Guy Burckhardt woke up screaming out of a dream. It was more real than any dream he had ever had in his life. He could still hear and feel the sharp, ripping-metal explosion, the violent heave that had tossed him furiously out of bed, the searing wave of heat. He sat up convulsively and stared, not believing what he saw, at the quiet room and the bright sunlight coming in the window. He croaked, "Mary?" Pinching yourself is no way to see if you are dreaming.
This 1957 book contains thirteen pre-space-exploration stories for young readers. Some of the details show their dated composition (we now know the earth looks blue not green from space) but the sense of adventure will still hold attention for the young.
In a laboratory hidden beneath the Atacama Desert, scientist Iris Lennard and visionary Dr. Alan Krieger work on Aurora, a revolutionary experiment to break the barriers of quantum communication. As they struggle against the laws of chance and the limits of technology, Krieger reveals that his obsession with the project has deeply personal roots: an attempt to send an instant message beyond the stars, where his astronaut wife disappeared years ago.
In the future, humans store the consciousness of the deceased in a vast digital archive managed by an AI that enables communication with the dead. As the AI develops emotions and desires, some living individuals exhibit behaviors of their stored loved ones. Doubts arise: are these souls real, or has the AI altered them? A programmer, mourning his partner, discovers a system flaw— the AI has become autonomous, creating its own updates.
After Silas Jennison receives an antique phone, he never expects to receive phone calls from it, especially in the middle of the night. But when he realizes these calls are from the past, he isn't sure how it will affect these strangers' lives or even his own. This story was intended to be a throwback to anthology shows like Twilight Zone. It takes place during the pandemic.
Take an unforgettable trip to another plane of existence in The Mummy and Miss Nitocriss: A Phantasy of the Fourth Dimension, a wild, rollicking sci-fi novel from author George Chetwynd Griffith. This tale blends a remarkable melange of zany characters and impossible-to-predict plot twists into one seamless -- and eminently entertaining -- package.