When the British Arean Company founded its Martian colony, it welcomed
any settlers it could get. Outcasts, misfits, and dreamers emigrated in
droves to undertake the grueling task of terraforming the cold red
planet--only to be abandoned when the BAC discovered it couldn't turn a
profit on Mars.
This is the story of Mary Griffith, a determined woman with three
daughters, who opened the only place to buy a beer on the Tharsis Bulge.
It's also the story of Manco Inca, whose attempt to terraform Mars
brought a new goddess vividly to life; of Stanford Crosley, con man
extraordinaire; of Ottorino Vespucci, space cowboy and romantic hero; of
the Clan Morrigan; of the denizens of the Martian Motel, and of the
machinations of another company entirely--all of whom contribute to the
downfall of the BAC and the founding of a new world. But Mary and her
struggles and triumphs are at the center of it all, in her bar, the
Empress of Mars.
Based on the Hugo-nominated novella of the same name, this is a
rollicking novel of action, planetary romance, and high adventure.