7

Can anyone recall a novel about a small colony living on an old aircraft suspended underwater? I remember seeing the book in the late 80s early 90s in a second hand shop. Had a picture of and old sea plane on the cover. Something like a Shorts Sunderland. The main protagonist was male with a female partner and there was some portent about a threat emerging from the depths.

3
  • Hi, welcome to SF&F. Did you start to read the book at all, or did you just look at the cover? Was the plane in a lake or the sea? How deep was it? Was the picture realistic or cartoony?
    – DavidW
    Jun 29, 2022 at 12:37
  • 3
    Related: James White's "The Watch Below" is about a 'colony' of humans living in a sunken ship. scifi.stackexchange.com/q/27083/28516 Jun 29, 2022 at 14:15
  • With the description of the cover I was hoping it was "Operation Springboard" by John Ball Jr, but nothing else fits :( Jun 29, 2022 at 23:10

1 Answer 1

8

This sounds like possibly the 1977 novel

Medusa's Children by Bob Shaw (and at FanFiction ). Points that seem to match:

Novel about a small colony living on an old aircraft suspended underwater?

Match. "The Clan live in a strange undersea world, amid a cluster of nets and metal objects anchored to the root system of a giant plant. This is the Home"

I remember seeing the book in the late 80s early 90s in a second hand shop.

Match. Was from 1977 so easily could have been read secondhand in 80s/90s/

Had a picture of and old sea plane on the cover.

Partial match? Not sure if this is a plane or boat?

Cover Image

The main protagonist was male with a female partner

Match.

and there was some portent about a threat emerging from the depths.

Match. This is the Home and outside it lie the hazards of the deep - especially the voracious and many tentacled Horra. Their dead are cast out to sink slowly into the depths where the mysterious deity Ka is waiting.Now their environment is slowly changing. A new current is growing daily stronger and flowing downwards, drawing everything down towards the realm of Ka.

5
  • If accepted (and it may well be the correct answer) duplicate of this old question scifi.stackexchange.com/q/163183/28516 Jun 29, 2022 at 14:09
  • 1
    I think this answer is correct, but I thought they were humans from Earth who had been sucked through an Alien "Bermuda Triangle" portal to an ocean on an extra terrestrial planet? That is, the other question and answer have a better description of the actual plot, and the Abe Books synopsis is wrong.
    – tgdavies
    Jun 29, 2022 at 21:58
  • @tgdavies. You are correct. The other answer has a better description than the Abe books location. I had used the Abe book link because the cover matched. However, I found another link (from the other answer above) that shows the same cover and has a better description as well.
    – beichst
    Jun 29, 2022 at 22:45
  • @tgdavies It wasn't an ocean on an extra terrestrial planet, but a huge zero-gee ball of water floating in our solar system. Jun 30, 2022 at 1:43
  • Ah yes, I must reread it -- looking at the very nice cover illustration on my 1978 Pan paperback right now...
    – tgdavies
    Jun 30, 2022 at 2:53

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.