Society in the Morgan Selwood Universe

One of the great things about writing science fiction is you can ask the most marvellous 'what if' questions and explore ideas that don't exist on planet Earth, but may well be extensions or exaggerations of something that is found here.

That's what I did with my Morgan Selwood series.

As a result of a spaceship malfunction, Morgan finds herself in a distant part of the galaxy where very human aliens have created their own society. The people there are closely related to humans but they have been genetically modified. The most important modification is that each of them belongs to a particular class, as follows:

• Mirka - These people are the leaders. Military command officers, presidents and senior politicians will be found in their ranks, as well as police.
• Vesha - Vesha form the business class. Merchants, traders, layers, accountants and the like. Some of them are very wealthy.
• Hasta - These are the technical people. Engineers, technicians, chemists, scientists, doctors.
• Shuba - The working class. Laborers, foot soldiers, farmers.

Genetic engineering has made it impossible for people from the four classes to create offspring with a member of another class. Manesai culture is heavily based on the Indian caste system. But even if it wasn’t, point a finger at any part of the world and you’ll find classes, castes, restrictions on marriage and the like. The daughters of merchants would marry the sons of other merchants. Princes married princesses. Common serving men didn’t bother lusting after the daughter of the house. Although, in male dominated societies, men in authority thought nothing of having a bit on the side with the serving wench. Marriages were (and still are) very often arranged by the families.

And folks, this is still, by and large, true. I have simply taken one small step further in my science fiction and had idealistic genetic scientists make matches between classes childless. A place for everyone and everyone in their place. That’s sure to make for a peaceful society. </sarcasm>

Since humans are essentially tribal and we love to belong to groups, each class has developed sub-classes. Shuba are the foot soldiers, but one group was deliberately modified to make them bigger, stronger, more fearless than the rest. They are the Fleet's elite troopers who also fill civilian roles as security police and body guards. Admiral Ravindra is a member of the Darya sub-class within the Mirka. It is an elite group which produces most Manesai admirals. And the children of admirals (of course) tend to marry the children of admirals.

My three Morgan's Misfits are

•  Jirra is a Hasta ex-Fleet engineer who is in love with a Mirka officer. She refused to marry the man her parents had picked for her, so they hired an assassin to kill her.
•  Chet is Mirka and was a detective who was framed for the murder of her partner, the man she loved. She's out of a job.
• Toreni is an elite Shuba who did time in the Union Fleet as a marine. But she doesn't want to be a security guard, she wants to be a chef.

It’s space opera (of course). Three women from different backgrounds share adventures in space. These books are a spin-off from my Morgan Selwood novels, set in the same Universe. The women in this society are restricted in several respects. There’s a rigid, paternalistic class structure, which means they often can’t choose their own partners, and they often don’t have much choice when it comes to jobs, either. The three ladies who make up Morgan’s Misfits don’t fit the social mores.

While the books are action/adventure (with a little bit of romance), they’re also about the women interacting within their society, and with each other. I’m sure you’ll notice some parallels in 21st Century Earth.

The first book, Kuralon Rescue, tells the story of how the ladies save a couple of men sentenced to work to death on a prison planet called Kuralon. It’s how the ladies get together and how they acquired their name.

The second, Rescuing Romila, sees a little discord in our group of misfits as they become involved in drug smuggling and other nasty goings-on.

The third, just published, is Escape from Shar Burk. Jirra, Toreni, and Chet are at a restaurant on Shar Burk when Marisa drops in — literally. She'd been thrown from a hotel window, no longer required to report for duty as Shar Burk's governor's mistress. At first, they're just helping a fellow female escape a brute, but it doesn't end there. 

Of course it doesn't.

You’ll find all of the Morgan Selwood books listed here.

Meet the Author: Greta van der Rol

This week, we have long-time SFR Brigade member and administrator, Greta van der Rol, here from Down Under to share a little about herself and her latest release, which just launched a few days ago on April 6, 2018. Congratulations on publishing another novel...and welcome to Meet the Author Monday, Greta.

How or why did you first start writing SFR? Any particular inspirations?

I'm a well-known Star Wars tragic. Yes, I know it's not 'good' science fiction – I read the hard stuff, too. The thing about Star Wars is that it's fun. That's my lasting memory of watching Star Wars (before it became A New Hope) at the pictures. I loved the hint of romance between Leia and Han that occurred in The Empire Strikes Back, but I confess I felt it needed more. So I decided to write a space opera with a bit of romance. That led to my first book, The Iron Admiral: Conspiracy.


How many SFR books have you published and what are the titles? Can you give us a quick blurb on your most recent or upcoming title?

I've written ten novels and five shorter SFR titles. You can find them at my website. My latest book, Rescuing Romila, has just been released. It's a Morgan's Misfits adventure, which is a spin-off from my Morgan Selwood series. The Misfits are three women you don't quite fit into their stratified, paternalistic society. Helped by Morgan herself when needed, they carried out a daring rescue in Kuralon Rescue. This second book is stand-alone, but it always helps to know some of the backstory.

Here's the blurb:

Rescuing Romila

The Misfits are off on another planet-hopping adventure.

When Jirra and Toreni rescue Romila from a raid on her antiques business the Misfits start off on a mission to uncover a drug-smuggling operation. A new, very potent drug is on the market, hidden in statues of ice warriors carved on a remote world.

But all’s not well within the team. Toreni and Chet have fallen out, Toreni has received an offer that might be too good to refuse, and Jirra has doubts about her future. When the drug-smuggling operation morphs into something even more dangerous, the Misfits must resolve their differences. If they don’t act together, and quickly, many lives will be at risk. Including their own.

Action and adventure, with a little bit of romance.

You can find Rescuing Romila at these sites:

iBooks     |     Amazon     |     Kobo     |     B&N Nook

Give us a brief snippet of a favorite scene or passage from your work.

This is from Rescuing Romila. Toreni's out on a date with an ex-colleague.

*   *   *

The server came and cleared their plates and asked if they wanted dessert.

"Not straight away." Alric gestured at the dance floor where two couples swayed to music provided by a trio of performers. "Come and dance."

Dance? The nerves flared again. Not that she couldn't dance. Where she was raised dancing came with growing up. Music played, you danced. Oh, why not? She was here for a good time. Alric took her hand and led her the four steps to the dance floor. His hand was warm and strong, but gentle. He slipped his arm around her waist and drew her against him, not too close. She gazed into his eyes. They were yellow, like hers, but with flecks of amber.

"Do you know the steps?" she asked.

"No. Doesn't matter, does it? It's a slow pace. We can just walk around in time to the music."

She giggled. "We can do that."

It was nice. The music floated around her, an easy two-part rhythm that she could follow without thinking. The man holding her guided her and soon it was just her, and him, alone in a sensual mist of their own making.

She floated back to reality when the music stopped.

"A pity," Alric murmured. "I enjoyed that." He hadn't let her go.

"So did I."

He leaned in closer to whisper, his breath warm on her ear. "Fancy dessert at my place?"

She gazed up into eyes dark with heat. Dessert wasn't going to be cake and cream. The little voice insisting it was too early and she wasn't ready was shoved aside by another woman shouting that tomorrow might never happen, seize the moment while you can.

*   *   *

Have any of your books received any special recognition? What and where?

I was privileged to receive a SFR Galaxy Award last year for my novel, For the Greater Good. I was right chuffed.


How long have you been a member of the SFR Brigade and do you serve any special roles within the community?

I've been a member of the SFR Brigade for quite a few years and I'm a group admin. It's a great bunch of people, willing to help their peers in the choppy waters of publishing. If you're a writer of SFR, or aspiring to be one, come and join us.


About the Author

Greta van der Rol loves writing action-packed adventures with a side salad of romance. Most of her work is space opera, but she has written paranormal and historical fiction.

She lives not far from the coast in Queensland, Australia and enjoys photography and cooking when she isn't bent over the computer. She has a degree in history and a background in building information systems, both of which go a long way toward helping her in her writing endeavors. Find out more about Greta and her books at her website.