The Candle of Distant Earth

May 8, 2006
In the quietly amusing last installment of bestseller Foster's Taken trilogy (after 2005's The Light-years Beneath My Feet
), Marcus Walker, a Chicago commodities trader kidnapped by aliens in 2004's Lost and Found
, and his companion, George, a sardonic talking dog, land on the planet Hyff. There Marcus and George help the Hyfft, peaceful meter-high creatures, battle unpleasant invaders known as the Iollth before resuming their quest to return home. Fans of E.E. "Doc" Smith's golden age space-traveling hero, Kimball Kinnison, will enjoy this slyly humorous saga, in which the good guys have plenty of human weaknesses and the villains aren't too evil.

April 15, 2006
The Taken trilogy comes to a rousing finish with more than a few surprising twists to keep fans of " Lost and Found" (2004) and " The Light-Years beneath My Feet " (2005) guessing. After escaping the ruthless, curio-collecting Vilenji and soaking up their rescuers' hospitality, Chicago commodities broker Marcus Walker and his fellow escapees are again space bound, searching for their respective home worlds. During the quest, they stumble across a planet populated by humble, catlike beings who at first mistake them for the bullying Iollth from a nearby star system, then enlist their aid in battle when the Iollth do show up. As designated leader of the expedition, Walker suddenly gains an improbable ally in the hunt for Earth when the Iollth are defeated. Meanwhile, watching their every move, the Vilenji are close at hand, setting the stage for a final, unpredictable confrontation. Readers who have come this far will revel in this book's skillful blend of amusing cultural misunderstandings and edge-of-the-seat suspense and enjoy a satisfying conclusion to one of Foster's most entertaining series. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)