The Medusa chronicles by Stephen Baxter and Alistair Reynolds

Gollancz, 2016. ISBN 9781473210196 (Age 14+) Highly recommended. Science Fiction. With permission from the Clarke Estate, this novel continues the account of Commander Howard Falcon, who is the main character in Arthur C. Clarke's award winning short story A meeting with Medusa. Howard's life changes after a horrific crash in the Grand Canyon and he is saved by experimental surgery. This surgery changes Howard into a cyborg - part human and part machine - and has the effect of extending his life by centuries. The Medusa Chronicles is a compelling account of Howard's journey over the centuries involving the evolution of AI into thinking machines, the manipulation of the intelligence of animals of earth, human exploration and colonization of planets and moons and their interaction with the inhabitants of these planets and moons. The reader is not required to have read Clarke's A Meeting with Medusa before reading this novel as the authors encompass Clarke's short story in their novel. The Medusa Chronicles delves into how the human race reacts to intelligent machines, intelligent animals and native inhabitants of other worlds, the possible consequences of this interaction and the moral and ethical issues that are raised. The ending reminds you of parts of 2001: A Space Odyssey revealing mystical and enormous possibilities of the future. If you are a fan of science fiction genre and, in particular, Arthur C. Clarke's novels you will thoroughly enjoy this book. This is a classical science fiction novel. Glen Avery