The Server and the Dragon

In her stories, Hannu Rajaniemi skillfully juggles the incompatible—mythology and technology—celebrating the boundless universe woven from bits, which is traversed by dark ships and dragons. Here, quantum incantations break free from the lips, turning into fleet-footed stags; human tragedy makes it possible to have a personal conversation with a deity; digital cathedrals rise up; and stars are created by the power of thought.

How will human nature develop if the only limit of desires is creativity? What happens when the difference between humans and gods is as small as nanomachines—or as vast as the universe itself? These are just the main questions the author asks herself—and the reader—in this exciting journey into the depths of inner and outer space.

Bursting onto the science fiction stage with her debut novel “The Quantum Thief,” Hannu Rajaniemi quickly earned a reputation for combining extraordinary, cutting-edge science with beautiful prose—done with wit, warmth, and the joy of storytelling.

These very qualities are on display in the collection of stories presented to the reader. Taken from anthologies, magazines, and online publications, and assembled into a book for the first time, these fantastic novellas range from lyrical to quirky, from elegiac to mischievous. This is a collection that showcases one of the greatest new inventors in science fiction.