Contact

Contact by Susan Grant was published on May 10, 2013. It is a science-fiction romance with an otherworldly twist. Jordan Cady is a single mother who works as a 747 commercial pilot. During a red-eye flight in route from Hawaii, the flight’s captain dies suddenly of a heart attack and the flight is intercepted by an alien spaceship. As the co-pilot, Jordan is now in charge of 300 terrified passengers. Jordan’s plane is being transported to a whole new world where a new culture and a new language await. The plane is taken aboard a spaceship and Jordan, her crew, and the passengers are told by aliens that the earth has been destroyed by a rogue comet and that they are the only Earth survivors left. What also lies in wait is another race of beings, known as the Talagars, who wish to enslave the humans.

The gadget-loving race of aliens both resemble and act like humans; however, their language is that of their Alliance. Space Force Lieutenant Kao Ventaar-Moray is their translator. He is the one who reluctantly informs Jordan about the comet. Kao, the emotionally scarred son of the ship’s commander expects gratitude from Jordan but instead is met with defiance. He tries hard to convince her that his people have saved her and hundreds of passengers from death but Jordan is still suspicious of his motives. In her mind, her aircraft has simply vanished from the earth without a trace.

Jordan and Kao battle a fierce attraction to one another. As Jordan seeks to comfort her crew, Kao is struggling with his demons. The more involved he becomes with her, the more torn his loyalties. He has a glimpse of a new life, one that includes Jordan if he can save her from a heartless enemy. Jordan and Kao’s romance provide the backdrop in the war between the Alliance and the Talagars. The book wraps up with an explosive ending, one that revolves around how to get back home.



Though the story starts slow and claims an unlikely premise, it boasts plenty of action, adventure, and romance that resonates with a post-911 era. Jordan is a tough and commanding heroine and Contact is a deep and thought-provoking story.

Susan Grant is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. Her books combine science fiction, military tactics, aviation, and romance. Grant is a RITA winner for Contact, the highest award in romance fiction. She has also won numerous other awards including several Booklist and Library Journal best book of the year nominations, five PRISMS, and four PEARLS. Her interviews have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, the Sacramento Bee, and Publishers Weekly. At eighteen, Grant entered the United States Air Force Academy, graduating as a second lieutenant. She continued her training as a USAF jet pilot at Laughlin Air Force Base in Del Rio, Texas, earning a Fighter Attack Reconnaissance rating. Her career as a 747 pilot for United Airlines began later. Grant’s background, especially post 9-11, greatly informs her plots. In addition to imagination, she brings authentic, front line experience to her characters. She began writing in 1997, selling her first two novels in 1999. Grant writes book that are a mixture of sci-fi and fantasy with the added element of romance. She uses her extensive military training and aviation backgrounds as well as her travel experiences to her stories. Her debut novel, Once a Pirate, a historical time-travel story, sold in a publishers bidding war. Grant eventually switched from traditional publishing and all of its limitations to the world of independent indie authors. She resides with her family in the foothills of northern California.