Tea . . . a beverage brewed from the fermented dried leaves of the shrub "Camelli sinensis "and imbibed by all the great civilizations in the galaxy's history; a source of refreshment, stimulation, and, above all else, of moral fiber"--"without which the British Space Empire must surely crumble to leave Earth at the mercy of its enemies. Sixty percent of the Empire's tea is grown on one world--Urn, principal planet of the Didcot system. If Earth is to keep fighting, the tea must flow When a crazed cult leader overthrows the government of Urn, Isambard Smith and his vaguely competent crew find themselves saddled with new allies--a legion of tea-obsessed nomads, an overly-civilized alien horde. and a commando unit so elite that it has only five members. Only together can they defeat the self-proclaimed God Emperor of Didcot and confront the true power behind the coup--the sinister legions of the Ghast Empire and Smith's old enemy, Commander 462.

托比.弗罗斯特（Toby Frost）

英国当代科幻小说家。托比立志创作，大学期间即出版了第一部作品《大船》，2000年创作《刀锋之城》，此后，其作品累获殊荣。

托比的小说在风格和质量上与著名的已逝作家泰瑞.布里切特（《银河系漫游指南》作者）有异曲同工之妙，但是也极富个性风格。他创作的风趣幽默的科幻作品在科幻市场和大屏幕上都很受欢迎。

除“史密斯船长大事记 ”之外，托比还创作了其他多部作品，如“史揣肯”系列、《顶尖》《小恶魔》等。