A MODERN SCIENCE FICTION CLASSIC FROM WIL MCCARTHY
SAVE THE SOLAR SYSTEM FROM THE ULTIMATE COLLAPSE
In the eighth decade of the Queendom of Sol, three commodities rule the
day. The first is wellstone, a form of programmable matter capable of
emulating almost any substance. The second is collapsium, a deadly
crystal composed of miniature black holes, vital for the transmission of
information and matter--including humans--throughout the Solar System.
The third is the bitter rivalry between Her Majesty's top scientists.
Bruno de Towaji, famed lover and statesman, dreams of building an arc de
fin, an almost mythical device capable of probing the farthest reaches
of spacetime. Marlon Sykes, de Towaji's rival in both love and science,
is meanwhile hard at work on a vast telecommunications project whose
first step is the construction of a ring of collapsium around the Sun.
But when a ruthless saboteur attacks the Ring Collapsiter and sends it
falling into the Sun, the two scientists must put aside personal
animosity and combine their prodigious intellects to prevent the
destruction of the Solar System--and every living thing within it.
About The Collapsium:
"Ingenious and witty . . . as if Terry Pratchett at his zaniest and
Larry Niven at his best had collaborated."--Booklist
"Fresh and imaginative. From a plausible yet startling invention,
McCarthy follows the logical lines of sight, building in parallel the
technological and societal innovations."--Science Fiction Weekly
"The future as McCarthy sees it is a wondrous place." --Publishers
Weekly
"[McCarthy] studs his narrative with far-out scientific concepts. . .
. He certainly has a sense of humor."--The New York Times
"An ingenious yarn with challenging ideas, well-handled technical
details, and plenty of twists and turns."--Kirkus
