Manifold: Time

Author: Stephen Baxter

Manifold: Time is part of an interesting series. It's the first in a series where order doesn't matter, because they're set in a multiverse. Which might just be the best sci fi series concept we've heard in a while. Seriously, you should probably read it just for that. Starting with an Earth ravaged by ecological damage but looking up to the stars, this is a tale of daring exploration and the hope of colonisation. Baxter is, luckily for this list, an engineer. So he knows what he's talking about when it comes to modern technology. Manifold: Time makes good use of this knowledge - talking about the technology needed to explore our solar system in a thoroughly convincing way. It's sitting just inside our top twenty of our twenty five best hard science fiction novels thanks to its intriguing premise - the idea that the last survivors of the humanity race decide to change the past in various ways, and the plot of this novel is one of those ways. Sound interesting? Get reading!