Termination Shock (preorder)

(preorder—to be published in late 2024)

Dust jacket and interior illustrations by Patrick Arrasmith.

About the Book:

Neal Stephenson is the quintessential novelist of ideas. Since the publication of his breakout novel, Snow Crash, in 1992, he has become one of the most acclaimed, honored, and influential writers of the modern era, regardless of genre. His work constitutes a kind of fictional history of scientific and technological development, and ranges from the Enlightenment era (The Baroque Cycle) to WWII and the development of cryptography (Cryptonomicon) to a future society dominated by nanotechnology, artificial intelligence and assorted scientific breakthroughs (The Diamond Age). In his latest epic, Termination Shock, Stephenson shifts his focus to the world just around the corner, and to the existential crisis of our time: climate change.

Termination Shock begins just a few years from now, at a time in which the direct effects of climate change have wreaked havoc across the globe. In some areas, the atmosphere has gotten too hot to support air travel. Feral hogs have taken over parts of Texas. Superstorms sweep across the planet, leaving devastation in their wake. New variations of the Covid virus continue to replicate. Against this backdrop of escalating catastrophe, one man—Texas billionaire T.R. “McHooligan” Schmidt, has come up with an idea, the sort of Big Idea that might, just might, buy the earth a bit of extra time.

Beneath its freight of deadly serious concerns, Termination Shock remains an enthralling, page-turning entertainment. Utilizing a large cast of characters (among them such unlikely bedfellows as Saskia, Queen of the Netherlands and Rufus, former soldier and professional pig hunter) and a plot involving the strategic use of The Biggest Gun in the World, Stephenson has crafted an immense—and immensely urgent—narrative that directly confronts one of the defining problems of our era, and does so with wit, unflagging energy, and a cautious but still discernible optimism. Termination Shock is required reading for Stephenson fans, for SF fans in general, and for anyone concerned with the ultimate fate of our increasingly vulnerable planet.

Both editions will be:

• Printed offset in two colors (black and Pantone®) on 70# archival quality paper in Opaque Bright White
• Signed by Neal Stephenson
• Art by Patrick Arrasmith
• Duotone chapter heads (four, rotated throughout the book)
• Two full-page interior plates
• Duotone endsheets
• Smyth-sewn binding
• 696 pages

The limited edition will be casebound in cloth, with foil stamping on the spine of the book. It includes a full color wraparound dust jacket.

The lettered edition will be handbound with a custom traycase, and include an extra piece of art housed in the case.

Lettered: 26 signed, specially bound copies, housed in a custom traycase

Limited: 400 signed numbered copies

From the New York Times Book Review:

“Stephenson is one of speculative fiction’s most meticulous architects…Termination Shock manages to pull off a rare trick, at once wildly imaginative and grounded.”

From The Washington Post:

“Stratospheric gigatons of carefully engineered delight.”

From New York Times Book Review:

“At once wildly imaginative and grounded.”

From Buzzfeed:

“An enthralling and thought-provoking read.”