Synopses & Reviews
Acclaimed as one of SF's most exciting new talents, Thomas Harlan took readers by storm with his remarkable Oath of Empire series, a thrilling blend of alternate history, high fantasy, and military adventure. The books in the series, including
The Shadow of Ararat, The Gate of Fire, The Storm of Heaven, and
The Dark Lord, not only earned Harlan rave reviews but gained him two nominations for Best New Writer of the Year.
Now Thomas Harlan draws upon his extensive knowledge of history, politics, strategy and tactics to create a brilliant new science fiction epic set in an alternate future in which the Aztec Empire rules the earth and an interstellar empire.
Led by the ambitions of the powerful, world-girdling Empire of the Méxica, the human race has spread out among the stars, only to discover a perilous universe once ruled by vast interstellar civilizations that suddenly vanished, leaving behind their mysterious artifacts.
Dr. Gretchen Andersson, a xeno-archeologist and second-class citizen of the empire, has made a career of searching for those First Sun artifacts. She has suddenly been recalled by her employer and sent to discover the fate of a missing survey team. To her consternation, she discovers that her team is to travel on an imperial warship, under a Japanese commander, instead of using a Company vessel. Worse, an Aztec aristocrat, Green Hummingbird--an imperial judge who is also a brujo, or sorcerer—is in command of the rescue mission. Clearly, there is more to this assignment than rescuing a team of company scientists from a dead world. In the company of Green Hummingbird, Gretchen will discover that there is far more to Ephesus III than meets the eye.
For the vast, rocky wasteland of the seemingly dead planet hides a secret life, and may hold treasures far too deadly for the empire to ever allow her to discover.
Synopsis
In five short centuries, the mighty Empire of the Mexica, descendants of the ancient Aztecs, has spread out to conquer the earth. Now it is ready to leave the homeworld and set its sights on the star. But the universe it finds is a dangerous place filled with hidden powers. Humanity is only a minor space-faring species on the fringe of a ferociously political arena where ancient and enormous alien empires are engaged in millennia-old struggles for supremacy.Now, on a desolate, barren world far from the heart of civilization, Gretchen Andersson, a young human xeno-archeologist is about to discover an awesome, long-buried secret that could alter the galactic balance of power forever.
Synopsis
In some far distant future year, the human race has spread out among the stars, encountering other species and an Empire that spans at least this corner of the galaxy. The Empire is ruled from the Imperial City of Tenochtitlan (which he know as Mexico City), the capital of the planet Anahuac. But the advance of Imperial Mexica has revealed that there were earlier powerful interstellar empires, which are long gone now, leaving behind their mysterious artifacts.
When a survey team goes missing, it's up to Dr. Gretchen Andersen to unravel the mystery, a mystery centered on these ancient artifacts, one that could shake the very foundations of the Empire.
About the Author
Fantasy, alternate-history and science fiction writer
Thomas Harlan is the author of the critically acclaimed Oath of Empire series from Tor Books. He has been twice nominated for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Author (in 1999 and 2000). His first novel,
The Shadow of Ararat was selected as one of the Barnes & Noble Top 20 Best SF&F Novels of 1999. The sequel,
Gate of Fire, was chosen as both a B&N Top 20 book and placed on Locus Magazine's Recommended Reading list for the year 2000. The third and fourth Oath of Empire novels,
The Storm of Heaven and
The Dark Lord were released in May of 2001 and 2002.
Thomas was born in Tucson, Arizona on February 25th, 1964. He was raised by archaeologist - dendrochronologist - botanist parents and traveled widely throughout the American southwest and overseas as a result. He currently lives in Tucson, Arizona with his partner Suzanne and three cats.