A human story (starting with a mystery and ending much larger) in a very clever setting, beginning with the premise that this ship is traveling so fast that the speed of light is visible (10 meters/sec) in some locations. Nominated for a Nebula award, I am surprised this is not well known.

Much time is spent describing the ship, and when they arrive at a particular planet, more time is spent on how the ship is able to "land" and also the main building on this planet. I feel like some illustrations would help this sort of description, which may be a bit much for some readers. The setting is also lovingly described, and the relativistic science used here is pretty interesting. A postscript contains the "passenger guide" for this ship, along with some author's notes on the setting.

For a 90s science fiction challenge, I chose this book to represent 1990, and because this author is new to me. I was impressed by the science aspects of this book, and the capability of a character (the first officer) who lives in this environment. Two other strong female characters bring the plot along, though has significant growth. The story is engaging and flows by quite quickly.

I liked this book, and look forward to reading more from this author.