Next to my bed is a large heap of books in different stages of abandonment. When i finish one and it is recommendable, you might read about it here. I abandon and re-start this page every few years, this is its 4th or 5th incarnation.
2009-02-10A first contact story set in Hollywood. The story has a nice pace, lots of funny dialogues (of the "screwball comedy" fun type), some really touching moments, and a nice happy ending. Many classic science fiction clichés are knowingly encountered - have you ever encountered aliens that speak english fluently and know all the old sf movies? "We have seen the Blob, and it is us", indeed.
Verdict: Utterly brilliant.
Astoundingly, this is Scalzi's "test novel", and it remained unpublished for some time, only available at his web site.
Even though Agent is available for free online, I have bought the paper book, and don't regret it.
Wie gut die deutsche Version ("Agent der Sterne") übersetzt ist, kann ich nicht sagen, aber das Wortspiel im Titel hat schon mal dran glauben müssen.