The Collapsing Empire
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4.4 • 1.1K Ratings
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- $7.99
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
*2018 LOCUS AWARD WINNER OF BEST SCIENCE FICTION NOVEL*
*2018 HUGO AWARD FINALIST FOR BEST NOVEL*
“John Scalzi is the most entertaining, accessible writer working in SF today.” —Joe Hill, author of The Fireman
The first novel of a new space-opera sequence set in an all-new universe by the Hugo Award-winning, New York Times-bestselling author of Redshirts and Old Man's War
Our universe is ruled by physics. Faster than light travel is impossible—until the discovery of The Flow, an extradimensional field available at certain points in space-time, which can take us to other planets around other stars.
Riding The Flow, humanity spreads to innumerable other worlds. Earth is forgotten. A new empire arises, the Interdependency, based on the doctrine that no one human outpost can survive without the others. It’s a hedge against interstellar war—and, for the empire’s rulers, a system of control.
The Flow is eternal—but it’s not static. Just as a river changes course, The Flow changes as well. In rare cases, entire worlds have been cut off from the rest of humanity. When it’s discovered that the entire Flow is moving, possibly separating all human worlds from one another forever, three individuals—a scientist, a starship captain, and the emperox of the Interdependency—must race against time to discover what, if anything, can be salvaged from an interstellar empire on the brink of collapse.
"Fans of Game of Thrones and Dune will enjoy this bawdy, brutal, and brilliant political adventure" —Booklist on The Collapsing Empire
"Political plotting, plenty of snark, puzzle-solving, and a healthy dose of action...Scalzi continues to be almost insufferably good at his brand of fun but think-y sci-fi adventure." —Kirkus Reviews on The Collapsing Empire
“Scalzi is one of the slickest writers that SF has ever produced.” —The Wall Street Journal on The Human Division
The Interdependency Series
1. The Collapsing Empire
2. The Consuming Fire
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Scalzi (the Old Man's War series) delivers a strong opener for his fast-paced new space opera series, setting up key players along the primary travel corridor of an empire overflowing with complex interactions among nobles, politicians, business interests, and an unstable physical environment. The Interdependency is a collection of far-flung, human-colonized, barely habitable planets strung together by the Flow, a naturally occurring, limited-access, faster-than-light network. The planets are governed by the concept of obligate mutual reliance and ruled by those who control access to the Flow, but a change to the Flow that would leave established planets isolated to die seems imminent. This would disrupt the plans of the ambitious noble Nohamapetan family, which is involved in a rebellion raging on the outermost planet of End; Kiva Lagos, the foul-mouthed, opportunistic owner's representative on a starship owned by one of the Nohamapetans' rivals; Marce Claremont, a scientist carrying data from years of secret research into the Flow; and the young new emperox, Cardenia, guided by her simulated ancestors. Scalzi's storytelling centers on dynamic and quick-thinking players with strong personalities who engage in spirited social interactions, making the slightly dubious physics forgivable. Expect several future works set in this sprawling universe.
Customer Reviews
Great story!
I really liked the politics and the characters. Call me old-fashioned, but there was way too much swearing…that’s why I gave it four stars.
But I’m still about to purchase the next title in the series!
Reads like Scalzi, but...
I liked this book. Seems like a good start to a new series. But 2 stars:
1. $13 for a 250 page book? That I know is going to be a series? I may stop here despite enjoying because I'm feeling a bit ripped off.
2. Apologize for the humblebrag, but I can't help feel like Scalzi just read the same set of other excellent sci-fi I've recently read: A dash of Simmon's "Endymion/Rise of Endymion", a bit of Hamilton's "Void" series, and more than a bit of Leckie's "Imperial Radch" series. Somehow I felt like a lot of the Scalzi creativity on the sci-fi side wasn't there.
Still the excellent dialogue, character development, with his always enjoyable irreverence. But Scalzi has set a high bar, so I don't feel bad giving a 2 star review to a short book that kept reminding me of too many other books.
Wonderful!
Scallion is just entertaining! Love his work!