Bowl of Heaven

Name: Bowl of Heaven
Rating: 3.8070175647735596 (114 reviews)

Gregory Benford · Larry Niven

Oct 2012 · Macmillan + ORM

114 reviews

Ebook

414

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Eligible

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About this ebook

Two science fiction masters spin a New York Times –bestselling tale of alien encounters and strange technologies on an epic scale.

" Bowl of Heaven is the first installment of what will be the biggest sci-fi saga since―well, since ever. If only more of us could share the authors' visions, and optimism." ― The Wall Street Journal

In Bowl of Heaven, the first collaboration by science fiction authors Larry Niven ( Ringworld) and Gregory Benford ( Timescape), the limits of wonder are redrawn once again as a human expedition to another star system is jeopardized by an encounter with an astonishingly immense artifact in interstellar space: a bowl-shaped structure half-englobing a star, with a habitable area equivalent to many millions of Earths . . . and it's on a direct path heading for the same system as the human ship.

A landing party is sent to investigate the Bowl, but when the explorers are separated—one group captured by the gigantic structure's alien inhabitants, the other pursued across its strange and dangerous landscape—the mystery of the Bowl's origins and purpose propel the human voyagers toward discoveries that will transform their understanding of their place in the universe.

"If you like hard SF with mind-stretching ideas—both physical and psychological—then you definitely want to read this book." ― Analog

Two science fiction masters spin a New York Times –bestselling tale of alien encounters and strange technologies on an epic scale. " Bowl of Heaven is the first installment of what will be the biggest sci-fi saga since―well, since ever. If only more of us could share the authors' visions, and op...

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Ratings and reviews

114 reviews

George Chryssomalis

July 12, 2015

Not a compelling story. Characters lack depth; no tension or drama in the plot. It only begins to get interesting during the last 25 pages. By then, it doesn't matter as it's a pretty classic scenario

1 person found this review helpful

Alex Chejlyk

March 25, 2016

The science is good. That makes it an interesting read. Plot is decent and the characters are likeable, although they lack depth. The pacing is a bit slow, but not terribly so. Enjoyable enough to go for the sequal, imo.

Hakkonen Hakaan

February 17, 2013

Strongly reminiscent of Niven's earlier Ringworld, yet distinct enough to have its own identity. Interesting science and sympathetic characters make this one easy to recommend.

About the author

GREGORY BENFORD is professor of physics at the University of California, Irvine, and lives in Irvine. Benford is a winner of the United Nations Medal for Literature, and the Nebula Award for his classic novel Timescape.
LARRY NIVEN is the multiple Hugo and Nebula Award–winning author of the Ringworld series, along with many other science fiction masterpieces. His Beowulf's Children, coauthored with Jerry Pournelle and Steven Barnes, was a New York Times bestseller. He lives in Chatsworth, California.

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