River Horses

Dust jacket illustration by Ron Miller

Allen Steele's novels about the frontier planet Coyote -- Coyote, Coyote Rising, and Coyote Frontier -- have become one of the most critically acclaimed series of the last decade. Yet there remain stories about humankind's new home that have not been told. "The River Horses" is one of those tales.

Taking place between the events of Coyote Rising and Coyote Frontier, this standalone novella tells the story of Marie Montero and Lars Thompson, two veterans of the revolutionary war against Earth who have been exiled from the colonies. Sent out to explore the unmapped regions of Coyote, they are accompanied by Manuel Castro, a posthuman Savant who was once the lieutenant governor during the Union occupation. The three of them don't trust one another, but in order to survive the challenges of the wilderness, they must find a way to work together. Yet Coyote has a way of changing people...and once they encounter the river horses, nothing will ever be the same again.

A tale of adventure, suspense, and romance, The River Horses is the latest chapter of an epic by a Hugo-winning author.

Limited: 500 signed numbered hardcover copies

From Booklist
"Three explorers, one of them once a servant of the fallen Union regime, venture into the remote and extreme wilderness of the planet Steele limned in Coyote (2002), Coyote Rising (2004), and Coyote Frontier (2005)...Steele's numerous virtues in the novels distinguish this novella, too."

From Publishers Weekly:
"Steele's intimate stand-alone novella of the frontier planet of Coyote chronicles the redemptive journey of two colony exiles, adding a brilliant brushstroke to the already vast and vivid canvas of the Coyote saga (Coyote, etc.). With a sophistication reminiscent of some of the genre's greatest visionaries, Steele has created a must-read for anyone who enjoys thought-provoking SF..."