Voyage
A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation by Dirk Maggs

It is difficult to classify the genre of this novel--but it comes closest to "alternate history". In this story, J.F. Kennedy does not die, and Richard Nixon chooses not to develop the space shuttle program, but instead to launch a manned spacecraft to Mars. The story is jam-packed with engineering......more

The seeds to all good literature lies in two words : what if ? Take an occurrence in human history and imagine an alternative outcome to it and voila ! you have material for a good book in your hands. These flights of fantasy are what makes alternative history books some of my favorite reads. Here......more

Baxter draws on meticulous research to weave a convincing narrative of what would have happened if NASA had attempted to put an astronaut on Mars instead of building the great white elephant that was the Space Shuttle. A fascinating slice of speculative fiction for anyone still pining for the flying......more

This is an alternate history novel that I enjoyed years ago, with some caveats. I will immediately digress and admit that my thinking of this book is changing, thanks to H. Honsinger's insightful review, letting us know of Baxter's alleged plagiarism. That allegation, which I believe is well grounded......more

Definitely my favorite Baxter. Unlike most Baxter fare, there is no “big thinking”, no Xeelee, no looming destruction of the universe. It is, quite simply, a novel of what might have been (and very nearly was) if NASA had been allowed to continue in the footsteps of Apollo all the way to Mars. It is......more