The Echo (The Anomaly Quartet)
&#8220;The mystery of the Anomaly is completely compelling. ...with an added spookiness that will give readers chills.&#8221; (Library Journal)&#8220;There have been teachers in space, senators, and the wealthy who buy tickets. But never has a journalist been launched over the atmosphere. Until Smythe&#8217;s gripping novel.&#8221; (New York Post)&#8220;This is a remarkable book: a state-of-the-art spacecraft constructed from ideas, and propelled by a powerful story. Gripping, terrifying and audacious--an exploration in every sense of the word.&#8221; (Charles Yu, author of How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe)&#8220;The Explorer has the dreamlike detachment of an Ishiguro novel&#8230;. reminiscent of a 1970s space movie, where the darkness of the void mirrors the darkness of the human soul.&#8221; (Financial Times)&#8220;Science fiction is best when it does what we least expect, when it transforms narrative into something you don&#8217;t see coming&#8230;.It&#8217;s a trick not every writer can master, but Smythe makes a marvel of this world, and these characters, and makes this reader want the sequel now.&#8221; (Romantic Times BOOKclub (Top Pick!))&#8220;A brilliant book &#151; funny, desperate, desolate, sad, all in equal measure.&#8221; (Chuck Wendig)&#8220;A challenging and stimulating read.&#8221; (Booklist)&#8220;The Explorer is essentially exemplary: a short, sharp shock of a story from an author who deserves to do as well for himself as he does by us. It&#8217;s perfectly plotted, smartly characterised and rife with insight and excitement.&#8221; (Tor.com)&#8220;The Explorer by James Smythe is quiet, dark book which focuses on the dark and quiet of space&#8230;.It may not be a flashy&#8230;but it is a fascinating character study that could only exist in a science-fictional world.&#8221; (io9.com)&#8220;A] mind-bending, heart-wrenching, avalanche of a reading experience&#8230; an oasis for readers thirsty to find an engaging book&#8230; books like this are the kind that create fans, and I&#8217;m proud to be one.&#8221; (SF Signal)&#8220;Beautifully written, creepy as hell. The Explorer is as clever in its unravelling as it is breathlessly claustrophobic.&#8221; (Lauren Beukes, author of Zoo City)