Fallen Dragon

Peter F. Hamilton

Nov 2008 · Sold by Aspect

About this ebook

From science fiction master Peter F. Hamilton comes a standalone novel that is “a fascinating, compulsively readable clash of hardware and ideals”, political intrigue, and space opera at its best (Kirkus Reviews (starred review)).
 
In the distant future, corporations have become sustainable communities with their own militaries, and corporate goals have essentially replaced political ideology. On a youthful, rebellious impulse, Lawrence joined the military of a corporation that he now recognizes to be ruthless and exploitative. His only hope for escape is to earn enough money to buy his place in a better corporation.

When his platoon is sent to a distant colony to quell a local resistance effort, it seems like a stroke of amazing fortune, and Lawrence plans to rob the colony of their fabled gemstone, the Fallen Dragon, to get the money he needs. However, he soon discovers that the Fallen Dragon is not a gemstone at all, but an alien life form that the local colonists have been protecting since it crashed in their area.
 
Now, Lawrence must decide if he will steal the alien to exploit the use of its inherent biotechnical processes — which far exceed anything humans are capable of — or if he will help the Resistance get the alien home.
 
"One of Hamilton's best...undeniably a page-turner." --- Publishers Weekly (starred review)
 
For more from Peter F. Hamilton, check out:
 
The Night’s Dawn Trilogy
The Reality Dysfunction
The Neutronium Alchemist
The Naked God

Ratings and reviews

The author spins a tale in a universe so different from that with which we are familiar that our fascination draws us in. But his characters are so realistic in their strengths and mostly in their weaknesses, the protagonists have their faults and the antagonists have their redeeming values, that one eventually realizes that this is a familiar love story told on an amazing stage.

This was my initial jumping off point for this author. This book was good enough to get me to read more of this author's works, and they all just keep getting better.

There's definitely better PFH out there but still entertaining. And good to read one of his that is self-contained as opposed to a series.

About the author

Peter F. Hamilton was born in Rutland, England in 1960. He began writing in 1987, and sold his first short story to Fear magazine in 1988. He has also been published in Interzone and the In Dreams and New Worlds anthologies, and several small press publications. His first novel was Mindstar Rising, published in 1993, and he has been steadily productive since then. Peter lives near Rutland Water with his wife and two children.