These were the last weeks and days before the end of the world, before total destruction overwhelmed Earth and every living thing on the surface of the planet. No one knew exactly how long they had before the sun turned nova and destroyed not only Earth but all of the other planets in the Solar System. For mankind, the only excape lay in flight to the stars, to Alpha Centauri, more than four light years distant.The hyperdrive, capable of carrying them there at close to the speed of...

Earth was a crowded world of vast cities, manned by robots who carried out all of the menial tasks, who saw to it that everything contained functioning normally. Interplanetary travel was now an established fact. The planets favourable to Man's existence had been colonised but where, as yet, under-developed according to Earth standards.In the whole of the Solar System, mankind was supreme. There was life on Mars, Venus and the outer moons of Jupiter and Saturn, but nothing which co...

They came out of the great abyss which lay around the Earth, from the planet of a star so distant that it could not be seen with the naked eye. Their purpose was survival and the conquest of Earth. They were alien and possessed a mysterious force which lay at the very origin of human comprehension; the ability to enter into a man's mind, to make him think the thoughts they chose, to make him hear and see and feel the things they wanted.Against such a force there seemed no defence; ...

S ix decades of fascinating stories from the legendary "colossus of science fiction" and creator of 2001: A Space Odyssey gathered in one compendium ( The New Yorker).Arthur C. Clarke, along with H. G. Wells, Isaac Asimov, and Robert A. Heinlein, was a definitive voice in twentieth century science fiction. A prophetic thinker, undersea explorer, and "one of the true geniuses of our time," Clarke not only won the highest science fi...

The novels of Iain M. Banks have forever changed the face of modern science fiction. His Culture books combine breathtaking imagination with exceptional storytelling, and have secured his reputation as one of the most extraordinary and influential writers in the genre.'Banks is a phenomenon' William GibsonTwo and a half millennia ago in a remote corner of space, beside a trillion-year-old dying sun from a different universe, the artifact ap...

The novels of Iain M. Banks have forever changed the face of modern science fiction. His Culture books combine breathtaking imagination with exceptional storytelling, and have secured his reputation as one of the most extraordinary and influential writers in the genre.'Banks is a phenomenon' William GibsonIt was one of the less glorious incidents of a long-ago war.It led to atrocities on an extraordinary scale. To the destruction of...

The works of Iain M. Banks have forever changed the face of modern science fiction. With breathtaking imagination and extraordinary storytelling, they have secured his reputation as one of the most extraordinary and influential writers in the genre.'Banks is a phenomenon' William GibsonThe State of the Art is the only collection of Iain M. Banks's short fiction and includes the acclaimed Culture novella of the same name.Fro...

This is the gripping story of the collision between two vastly different human civilisations. One is Earth in the early 21st century, rushing toward self-inflicted nuclear doom. The other is the distant world of Mollan, whose inhabitants have achieved great longevity and the power to transport themselves instantly from star to star.Bob Shaw's novel unfolds a tale which spans thousands of years and the reaches of interstellar space. On Earth's side, there is Denny Hargate, whose ind...

This is an amazing collection of some of the best short fiction ever written in the SF genre, by an author acclaimed as 'the mastersinger of space opera' The Times This collection includes ZIMA BLUE, one of the standout episodes in Netflix's LOVE, DEATH AND ROBOTSWith an introduction by noted SF critic Johnathan Strahan, this collection of twenty short stories, novellettes and novellas includes ZIMA BLUE, one of the standout shorts ...

Two hundred years ago mankind found Orbitsville, a vast sphere whose habitable inner surface comprised living space equivalent to five billion Earths. The resulting migration was enthusiastic - and nearly total.Earth itself is a backwater now, a place with which the people of Orbitsville maintain only marginal contact. But just because it's backward doesn't mean it isn't dangerous.

Unstable atomic vortices are tearing planets apart, leaving a trail of radioactive devastation across the galaxy, and only one brilliant mathematician can stop them. Armed with a dangerous, experimental ship and an intellect capable of calculating chaotic energies in real-time, he dives headfirst into the deadly storms. It is a lonely, suicidal profession where a single miscalculation means instant atomic vaporization. A gripping chronicle of scientific heroism, explosive action, and the s...

**‘Sheer delight’ – The TimesThis 42nd Anniversary Edition includes exclusive bonus material from the Douglas Adams archives, and an introduction by Doctor Who showrunner, Russell T Davies.An international phenomenon and pop-culture classic, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has been a radio show, TV series, novel, stage play, comic book and film. Following the galactic (mis)adventures of Arthur Dent, Hitchhiker’s in its various incarnations ha...