The Grand Tour is a series of hard science fiction novels written by American science fiction author Ben Bova.
The novels present a theme of exploration and colonization of the Solar System by humans in the late 21st century. Most of the books focus on the exploration of one particular planet or planetary moon.
Several recurring themes are presented throughout the series. In particular, most of the Solar System bodies whose exploration is the focus of a particular novel are presented as having life, either past or present. Many of the expeditions which explore the planets run into serious difficulty. The protagonists of most of these books are presented as initially weak and/or lacking in ability or confidence, and as part of surviving the trials of the story become heroic.
The future humanity as depicted in the Grand Tour novel series is divided between Greens (environmentalists) and wealthy industrialists, as well as between secularists/scientists and religious fundamentalists. These conflicts generally are presented as part of the background and often set up the initial conflicts of each of the books. In addition, several of the books reference, or indeed directly deal with, conflicts between wealthy industrialists and small, independent operators seeking to exploit the Solar System's vast untapped mineral wealth.
A major theme of the series, which takes center stage in several of the novels, is the search for life on other planets in the Solar System. Mars, Mars Life, Jupiter, Venus, Mercury, Saturn, Titan, and Leviathans of Jupiter all deal with this issue. The discovery of life in the Solar System often leads to conflicts between religious fundamentalists and scientists, with the former seeing the existence of such life as conflicting with their religious doctrines.
While each novel can be read independent of the others, and they can be read in any order, there are distinct story arcs within the series. The Moonbase arc (which may also include the Asteroid Wars arc), the Mars books, and the Saturn books, for instance, comprise various sagas within the series.
List of novels, in chronological order According to Ben Bova's official site, the Grand Tour novels take place in an approximate time sequenceGrand Tour Series , Official Ben Bova Website. with many of the novels overlapping.
Powersat (2005) - CEO Dan Randolph of Astro Corp. has a dream of providing a desperate world with tons of energy; provided by solar satellites located in geosync orbit around the Earth, and wirelessly transferred. However, stubborn politicians and oil companies make the way hard; but Dan has built a space plane that will drastically reduce transportation costs, making way for cheaper and easier constructed Powersats. But when the space plane blows up upon re-entering the atmosphere, Randolph is convinced that it may not be an accident; as a shadowy terrorist group threatens to bankrupt him, and even kill him. Mars (1992) - Navajo geologist Jamie Waterman is surprised to find that he will be going on the first mission to Mars, as part of the landing crew. They will only have a few months to explore the Red Planet; a few months to prove that this world is worth another mission, as this one took decades to put together. With limited supplies, the six men and women set out to explore the top of Olympus Mons and the bottom of Valles Marineris; having only each other to rely on. As the book draws to an end Waterman makes one of the biggest discoveries in the System, and finds a clue of even a bigger one. Moonrise (1996; The Moonbase Saga, v. 1) - Moonbase is an old lunar outpost, maintained by Masterson Corporation; it bleeds money, and most members of the Board disapprove of it. However, Paul Stavenger, old astronaut, new husband to Joanna (née Masterson) and CEO of the Masterson Corporation, has a dream of creating a sustainable colony on the Moon; but not everyone agrees with him, or his marriage. Paul views the controversial nanotechnology devices as the key to developing the Moonbase habitat, but he is murdered by a jealous family member before he can see their full potential. Almost two decades after Paul's death, his son Doug follows his Moon development vision and spearheads the expansion of Moon projects. Return to Mars (1999) Jamie Waterman returns to Mars after his historic first visit, but this time there are strings attached to his mission. The new expedition is funded by billionaire Dex Trumball and his father, who have their own agenda. Rather than pursuing scientific discovery, Dex and his father want to turn Mars into an attraction for space tourists. To add to the complications, Jamie and Dex are both vying for the affection of the same female member of the expedition. Moonwar (1998; The Moonbase Saga, v. 2) - the fanatical group "New Morality", along with their sister organizations the "Holy Disciples" and "Sword of Islam" have gained global support and power; and are dead set against anything to do with nanotechnology, which they call the "Devil's work". So when the last nations on Earth ban the practice, Moonbase is all that is left of a technology that could potentially save the entire Earth; granting asylum for a few runaways. But when the UN starts to send troops over, Director Douglas Stavenger declares independence; and begins a war that will see no one dead or all of them. Privateers (1985; immediately precedes Empire Builders, with most of the same cast of characters, but with an alternate history including a still-extant Soviet Union, because Bova wrote it before the U.S.S.R. collapsed. This book takes place between 2044 and 2048 (Jane is the 52nd president). As to whether Bova himself considers this book to be retconned from the series due to the discrepancy, he has never said, although the book is missing from the series list on his official website) Empire Builders (1993) - Young industrialist Dan Randolph still seeks to exploit the mineral wealth of the asteroid belt and explore the Solar System, as he believes that there is a fortune to be made from space-based industry. However, his plans for the future hit a snag when one of his closest friends and employees makes a horrifying discovery; the greenhouse effect will be more sudden and catastrophic in nature than anyone expected. In a few decades, the climate will hit a 'cliff', after which the ecosystem will undergo massive, catastrophic changes which, including terrible coastal flooding. Dan thinks the only way to avert this is to move all industry into space, removing the polluting effects of manufacturing and power generation from the Earth. However, the powerful Global Economic Council has also become aware of this dark future. They have their own response planned, and do not intend to allow Randolph to get in the way. The Precipice (2001; The Asteroid Wars, v. 1) - when Billionaire Martin Humphries comes to CEO of Astro Corp, Dan Randolph, and freely offers him a fusion space propulsion design, Dan is at the very least curious; but with his company near bankruptcy, the "bold astronaut" has no choice. Fusion rockets will allow Randolph to realize his dream of mining asteroids at a cost-effective level. However, Dan realizes that he may have gone too far this time. But Dan is uniquely motivated; the disastrous greenhouse cliff predicted years ago (see Empire Builders above) has hit. Dan, now more than ever, believes that man must harness the resources of space if humanity is to survive. Farside (novel) (2013) - Farside, the side of the Moon that never faces Earth, is the ideal location for an astronomical observatory. It is also the setting for a tangled web of politics, personal ambition, love, jealousy, and murder. Telescopes on Earth have detected an Earth-sized planet circling a star some thirty light-years away. Now the race is on to get pictures of that distant world, photographs and spectra that will show whether or not the planet is truly like Earth, and if it bears life. Some people, however, would rather Farside observatory not get the images. The Rock Rats (2002; The Asteroid Wars, v. 2) - Picks up right after The Precipice. Martin Humphries returns to complete his conquest of the Asteroid Belt, along with it riches of water and metal ores; but first, two rivals stand in his way. The first being Pancho Lane, new member on the Board of Astro Corp. The second being Lars Fuchs, an independent miner who has a dream of building a space habitat in orbit above Ceres. Each begins to raise the ante, and none are willing to back down. Jupiter (2001) - Takes place at least 20 years after the events of The Rock Rats. Astrophysicist Grant Archer dreams of studying black holes and pulsars, hoping to unlock the secrets of the universe. But in a world where many people are divided between being religious fundamentalists and die hard secularists, Grant is an oddity; a believer who is also a scientist. This puts him in the uncomfortable position of being recruited by the 'New Morality' as a spy. They wish to send him to Jupiter station, where the International Astronautical Authority mines the fuel for fusion power. Grant has no desire to go to Jupiter, as there is no purpose for someone of his discipline at the station, but he is in no position to refuse. Making things even more difficult, Grant has no idea what, exactly, he is being sent there to find out in the first place. Saturn (2003) - the space habitat Goddard is launched from Earth, on a two-year journey to Saturn; twice as far from the Sun as anyone has gone or lived before. The habitat is made up of ten thousand people; most of whom are exiles from Earth, thrown out by the New Morality, Holy Disciples or Sword of Islam. As the habitat goes further into deep space, some begin to plot and scheme; to create a new society in their eyes. However, most do not realize that they are all part of an experiment. The Silent War (2004; The Asteroid Wars, v. 3) Picks up about ten years after The Rock Rats. The battle for the belt continues, as hostilities flare up once again between Astro and HSS, with Lars Fuchs still caught in the middle. Things become even more dangerous, however, as the powerful Yamagata Corporation seeks to manipulate Astro and Humphries into all-out war, with the intent of taking over the badly damaged winner and claiming the belt for themselves. Titan (2006, John W. Campbell Memorial Award) Goddard has arrived in orbit around Saturn, and the task of exploring the moon Titan begins. At the same time, scientist Nadia Wunderly seeks to prove that there are lifeforms living in the rings of Saturn. On top of this, scheming amongst the population complicates matters even further. The Aftermath (2007; The Asteroid Wars, v. 4) - The novel begins at the destruction of the original Chrysalis habitat at Ceres; but with the view from the family aboard the Syracuse. As the family's ship is attacked, Victor the father separates the command module from the rest of the ship to draw the attackers away; but leaves his family no way of getting home, as they drift on a five-year orbital journey. After life-altering changes, Dorn and Elverda travel the Asteroid Belt searching for the bodies of the dead who perished in the Asteroid Wars; but Martin Humphries is bent on destroying both of them. Kao Yuan is the captain of the spacecraft Viking, which is on the mission to kill Dorn and Elverda; however, Humphries' former lover, Tamara, is the real commander, and she begins to have plans of her own. Eventually, Fate brings all these people together at the right moments in order to restore Humanity, and bring justice.