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The entire world is thrilled by the discovery of a new Earthlike planet. Advance imaging shows that the planet has oceans of liquid water and a breathable oxygen-rich atmosphere. Eager to gain more information, a human exploration team is soon dispatched to explore the planet, now nicknamed New Earth.
All of the explorers understand that they are essentially on a one-way mission. The trip takes eighty years each way, so even if they are able to get back to Earth, nearly 200 years will have elapsed. They will have aged only a dozen years thanks to cryonic suspension, but their friends and family will be gone and the very society that they once knew will have changed beyond recognition. The explorers are going into exile, and they know it. They are on this mission not because they were the best available, but because they were expendable.
Upon landing on the planet they discover something unexpected: New Earth is inhabited by a small group of intelligent creatures who look very much like human beings.
Who are these people? Are they native to this world, or invaders from elsewhere?
While they may seem inordinately friendly to the human explorers, what are their real motivations? What do they want?
Moreover, the scientists begin to realize that this planet cannot possibly be natural. They face a startling and nearly unthinkable question: Could New Earth be an artifact?
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Release date
May 1, 2024 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781429948142
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781429948142
- File size: 1364 KB
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Open EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781429948142
- File size: 807 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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June 15, 2013
Sequel to Farside (2013), wherein, amid a battle over nanotechnology, a new Earth-like planet was discovered orbiting Sirius. Eighty years ago, Earth dispatched a starship to the planet, which was known to have water and an oxygen atmosphere. Now, a multinational team of scientists led by diplomat Jordan Kell, preserved via cryogenics, awakes and prepares to explore this New Earth. But bad news reaches them first: Earth, battling a renewed bout of climate change and coastal flooding, will send no backup missions; they are not only isolated, but expendable. Major surprises, however, await them. The planet is inhabited--by humans with highly advanced technology who not only speak English, but seem to know all about Earth and its history. Adri, a frail-looking man who claims to be nearly 300 years old, and beautiful Aditi--both names, Jordan discovers, borrowed from Hindu cosmology--make them welcome. But apart from Jordan, the people don't trust the team; they seem willing enough to answer questions but never volunteer information, and there are too many mysteries. Eventually, the lead dissenter, Harmon Meek, forces Jordan to resign as leader, though Jordan does manage to install his younger brother, Brandon, in his place. Jordan's happy to go along: He's in love with Aditi and convinced that the human-aliens have benevolent intentions. But the questions persist. Are they hostile toward Earth? What do they really want? Is New Earth in fact a construct? Bova explores these dilemmas with gentle insistence, and while the answers may verge on the obvious to alert readers, the scientists' suspicions, mistrust and reluctance to engage with a larger reality holds an unmistakable ring of truth. An unspectacular but absorbing entry in Bova's Grand Tour series.COPYRIGHT(2013) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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July 1, 2013
The discovery of another Earth-like planet causes the launch of an exploratory team to study the planet now called "New Earth." Upon arrival, however, the team discovers a welcoming committee--of creatures indistinguishable from humans. Mission leader Jordan Kell comes to trust these inhabitants, but other team members suspect a sinister motive beneath the friendly facade. VERDICT A six-time Hugo Award winner and veteran sf author, Bova (Farside) expands on his series of novels envisioning the future of the human race by leaving the solar system for the unknown territory of deep space. Fans of hard sf will enjoy this space adventure.
Copyright 2013 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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