D: Heavy Water
D: Heavy Water
D: Heavy Water
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Description
Description
From Neal Stephenson, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Polostan and Cryptonomicon, comes the second installment in his monumental Bomb Light series--a gripping tale set on the eve of World War II, as nations race to find and control an elusive substance critical to building atomic weapons.
Europe, 1934. British journalist Owen Crisp-Upjohn is dispatched to Moscow, where his assignments quickly escalate from cultural reporting to international espionage. Before long, Owen finds himself pulled into the orbit of the enigmatic Earl of Suffolk, a maverick aristocrat, and Aurora, a curiously compelling woman with a shadowy past rooted in Soviet intelligence.
Their mission soon becomes clear: secure the earth's only supply of deuterium--"heavy water"--before it falls into Nazi hands. The high-stakes pursuit takes them from London's plush drawing rooms to Barcelona, ravaged by the Spanish Civil War; from far-flung Soviet aerodromes to the perilous, icy landscapes of occupied Norway. Over time, Owen evolves from a detached observer into a man forced to confront profound questions of honor, love, and moral responsibility as loyalties are tested and allegiances shift in an ever-tightening web of science, intrigue, and deceit.
Rich with historical insight, emotionally complex characters, and a relentless sense of urgency with a world on the edge of cataclysm, D: Heavy Water is a suspenseful and wildly entertaining tale of courage and consequence in which humankind's future is shaped by decisions made in the shadows.
Critical Reviews
Critical Reviews
"The first installment in Stephenson's historical epic paints an engrossing picture of the United States during the Great Depression, the Soviet Union in its tumultuous and violent early years, and the looming threat of the technological advancements that will soon lead to the atomic bomb and the space race. . . . A deeply immersive historical epic." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Stephenson is one of speculative fiction's most meticulous architects. . . .Termination Shock manages to pull off a rare trick, at once wildly imaginative and grounded." - New York Times Book Review
"Fiercely intelligent, weird, darkly witty, and boldly speculative." - Publishers Weekly on Termination Shock
"Stephenson is a towering talent." - Library Journal
"Stephenson's enthralling new novel, Polostan, drops readers into a bloody, inspiring, conflict-ridden, and pivotal period. . . With its flair for characterization, precision of language, witty apercus, and fecundity of events, the novel delivers what we've come to expect from the author of such fantastical classics as The Diamond Age, Snow Crash, and Cryptonomicon. . . . Assuming the subsequent books are as good as this one, Stephenson might end up with a series that rivals Michael Moorcock's Pyat Quartet and Edward Whittemore's Jerusalem Quartet as a vivid and canny dissection of a century unlike any other." - Washington Post
"Stephenson is a writer of exuberant prose who revels in embracing big ideas." - The New York Times
"The work is deeply convincing, from polo playing out West to a meeting of varied officials in Russia that is so engrossing in the subtle dynamics at play (despite being a scene of only minor importance) that I'm reminded of John Le Carré. . . Wildly, almost shamelessly entertaining." - Parade
Publishing Information
Publishing Information
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