Vinge's masterpieces together at last, in one epic volume

The Hugo Award winning A FIRE UPON THE DEEP and its epic companion novel A DEEPNESS IN THE SKY, set in the same universe but 20,000 years earlier, were benchmarks for SF in the last decade of the 20th century.

In FIRE 'Vinge presents a galaxy divided into Zones - regions where different physical constraints allow very different technological and mental possibilities. Earth remains in the "Slowness" zone, where nothing can travel faster than light and minds are fairly limited. The action of the book is in the "Beyond", where translight travel and other marvels exist, and humans are one of many intelligent species. One human colony has been experimenting to find a path to the "Transcend", where intelligence and power are so great as to seem godlike. Instead they release the Blight, an evil power, from a billion-year captivity.' Publisher's Weekly

In DEEPNESS, 'the story has the same sense of epic vastness despite happening mostly in one isolated solar system. Here there's a world of intelligent spider creatures who traditionally hibernate through the "Deepest Darkness" of their strange variable sun's long "off" periods, when even the atmosphere freezes. Now, science offers them an alternative. Meanwhile, attracted by spider radio transmissions, two human starfleets come exploring - merchants hoping for customers and tyrants who want slaves. Their inevitable clash leaves both fleets crippled, with the power in the wrong hands, which leads to a long wait in space until the spiders develop exploitable technology. Over the years Vinge builds palpable tension through multiple storylines and characters.' Dave Langford

Vinge's masterpieces together at last, in one epic volume.

About the Author
Born in 1944, Vernor Vinge is one of the giants of the SF field. Vinge re-invigorated Space Opera with these two books. The critically acclaimed RAINBOW'S END took his career into the 21st century in spectacular fashion.


Book Information
ISBN 9780575093690
Author Vernor Vinge
Format Paperback
Page Count 976
Imprint Gollancz
Publisher Orion Publishing Co
Weight(grams) 1060g
Dimensions(mm) 234mm * 154mm * 66mm