Nimisha's Ship - Anne McCaffrey

Nimisha's Ship
Anne McCaffrey
Del Rey
Copyright: 2000
978-0345434258

The amazon.com product description:

On Vega III, Lady Nimisha Boynton-Rondymense loves the challenging world of her father, Lord Tionel, owner and principal starship designer of the famous Rondymense Ship Yards. Precociously gifted, Nimisha becomes his secret assistant--and, in the aftermath of a shocking tragedy, his chosen successor at the helm of the Ship Yards.

When Nimisha takes an experimental ship on a solo test flight, something goes horribly awry, marooning her light-years from home on a planet as deadly as it is beautiful. Now the ruthless members of a rival branch of the Rondymense family are given the chance they've been waiting for: to reclaim the Ship Yards by any means necessary.

Only Nimisha's ingenious child, Cuiva, stands in their way. But for how long? For just when her daughter needs her most, Nimisha is in a precarious situation herself--and unable to help. But Nimisha has never given up in her life--and she's not about to start now . . .

Not the lastest Anne McCaffrey novel by any means, but Nimisha's Ship has remained one of my favorites since it came out. The world is a very different one from most of McCaffrey's books. The world that Nimisha lived in at the beginning of the story is very formal, stratified and rigid. But Nimisha is an interesting character, determined to do her own thing, no matter what gets in her way.

One other interesting thing with Nimisha's Ship is that it's not quite a stand alone: The book is set in the same world/universe as The Coelura, but there's no overlap between the two otherwise.

I do wish that there was a sequel to this book. Although the main points of the story are resolved quite well at the end of the story, there are enough little things that there could have been a sequel. I know I'd love to know more about the Sh'im, not to mention the mysterious emissions trails that the rescuers and explorers both found in the final pages of the story.

A perfect mix of science fiction and adventure with a cast of strong characters. No outright violence or overly gory scenes either, which makes for a nice change from some of my other favorite authors in the genre.