Touching Infinity

Novel by Mark O’Bannon

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

January 19, 2025 (San Diego)—San Diego resident Mark O’Bannon has released a new science fiction romance, Touching Infinity  (Imperium Prequels).

In a society where arranged marriages are considered more sensible and enduring, Alastronia DeTroyes, a young planetary scientist, is excited to find herself traveling into a system that she has predicted will explode soon into a supernova.

Over the course of the novel, Alastriona corresponds with her sister, Julia.

Below is an excerpt from the novel:

“’We’ll decide what’s best for you,” Théophile said.

“’The Chinese call these types of marriages, ‘máng hūn.’”

“’Yeah, that translates as, ‘blind marriage,’” said Julie. “Not for me, thanks.”

“Their mother shook her head in exasperation. “No one wants their children making rash decisions to marry someone because of passion or lust. In an arranged marriage, you will stay together forever.”

           “’What about love?” asked Julie.

“’Don’t be naive, Julie. There’s no such thing as true love,” said Théophile. “That’s just a silly romantic fantasy.”

            Julie stopped arguing and devoted her attention to her food.

“Alastriona tried to get her sister to understand. “There are two kinds of love: The first kind is frivolous, romantic love. That kind of love leads to madness and suffering. The second kind is the stable form of love that is the result of careful planning.”

“Julie found her voice. “But love isn’t supposed to make sense. If you start a fire, you can’t control where it goes. You should follow your passions, sis. Don’t you want to fall wildly in love with someone?”

“Alastriona shook her head. “Of course not. I have no patience for crazy love. It’s pointless and irresponsible.”

“Chantel, chimed in. “Husbands and wives fall in love with each other after the wedding takes place in order to sustain their marriage. You know the divorce rates for provincials are over fifty percent. Arranged marriages rarely result in a divorce. You know the statistics as well as anyone, Julie.”

“’That reminds me,” said Théophile. “I have an announcement to make.” Théophile waved over a slave. The robot came over with a bottle of wine, which he displayed with a slight bow. Théophile nodded.

“The slave opened the bottle and poured him a sample. Théophile breathed in its aroma, tasted it, and smiled. He motioned for the slave to fill everyone’s glass. “Since this is a special occasion, I have brought out a bottle of Burgundian Pinot Noir all the way from Earth.”

“The slave went around pouring. Alastriona watched the robot fill her glass. She picked it up and inhaled the aroma, which reminded her of cherries and strawberries. She took a sip and closed her eyes, tasting mushrooms, pine, and just a hint of anise. It tasted like sunlight shining down on a grove of cherry trees. “What’s the occasion?” asked Julie.

           “’Alastriona is getting married,” said Théophile.

“Alastriona nearly choked on the wine. She set the glass down and coughed. “Désolé.”

“Feeling as if she had just been shoved off a high platform without an antigravity belt, Alastriona took a moment to regain her composure.

            “Chantel asked, “Aren’t you excited, Alastriona?”

            “’Of course,” she said. “It’s just a surprise, that’s all.”

 “’We’ve spent months searching for just the right man,” said Chantel. “We found one. He’s a Pure Strain Human from Earth.”

             “Théophile huffed. “You’re being redundant, Chantel.”

Pure Strain Humans where those who were born on Earth. They were the highest class of citizens and they enjoyed more benefits than the provincial citizens who were born on colony worlds. Pure Strain Humans were the highest class of elites in the Imperium.

Picking up her glass of wine, Alastriona leaned back in her chair. She looked outside at the storm raining down on the Scylanthians. The star HD 84117 was going down and the horizon was full of colors. Light glittered off wet bodies of the balloon-like people. The French colony world Scylanthia was warmed by a white F8V main sequence star in the constellation of Hydra. At 6,100 degrees Kelvin, it burned hotter and brighter than Sol, the homeworld of humanity. A world that she could never go to because she wasn’t a Pure Strain Human.

As Alastriona strikes out on her expedition into deep space, she wants to lose herself in the analysis of the imminent supernova. She discovers that her fiancé, a Pure Strain Human detective, has joined the expedition on a covert mission to uncover a traitor among them. Alastriona becomes thrown into a nightmare when a traitor on board assists aliens in their invasion of the galaxy.

Will Alastriona prevent the aliens from destroying all life in the galaxy?

Touching Infinity is a prequel novel in the epic science fiction series, Imperium.

I found the book to be a pleasurable read. The world O’Bannon creates is interesting, highly visual, and Alastronia’s days are full of romantic temptations by three men who are on board. Which one will she choose?

Mark O’Bannon is a screenwriter, game designer, and author of three fantasy series: Whiskers, Aia the Barbarian, and Shadows and Dreams. He is the CEO of Shadowstar Games, which publishes the Interactive Storytelling Game (a Pen & Paper Role Playing Game), Fantasy Imperium. He is an advocate of self-publishing and teaches workshops to aspiring authors to publish, market, and promote their works.