This is a really good read.
Although some of the story seems too good to be true.
Overall the story is held together by some really strong characters.
A great Space Science Fiction read.

"The Anahita Chronicles Book I: Mercury" eBook was published in 2017 and was written by Samuel Blondahl (https://www.blondahl.ca). Mr. Blondahl has published three novels with this the first of this "Anahita Chronicles" series. 

I categorize this novel as ‘PG’ because it contains scenes of Violence. The story is set in the not too distant future. 

A new engine that will enable humans to travel great distances in space is about to be tested. The test is sabotaged, and instead of going to Mars, the spacecraft Mercury ends up near a habitable planet deep in space. They struggle to repair their ship enough to make it back to Earth. Due to the damage suffered from the earlier sabotage and unexpected events, the crew finds themselves stranded on the planet's surface.

They have been able to send the unmanned Mercury hurtling back towards Earth and asking for help. Now they must find a way to survive. Not only do they find that the planet is hospitable to humans, but they soon discover that they are not the only intelligent lifeforms on the planet. 

I enjoyed the 8.5 hours I spent reading this 409-page science fiction novel. I liked this novel. There are several plot threads going on: survival on an alien planet, a conspiracy back on Earth, and first contact with an alien species. While the story in this novel does reach a conclusion, there are threads of the plot left to be explored and resolved in future books in the series. I give this novel a 4.3 (rounded down to a 4) out of 5.

Further book reviews I have written can be accessed at https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/. 

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

I'm a fan of science fiction, but this novel couldn't make me believe in the new technology or in the characters, either those on the voyage or those on the previously undiscovered planet.

Confession: I only read a small portion of this book. The beginning of the story was badly written, both in terms of catching my interest, and in the number of grammatical miscues. But, for readers of Sci-Fi or for fans who value some degree of scientific literacy in the author, there are examples of a severe shortcoming in this area. For example, here's a quote:

"Energy equals MC squared implies that we would never break the light barrier. Energy, equals mass time the speed of light twice over."

Squared does not mean 'twice over.' I really couldn't get go on any further.

Thoroughly enjoyed book. I am looking forward to sequel. I could not put the book down. Congrats to Blondahl on successful first publication.