The novel “Sun of Suns” by Karl Schroeder was published for the first time in 2006. It’s the first novel of Virga.

Hayden Griffin is a native of Aerie, a nation conquered by its rival Slipstream. Now his only purpose is to take revenge on the man who six years earlier caused the death of his parents, Admiral Chaison Fanning. Using forged papers he’s able to join Slipstream’s fleet but the situation gets more complicated than expected.

When Hayden is assigned to Lady Venera, Admiral Fanning’s wife, it seems that his mission has reached the moment he’s been waiting for. Instead, a group of Slipstream ships start a mysterious mission under Admiral Fanning connected with a powerful rival. In the crew there’s also a scientist who claims she comes from outside of Virga, the world in which asteroids, artificial habitats and many small suns move around.

In “Sun of Suns” Karl Schroeder introduces Virga, a planet that’s not only artificial but also hollow, a giant balloon whose inhabitants live inside it. Virga’s population is fragmented into a multitude of small nations living on asteroids and large wheels that use centrifugal force to simulate gravity.

The heat is produced by many small suns and a larger one, called the Sun of Suns. In particular, it creates winds that move the various nations within Virga. These constant shifts of populations make the relationships between them unstable causing even wars between nations that become unwilling neighbours.

In this complex and advanced environment, however, technology is generally quite limited and its inhabitants don’t know what there’s out of Virga. All this can confuse the reader at the beginning of “Sun of Suns” but gradually at least some of the mysteries of this artificial planet get solved.

The novel follows Hayden Griffin’s quest for revenge but also Admiral Chaison Fanning’s secret mission. A flotilla sail in the air and the story isn’t just a great adventure but also a way to get to know at least a part of Virga with its asteroids, habitats, peoples and even pirates.

“Sun of Suns” is a novel in which the truly unique setting is the great protagonist because Karl Schroeder gives us a detailed description of the journey of the fleet under Admiral Fanning. From this point of view, the novel is in some ways the equivalent of the novels of the past describing minutely naval journeys to exotic locations written for people who had no chance to go there.

Often the impression is that the plot is an excuse to provide new details on some new place of Virga and do some revelation about its mysteries because honestly it contains some clichés. Karl Schroeder still manages to keep the story interesting with a lot of action that leads to a generally fast pace and several twists.

The action in a setting like that of Virga allows to obtain intriguing results because a naval battle fought in the air but also fights between people in microgravity conditions are original elements. The plot contains clichés but at least they’re developed in a new way.

The main characters are developed quite well having their motives, their past and their agendas. Hayden Griffin is perhaps a bit too confused for a person who has been working for years to avenge the murder of his parents and the characterization of Admiral Fanning contains some clichés. In the end, Lady Venera is probably the most interesting character with her continuous scheming and her obsession with an obscure episode in her past.

“Sun of Suns” only gives us a first look at Virga and that’s inevitable for a novel less than 350 pages long. The story has its end but there are still many mysteries surrounding this fictional universe and Lady Venera. In short, there’s a lot of material for the following novels in the series.

“Sun of Suns” is a special mix of genres because it blends in an intriguing and original way hard science fiction, steampunk and naval adventure and the result is really good. If you enjoy those themes and unique environments this is a must-read.