The Abyss Beyond Dreams

Set in the Commonwealth universe, The Abyss Beyond Dreams is the first volume of a prequel to the Void Trilogy.

"The work of an author at the top of his game." Science Fiction and Fantasy World

When images of a lost civilisation are 'dreamed' by a self-proclaimed prophet of the age, Nigel Sheldon, inventor of wormhole technology and creator of the Commonwealth society is suspicious. Especially as the dreams seem to be coming from the Void - an area of living space monitored and controlled because of its hugely destructive capabilities. With it being the greatest threat to the known universe, Nigel is determined to find out if human life really does exist beyond its boundaries and if so, what the hell they're doing there.

But when he crash lands on a planet beyond the Void he didn't even know existed he finds so much more than he imagined. Bienvenido, a world populated from the survivors of Commonwealth colony ships which disappeared over three thousand years' ago. Since then they've been fighting an ever-increasingly desperate battle against a space-born predator invading their landscape. The Fallers looks innocuous to begin with and their lure is enticing to any that stray within their path - but they are by far the greatest threat to the continuance of humanity on this planet.

But Nigel soon realises that the Fallers also hold the key to something he'd never hoped to find - the destruction of the Void itself. If only he can survive long enough to work out how to use it ...

PRAISE FOR THE ABYSS BEYOND DREAMS

"Incredibly robust and exciting and rousing, sharing flavors of Jack Vance, John Wright, China Mieville, Orson Scott Card, and A. E. van Vogt . . . Hamilton's deployment of lots of grand super-science is utterly deft and convincing." Locus

"Engrossing . . . The characters, always Hamilton's strength, remain as distinctive as ever. Kirkus Reviews

"Everything one wants in sf great characters, mind bending stuff, adventure, politics, romance, revolution . . . just superb." Fantasy Book Critic