Showing titles in Hard Science Fiction

Captain Nathan Scott must decide whether to stand and fight to the end, or live to fight another day - even if it means the end of his world.

Three fugitives on a mission in which death would be a happy ending. A client who is amazed at the sheer size of his own plan. A destination where few humans have ever set foot. A retiree who holds the salvation of the world in her hands. Möbius 3 is the culmination of the trilogy that began deep in an Icelandic volcano and in a Princeton University basement...or is it? When the past swiftly becomes the future, the future no longer offers a safe haven.

On the planet of Solaria, Spacers live in almost complete isolation, tended by robot servants and disgusted by the thought of human contact. And yet, one of their number has been beaten to death. Incapable of solving the crime, the authorities of the Outer Worlds seek help from Earth – from renowned detective Elijah Baley. Partnered once again with the robot Daneel Olivaw, Baley travels to this strange new world and uncovers a plot that could change the relationship between humans and robots for ever.

A planet in the endless emptiness of space, far from the warmth of any sun. And yet there are people who populate its vast caverns, living, working and loving. Since time immemorial, they have been on course for Andromeda, the neighboring galaxy of the Milky Way. This is the prophecy of the ancients, the one goal that unites them all, their cult. But then the unthinkable happens: the journey stops because the planet enters the orbit of a mysterious object that can't be seen in any telescope.

For centuries, men and women have manned lighthouses to ensure the safe passage of ships. It is a lonely job and a thankless one for the most part. Until something goes wrong. Until a ship is in distress. In the twenty-third century, this job has moved into outer space. A network of beacons allows ships to travel across the Milky Way at many times the speed of light. These beacons are built to be robust. They never break down. They never fail. At least, they aren’t supposed to.

WINNER OF THE HUGO AWARD FOR BEST ALL-TIME SERIES The Foundation series is Isaac Asimov’s iconic masterpiece. Unfolding against the backdrop of a crumbling Galactic Empire, the story of Hari Seldon’s two Foundations is a lasting testament to an extraordinary imagination, one that shaped...

In the year 2031, a robot probe detects traces of biological activity on Enceladus, one of Saturn's moons. This sensational discovery shows that there is indeed evidence of extraterrestrial life. Fifteen years later, a hurriedly built spacecraft sets out on the long journey to the ringed planet and its moon. The international crew is not just facing a difficult twenty-seven months: if the spacecraft manages to make it to Enceladus without incident it must use a drillship to penetrate the kilometer-thick sheet of ice that entombs the moon.

In the year AD 3000, Earth is a dystopian wasteland, plundered of its natural resources by alien conquerors known as Psychlos. Fewer than 35,000 humans survive in a handful of communities scattered across the face of a post-apocalyptic Earth. From the ashes of humanity rises a young hero, Jonnie Goodboy Tyler. Setting off on an initial quest to discover a hidden evil, Jonnie unlocks the mystery of humanity’s demise and unearths a crucial weakness in their oppressors.

A chance to gain much needed resources... A group of highly trained, merciless soldiers... A half-completed ship on a trajectory to nowhere... A lone operative on familiar yet dangerous ground... Captain Scott and the crew of the Aurora have a chance to get everything they need to liberate their home world, but they may have to fight someone else's war first.

A ship under siege. A world on the brink of civil war. A distraught people seeking a new beginning. A battle weary crew that can barely hold it together. Even a legend can use a little help from time to time. The crew of the Aurora, the Karuzari, and the Corinairans must find a way to work together, or else they may all perish.

A dying man stumbles into a police station and collapses. In his fist is a mysterious coin with strange markings. He tells the police he's from the future, and when they uncover the coin's hidden message, they're inclined to believe him. Daniel Rice never asked for fame, but his key role in Earth's first contact with an alien civilization thrust him into a social arena where any crackpot might take aim. When the FBI arrives at his door and predictions of the future start coming true, Daniel is dragged into a mission to save the world from nuclear holocaust.

Alone and desperate, Eve sits in the control center of an alien structure. She has lost the other members of the team sent to explore exoplanet Proxima Centauri b. By mistake she has triggered a disastrous process that threatens to obliterate the planet. Just as Eve fears her best option may be a quick death, a nearby alien life form awakens from a very long sleep. It has only one task: to find and neutralize the destructive intruder from a faraway place.

"Wirklichkeit ist nur eine Möglichkeit" steht auf einem Bierdeckel, den Sala auf dem Schreibtisch seiner verschwundenen Schwester Ksen findet. In diesem Augenblick verändert sich sein scheinbar normales Berliner Studentenleben in eine unheimliche Suche. Seine Schwester, eine hochintelligente Informatikstudentin, hat nur eine verwirrende Spur zurückgelassen: das alte Porträtfoto einer jungen Frau. Sala rekonstruiert das Leben dieser Frau und erfährt dabei, dass Ksen über KIs und selbstlernende Algorithmen geforscht hat, bevor sie verschwand.

A revolution brewing for generations has begun in fire. It will end in blood. The Free Navy - a violent group of Belters in black-market military ships - has crippled the Earth and begun a campaign of piracy and violence among the outer planets. The colony ships heading for the 1,000 new worlds on the far side of the alien ring gates are easy prey, and no single navy remains strong enough to protect them. James Holden and his crew know the strengths and weaknesses of this new force better than anyone.

A new ally providing aid... An old ally joining the fight... Their resources growing with each passing day... Their homeworld finally on the road to recovery... Things finally seem to be coming together for Captain Scott and the Alliance as he takes his forces on the offensive. However, the Jung may in turn give him more trouble than he bargained for.

For many billions of years, humans - having conquered the curse of aging - spread throughout the entire Milky Way. They are able to live all their dreams, but to their great disappointment, no other intelligent species has ever been encountered. Now, humanity itself is on the brink of extinction because the universe is dying a protracted yet inevitable death. 

"Such realistic brilliance you can see a whole civilisation in it" - The Times "Simply amazing science fiction that will have me grabbing book two" - Goodreads Reviewer, 5 stars "one of the best scifi concepts out there" - Amazon Reviewer, 5 stars Stephen Baxter's highly acclaimed first novel...

From the bestselling author of Lost in Time and Quantum Radio comes a new mind-bending thriller: a group of strangers with tinnitus begins seeing numbers—numbers they soon realize are a code that will change the world.

On a cold spring night in 1952, a huge meteorite fell to earth and obliterated much of the East Coast of the US, including Washington, DC. The ensuing climate cataclysm will soon render the Earth inhospitable for humanity, as the last such meteorite did for the dinosaurs. This looming threat calls for a radically accelerated effort to colonize space and requires a much-larger share of humanity to take part in the process. Elma York’s drive to become the first lady astronaut is so strong that even the most dearly held conventions of society may not stand a chance against her.

A predator hunts the skies over Earth. Its intent is peaceful, and its mission is essential, but it is the deadliest machine humanity has ever created. Piloted by a six-year-old girl, the godlike Skalm guards the Districts of TASC. Her family is long dead. Her adopted father is a synthetic copy...