Now, joined by his boyhood friend Peter McLachlan, who
arrives in Rome with a dark secret of his own, George
uncovers evidence suggesting that the women of the Order
have embarked on a divergent evolutionary path. But they
are not just a new kind of human. They are a better kind,
genetically superior, equipped with all the tools
necessary to render homo sapiens as extinct as the
Neanderthals. And, chillingly, George and Peter soon have
reason to fear that this colony is preparing to leave its
overcrowded underground nest. . . . Stephen Baxter
possesses one of the most brilliant minds in modern
science fiction. His vivid storytelling skills have earned
him comparison to the giants of the past: Clarke, Asimov,
Stapledon. Like his great predecessors, Baxter thinks on a
cosmic scale, spinning cutting-edge scientific speculation
into pure, page-turning gold. Now Baxter is back with a
breathtaking adventure that begins during the catastrophic
collapse of Roman Britain and stretches forward into an
unimaginably distant, war-torn future, where the fate of
humanity lies waiting at the center of the
galaxy. . . .
Destiny’s
Children COALESCENT
George Poole isn’t
sure whether his life has reached a turning point or a
dead end. At forty-five, he is divorced and childless,
with a career that is going nowhere fast. Then, when his
father dies suddenly, George stumbles onto a family
secret: a sister he never knew existed. A twin named Rosa,
raised in Rome by an enigmatic cult. Hoping to find the
answers to the missing pieces of his life, George sets out
for the ancient city.
Once in Rome, he learns from
Rosa the enthralling story of their distant ancestor,
Regina, an iron-willed genius determined to preserve her
family as the empire disintegrates around her. It was
Regina who founded the cult, which has mysteriously
survived and prospered below the streets of Rome for
almost two millennia. The Order, says Rosa, is her real
family– and, even if he doesn’t realize it yet, it is
George’s family, too. When she takes him into the vast
underground city that is the Order’s secret home, he feels
a strong sense of belonging, yet there is something oddly
disturbing about the women he meets. They are all so young
and so very much alike. Stephen Baxter possesses one of
the most brilliant minds in modern science fiction. His
vivid storytelling skills have earned him comparison to
the giants of the past: Clarke, Asimov, Stapledon. Like
his great predecessors, Baxter thinks on a cosmic scale,
spinning cutting-edge scientific speculation into pure,
page-turning gold. Now Baxter is back with a breathtaking
adventure that begins during the catastrophic collapse of
Roman Britain and stretches forward into an unimaginably
distant, war-torn future, where the fate of humanity lies
waiting at the center of the
galaxy. . . .
Destiny’s
Children COALESCENT
George Poole isn’t
sure whether his life has reached a turning point or a
dead end. At forty-five, he is divorced and childless,
with a career that is going nowhere fast. Then, when his
father dies suddenly, George stumbles onto a family
secret: a sister he never knew existed. A twin named Rosa,
raised in Rome by an enigmatic cult. Hoping to find the
answers to the missing pieces of his life, George sets out
for the ancient city.
Once in Rome, he learns from
Rosa the enthralling story of their distant ancestor,
Regina, an iron-willed genius determined to preserve her
family as the empire disintegrates around her. It was
Regina who founded the cult, which has mysteriously
survived and prospered below the streets of Rome for
almost two millennia. The Order, says Rosa, is her real
family– and, even if he doesn’t realize it yet, it is
George’s family, too. When she takes him into the vast
underground city that is the Order’s secret home, he feels
a strong sense of belonging, yet there is something oddly
disturbing about the women he meets. They are all so young
and so very much alike.
Now, joined by his boyhood
friend Peter McLachlan, who arrives in Rome with a dark
secret of his own, George uncovers evidence suggesting
that the women of the Order have embarked on a divergent
evolutionary path. But they are not just a new kind of
human. They are a better kind, genetically superior,
equipped with all the tools necessary to render homo
sapiens as extinct as the Neanderthals. And, chillingly,
George and Peter soon have reason to fear that this colony
is preparing to leave its overcrowded underground
nest. . . .