Separated by ten thousand years, a team of scientists and their test subject must work together to save the human species—before it's too late . .
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With humanity facing imminent extinction, Centauri Project scientists use technology originally designed for interstellar travel to send a test subject ten millennia into Earth's future. Marooned in an uninhabited wilderness, microbiologist Nicholas Hindman searches for evidence of remnant populations. He has a protocol to follow and is determined to do so to the bitter end—though he knows he's probably searching in vain, stranded on an uninhabited planet silently orbiting the sun.
Meanwhile, back in 2068 AD, a devastating hyperpandemic has quelled all talk of interstellar travel and thrown the future of humanity into grave doubt. Four surviving members of the Centauri team board a vintage solar-powered sailing yacht for a harrowing journey in search of a second test subject. Their destination is a small volcanic island north of Sicily rumored to harbor that rarest of creatures: a woman capable of getting pregnant, thereby ensuring this generation of Homo sapiens isn't the last. But first they must make it halfway across the post-apocalyptic globe, risking heatwaves, oceanic megastorms, murderous gangs, deranged cult leaders, a volcanic eruption, and the dangerous microbes that continue to circulate through the planet's atmosphere.
A finalist for the Prism Prize for Climate Literature, The Afterlife Project encompasses a desperate quest for the key to the future of humanity, an impossible love story, and a search for meaning across the inconceivable vastness of geological time.
"Smart, achingly beautiful, and (yes) important: a gripping novel of climate cataclysm with a cast of characters I cared about deeply." —Chris Bohjalian, #1 New York Times–bestselling author of The Flight Attendant
"A super-smart, super-fun page-turner about a scientist trying to survive alone on Earth in the deep future—and the love of his life trying to travel through time to find him. I can't think of a single page that didn't make me pause to admire a sentence, an image, or a particularly fascinating idea. I loved this book." —Angie Kim, New York Times–bestselling author of Happiness Falls
"The Afterlife Project isn't just a story about the end of the world as we know it—it's an exploration of beauty, and love, and hope in the darkness. If you were a fan of Cloud Atlas, you won't want to miss this one." —Janelle Brown, New York Times–bestselling author of Pretty Things
"This beautiful and heartbreaking book reminds us of what we have, and what we stand to lose. Unforgettable." —Danielle Trussoni, New York Times–bestselling author of The Puzzle Master
"A brave and brilliant imagining of Earth in the years just after a megapandemic has killed almost everyone, and ten thousand years hence, when a test subject emerges from suspension to explore a wilderness echoing with solitude. . . . Riveting and wrenching and suffused with beauty—the haunting and intimate beauty of the natural world rendered by a master." —Peter Heller, bestselling author of The Dog Stars
"Weed is a fabulous storyteller working at the top of his game. I predict this novel will become a classic." —Joseph Monninger, author of The World As We Know It
"A tale that feels wholly original and movingly conveys the full weight of the circumstances while providing a riveting read in the process." —BookLife by Publishers Weekly
"This engaging dystopian tale deftly blends enthralling fiction with real-life fears." —Kirkus Reviews
