STARS
AND
WAVES
A thriller in the world of astronomy
Roberto Maiolino
‘His head was next to the silvery Milky Way, now crossed by a scarlet stream.’
— Inexplicable deaths.
‘… fascinating, but the star associated with the code name of his mysterious contact sounded quite eerie to him. Thuban means ‘snake’ in Arabic.’
— Cryptic figures.
‘She stopped breathing … This was too much for her mind to take in.’
— A scientific discovery that will change the human spirit, forever.
Laura is a student in Astronomy at the University of Cambridge. Her work on exoplanets - planets orbiting other stars - is largely unnoticed by the scientific community. However, it attracts the interest of a secluded elderly Russian astronomer, Professor Kasparov, on the basis of his own research thirty years ago. He tries to contact Laura and her supervisor, Julia, but dies in mysterious circumstances.
In the attempt to find out more about Kasparov's data, Laura and Julia travel across the globe. During their journey, science becomes entangled with poetry, while astronomy gets embroiled with mystery. They face a dark pattern of strange accidents and deaths. Their quest for clues gradually becomes a frantic pursuit through some of the most fascinating and deadly environments.
Will Laura and Julia uncover the truth? The whole truth? And… will they survive to tell the world?
Synopsis
Reviews
"I absolutely loved it. It's been a while since I read a book in one day... It was entertaining, brilliant, and intriguing."Annelies Mortier, Professor in Astronomy, University of Birmingham
"I was grilled from the start reading this. Such a beautifully written book, I felt the pages come alive as I was reading..."@heidiandherbooks
"An entertaining astronomical 'whodunnit' with suspense to the very end; I was unable to put it down!" Richard Ellis, Professor of Astrophysics, University College London
"This is a book filled with mystery, twists and suspense and had me turning page after page. I absolutely loved this book!"@what_doireadnext
"Superb! A thrilling novel written by a professional astronomer! Adventure, deaths in mysterious circumstances and a ticking clock in this Astronomical themed mystery. Excellent and highly recommended!" G.J. Greenfield
The Author
Roberto Maiolino is professor of Astrophysics at the University of Cambridge. He is also Honorary Professor at University College London and Royal Society Research Professor.
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From 2016 to 2021 he was Director of the Kavli Institute for Cosmology, Cambridge.
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In 2018 he was knighted by the Italian president in the Order of the Star of Italy.
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