The Massacre of Mankind, Stephen Baxter
The Massacre of Mankind, Stephen Baxter
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The Massacre of Mankind
Sequel to The War of the Worlds

Author: Stephen Baxter

Narrator: Nathalie Buscombe

Unabridged: 15 hr 13 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 08/22/2017


Synopsis

A sequel to the H.G. Wells classic THE WAR OF THE WORLDS, brilliantly realized by award-winning SF author and Wells expert Stephen Baxter

It has been fourteen years since the Martian invasion. Humanity has moved on, always watching the skies but confident that we know how to defeat the alien menace. The Martians are vulnerable to Earth germs. The army is prepared. Our technology has taken great leaps forward, thanks to machinery looted from abandoned war-machines and capsules.
 
So when the signs of launches on Mars are seen, there seems little reason to worry. Unless you listen to one man, Walter Jenkins, the narrator of Wells’ book. He is sure that the first incursion was merely a scouting mission, a precursor to the true attack—and that the Martians have learned from their defeat, adapted their methods, and now pose a greater threat than ever before.
 
He is right.
 
Thrust into the chaos of a new worldwide invasion, journalist Julie Elphinstone—sister in law to Walter Jenkins—struggles to survive the war, report on it, and plan a desperate effort that will be humanity’s last chance at survival. Because the massacre of mankind has begun.
 
Echoing the style and form of the original while extrapolating from its events in ingenious, unexpected fashion again and again, The Massacre of Mankind is a labor of love from one of the genre’s most praised talents—at once a truly fitting tribute to a classic and brainy, page-turning fun for any science-fiction fan.

About Stephen Baxter

Stephen Baxter has published over forty books, mostly science fiction novels, and many short stories. Published around the world, he has also won major awards in the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany, and Japan. He has degrees from Cambridge and Southampton Universities. Stephen lives in Northumberland with his wife.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Bradley on May 07, 2017

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC! I felt trepidation before beginning this because I kept seeing unfavorable reviews, but fortunately, I thought it was pretty awesome after finishing. I might have a bit of an issue with the end, and I think that's where most people are complaining, but it wasn't as ba......more

Goodreads review by Gary on June 02, 2017

Baxter’s sequel to H.G. Wells’ classic is at once a continuation of the original story, a meta-critique of that novel, and an alternate history that plays with the many theories of life in the solar system that were circulating in Wells’ time. This time, Julie Elphinstone – a supporting character in......more

Goodreads review by Ken on November 11, 2022

The only previous novel that I've read from this author was his Doctor Who story featuring Patrick Troughton's Second Doctor. But I know that Baxter is an accomplished writer to be intrusted by the Wells Estate to follow up the classic and firm favourite War of the Worlds. Again Baxter gets to use fam......more

Goodreads review by Julie on November 21, 2017

I have to admit I was a bit hesitant to read a sequel to H.G. Wells classic The War of the Worlds. Usually I am left disappointed by continuations of classic stories that I love. Authors either try too hard to copy the writing style and feel of the earlier tale, or they don't try hard enough. In a m......more

Goodreads review by Les on May 07, 2017

***This review has a broad overview of the story, so it could contain some minor spoilers.** In this, we have my most anticipated book of 2017, an authorized sequel to a foundation work of science fiction and one that I'd been waiting impatiently for since it was first announced. Within minutes of th......more


Quotes

“Alien invasion juiced up by alternate history, with real people as well...from sci-fi’s Valhalla, the shade of Wells must be applauding. Perhaps with a touch of envy.”--Wall Street Journal

"A highly enjoyable work of homage and extrapolation. Baxter’s chapters are short, sharp shocks, and he cleverly reuses many of Wells’s original characters...[and] regularly offers intertextual winks to readers who know their Wells."--The Washington Post

“Tightly gripping storytelling [that] reads like a genuine labour of love. I can’t think of another living writer more deserving of the “official heir of Wells” tag than Baxter.” – The Guardian
 
“The style and tone are spot on…cleverly extrapolates Wells’s themes and incorporates scientific theories of the day.”—Financial Times

"An ingenious work by a perceptive admirer...never less than highly diverting."--Times Literary Supplement
 
“A superb sequel…turns the terrific tale Wells told in his time into the foundation of something greater. [A] fitting and filling follow-up to one of science fiction’s great standard-bearers.”– Tor.com
 
“An audacious exercise in alternative history…and a hugely exciting adventure.”—SFX Magazine

“Very much a tribute to HG Wells…a wholly unexpected treat of a sequel.”—SF Crowsnest

“Surprisingly thoughtful…[a] page-turning novel that pays homage to the original story but then enhances it.” – SFFWorld