The Medusa Chronicles

Written by Alastair Reynolds and Stephen Baxter

Narrated by Peter Kenny

Following an accident that almost cost him his life, Howard Falcon was not so much saved as he was converted, through the use of prosthetics, into something faster, stronger and smarter . . . but also slightly less human and more machine than he was. And with this change came an opportunity - that of piloting a mission into Jupiter's atmosphere, and ultimately of making first contact with the life forms he discovers there.

Picking up the threads of humanity versus artificial intelligences and machines, and of encounters with the alien, this collaborative novel between two superb writers is a sequel to Howard Falcon's adventures. A proper science fiction adventure, this is perfect for fans of Golden Age SF as well as the modern SF reader.

Read by Peter Kenny

• Language: English
• Publisher: Hachette UK Audio
• Release date: May 19, 2016
• ISBN: 9781409161479

Alastair Reynolds

Alastair Reynolds was born in Wales in 1966. He has a Ph.D. in astronomy. From 1991 until 2007, he lived in The Netherlands, where he was employed by The European Space Agency as an astrophysicist. He is now a full-time writer. Alastair's books include the Revelation Space novels and Permafrost.

Reviews for The Medusa Chronicles

[paul_s-289480 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I loved how this managed to read like 70s sci-fi. Not exactly groundbreaking but they nailed the style. I think it's a worthy realisation of the book hinted at by the original short-story.

[kristelh_15 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

S.F work by Stephen Baxter and Alastair Reynolds and a sequel to Arthur C. Clarke's A Meeting with Medusa a Nebula Award winning novella published in Playboy in 1971 which I did not read before this book. The story has a setting in the deep future and one in the past and is also an alternative history. In the sixties, the earth is going to be hit by an asteroid and in the future there is looming conflict between humanity, where artificial intelligence, sentient primates and further discoveries of alien indigenous life. The narrator is Howard Falcon, a combination of human and machine. He was damaged in a: San accident and rebuilt. The title character, Medusa is the lumbering Jovian cloud dwelling Medusae of Clarke's story. I am always surprised by the way one book I read gets carried on in the next one. I recently read Moby Dick and in this book there is a scene of attack on the Medusae which is just like the whaling scence of Moby Dick. Falcon makes a decision which will lead to the future conflict. There is definitely a question of ethics and decision making in this story. A lot of science and fiction. The end of course as in many books is the weakest part. Some connections to Kim Stanley Robinson mars books and 2001 Space Odyssey.

[welsh_eileen2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Inspired by a story written by Arthur C. Clarke - "A Meeting with Medusa", this is a sequel covering the rebuilding of Commander Howard Falcon after a fatal accident.Almost a Six Million Dollar Man.I know of Stephen Baxter's work, but not Alastair Reynolds.I will look for more of these authors.I was given a digital copy of this book by the publisher Orion via Netgalley in return for an honest unbiased review.