 | |
| Author | Ada Palmer |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Series | Terra Ignota #4 |
| Genre | Science fiction, speculative fiction |
| Publisher | Tor Books |
Publication date | 2021 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Pages | 608 |
| ISBN | 978-0765378064 |
Perhaps the Stars is the fourth novel in a science fiction quartet called Terra Ignota, written by the American author Ada Palmer. It was published on November 21, 2021. It is preceded by Too Like the Lightning (2016), Seven Surrenders (2017), and The Will to Battle (2017).
Set in the year 2454, the Earth of the Terra Ignota quartet has seen several centuries of near-total peace and prosperity, but now has been engulfed by war. Perhaps the Stars presents itself as a chronicle of this war. It is narrated by self-confessed unreliable narrator Mycroft Canner, a brilliant, infamous, and paroled criminal who often serves the world's most powerful leaders.
The title is taken from a quote by Mycroft which appears in Too Like the Lightning. In that book Mycroft reflects on the shortcomings of humanity and their ambitions to be greater and writes: "Complacent reader, we no longer aim for Earth nor Atom...". The sentence is finished by the title of the proceeding chapter "...Perhaps the Stars".