Cheers to my beta readers—Carolyn O’Doherty, Fonda Lee, Sonja Thomas, and Vanessa MacLellan—whose keen insights showed me which paths to follow and what pitfalls to avoid during rewrites.
Thanks to Darla Myers for letting me use her snake names! (All snakes portrayed in this story are entirely fictitious. Any resemblance to actual snakes is purely coincidental and unintentional.)
Special thanks to Tinatsu Wallace for helping me brainstorm the “nursing home on the Moon” idea.
Secret thanks to Brian Ford Sullivan, Daniel H. Wilson, Sara B. Cooper, and Sean Berard for encouraging me to dream big.
Why, yes, there is a puzzle hidden in the cover image! Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to first reflect upon the designs in both spacesuits, then use that information to complete this web address: __.kangaroo2.com (and thanks to Daryl Gregory for inspiring what you’ll find there).
A general shout out to my #WriterLunch & #VanSushi cohorts: Alberto Yáñez, Alexis Radcliff, David Levine, Jessie Kwak, Laura Hall, Monica Villaseñor, Nadya Duke, Simone Cooper, and others previously mentioned. You make eating fun—and tax-deductible!
Speaking of food, I also need to thank my family for nourishing me in so many ways over the years: my mother taught me to love reading and learning, my father showed me how to build things, and my sister demonstrated kindness always. I wouldn’t be the person I am without their positive influences.
I’m eternally grateful to everyone who helped launch Waypoint Kangaroo and who continues to spread good word of mouth about this series. If you care enough to have read this far, please consider telling two friends how much you enjoyed these books (and encourage them to tell two friends, etc.). Please buy from a local independent bookseller. Please suggest purchases for your public library.
Books can build community, and we are stronger together.
Finally, thank you, dear reader, for going on this journey with Team Kangaroo. I hope we’ll meet again soon.
ALSO BY CURTIS C. CHEN
WAYPOINT KANGAROO
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
CURTIS C. CHEN graduated from Viable Paradise (his instructors included New York Times bestseller John Scalzi) and attended Clarion West (his instructors included World Fantasy Lifetime Achievement winner John Crowley and Hugo/Nebula winner James Patrick Kelly). He is the author of Waypoint Kangaroo, and his short fiction has appeared in Daily Science Fiction and SNAFU and will be featured in Baen’s Mission Tomorrow. On top of all that, he’s a former software engineer and once built a cat-feeding robot. He lives in Vancouver, Washington. For more information, go to ___.kangaroo2.com. You can sign up for email updates here.
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Acknowledgments
Also by Curtis C. Chen
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
THOMAS DUNNE BOOKS.
An imprint of St. Martin’s Press.
KANGAROO TOO. Copyright © 2017 by Curtis C. Chen. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
www.thomasdunnebooks.com
www.stmartins.com
Cover design by Lisa Marie Pompilio
Cover illustration by David Curtis
Cover photographs: astronaut by David Curtis; Chiron’s orbit © Irena Demchuk Art/Shutterstock.com
The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:
Names: Chen, Curtis C., author.
Title: Kangaroo too / Curtis C. Chen.
Description: First edition.|New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2017.
Identifiers: LCCN 2017009493|ISBN 9781250081896 (hardcover)|ISBN 9781250081902 (e-book)
Subjects: LCSH: Science fiction.|Spy stories.|BISAC: FICTION / Science Fiction / Military.|FICTION / Espionage.
Classification: LCC PS3603.H4473 K36 2017|DDC 813'.6—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017009493
e-ISBN 9781250081902
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First Edition: June 2017