Dead Astronauts - by Jeff VanderMeer (Paperback)

About the Book

"A messianic blue fox who slips through warrens of time and space on a mysterious mission. A homeless woman, haunted by a demon, who finds the key to all things in a strange journal. Three ragtag rebels waging an endless war against a ruthless corporation. A raving madman who wanders the desert lost in the past, besieged by his own creation: an invisible monster whose purpose remains hidden. Jeff Vandermeer's Dead Astronauts presents a nameless City where, in the shadow of the all-powerful Company, lives human and otherwise converge in terrifying and miraculous ways. At stake: the fate of the future, the fate of Earth--and all the Earths."--Page 4 of cover.

Book Synopsis

A 2020 LOCUS AWARD FINALIST

Jeff VanderMeer's Dead Astronauts presents a City with no name of its own where, in the shadow of the all-powerful Company, lives human and otherwise converge in terrifying and miraculous ways. At stake: the fate of the future, the fate of Earth--all the Earths.

A messianic blue fox who slips through warrens of time and space on a mysterious mission. A homeless woman haunted by a demon who finds the key to all things in a strange journal. A giant leviathan of a fish, centuries old, who hides a secret, remembering a past that may not be its own. Three ragtag rebels waging an endless war for the fate of the world against an all-powerful corporation. A raving madman who wanders the desert lost in the past, haunted by his own creation: an invisible monster whose name he has forgotten and whose purpose remains hidden.

Review Quotes

Praise for Dead Astronauts

"[A] darkly transcendent novel filled with phantasmagoric visions, body horror and tortured beings traversing a blasted desert hellscape . . . terrifying and so compelling."
--CHELSEA LEU, The New York Times Book Review

"A Mobius strip of a novel, with each chapter containing worlds upon nested worlds, all of them dreamlike and dark. In this shattered landscape, VanderMeer explores urgent ideas about capitalism, greed, and natural destruction."
--ADRIENNE WESTENFELD, Esquire

"VanderMeer is a master of literary science fiction, and this may be his best book yet."
--Kirkus (starred review)

"For any adventurous fan of sci-fi, fantasy, and/or horror, this book offers not only a rewarding read but, like, a thing to possess."
--ROBIN SLOAN, author of Sourdough

Praise for Jeff VanderMeer

"Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach Trilogy was an ever-creeping map of the apocalypse; with Borne he continues his investigation into the malevolent grace of the world, and it's a thorough marvel."
--COLSON WHITEHEAD, author of Nickel Boys

"Creepy and fascinating."
--STEPHEN KING, on The Southern Reach Trilogy

"[Jeff VanderMeer] makes the horrific beautiful."
--NISI SHAWL, The Seattle Times, on Annihilation

"Unsettling and un-put-down-able--like an old-fashioned adventure story, only weirder, beautifully written and not at all old-fashioned."
--KAREN JOY FOWLER, BookPage, on Annihilation

"More than just a horror novel; there's something Poe-like in this tightening, increasingly paranoid focus. But where Poe kept his most vicious blows relatively oblique, VanderMeer drives them deep--albeit in a corkscrewing way that is not less cruel and exquisite."
--N.K. JEMISIN, The New York Times Book Review, on Authority

About the Author

Jeff VanderMeer is the "weird Thoreau" according to The New Yorker. He is the author of Borne and The Southern Reach Trilogy, the first volume of which, Annihilation, won the Nebula Award and the Shirley Jackson Award and was adapted into a movie by Alex Garland. He speaks and writes frequently about issues relating to climate change. VanderMeer lives in Tallahassee, Florida, with his wife, Ann VanderMeer, and their cats, plants, and bird feeders.