unite all humanity in peace, prosperity, and freedom, has stood aside and allowed the oppression to continue. Living among the workers of Florinia, Rik is a man without a memory or a past. He has been abducted and brainwashed. Barely able to speak or care for himself when he was found, Rik is widely regarded as a simpleton by the worker community where he lives. But as his memories begin to return, Rik finds himself driven by a cryptic message he is determined to deliver: Everyone on Florinia is doomed . . . the Currents of Space are bringing destruction. But if the planet is evacuated, the power of Sark will end--so some would finish the job and would kill the messenger. The fate of the Galaxy hangs in the balance.

We'll most likely start this up in April. A more detailed schedule will be posted at a later date. Will you be joining us on another adventure in space?

Greetings, fellow spacefarers! We'll be continuing our read-through of the Galactic Empire series with the second entry, The Currents of Space, next month. Hooray for more classic sci-fi!

Goodreads blurb:

High above the planet Florinia, the Squires of Sark live in unimaginable wealth and comfort. Down in the eternal spring of the planet, however, the native Florinians labor ceaselessly to produce the precious kyrt that brings prosperity to their Sarkite masters. Rebellion is unthinkable and impossible. Not only do the Florinians no longer have a concept of freedom, any disruption of the vital kyrt trade would cause other planets to rise in protest, ultimately destabilizing trade and resulting in a galactic war. So the Trantorian Empire, whose grand plan is to unite all humanity in peace, prosperity, and freedom, has stood aside and allowed the oppression to continue. Living among the workers of Florinia, Rik is a man without a memory or a past. He has been abducted and brainwashed. Barely able to speak or care for himself when he was found, Rik is widely regarded as a simpleton by the worker community where he lives. But as his memories begin to return, Rik finds himself driven by a cryptic message he is determined to deliver: Everyone on Florinia is doomed . . . the Currents of Space are bringing destruction. But if the planet is evacuated, the power of Sark will end--so some would finish the job and would kill the messenger. The fate of the Galaxy hangs in the balance.

The marginalia for the series can be found here.

Schedule:

• April 24: prolog to chapter 6 with u/fixtheblue
• May 1: chapters 7 to 12 with u/Lachesis_Decima77
• May 8: chapter 13 to end with u/nepbug

I hope you'll join us on this new adventure in the cosmos!

r/bookclub will continue the journey through Isaac Asimov's Foundation Universe by reading The Stars, Like Dust in February 2026!

This story will move us back in time, both literally and literarily. The book takes place pre-Galactic Empire, and should get us on our ways towards where we started in Foundation. It also was published in 1951, so expect the style of Asimov to go back to his early writings.

If you want to check out some of the other discussions we've had in the Asimov Foundation universe, we've read the Foundation Series and Robot Series prior to this.

"Foundation" discussions

"I, Robot" discussion

Stay tuned for a detailed schedule and I hope you can join us for another journey through space with Asimov.

Hello and welcome to the marginalia for the Galactic Empire series by Isaac Asimov. Discussions for individual entries in the series can be found here:

The Stars, Like Dust

The Currents of Space

Pebble in the Sky

You can use this post to comment on anything interesting you find in any of the books in the Galactic Empire series. If you're reading ahead of our schedule, remember to use spoiler tags where appropriate as so: > ! Spoiler alert ! < (remove the spaces before and after the exclamation marks). If you're commenting about a particular section in one of the books, make sure to indicate the book, chapter, and approximate location.

Onward, intrepid Galactic adventurers!