In six hundred years the human race has spread to nearby stars, terraforming planets, creating habitats and all those things needed for life. The Erickson is the only builder class star ship, it creates huge stations that are the only thing that allow easy travel to the stars. It is about to leave for an unexplored star system. When they arrive they will be on their own, they must solve any problems they encounter or die.

On New Europe, a Painter who has lost hope for the future see's a job listing for the Erikson. He is deeply hurt but will heal, and in so doing becomes a man who can lead the Erikson to salvation after the worst happens.On The Erikson a woman is deeply scarred, and later hurts herself even more. For she does not yet understand that you can not hold yourself responsible for those things you can not control.

Out beyond where any human has reached, in the deep, first contact of the worst kind is made. The hope of the Erickson will lie with the bravery and intelligence of two damaged people who must outwit and outfight a civilization who want the Erikson for themselves.

If you like hard science fiction like The Expanse or Artemis by Andy Weir you will love Humanity in the Deep.

Master Sergeant Gant Maker was a highly-decorated and well-respected Marine - until his last mission left him as the sole survivor of an encounter with a vicious race called the Vacra. Served up as a scapegoat and drummed out of the military, he has since lived a life of seclusion with only an adopted alien as a companion.Now the Vacra have returned. As the only person to have ever faced them and survived, Maker is reinstated in the Corps and given the onerous task of finding this enemy on a world located at the edge of known space. Assisting him is an unlikely band of military rejects, including a blind sharpshooter, an unstable psychic, and a genetically-engineered killing machine who refuses to fight.Given that the Vacra have superior weapons and technology, Maker recognizes that his team is at a distinct disadvantage. But Marines are nothing if not resourceful, and Maker has an audacious plan that just may level the playing field – if it doesn’t get them all killed.