Scientist and acclaimed author Peter Watts’ Blindsight is fast-moving hard SF that pulls readers into a futuristic world where a mind-bending alien encounter is set to unfold.
After the Firefall in 2082, the prospect of Utopia in two years promptly took a back seat to the looming specter of Armageddon. It was official: an unknown alien intelligence had surveyed the entire planet in one spectacular light show. Now what?
In a world where an extinct race of vampires has been genetically revived, and ordinary human beings are inept at comprehending even a trickle in the vast information stream, all eyes are locked heavenward as a team of specialists hurtles outbound aboard the self-piloted spacecraft Theseus. Beyond Neptune, Theseus seeks a comet. But this is no ordinary comet: it has a heart of refined iron and has been observed pulsing an indecipherable signal into deep space … but to whom, or what?
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"A group of unusual "people" from Earth investigate an interstellar visitor and make some quite unpleasant discoveries. Intelligent and stimulating, and mercifully memorable, as the ebook format was so difficult to read consistently that I would go weeks without reading another chapter. Let me say that the writing and the ideas were so good that the deficiencies of the narrative did not subtract from my commendation. Also, the ebook was available free, which compensated for the ebook format's drawbacks."
— Elliot (4 out of 5 stars)
" This book is really if you don't like science just don't read it "
— Laikyn, 2/7/2014" Boldly inventive future-building, tackling transhumanism, truly strange aliens, group dynamics and resurrected vampires. If you can read only one book with those four elements this year, make it this one. "
— Matt, 2/5/2014" One of the best SF book for last year "
— Andrey, 1/24/2014" Complete and utter rubbish. Self important wankerage. Politically correct philosophical wandering through sophist hedgerows. As illuminating as this review. "
— Hahleq, 1/17/2014" I'm generally more of a fantasy reader than a science fiction reader, but found this book really interesting and well done, once I got used to the p.o.v. "
— Jessica, 1/13/2014" Loved Blindsight. A unique twist on the "enhanced" human theme found in many sci-fi reads. Loved the plot twists, the character development, and the complexity of the story line, Highly recommend! "
— Todd, 1/11/2014" This book was an overall flop in my eyes. It had a great concept but in my opinion Watts never realized that concept. The book was slow in parts as well. I'm not saying don't read this book cause it is decent and worth a read. Plus it's a FREE ebook. So take a stab you may like it. "
— Art, 12/31/2013" A very interesting (if not very long) character compilation. It is the earth's mix of powerful yet strange personalities that make this first-contact story worth reading. "
— Veach, 12/22/2013" I love what Watts does with perspective in this book. I'm giving it 4 stars but it really ranges somewhere between 3.5-4.5. Challenging book, difficult to rate. "
— Charlie, 12/16/2013" A pretty awesome novel-length foray into the territory of philosophy of mind, including p-zombies, solipsisms real and imagined, alien and artificial intelligences, and a singularity (or more than one) that may or may not have happened without anyone really noticing. Oh, and vampires. "
— Seth, 11/6/2013" Delightfully woven prose testing the boundaries of the human condition while maintaining a flowing narrative and succulant plot. "
— Leo8, 6/13/2013" All of Peter Watts' books are good, but this is top notch. One of the best sci-fi novels written in a while... What is intelligence? Do we need consciousness for intelligence? First Contact done right.... "
— Bryan, 12/27/2012" The book itself was very had for me to follow. Especially in the begining third. After a while, I got more into the story, and could follow (for the most part). "
— Bri, 12/26/2012" Read. This. Now. Impossibly genius. . Read it with a good dictionary handy though. "
— Zach, 11/6/2012" loved this. very intelligent with a cool idea at its heart. "
— David, 5/20/2012" Awesome, dark science fiction. If the back cover sounds like something far too cheesy to consider, think again. Peter Watts has created a thoroughly bizarre alien creature. The "humans" in this book are only barely recognizable as such. Fascinating. "
— Rob, 2/11/2012" I am not sure how I feel about this book. I enjoyed parts of the book; however, my attention kept wandering so I think I kept missing important information. The book was an interesting thought experiment; however, I think I would have enjoyed it more if I had caught all the details. "
— Pamela, 2/10/2012" This was an odd book. It was an interesting story, but sometimes hard to follow. I'd probably try this again, but want it in physical form to page back and forth. "
— Sam, 2/7/2012" Convincing account of an alien biology. "
— McKenzie, 11/8/2011" I don't even know what happened in this book... the pseudo-science (elaborately justified in a footnoted appendix) was more interesting than the jittery, fragmented story action. "
— Liz, 9/1/2011" I enjoyed this work of science fiction, although there were points at which I found myself somewhat confused by what was going on, and thought the ending was something of a let down. All and all, I'd say give it a read. "
— Peter, 5/7/2011" Fantastic take on the first contact story. I enjoyed even more the asides dealing with human identity and cognition. "
— Dan, 5/4/2011" A Science Fiction reference book with a vague strand of plot. Frequent flashbacks and change of character POV prevent any engagement with the story.<br/> "
— Nigel, 5/4/2011" Complete and utter rubbish. Self important wankerage. Politically correct philosophical wandering through sophist hedgerows. As illuminating as this review. "
— Hahleq, 5/4/2011" El millor exemple de ciència ficció hard de qualitat que he trobat en molt de temps. No és el llibre més optimista sobre la capa de la terra. "
— Membrillu, 5/2/2011" Weird and at times hard to parse, but ultimately very rewarding and a novel that, like the best science fiction, kept me excited and gave me things to think about. "
— Andy, 4/30/2011" Decent story and I liked the psychological in-depth background, but there was something that I didn't like...couldn't quite put my finger on it. Ending felt very rushed. "
— Eric, 4/24/2011" The book itself was very had for me to follow. Especially in the begining third. After a while, I got more into the story, and could follow (for the most part). "
— Bri, 4/23/2011Peter Watts is a science fiction writer and a marine-mammal biologist. In addition to a number of accolades for science fiction—including the Aurora, Hugo, and Shirley Jackson Awards—Watts has won minor awards in fields as diverse as marine mammal research and documentary filmmaking. He lives in Toronto.
T. Ryder Smith is an American actor. A native of New York state and long-time resident of New York City, he has appeared frequently on stage, particularly in avant-garde theater works, and in film, sometimes as a voice actor.