Assistant Trader Jethri Gobelyn was an honest, hardworking young man who knew a lot about living onboard his family's space-going trade ship; something about trade, finance, and risk-taking; and a little bit about Liadens. It was, oddly enough, the little bit he knew about Liadens that seemed like it might be enough to make his family's fortune, and his own, too. In short order, however, Jethri Gobelyn was about to find out a lot more about Liadens...like how far they might go to protect their name and reputation. Like the myriad of things one might say-intentionally or not-with a single bow. Like what it would take to make a Liaden trade-ship crew trash a bar. Like how hard it is to say "I'm sorry!" in Liaden. Pretty soon it was clear that as little as he knew about Liadens, he knew far less about himself. With his very existence a threat to the balance of trade, Jethri Gobelyn needed to learn fast, or else help destroy all he held dear. "...an admirable addition to a series much beloved by readers of complex, character-driven and lyrical science fiction." -- Susan Krinard, author of To Catch a Wolf "...full of action, exotic characters, plenty of plot, and even a touch of romance. The world building is outstanding." -- Booklist "Action, nifty tech, larger-than-life characters, romance, humor, mind-expanding talents LIADEN is space opera at its best" -- Sherwood Smith "BALANCE OF TRADE was a fulfilling read, and Jethri s viewpoint allowed an insider look at Liaden society." -- Jody Wallace, Science Fiction Romance Book Reviews "It s another thrill ride for loyal Liaden fans and a great place for the uninitiated to jump on." -- Lisa DuMond, Contributing Editor and Senior Reviewer for SFSite and Black Gate Magazine; Freelance Reviewer for SFReader.com This stand-alone novel in the Liaden Universe® is a story from the early days of trade between Terrans and Liadens. Sharon Lee and Steve Miller live in the rolling hills of Central Maine. Born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, they met several times before taking the hint and formalizing the team in 1979. They removed to Maine with cats, books, and music following the completion of Carpe Diem, their third novel. Their short fiction, written both jointly and singly, has appeared or will appear in numerous anthologies and magazines, including Catfantastic, Such a Pretty Face, Murder and Magic, Absolute Magnitude, 3SF, and several incarnations of Amazing. Meisha Merlin Publishing has or will be publishing ten novels cleverly disguised as seven books in Steve and Sharon's Liaden Universe® — Partners in Necessity, Plan B, Pilots Choice, I Dare, Balance of Trade and two as yet untitled —The Tomorrow Log, first of the Gem ser'Edreth adventures, and Low Port, edited by Sharon and Steve. Sharon has also seen a mystery novel, Barnburner, published by Embiid. I Dare has been an Amazon.com and a Locus magazine bestseller. Pilots Choice was a finalist for the Pearl Award; and both Scout's Progress and Local Custom (included in Pilots Choice) won the first and second place (respectively) Prism Award for best SF Romance of 2001. Both Sharon and Steve have seen their non-fiction work and reviews published in a variety of newspapers and magazines. Steve was the founding curator of the University of Maryland's Kuhn Library Science Fiction Research Collection, and former Nebula Award juror. Sharon served three years as the executive director of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Inc. and is the current president of that organization. Sharon's interests include music, pine cone collecting, and seashores. Steve also enjoys music, plays chess, and collects cat whiskers. Both spend way too much time playing on the internet. Used Book in Good Condition