Book excerpt: “An engaging, if slow-paced, introduction to an expedition’s adventures and challenges on a distant planet.” Earth is dying, but a lush, beautiful world discovered at the edge of human space could be the key to its survival. The World council has begun a massive project to build a ship that can make the journey, even though the planet has a flaw: it defies most of the known laws of science. Building the ship is hard, but finding a trustworthy crew and civilians willing to risk everything on a potentially dangerous world is even harder. The council decides to pursue a merchant captain who has proven himself in setting up colonies, but Alec does not get along with everyone on the council. His relationship with the council becomes even more strained when they use Alec’s wife and young daughters to coerce him into accepting the assignment. Wonders––and dangers––may await the crew, but as humanity’s existence on Earth becoming more perilous every day, Alec accepts the assignment. A surprising discovery awaits the crew, but is it one that will help or hurt their cause? Converging Paths of Cerzia: The Journey Begins sets the stage for an extraordinary adventure in space as the crew works together to determine if the mysterious world is the solution that will assure humanity’s survival.