When starship captain Jesse Sanders is seized by a dictatorial medical regime and detained on the colony planet Undine, he has no idea that he is about to be plunged into a bewildering new life that will involve ordeals and joys beyond anything he has ever imagined, as well as enduring love. Still less does he suspect that he must soon take responsibility for the lives of people he has come to care about and preservation of their hopes for the future of humankind.

Part science fiction, part what's sometimes called "visionary fiction," this controversial novel deals with the so-called "paranormal" powers of the human mind and will appeal to a wide range of readers who question the dominant medical philosophy of today's society. Unlike Engdahl's earlier novels, it is not appropriate for Young Adult audiences.