Far Edge of Darkness is the first half of an unfinished story that
was meant to continue in Unholy Trinity. Why isn't the story finished?
I plead a combination of ill health and financial need. Far Edge was
originally written before my first professional sale and became my
third published novel, after Sleipnir and Time Scout, plus the
anthology Bolos 3: The Triumphant. I was editing Far Edge and writing
Wagers of Sin (Time Scout #2) when a major illness shattered my health
and left me unable to write for three years, with a contract for a
major series unfulfilled. Wagers of Sin limped its way into print
during this time as I struggled to finish the last third of the book
(which I have no memory of writing). Jim Baen and Toni Weisskopf stood
by me as I put my life back together, an act of faith and kindness for
which I will bless them forever. My health remains fragile, which
limits my production speed, as does the day job I must keep to hold
onto utterly necessary health insurance. That is where the situation
stands at present. I'm committed to the Hell's Gate "Multi-Verse"
series with David Weber, which must be my highest priority.
If you have read Far Edge of Darkness and enjoyed it, thank you and
please accept my apologies for its unfinished state. (I, too, want to
get my literary children off that cliff they're plunging over!) If you
haven't read the book yet, I will say this in warning: the book's
action is constructed so that every single chapter ends on a
cliffhanger, including the last one. If you want "the rest of the
story" to exist before you begin reading a book, you'll probably want
to skip Far Edge of Darkness. But if you are willing to overlook the
lack of an ending to the overall story (there is closure of some major
plot threads), you're welcome to step onto the roller coaster. Just
hang on, because that last drop is a real dilly...