{"product_id":"quade-book-iii-john-bailey-9798250040518","title":"Quade! Book III: The Red Desert of Tau Ceti","description":"\u003cb\u003eOn the frontier of Tau Ceti, survival is earned by sweat, not machines. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eCommander Elias Quade takes a routine protection contract for desert settlers on an extrasolar colony. But beneath the red dunes lies something older than humanity-and it is still operational. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe third installment in \u003ci\u003eThe Quade Expeditions\u003c\/i\u003e series delivers a relentless survival thriller set in a hostile extrasolar desert world. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eTau Ceti was supposed to be a new beginning. Instead, it has become a battleground of corporate manipulation, insurgent sabotage, and environmental attrition. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhen frontier settlers hire Quade to secure leverage against powerful off-world interests, he expects political tension. He does not expect alien ruins buried beneath the sand-nor the automated defenses that awaken when disturbed. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAs sandstorms grind machinery into dust and dehydration becomes a daily threat, Quade and his team uncover a physical alien archive describing something called the \"Optimization Directives.\" \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe records suggest a civilization that automated everything-labor, resilience, even survival itself. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThey did not die in war.\u003cbr\u003eThey decayed. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eNow rival forces from the Axiom Directorate close in, determined to control the discovery. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn a world where machines are failing and alliances fracture under pressure, Quade must decide whether humanity's future depends on accelerating progress-or remembering how to endure without it. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003ePerfect for readers who enjoy: \u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e- Hard science fiction grounded in realistic survival\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e- Frontier politics and corporate conflict\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e- Expeditionary sci-fi in the tradition of exploration epics\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e- Technology-versus-human-resilience themes\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e- Slow-burn alien mystery across multiple books\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Quade Expeditions go on.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e John Bailey\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9798250040518\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Independently Published\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 04\/24\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 182\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.55lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.39d","brand":"John Bailey","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":49172799586559,"sku":"9798250040518","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/quade-book-iii-john-bailey-9798250040518","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}