[The Rising Flame 01] • Defender of the Flame (The Rising Flame Book 1)

Starship pilot Terry Radnor is puzzled and outraged when he is suddenly recalled from interstellar exploration and then, just when he has become involved in a secret project offering him extraordinary physical and psychic capabilities, he is transferred to a cruiser for a tour of duty he expects to hate. But the cruiser's mission proves to be unlike anything he could have imagined. Advancing rapidly in his career, Terry finds fulfillment in love and in commitment to a cause—until an ironic twist of fate tears him away from everything he cares about. He is forced to build a whole new life, far from all that has previously mattered to him. Is there any hope that he can fulfill his pledge to protect the world whose safety is crucial--more crucial than anyone else knows--to the future of humankind?

This series of novels, formerly titled the Flame Trilogy, has been split into two series: The Hidden Flame and The Rising Flame. This is the first book in the second series, which is a separate story set two centuries later that does not depend on having read the first series. Unlike some of Engdahl's earlier novels, these are not YA books and are not appropriate for middle-school readers.