Sophie

Starship Sophie

The Sophie is the S-class starship owned and operated by Jackie Roberts in The Chara Talisman series.

History

It was previously owned, the prior name was Surprise, renamed by Roberts because "as a rule, passengers don't like surprises". Both names come from the Patrick O'Brian Aubrey-Maturin series (some of which were made into the film Master and Commander), which Jackie had read as a teenager. Her father owned a leather-bound print edition, and was also a fan.

Specifications

The craft has room for six and a nominal range of 20 light years without refueling. It is equipped with a traumapod (pretty much standard equipment on exploration ships), gear to refuel from an ice moon or comet, and is fully VTOL capable on Earth-like planets, although Roberts generally prefers gliding entries and runway takeoffs when available, to save fuel.