Book excerpt: Independent pilot and sometime berserker hunter Harry Silver is being hounded by the Space Force on suspicion of possession of an illegal, high-powered weapon. To avoid confiscation of his beloved ship the Witch, Harry agrees to a quick evacuation of a trio of refugees from the doomed Hong’s World. Destination – Maracanda, an azlaroc-type body, a curious non-planet where geography seems more like geometry and the soil itself can be a drug. Maracanda’s geography has the attention of berserkers, rogue killer machines programmed to destroy all life, especially human life. With help from ‘goodlife’, the berserkers could turn the strange combination of neutron star, black hole and Maracanda’s extra-ordinary geography into massive galactic destruction. Harry teams with a woman disenchanted with her fanatical husband and an accidentally helpful smuggler acquaintance in an attempt to save the galaxy. A grand military space story with engaging characters and a strikingly original and imaginative setting.