Date Night on Union Station

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This is a delightful, well-written, engaging read.

This the first book in author E.M. Foner's “Union Station” series, with their curious and clever “variations on a theme” covers. The story involves the travails of EarthCent diplomat Kelly Frank. EarthCent is the autonomous pseudo-government set up by a species of robotic AI beings, known as the Stryx. After the Stryx discovered Earth and gave humans the technology for interstellar flight, for reasons known only to the Stryx, although they seem to be a good sort with a fondness for taking charity cases under the wings, Earth nations became redundant and in the interstellar reaches, it is the seemingly anarchic EarthCent that represents the interests of humanity, with Stryx support.

As the book opens, Kelly is a consul and she is looking for a man, or at least a decent date. Kelly has been given a subscription with the elite, expensive and exclusive Eemiss dating system to see if that situation can be rectified. The dates do not go well, to put it mildly, but, at least, Kelly is able to shine as a diplomat and save the Earth from losing the topsoil of a continent pursuant to a bad contract and put an end to a bride-kidnapping scheme and solve the problem of alien counterfeiting of human trade goods.

The book also winds around the similar dating disasters of Joe McAllister, who is having similar luck with his Eemiss subscription. He dropped out of his mercenary life to raise his foster son, Paul, a war orphan Joe found during one of the wars that he was employed to fight. He is generous and decent. Joe does seem like a good guy who deserves a good woman.

Will Joe and Kelly meet? Will they find love? Why are the omnicompetent Stryx such bad matchmakers?

You will have to read the book to find out.

This book is lightweight and played for an easy-going humor. The insanity of EarthCent's diplomacy and the zaniness of the aliens that Joe and Kelly interact with reminded me of Keith Laumer's Retief stories, albeit Retief didn't seem to have a personal life (or a first name, if I recall.) I found this to be a thoroughly enjoyable diversion and I look forward to future instalments.