About the Book
The year is now 2081. People from many nations have established vast sea-steading communities across earth's oceans.
As explorers push into uncharted abyssal plains, they uncover a secret blurring the boundaries between material and spiritual realms. Their discovery ignites dark forces who battle to control knowledge powerful enough to rewrite existence itself.
Rich in marine science and high-stakes adventure, DeepStar plunges readers into an oceanic realm shimmering with beauty and danger. When the sea-steaders awaken an ancient guardian, they are forced to confront not only rival powers but also shadows within themselves.
In the ocean's dark depths, humanity's fate is contested by forces, seen and unseen.
Characters
Kiyoshi Nakamura
At 24, Kiyoshi struggles to keep his mother's seasteading farm from bankruptcy. He is haunted by the mysterious disappearance of his father when he was twelve and chilling, recurring nightmares. Trained in martial arts, he is restless, wondering what to aim for in life. Students of his father's dojo find themselves betrayed by shadowy forces. As danger closes in, Kiyoshi must discover what happened with his father and be a part of a battle against evil.
Daichi Nakamura
Blinded in a cruel attack yet unbroken, Kiyoshi's uncle, Daichi, is a martial-arts master who fills the void left by the disappearance of Kiyoshi's father. His faith in God shapes every movement, every strike, and every lesson he imparts. When students at his disciples merge as a deadly threat, Daichi must prepare Kiyoshi for a fight that tests both body and spirit, drawing on wisdom, discipline, and hidden truths of their family's past.
Chiyome Mochizuki
Formerly Daichi's most gifted trainee, Chiyome has risen to rule a covert network of kunoichi who sell their lethal skills—espionage, blackmail, seduction, and assassination—to the highest bidder. Ambitious and calculating, she deploys some of her assassins to hunt Kiyoshi, believing him to be the key to unlocking a source of limitless power.
Yua Ishii
Raised as an orphan by Chiyome from childhood, she is part of the elite kunoichi. Yua becomes a disciple in a mission to abduct Lisa, faced with Daichi and Kiyoshi her conscience is awakened. Her loyalty falters and her identity begins to unravel. Torn between the only family she has known and a newfound sense of right and wrong, Yua's choices will determine her fate.
Wheka
A giant squid trained by Chiyome and loyal to Yua, Wheka is both weapon and companion. Utterly loyal, he carries out dark deeds on behalf of his masters.
Rafi Qavwi
After Rafi's father fails on a mission, the family is cast out of the New Caliphate. Rafi grows up embittered, determined to prove those who cast him out were wrong as he has. Believing Ben killed his father, he hires Chiyome's network to murder Lisa. Because of his dealings with the kunoichi, the Caliphate renews their interest in him, offering him a chance to reclaim his family's honor by retrieving hidden technology hidden in the abyssal plains. Rafi accepts the challenge, unaware of the deadly peril he is plunging into.
Lisa Holden
Twelve-year-old Lisa is kidnapped by Chiyome, contracted to achieve Rafi's revenge against her father, Ben (the protagonist in Pelagia). Having captured her, Chiyome decides instead to train Lisa to be a kunoichi. Terrified, Lisa clings to hope, desperately searching for a way to escape. While, her mourning family believes her gone forever.
What Readers Are Saying
"Mystery, adventure, intrigue, and science. DeepStar delivers a great read set in a plausible seasteading future. Thoroughly enjoyed being immersed in this world that might well be."
"Steve masterfully weaves his marine biology expertise to bring a vivid pelagic world to life – leaving lingering mysteries to ponder long after the book is finished."
"If you enjoy science-rich sci-fi with a healthy dose of the unexpected, DeepStar is a must-read—it was genuinely hard to put the book down."