About the Book

Book: Above the Circle of Earth Author: E. Stephen Burnett Genre: Science Fiction Release date: March 4, 2025 The fight for the space mission begins in his homeworld. Brock Rivers never wanted to be a repairman on Mars. Years ago, he failed to protect his family, and now he labors across a frontier planet to keep his children alive and escape CAUSE. But the spacefaring humanist regime is taking over Martian colonies, forcing all to join the secular state. Back in Brock’s homeworld, his people summon him to fulfill old hopes with a new dream. After decades of cultural isolation, they plan to restore missions for the 22nd century, voyaging beyond Earth to share the gospel in space. Brock must find a ship and recruit a team of misfit believers. They expect opposition from the formidable CAUSE, but not from a more deceptive enemy. One adversary attacks from the shadows to destroy the faithful. Others unify to oppose the project. Brock and his family must fight to resist these enemies of the space mission or else return to exile forever.

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About the Author

E. Stephen Burnett creates sci-fi novels as well as nonfiction, exploring fantastical stories for God’s glory as publisher of Lorehaven.com and its weekly Fantastical Truth podcast. He is coauthor of The Pop Culture Parent and other resources for fans and families. Stephen and his wife, Lacy, live in the Austin area and serve in their local church.

More from E. Stephen

Today’s earthly life seemed especially rough. My day job had issues. A family member is facing worse challenges. Home-repair projects are piling up. Oh, plus our two dogs stormed out of the house and, for no discernable reason, attacked the neighbor’s pet (zero injuries reported, so far). It’s not all bad. As I write, my wife and I aren’t sick. Times of rest are coming soon. We have good work and freedom to worship Jesus. We enjoy shelter and supplies. Also—we’re not forced into exile on Mars because of secular persecution on Earth. That last is the scenario of my debut sci-fi novel Above the Circle of Earth. Its creation began with an “original” teenage thought like, “Hey, what if someone made a sci-fi adventure, only with Christian characters?” That grew into a complex futuristic world of fantastic space exploration, but also mixed results for believers in Christ. ACE isn’t all dystopia. You can still enjoy freedom to practice your faith on Earth. But you need to stay in your religious preserve. If you try to live like a Christian outside that homeworld, the spacefaring humanist regime CAUSE won’t appreciate that. That’s how Brock and Alicia Rivers ended up fighting to survive on Mars, laboring in the settlements and raising their three children in a dry and weary, waterless land. Then comes their call to adventure. This is not just a mission, but the Space Mission, the first restored missionary outreach in fifty years. They’ll have to return to Earth and face the death of a loved one, intimidation by the secular CAUSE, and many challenges and greater threats from their own Christian brothers and sisters—all forming a fantastical adventure about how we long to defend our homeworlds. I started my first version of ACE decades ago. But to tackle big themes like this, I now realize I needed more experience to understand these kinds of struggles. Of course, I’ve never had to diagnose a leaking dome on another planet or resist a technocratic humanist regime. But I have felt the pain of lost job opportunities, grief after the loss of a parent, and the futility of researching odd subjects (from biblical theology to Martian calendars!) that seemed to lead nowhere. Well, plot twist: All those hard times made this science fiction more realistic. You can’t build spaceships or stories without those struggles. Otherwise the tale ends up bad—inauthentic and corny, with simplistic morals and shallow heroes. Ugh. Few readers want that. And the few who do will barely remember such a book. Maybe that’s one reason our Author allows the real-world challenges. He’s not just making us holy and more like Jesus Christ. He’s making us to be more human, well-rounded heroes with dimension and realism, for His glory and our good. Here’s hoping Above the Circle of Earth launches a different kind of Christian-made science fiction, helping us see all hard times in light of our Author’s amazing future. Godspeed and #GoTherefore! Stephen Burnett

Interview with the Author

Do you read books in this genre? If so, who do you like to read?

Over half the books I read are Christian-made fantastical novels. I guess once people learn you’re the publisher of Lorehaven.com and you’re into that sort of thing, you’ll be swimming in these stories! Fortunately, I enjoy swimming. And I love exploring amazing worlds created by my spiritual family in Christ’s church.

Of the fantastical novels I enjoy, Christian-made and otherwise, I’d say about half count as science fiction. Meanwhile, I also enjoy exploring nonfiction—doctrine books as well as current events, apologetics, sociopolitical conflicts, and science.

If a reader were to ask you what author you are like, what would you answer?

That’s a stumper, that it is.

At my next writers’ conference, I should ask about personal “comp” human beings!

What helps you to write? Do you eat snacks, listen to music?

First, an organized desktop, both physically and virtually.

Second, background music (for editing) or ambient tones (for drafting).

Third, something drinkable helps. As I write this, I just finished a coffee/hot cocoa.

If you could travel back in time, what time period would you go to?

Does the time machine only work for historical jaunts? I wonder if such time travel is impossible. Travel to the future, with a return trip to your own timeframe, seems more likely. But for a journey back, of course I’d go to first-century Israel.

What is your favorite book and why?

The very Christian answer is the Bible, to be sure.

After that, I enjoy so many authors across fiction and nonfiction genres.

What is your favorite hymn and why?

Christmas hymns take my top choices. But you can only listen to those, say, two months out of every year. (Maybe three.) After that, I love hymns like “This is My Father’s World,” “All Creatures of Our God and King,” and “Be Thou My Vision.”

What is one thing readers would be surprised to learn about you?

Some years back, I was surprised to learn that I am an extrovert after all, yet a selective one. If the setting is church, a writers’ event, or a homeschool families conference, I can go for hours chatting with folks and learning their stories.

What inspired you to write this book?

Once upon a time, a tall and very homeschooled teenage lad witnessed a certain 1999 space franchise prequel hero printed on a pizza box. That’s when this teenage homeschooled student came up with a brilliantly original thought:

Say, what if there was an adventure story set in space—but, you know, about Christians?

Plot twist: That teen lad was me all along. And some decades later, I revisited this old idea with a lot more life experience and studies of biblical cultural engagement. This story wasn’t just about “Christians v. atheists, in space”! Above the Circle of Earth (ACE) orbits one heroic family. They are exiled to a frontier planet, then summoned to their homeworld to start a Space Mission in a future that’s hostile to their faith.

Share with me a few of your favorite things.

Deep doctrine magic in the Word that explains life, the universe, and everything.
I just enjoyed a really great Christmas, so I’m still thinking about that.
A new hardcover book with that new-book scent when you unveil its pages.
Traveling to new places for recreation or work, or even better, a little of both.
Epic stories and film scores that hearken to big themes, people, and places.

What is one question you would like readers to ask you? What would be your answer?

Here’s a small question with big results that can help fuel Christian fans forever.

Question: What is the chief end of story? I mean, why do we actually have these things?

Answer: The chief end (or highest purpose) of story is not just to entertain, educate, or edify us. The chief end of stories is to help us glorify God and to enjoy Him forever!