“The stunning plot of Foster’s stand-alone novel will intrigue readers for not only the ‘last man in the universe’ trope but also the well-developed alien species. The plot spans galaxies!” -Hugo and Nebula Award–winning author Greg Bear With Alan Dean Foster’s trademark invention in both the psychology and physiology of his aliens, he also enriches the narrative with their complex cultures. “ Relic is a thrilling and thoughtful epic. Thus begins an epic journey of adventure, danger, heartbreak, and hope, as Ruslan sets out in search of a place that may no longer exist-drawn by the slimmest yet most enduring hope. But then the Myssari make Ruslan an extraordinary offer: In exchange for his cooperation, they will do everything in their considerable power to find the lost home world of his species-an all-but-mythical place called Earth-and, perhaps, another living human. Though the Myssari are determined to resurrect the human race, using Ruslan’s genetic material, all he wants for himself and his species is oblivion. Rescued from the charnel house of his home planet by the Myssari-an intelligent alien race-Ruslan spends his days as something of a cross between a research subject and a zoo attraction. That man is Ruslan, the sole known surviving human being in the universe. As had happened many times before, the basest, most primal human instincts rose up, only this time armed with the advanced scientific knowledge to create a genetically engineered smart virus that quickly wiped out humanity to the last man. Once Homo sapiens reigned supreme, spreading from star system to star system in an empire that encountered no alien life and thus knew no enemy. “A provocative read.”- The Washington Post It’s interesting that enlightened races don’t really care that what they’re essentially doing is killing themselves and then being replaced with an exact copy a few kilometres away.The last known human searches the galaxy for companionship in a brilliant standalone novel from the legendary author of the Pip & Flinx series. The author describes the process as basically destroying your body and recreating it somewhere else in line of sight. This isn’t a mass dive into speculative future technology either Dean Foster keeps the technology and the environment at a level that doesn’t interrupt the story, and yet still gives you poise to stop and think, “Well, what about that then?”Ĭase in point: teleportation. There are certainly moments that have you on the edge of your seat, but mostly this is a fascinating look into the far future, and the failure of man to temper its greed. The dialogue on all sides is brilliant, moving the story along at a fairly sedate pace which gives the story a feel of exploration rather than being an adrenaline-fuelled thrill-ride. The book travels over many years and visits many worlds the timeline occasionally feels a little compressed, but nothing that really detracted from my enjoyment. Perhaps that’s why they’re so bent on resurrecting the humanity: closer study may prevent the same thing happening to them further down the line. The characterisations are deep, not just at an individual level, but with the two main civilisations as a whole: even the most enlightened species quarrel politely, knowing that same fate that took the human race awaits them unless they favour logic above avarice. So let’s get the first question out the way: is the book any good?Īlan Dean Foster has created a universe-spanning epic around one man, with a supporting cast of identical aliens who are nevertheless as individual as they are numerous. (I mean why, for God’s sake – we’re a danger to everything everywhere.)
If they help him search the universe for the lost planet Earth, where he might find another survivor (hopefully female), he promises (and this is where the “reluctant” part comes in) to let them use his genetic material in a somewhat misguided scheme to restart the human race.
The Mysarri treat Ruslan very well, but the last human grows restless he longs for true companionship, so he strikes a reluctant bargain with his benefactors. After spending decades wandering his homeworld alone, Ruslan is discovered by a benevolent alien race called the Myssari, who take him back to their planet to live out his final years as their honoured guest and much-loved research project. Meet Ruslan, the acerbic last survivor of the human race, which has chosen to eradicate itself throughout the galaxy by engineering a virus without thinking that maybe engineering a cure would’ve been a good idea too.