DEATH: DESCENT 2

ARE YOU PREPARED FOR THE END?

Picking up almost immediately after the cliffhanger ending of Diathesis...

The saboteur Maria Rodrigues is on the rescue mission to the Goddard station on Iapetus, as the fated Ismud approaches Saturn.

On Earth, Richard and his sister, Elyse, are caught up in a murderous manhunt as the Chinese secret services try to cover their tracks; while the enigmatic Charles prophesies doom and gathers a cult-like following.

In Earth orbit, the psychopathic Li Qiao befriends the hidden genius developing the next stage in human evolution; while from their station they observe a visitation from an alien species, horrific in its silent and pragmatic mandate...

...and an Arctic research team are immersed in visions of the end.

Reviewers, read the ARC here

Reviews for Death

Murray Samuelson, Monster Librarian

…truly mind-blowing…if you read the first one, don't miss this one. If you haven't, this series is well worth checking out, it's an impressive saga of science fiction and humanity…reminds me of Robert Heinlen's writings…can humanity be saved from their follies by interstellar flight, and are they worth saving? And if so, should it be everyone, or just certain types of individuals? As he did so well last time, the author weaves these questions into the narrative…The genius scientist-turned-saboteur Maria plays a large role in the story, as her presence on the Saturn mission has the potential to alter the fate of humanity. It's a skill to make 'bad' characters sympathetic to a degree, and Soledad does it very well. Book discussion clubs would have a bonanza with this series…one hell of a space yarn. Definitely recommended.

Reviews for Diathesis

Allen Stroud, Chair of the British Science Fiction Association

…told in first person and set in the 22nd century, with children growing up in a variety of different places across the world…Maria is the daughter of militant environmental activists, Li Qao is an unwanted child who reminds his father of his dead mother, and Eight-Nine is a vat-grown human living in a purpose-built training facility…a distinct voice when reading the narration…building everything quite slowly…about humanity’s first venture into interstellar space with a crewed spaceship…a very clear sense of the main characters…we can see how they are on a collision course with one another…the geopolitical balance has shifted…clear lines of ‘them’ and ‘us’ being drawn…a well written start to a longer story. The author clearly has much more to say, and it will be interesting to see how he delivers the next instalment in the Descent series.