Not bad 386

Pretty interesting story characters but sometimes at the limit of the grotesque (ah, the engineer babydoll pink !!!).
The end is in the vein of the disheveled SciFi of the golden age, Clarke, Simak ...
The most interesting is (in my copy) the ten pages (after the novel itself) scientifically dissecting all exposed theories, and especially the principle of the Bussard ramjet designed by Robert in the 60s.
Exciting, the door opens slightly interstellar travel, still missing one technology.
For diehard readers Hard SciFi, I highly recommend "Protector", Larry Niven, star wars, .... TRUE!