That is, until a beautiful crew member helps McKell uncover the true nature of the cargo he's carrying. It doesn't seem as if things could get any worse.

As if that weren't bad enough, it looks like the authorities already suspect something is afoot, there's a saboteur aboard, and the Icarus appears to be shaking apart at the seams. The ship, Icarus, turns out to be a ramshackle hulk, the ragtag crew literally picked up off the street, and the cargo so secret, it's sealed in a special container that takes up most of the cramped and ill-designed ship. But this time he may have taken on more than even he can handle. So when Jordan and his partner, Ixil-an alien with two ferret-like 'outhunters' linked to his neural system-are hired by a mysterious gentleman to fly a ship and its special cargo to Earth, they jump at the job.Ĭaution has never been one of Jordan's strong suits. In order to survive, Jordan ekes out a living dabbling in interstellar smuggling for outlaw concerns that represent the last vestiges of free trade in the galaxy. Unfortunately for him, the iron-fisted authority of the powerful Patthaaunutth controls virtually every aspect of galactic shipping. Jordan McKell has a problem with authority. So, first, I recommend this book to anyone who han't read it yet.From Timothy Zahn, Hugo Award winner and New York Times bestselling author of two landmark Star Wars® series, comes an original new tale featuring a renegade space pilot, his unusual alien partner, and an unknown cargo that can change the course of galactic history. It's up to Jordan and his mechanic partner Ixil, a Kalixiri with his two ferret 'outhunters' Pix and Pax, to figure out what's going on while struggling to stay alive. Jordan is immediately thrust into events spiraling out of control: one of the crew is murdered, his employer seems to have disappeared, an unknown saboteur is on board, and the 'Icarus' is being wanted by the oppressive Patth who have monopolized all trade in the galaxy. When he takes a job flying a strangely put-together antique ship called the 'Icarus' with a ragtag crew, little does he know that he has just landed himself in the middle of a huge conspiracy.

'The Icarus Hunt''s main character is Jordan McKell, a star-freighter pilot who plays the role of a poor yet honest private contractor, considering that in reality he is a smuggler working for a huge crime organization. The summary of the novel (Taken from an amazon review): I tried it and was enchanted, it's kind of a (good) Alistair Maclean novel set in space. A friend recommended The Icarus Hunt by Timothy Zahn.

The icarus hunt