Sign-In
Cart
Across the Stars: A Tale of Love and Discovery
Paperback
Publisher: Independently Published
Published: Apr 5 2024
Pages: 166
Weight: 0.46
Height: 0.42 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
Across the Stars By Amro Heikal
What if the first message from the stars isn't a greeting, but an invitation to surrender?
Dr. Lia Navarro is an astronomer working the night shift at the North Atlantic Listening Facility. Under the hum of cooling fans, she discovers the holy grail of radio astronomy: a clean, narrowband carrier signal parked perfectly on the hydrogen line. But as Lia and her team apply deeper mathematical transforms to decode the anomaly, the signal does the impossible-it responds to their analysis.
This is no passive beacon. It is an adaptive cognitive interface.
The signal begins to actively couple with Lia's mind, imposing its own rhythm and offering a seductive, frictionless peace. But this cosmic mercy comes with a devastating cost. As the interface optimizes her perception to erase discomfort, Lia begins to lose pieces of her individuality-including her ability to recall specific words and, tragically, the sound of her late mother's voice.
As the psychological toll mounts, the Coalition Risk Coordination Office, led by Deputy Director Malcolm Voss, seizes control of the facility. Voss sees the interface not just as a containment hazard, but as a potential cure for human suffering-a way to ease the grief of a broken world.
Armed with nothing but a smooth river stone to anchor her fading sense of self, Lia must fight a battle of consciousness against a vast, indifferent intelligence. She is faced with an impossible choice: hand over the mathematical key that could eradicate human grief forever, or burn the archive to preserve the painful, beautiful, difficult version of humanity.
Across the Stars is a gripping, cerebral first-contact novel that turns the vastness of space inward, asking profound questions about memory, grief, and the true cost of peace.
Also from
Heikal, Amro
Also in
Science Fiction
On the Calculation of Volume (Book I): Shortlisted for the 2025 International Booker Prize
Balle, Solvej
Paperback
Red Rising 3-Book Box Set: Red Rising, Golden Son, Morning Star, and an Exclusive Extended Excerpt of Iron Gold
Brown, Pierce
Paperback