The First Rule is the most important: Always run, never fight.

For generations, Mia's family has shaped human history to push them to the stars.
The year is 1968 and she is on the cusp of destiny, poised to launch the first humans into space.

But she cannot take them to the stars, not quite yet. Her adversary is at her heels, the future of the planet at stake, and obeying the First Rule is no longer an option.

For the first time in one-hundred generations, Mia's family will have to choose to stand their ground, risking not only their bloodline, but the future of the human race.

A darkly satirical thriller, as seen through the eyes of the women who sacrifice all to make progress possible and the men who are determined to stop them.

Always run, never fight.
Preserve the knowledge.
Survive at all cost.
Take them to the stars.

(From Tor Books)

Sylvain Neuvel is a writer, linguist and translator from Montreal. He is also the author of the novels Sleeping Giants, Waking Gods, Only Human and The Test.