Eighteen years have passed since the first manned mission to Earth arrived from Venus. With the first colonists already establishing themselves across the bright, sunny world of clear blue skies and wonderlands of towering mountains and ice deserts, Kyal Reen arrives to join the Venusian scientific and archeological teams that are working to reconstruct the story of the mysterious and enigmatic extinct Terran race that once flourished there. Studies of Terran geology, scientific works, and ancient records show that Earth's early peoples witnessed terrifying cataclysmic cosmic events in skies very different from those seen today. In his travels among the Terran ruins, Kyal meets a biologist called Lorili, who is attempting to explain certain baffling similarities between some Terran and Venusian life forms that are irreconcilable with the established fact that Venus is a far younger planet than Earth. Formerly aligned with the "Progressive" activists back on Venus, Lorili admires the qualities of tenacity and determination written through Terran history. She constructs a theory of Venusians being descended from Terran ancestors. However, even allowing for the greatly exaggerated time scales that Terran science assigned to the processes of biological and planetary evolution, further research shows that there could have been no overlap. The Terrans were extinct long before life emerged on Venus. But there is a different, unexpected answer to the riddle. Lorili and Kyal will have to fight for their theory and their lives. At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).

By any measure, Andrew Wiseman (born Weizman) is a lucky man. The only son of a Polish father and an American mother, Andy was born and grew up in Berlin, just as Adolf Hitler was coming to power. As a Jew educated at the famous Werner Siemens Real Gymnasium in Schoneberg, he left only months before his school was closed down and fled with his family to Poland, one step ahead of the Nazi persecution that was to follow and later take the life of his father. From Poland he again fled to England, this time without his parents, arriving as a 16-year-old with little or no grasp of English. After a crash course in the language, he avoided being called up into the Polish army in exile thanks to the timely intervention of no less a man than General Sikorski himself, to enlist in the RAF to train initially as a pilot and then as an air bomber in South Africa. On his return to the UK he was posted to an all-Australian Squadron (466 Squadron) equipped with the Handley Page Halifax. After his first operation in which he was nearly shot down, Andrew survived a handful of eventful trips before falling victim to one of the LuftwaffeÕs top night fighter pilots and landing in France. Briefly on the run he was betrayed and captured, spending the next 12 months as a prisoner of war, using his knowledge of Russian, Polish and German to act as one of the principal camp interpreters, and working as a ÔscroungerÕ for the ÔXÕ committee of escapers. Moved from camp to camp, he was one of those forced into the ÔLong MarchÕ by the Germans attempting to escape the Russian advance, and afterwards played a key role in avoiding the potential bloodshed that threatened when the Russians refused to allow the British and Norwegian prisoners to return home Ð a role for which he was later recognized by the King of Norway. Upon his release, Andy used his language skills to work with the BBC monitoring service and later, BBC Television as a producer, sharing many adventures with the great broadcasters of their time, including David Dimbleby and Raymond Baxter.

In this “dazzling adventure” from the New York Times–bestselling author, a man adrift in space finds himself facing the edge of madness (Jack McDevitt). The Frank Tipler is just one of a thousand survey vessels sent out into the bubble of space surrounding Earth, seeking habitable worlds and signs of advanced life. Its crew has stumbled across artifacts left behind by a benevolent trader species, but the decision to study them is fraught with danger and uncertainty. The Tipler's crew consists of forty flawed electronic copies of human beings, some of them profoundly damaged—and Earth stopped responding to signals over a century ago. Caught between madness and political machinations, Alander stands on the brink of what might be the greatest discovery humanity has ever made—and a gift that humanity can’t afford to accept. “ECHOES OF EARTH is a dazzling adventure, sweeping the reader along from marvel to wonder, and it includes one of the most heart-stopping moments I've encountered in a novel in years.” —Jack McDevitt “[The] book can't be discussed or even described without spoiling some of the surprises, which are mutually reinforcing as well as juicy in themselves. I will, however, give in to the temptation to drop a few more of the names that came to mind as I was reading: the Three Gregs (Bear, Benford, Egan), Linda Nagata, and Frederik Pohl…. As the first of a series... ECHOES promises to rev its Ideas right past the red-line and drive them hard.” —Locus “The science in Dix and Williams’s work shines, entrancing with its glitter and innovation… and you won’t find any of their novels without fully-fleshed out characters, complex plots, vivid settings and thoughtful exploration of issues.” —SF Site “The authors have already made a name for themselves as writers of intelligent space opera, and ECHOES OF EARTH is sure to further bolster that reputation. The book is chock full of marvelous events, cosmic significance, mysterious alien motivations, and the wonder of outer space.” —Science Fiction Chronicle Winner of the Ditmar Award.

Zohar, an ancient land of sand and splendor, rallies for its last stand. The genocidal Aelarian Empire sends its legions to destroy the small desert kingdom. King Epher and his band of rebels stand against a fire they cannot extinguish. And it is Claudia herself, once Epher's paramour, who leads the legions tasked with killing him. Across the sea, in the Empire's capital, a cruel new emperor has seized power. Atalia Sela, once the leader of a barbarian horde, now fights in the arena as a gladiator. Ofeer Sela, once a concubine and now a rebel, seeks to free her sister. Meanwhile, Seneca and Valentina, the children of fallen dynasties, still battle for the city, and their inevitable clash draws near. Around the Encircled Sea, warlords, rebels, and legionaries battle for dominance. Sometimes it seems like the fire will always burn. Yet heroes still rise, fighting for a dream of peace, for memories of solace, and for lingering echoes of light.

In ""Starlight Echoes,"" the vastness of space becomes a playground for human ambition and cosmic mystery. Zara, a skilled astronavigator aboard the interstellar vessel Asteria, finds herself at the heart of a discovery that could reshape humanity's understanding of the universe. When an enigmatic signal leads the crew to an uncharted sector, they uncover an ancient alien artifact that broadcasts memories and emotions across the fabric of time and space. As Zara and her crewmates delve deeper into the artifact's secrets, they're thrust into a web of galactic politics and philosophical quandaries. The novel masterfully weaves classic space opera elements with profound questions about consciousness and humanity's cosmic role. Readers will be captivated by the blend of interstellar adventure and the exploration of advanced AI, as the crew navigates both the physical dangers of space and the ethical implications of their discovery. ""Starlight Echoes"" offers a thrilling journey through the stars, where the echoes of extinct civilizations could hold the key to humanity's future.

Presents articles on the science fiction genre of literature, including authors, themes, significant works, and awards.