science fiction

The Archimedes Engine

I finally finished this behemoth! The fact it took me so long should not be taken as a diss on the book - it's actually quite, quite good.

It felt like a return to form for Hamilton (I didn't overly love the Salvation trilogy, though I own the hardbacks for their drop-dead stunning covers....) He dialed the worldbuilding up to 11 (the worldbuilding in the Night's Dawn trilogy being pegged at about 17 ), while also crafting a final third packed with fast-paced action and edge-of-your-seat suspense. Reminded me of Pandora's Star/Judas Unchained, which is my favorite PDF tale.

Perhaps most importantly, it brought the game world of EXODUS (website: https://www.exodusgame.com) to vivid life by letting the reader live in it for a thousand pages. This made me even more excited to play the game, which is the highest purpose of every game tie-in novel.

Stargate Is Returning

Exciting news: Amazon has ordered a new Stargate TV series! Not a reboot, but instead a continuation - and all the major writers and producers from SG-1 and Atlantis are in charge, which gives me a tremendous amount of hope.

You can read the official schpiel from Amazon here: https://deadline.com/2025/11/stargate-tv-series-order-amazon-martin-gero-1236623431/

But even better, get the inside scoop from Joseph Mallozzi, one of the primary producers and creative minds behind SG-1 and Atlantis:

“Yes, it’s true.  14 years after the franchise aired its last episode (SGU’s “Gauntlet”), a new Stargate series has been greenlit by Amazon.  And it’s not a reboot or a wholesale reimagining that will wipe the slate clean on 17 seasons and some 350 hours of Stargate history.  It’s a new series that will be the perfect jumping-on point for first-time viewers while, at the same time, honoring the existing past.  And the reason for that is because this new series was created by longtime franchise veteran Martin Gero who worked on SG-1, Atlantis and Universe, writing such notable fan favorites as The Storm, The Eye, Duet, First Strike, Be All My Sins Remember’d and many more.

Joining the production of the new series is Brad Wright, co-creator and co-showrunner of all that came before – Stargate SG-1, Atlantis, and Universe.  Martin has kindly offered yours truly a role on the project as well and I have happily accepted.

Martin has been developing this show for a while now.  A little over a year ago, he reached out and asked “Want to read something cool?”.  That something, it turned out, was his pilot script for the new Stargate series.  Now I obviously can’t say too much about the content at this point – but I can assure you that it embraces everything that made the original Stargates so great: heart, humor, rich mythology, exploration, action, adventure, compelling/endearing characters, and that overall sense of optimism and fun that made you fall in love with Stargate.

You are all in for a treat.

Eventually.

Now putting this production together is going to take some time even though Martin has already done a lot of the preliminary heavy lifting, writing the pilot script and series overview that details the show, its world and characters, as well as his plans for the first season and beyond.  Between now and the series premiere somewhere down the line, the writers room must be assembled, stories need to be spun, scripts written, prep started, crew hired, actors cast and, eventually, a new Stargate series produced.

It will take a while but Martin shares my philosophy when it comes to dialing in the fandom, so expect to receive updates throughout the prep, production, and post process.  Concept art, behind-the-scenes photos, videos and insights, breaking news and much much more!

Get ready.  We’re heading through the gate one more time. Chevron Eight is locked!” (Original tweet)

New Project Hail Mary Trailer

Guys, if you haven't read Project Hail Mary and don't want to be spoiled before you go see the movie (or get around to reading the book), DO NOT WATCH THIS TRAILER. The spoilers, they flow like wine.

If you have read the book, though? OMG, this trailer looks absolutely amazing! I'm so excited now.

It's a cliche to observe that book-to-movie adaptations are almost always terrible, but they are. I've said before that PHM is one of my Top 5 books of the last decade...and they just might have gotten this one right.

TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VYsnngkS_U

Dune Part 3

‘DUNE: PART THREE’ has wrapped production. It stars Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Anya Taylor-Joy, Robert Pattinson and Rebecca Ferguson, and will hit theaters December 18, 2026.

As wonderful a book as Dune is, I did not love Dune Messiah. It will be interesting to see if and how much they change the story. Is your average moviegover ready for the hero to become the villain - and not in a "The Dark Knight" way, but a mass-murdering way?

Choose the Form of Your Destruction

Is the universe doomed to suffer a Heat Death (which means cold) or a Big Crunch (or possibly Big Bounce)? Which is it, dammit? For the last 3 decades, scientists have insisted the expansion of the universe was accelerating; that one day no more galaxies would decorate our sky, then no more stars. Then the universe would grow still and cold.

Now some pretty reputable research says...oops? Maybe not? Maybe the expansion is slowing, will eventually stop, then reverse?

You don't need to read the article unless you're into astrophysics. The point is that, for a science fiction writer, all the things we DON'T understand can be very frustrating - but possibly nothing is more frustrating than when we're confident we DO understand something...until we don't.

The fact that the universe is expanding, and that the expansion is accelerating, is baked into the Amaranthe worldbuilding, and not just as background - it's actually somewhat important to the Rasu/Dzhvar shenanigans. If scientists eventually decide that, no, they're now definitely sure it's doing no such thing, that flip is going to painfully date my books for future readers.

And I'm going to be ANNOYED.

https://thedebrief.org/a-potential-paradigm-shift-in-cosmology-scientists-uncover-evidence-the-universes-expansion-is-slowing-down-not-accelerating/

P.S.: For the record, I actually prefer the Big Bounce scenario. If all life in the universe is going to end, better for it to do so in an exciting rush of colliding galaxies and stars into a dramatic singularity, then an explosion to start all over again. No one wants to die cold and alone in the dark.

P.P.S.: A reader on X pushed back a little bit on my take, pointing out that science is not frozen into a fixed, unchanging doctrine like religion; instead it bends and changes as our knowledge grows, and that’s a good thing. And it IS a good thing; in fact, it's one of the most admirable aspects of science. It's just frustrating when you're trying to make your scifi grounded in scientific plausibility & the foundations keep changing. But, that's what I get for writing out on the far edge of what we know!

Happy Halloween

Two years ago, I wrote this little flash fiction ghost story for Halloween. If you've finished Liminal Space, you know that the events underlying the story are now Official Amaranthe Canon. Because I never can leave well enough alone....

***

Proele.

The word whispered through her dream, carried along by an eerie, haunted wind. Wisps of fog obscured any details of where she was, but everywhere she turned, there was only the word.

Proele.

Nika awoke with a start. Silvery moonlight drifted into the bedroom, and she turned to see Dashiel sleeping peacefully beside her.

Taking care not to disturb him, she eased out of bed and tip-toed to the kitchen, where she poured a cup of coffee and took it over to the windows looking down upon Mirai One.

Proele. She knew the word, though not from where. It took only a fraction of a second to delve the history banks and she had her answer, though not her ‘why.’ Proele was the name they’d given to the planetoid where, near the end of their two-century-long Exodus away from the Anaden Empire, they’d first discovered kyoseil. Though the rock wasn’t fit for habitation, they’d paused there for several weeks while a team set up a camp on the surface to extract and study the mineral. After loading up sizeable samples in the holds of their generation ships, they’d continued their journey, and only after settling on Synra had the first experiments integrating kyoseil into their biosynthetic bodies began.

She wondered. Had Magnus Forchelle known as he stood on the planetoid’s surface what he had found?

Proele.

She jumped in surprise. She wasn’t dreaming any longer, was she? She pinched herself. No, she was not. Yet the ghostly voice had echoed anew in her mind nonetheless.

She sighed, sending ripples through the steaming coffee held at her lips. It appeared she was going to Proele.

Read the rest at the link: https://www.gsjennsen.com/news/2023/10/31/ghosts-of-proele

(Image Credit: Adam Block/Mount Lemmon SkyCenter/University of Arizona)

Book and Character Art Banner

A new header image went up on the social media profiles this week, and I thought you all might enjoy seeing it. The theme: “The people who will save the universe - if it can be saved.”

You can see high-res versions of the character art - and some additional characters - on my concept art page: https://www.gsjennsen.com/concept-art/. Click to expand a pic, then right click to download it if you like.

Exodus Game Update

Archetype Entertainment dropped a ton of exciting updates this week for EXODUS, it’s upcoming action/RPG scifi game. If you’re a fan of Mass Effect, you want to be following this game! New key art is below. They also released a new set of screenshots, and the devs hosted a 12-minute Q&A. And you can now Wishlist the game at Steam and other retailers. See all the updates here: https://www.exodusgame.com/en-US/news/wishlist-exodus-now-watch-the-new-exodus-founders-qa-and-more

We're #1

Well, Nika is, anyway, as she should be. All the thanks to BookBub for featuring EXIN EX MACHINA on Wednesday! Well over 10K copies have been downloaded already; I hope this means we'll be welcoming a bunch of new people to the Amaranthe community soon.

MACHINA will remain free through the weekend, if you know anyone who needs it in their life. Info and retailers are HERE.

P.S.: I’ve switched to a new newsletter provider, so let me know if you have any problems or see any glitches with this email. Thanks!

Not So Science Fiction

Guys, "pulsing" is on the way, and much faster than I was expecting.

A startup called "Alter Ego" is releasing a product by the same name that detects what you want to say and transmits it. It picks up on the downstream subtle signals your brain sends to your speech system, before words are spoken aloud, and it captures only what you intend to say (not your random thoughts).

Now we just need to get the device inside our skull (though, honestly, a little dot behind the ear would be close enough).

Here's the full article: https://thedebrief.org/mit-linked-startup-unveils-near-telepathic-wearable-device-for-silent-communication/

Watch it in action here: https://x.com/alterego_io/status/1965113585299849535

A Dragon Con Tale in 2 Pictures

Dragon Con Day 1. 10 am, as the Vendor Hall opens. I’ve got the books (and many, many more books under the table). I’ve got the banner. I’ve got the first of 4 geeky tshirts. I’m ready to sell some books.

Dragon Con Day 4. 45 minutes left in the convention. The table is clear, all books safely in the hands of new owners. And I get to rest. ;)

Many other, non-table adventures were had over the course of the long weekend. I spoke on 4 interesting panels, sold yet more books at a SFF gala party Friday night, and hung out with other authors in the Westin bar every night. I got to meet my narrator, Pyper Down, in person for the first time! She was simply fabulous. All in all a great, and exhausting, time.

Murderbot

I'm honestly not sure where the consensus has formed on this, but I *really* enjoyed Murderbot!

I was concerned about the slapstick, over-the-top comedic feel of the trailer, and yes, to some extent the humor was over the top (and definitely beyond the books). But I laughed A LOT while watching the show (and I'm not typically easily amused). Sometimes, that's enough. Not every show has to be "Capital M" Meaningful. It can just be fun.

Project Hail Mary Trailer

The first trailer for the PROJECT HAIL MARY movie has dropped (and the official movie poster)! It's a surprisingly fullsome trailer, while also being mostly setup for the actual story.

I absolutely loved this book. The odds of any Hollywood adaptation of a scifi IP being worthy of the book are always low, but they managed to do it with The Martian, by the same author (Andy Weir). Accordingly, I'm optimistic! What do you all think?

SPOILERS FOR THE BOOK:

It’ll all come down to whether the movie nails Rocky. Gosling’s character may be the POV and main character, but Rocky is the star of the book.

See the trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m08TxIsFTRI