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Flood
Landfall: Tales From the Flood/Ark Universe
Stephen Baxter's bestselling novels, Flood and Ark (ROC, 2009 and 2010) introduced a universe in which a handful of refugees in a primitive starship flee a drowning Earth. In the duology we see the refugees reach colony worlds they call Earth II and Earth III. The three novellas in Landfall answer the frequently asked question, "What happened next?? The final piece, "Earth I," is original to this collection, a trio of stories that continue Baxter's masterful world-building.
Stephen Baxter is the pre-eminent sf writer of his generation. Published around the world, he has also won major awards in the US, UK, Germany and Japan. Born in 1957, he has degrees from Cambridge and Southampton. He lives in Northumberland, England with his wife.
Stephen Baxter is the pre-eminent sf writer of his generation. Published around the world, he has also won major awards in the US, UK, Germany and Japan. Born in 1957, he has degrees from Cambridge and Southampton. He lives in Northumberland, England with his wife.
185 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 3, 2015
52 people are currently reading
362 people want to read
About the author
Stephen Baxter
403 books2,613 followersStephen Baxter is a trained engineer with degrees from Cambridge (mathematics) and Southampton Universities (doctorate in aeroengineering research). Baxter is the winner of the British Science Fiction Award and the Locus Award, as well as being a nominee for an Arthur C. Clarke Award, most recently for Manifold: Time. His novel Voyage won the Sidewise Award for Best Alternate History Novel of the Year; he also won the John W. Campbell Award and the Philip K. Dick Award for his novel The Time Ships. He is currently working on his next novel, a collaboration with Sir Arthur C. Clarke. Mr. Baxter lives in Prestwood, England.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
December 15, 2015
I thoroughly enjoyed, and was intrigued by, Ark (I actually haven't read the first book, Flood, yet). Tales of the first foray out into the dark galaxy in search of planets beyond our own solar system always fascinate me. And upon finishing Ark, I was extremely curious about what happened to those left behind on Earth II and Earth III. This compilation fleshes out exactly what happened. My only complaint? It was too short :)
I get that these vignettes were only to fill in blanks and not to become complete novels in their own right, and that's cool. But they could easily have become independent books (series of books, even!) by themselves. They satisfied my curiosity, and felt like the right place to end the series...interesting and bittersweet right up until the end.
I get that these vignettes were only to fill in blanks and not to become complete novels in their own right, and that's cool. But they could easily have become independent books (series of books, even!) by themselves. They satisfied my curiosity, and felt like the right place to end the series...interesting and bittersweet right up until the end.
September 8, 2024
I’m a fan of Baxter’s Flood/Ark series and after my local subway station was inundated last week, I revisited it to discover a third book. This was also one of those serendipitous reads where a concurrent book overlapped: Jaime Green’s The Possibility of Life, which spends part of a chapter discussing the science behind Baxter’s exoplanets in this one. I’m glad Baxter jumped ahead and time and the ideas and the world-building are mind-blowing. Characters and plot, however, maybe not so much, but Baxter acknowledges that the former was the focus. I’m glad I could listen to Greene as a supplement.
April 25, 2015
Landfall sees Stephen Baxter tell three stories which continue the storyline of his books Flood & Ark.
Earth II: Many years after humanity first landed there, Earth II has a fairly large human population. Xaia is determined to explore the huge continent known as the Navel and conquer those living on it. Meanwhile her partner rules in their home land and is planning to build a great library to hold the knowledge the first settlers brought. Its a crucial time for the planet as the pair must decide whether to set a new world order or strive for the old ways.
Earth III: Set at a similar time, humans are also thriving on Earth III. They believe that their world is a simulation, although some refuse to accept the religion. Brod and Vala run away from their lives in the religion's stronghold and are pursued across the planet by Vala's brother Killi.
Earth I: Even further into the future, a ship from Urthen ("Earth n") sets out to discover whether the Simulation theory is correct by trying to find human's origin planet, our Earth. They visit Earth's II and III and eventually find Earth I.
Earth I is the star story here, a great exploration of humanity's place in the universe over 10,000 years after Flood. So often sci-fi sees humans from Earth trying to find out where they come from and its a interesting idea to see it work backwards. It's also an interesting exploration of the variation human colonies on other planets might be like.
Two average stories & one brilliant one which is the reason for reading this book. An excellent conclusion of the Flood/Ark universe.
Earth II: Many years after humanity first landed there, Earth II has a fairly large human population. Xaia is determined to explore the huge continent known as the Navel and conquer those living on it. Meanwhile her partner rules in their home land and is planning to build a great library to hold the knowledge the first settlers brought. Its a crucial time for the planet as the pair must decide whether to set a new world order or strive for the old ways.
Earth III: Set at a similar time, humans are also thriving on Earth III. They believe that their world is a simulation, although some refuse to accept the religion. Brod and Vala run away from their lives in the religion's stronghold and are pursued across the planet by Vala's brother Killi.
Earth I: Even further into the future, a ship from Urthen ("Earth n") sets out to discover whether the Simulation theory is correct by trying to find human's origin planet, our Earth. They visit Earth's II and III and eventually find Earth I.
Earth I is the star story here, a great exploration of humanity's place in the universe over 10,000 years after Flood. So often sci-fi sees humans from Earth trying to find out where they come from and its a interesting idea to see it work backwards. It's also an interesting exploration of the variation human colonies on other planets might be like.
Two average stories & one brilliant one which is the reason for reading this book. An excellent conclusion of the Flood/Ark universe.
December 8, 2018
Like I think many readers of Flood and Ark felt after completing Ark, I thought "is that it?!?!", there is WAY more story to tell. Well, Landfall picks up where Ark left off. It is a collection of three novellas which revisits Earth II, Earth III, and Earth I in succession. Baxter is one of my favorite science fiction authors and these stories reminded me why he is so good at hard science fiction writing.
I could only find this in Kindle, apparently the novellas have only previously printed in Asimov's Magazine. Reading on a cell phone is not something I enjoy but it was worth it to find out how the survivors of the Flood/Ark Universe ended up. Good stuff. I wouldn't mind even more.
I could only find this in Kindle, apparently the novellas have only previously printed in Asimov's Magazine. Reading on a cell phone is not something I enjoy but it was worth it to find out how the survivors of the Flood/Ark Universe ended up. Good stuff. I wouldn't mind even more.
May 7, 2017
The ultimate irony: Of the abominably badly plotted and badly characterised Flood/Ark series, this is by far the best content on offer. Originally, it wasn't even published in book form, making the irony even greater. Consider the following a review of the whole series, including this anthology.
The plots of these short stories (set on the marginally habitable "Earth II" and "Earth III", respectivelly) are necessarilly influenced by the sheer idiocy and convoluted drama on display in the "storylines" of the two preceding novels. But, at the very least, what was going on in the two societies descended from involuntary colonists was interesting. You know, interesting in a "hey, this grabs my attention and doesn't make me roll my eyes constantly, to the point they're rotating" sense. The trials and tribulations of the two societies descended from the colonists hint at loads of storytelling potential, which is there, but sadly never realised due to the length of these two works. A real pity. Honestly, I think Baxter should have just written these stories and made them longer and more interconnected, instead of hacking out the ca 1000 pages of "skimming-through-annoyed-because-it's-unreadable" levels of constant tosh that were Flood and Ark. Those two preceding novels were real page-turners, all right - in the most negative sense of the word possible.
Slightly refurbishing the backstory of how and why the ancestors of the two societies ended up on the two exoplanets would suffice, and by that I mean just dropping the preceding two novels completely. These short stories are where the series should have started all along. In media res, two lost colonies, something happened to Earth and the rest of humanity, no more establishment needed. No need for convoluted, sub-par disaster film tropes for a build-up. No need for a bloated story that basically goes nowhere. No need for dubious worldbuilding (drearily pedestrian "Next Sunday AD" setting in Flood; iPods beaming music into brains (?!); magic under-crust oceans flooding the Earth because... reasons; sleazy millionaire on hand to finance starship, cruise ship and undersea habitat construction at the drop of hat; etc.). Just get to the meat of the matter, the two impromptu colonies. However, it was not to be. And the author apparently couldn't care less. His contempt for the intelligence of his readers is mind-boggling.
I'm amazed Baxter has probably gotten so senile or in love with his popular image as "Britain's Emminent Hard SF Writer", that he couldn't have taken a single look at Flood and Ark and say: "You know what ? The initial premise is unusual, but everything else is... well, total crap." Aside from these shorter stories, the whole Flood series is a complete waste of paper, ink, storage space and everyone's time. This gets 3 stars (with difficulty), the rest gets 0 stars from me (but 1 here, as giving a 0 is impossible). The Flood series might just be the worst piece of published science fiction by a notable author published in the last ten years. Avoid the two novels like the plague, give this short anthology a try if you're interested. I can't recommend this series at all. Don't waste your time and patience.
On the subject of "the Earth has been rendered uninhabitable and a starship of refugees must colonise the nearest livable exoplanet for the sake of humanity's survival" plots for SF novels, I'd rather recommend The End and Afterwards by Andrew Cooke, and its upcoming two sequels. Far better plotting and far better characterisation than anything Baxter cooked up for his poor excuse for a disaster series. TEaA feels like it was written with real passion for the subject matter, Flood/Ark feels like Baxter wrote it for the paycheck.
The plots of these short stories (set on the marginally habitable "Earth II" and "Earth III", respectivelly) are necessarilly influenced by the sheer idiocy and convoluted drama on display in the "storylines" of the two preceding novels. But, at the very least, what was going on in the two societies descended from involuntary colonists was interesting. You know, interesting in a "hey, this grabs my attention and doesn't make me roll my eyes constantly, to the point they're rotating" sense. The trials and tribulations of the two societies descended from the colonists hint at loads of storytelling potential, which is there, but sadly never realised due to the length of these two works. A real pity. Honestly, I think Baxter should have just written these stories and made them longer and more interconnected, instead of hacking out the ca 1000 pages of "skimming-through-annoyed-because-it's-unreadable" levels of constant tosh that were Flood and Ark. Those two preceding novels were real page-turners, all right - in the most negative sense of the word possible.
Slightly refurbishing the backstory of how and why the ancestors of the two societies ended up on the two exoplanets would suffice, and by that I mean just dropping the preceding two novels completely. These short stories are where the series should have started all along. In media res, two lost colonies, something happened to Earth and the rest of humanity, no more establishment needed. No need for convoluted, sub-par disaster film tropes for a build-up. No need for a bloated story that basically goes nowhere. No need for dubious worldbuilding (drearily pedestrian "Next Sunday AD" setting in Flood; iPods beaming music into brains (?!); magic under-crust oceans flooding the Earth because... reasons; sleazy millionaire on hand to finance starship, cruise ship and undersea habitat construction at the drop of hat; etc.). Just get to the meat of the matter, the two impromptu colonies. However, it was not to be. And the author apparently couldn't care less. His contempt for the intelligence of his readers is mind-boggling.
I'm amazed Baxter has probably gotten so senile or in love with his popular image as "Britain's Emminent Hard SF Writer", that he couldn't have taken a single look at Flood and Ark and say: "You know what ? The initial premise is unusual, but everything else is... well, total crap." Aside from these shorter stories, the whole Flood series is a complete waste of paper, ink, storage space and everyone's time. This gets 3 stars (with difficulty), the rest gets 0 stars from me (but 1 here, as giving a 0 is impossible). The Flood series might just be the worst piece of published science fiction by a notable author published in the last ten years. Avoid the two novels like the plague, give this short anthology a try if you're interested. I can't recommend this series at all. Don't waste your time and patience.
On the subject of "the Earth has been rendered uninhabitable and a starship of refugees must colonise the nearest livable exoplanet for the sake of humanity's survival" plots for SF novels, I'd rather recommend The End and Afterwards by Andrew Cooke, and its upcoming two sequels. Far better plotting and far better characterisation than anything Baxter cooked up for his poor excuse for a disaster series. TEaA feels like it was written with real passion for the subject matter, Flood/Ark feels like Baxter wrote it for the paycheck.
October 4, 2021
I wasn't sure what to expect from a series of ebooks. I got rather more and less than I expected.
I liked the overall narrative, the way one novella flowed and influenced the next. How, in the end, 3 worlds came together in a sense.
Yet, I rather disliked just how much of a gap there had been between Flood/Ark and the novellas themselves. I understand why it had to happen, to tell the story of their evolution - but I found myself disconnected from any of the characters or places described. I couldn't care about them in the way I had in the previous novels; perhaps in the space of a novella, I simply didn't have time to identify with them properly.
I would have liked some kind of resolution on the fate of the colonists themselves. But that's probably just a personal attachment to characters I really liked.
I liked the overall narrative, the way one novella flowed and influenced the next. How, in the end, 3 worlds came together in a sense.
Yet, I rather disliked just how much of a gap there had been between Flood/Ark and the novellas themselves. I understand why it had to happen, to tell the story of their evolution - but I found myself disconnected from any of the characters or places described. I couldn't care about them in the way I had in the previous novels; perhaps in the space of a novella, I simply didn't have time to identify with them properly.
I would have liked some kind of resolution on the fate of the colonists themselves. But that's probably just a personal attachment to characters I really liked.
November 16, 2017
This is the follow up to Ark.
It's broken down into three parts. Earth 2, Earth 3 and Earth 1, I would advice not skipping ahead because even though they are broken down into parts the third section (Earth 1) overlaps with the first two worlds. That and Earth 2 is roughly three hundred years since the first group from the Ark landed on that particular planets surface. Earth 3 starts of even later, then Earth one even further into the future. In some ways this book covers how the descendants deal with being human on old planets that already have a history, while trying to deal with their own history. That being this history either written or remembered from those that landed, after leaving the Ark. Bearing in mind that most of those people had never set foot on Earth themselves, and those that had been on Earth, left when they were teens/young adults.
It was interesting although if you are expecting to hear a lot of what happened to the original crew you wont. Apart from their names are mentioned on and off, that and the religion on Earth 3. I kinda enjoyed the book, wasn't what I was expecting after reading the Ark, but it was worth reading. Saying that it would have been nice to know how the original crews survived, and adapted to the new worlds, and if those that stayed aboard the Ark did find others. Granted they must have seen as they had descendants, otherwise there wouldn't be this follow up book with said descendants.
Like I said I enjoyed the book, there was the odd little glitch/typo/who said what issues in the version I was reading via Kobo. Not many but it does disappoint me when I find them, not that I go looking, but sometimes they ruin the thread of the story specially if you are engrossed in what is happening, and you end up having to re-read a sentence because it read wrong, or you think hold on... why does it imply the son said that sentence when it was the daughter of the other person? Like eh? Basically that is why this book lost a star.
It's broken down into three parts. Earth 2, Earth 3 and Earth 1, I would advice not skipping ahead because even though they are broken down into parts the third section (Earth 1) overlaps with the first two worlds. That and Earth 2 is roughly three hundred years since the first group from the Ark landed on that particular planets surface. Earth 3 starts of even later, then Earth one even further into the future. In some ways this book covers how the descendants deal with being human on old planets that already have a history, while trying to deal with their own history. That being this history either written or remembered from those that landed, after leaving the Ark. Bearing in mind that most of those people had never set foot on Earth themselves, and those that had been on Earth, left when they were teens/young adults.
It was interesting although if you are expecting to hear a lot of what happened to the original crew you wont. Apart from their names are mentioned on and off, that and the religion on Earth 3. I kinda enjoyed the book, wasn't what I was expecting after reading the Ark, but it was worth reading. Saying that it would have been nice to know how the original crews survived, and adapted to the new worlds, and if those that stayed aboard the Ark did find others. Granted they must have seen as they had descendants, otherwise there wouldn't be this follow up book with said descendants.
Like I said I enjoyed the book, there was the odd little glitch/typo/who said what issues in the version I was reading via Kobo. Not many but it does disappoint me when I find them, not that I go looking, but sometimes they ruin the thread of the story specially if you are engrossed in what is happening, and you end up having to re-read a sentence because it read wrong, or you think hold on... why does it imply the son said that sentence when it was the daughter of the other person? Like eh? Basically that is why this book lost a star.
November 21, 2021
Spoiler alert..... As I read Earth II & Earth III, I was thinking 1 star all the way. I was put off by how the human race changed so much on the new worlds. Also, the stories themselves were not terribly interesting. Then when we get to Earth I, everything comes back together and we go back home. I have always been fascinated by the idea of future humans forgetting our world of today. I am sure that we who live in 2021 have forgotten our world from the past. I have to say I was very satisfied in the end and these last few pages will make me think for a while. Overall from "Flood" to "Ark" and on to "Landfall", it has been quite an epic journey. I am excited to read other offerings from Stephen Baxter. My 4 stars do not reflect this specific book as much as it reflects the overall saga. This book was a slog through the first 2/3, but it tied everything together in the end that I have to say "I really liked it".
April 10, 2018
This book only contains three short stories, so to a certain extent I knew what I was in for when I picked it up. There were parts I found unsurprising. There were parts I found disappointing. And there were parts I found depressing. Unsurprising because these are short stories and I knew I wasn't going to get that much depth. Disappointing because, with the exception of the third one, they're all a little unspectacular. And depressing because, I've seen the end of life as we know it on Earth, and it goes out with a sad whimper. If you're a completionist who wants to know what happens after Flood/Ark, I'd say pick this one up. It's only like 275 pages, so it won't take you too long to get through. Just don't expect it to end up on your Top 10 list.
October 9, 2023
not worth it
No idea why this was written as part of the flood/ark series. It has minimal to no connection with the previous books, does not tie up or any answer any remaining questions from the other two books. The story contents are interesting, but should’ve been written as part of a universe. Do not read this if you are planning on finding more information from the initial two books.
No idea why this was written as part of the flood/ark series. It has minimal to no connection with the previous books, does not tie up or any answer any remaining questions from the other two books. The story contents are interesting, but should’ve been written as part of a universe. Do not read this if you are planning on finding more information from the initial two books.
June 10, 2019
Talk about a dud.
I know these are short stories but there ain’t even come close to offering any happy conclusions to the amazing epicness of Flood or Ark.
I waited something like 10 years for this and was left so disappointed...and I think that’s even worse than the boring nature of these stories.
I know these are short stories but there ain’t even come close to offering any happy conclusions to the amazing epicness of Flood or Ark.
I waited something like 10 years for this and was left so disappointed...and I think that’s even worse than the boring nature of these stories.
January 10, 2020
Nice follow-ups to the Flood/Ark duology. I don't agree with some of the choices people made here, but they're plausible.
This also could be a distant origin to the galaxy-spanning human culture that is a staple of so much SF.
If you like Flood and Ark, you should read this.
This also could be a distant origin to the galaxy-spanning human culture that is a staple of so much SF.
If you like Flood and Ark, you should read this.
July 30, 2023
I think my review of Ark mentioned that I would have liked more detail about the Earth settlements and I am glad we got it in this final book. Although, probably not in the way I envisaged, but still enjoyable.
September 1, 2025
Worth reading if you were curious but not if you are expecting a 'what happens next', as the three stories are set centuries in the future.
3 stories for Earth 1,2 and 3.
Some really interesting ideas.
3 stories for Earth 1,2 and 3.
Some really interesting ideas.
June 3, 2017
Sorry. But no. What on earth (...) happened with the founder's legacy? How ironic.
September 30, 2018
Very interesting science possibilities and that's probably the main reason to continue reading. But, plot is a bit slow and ending feels a bit rushed.
December 19, 2019
Enjoyable.
January 1, 2020
I really hope this turns into a full series. I loved Flood & Ark.
January 10, 2020
These short stories are better than either Flood or Ark...
April 17, 2020
Just awful. A horrible follow up to the Flood 2 volume series. Basically, far in the future incomprehensible worlds.
February 7, 2021
Excellent Sequels to the Flood/Ark Universe
Sometimes quite disturbing/depressing
No easy solutions to the condition humaine
The high quality of Baxter's writing/ideas stays reliable
Sometimes quite disturbing/depressing
No easy solutions to the condition humaine
The high quality of Baxter's writing/ideas stays reliable
October 5, 2021
If you enjoyed Flood and Ark, these tales are a continuation which help answer ’What happened then?’
November 12, 2022
Liked the sf parts - concept and plot wise - again unhappy with the characters relentlessly stupid decisions and celebration of ignorance
January 9, 2024
A satisfying and interesting conclusion to the Flood and Ark novels.
July 21, 2025
I loved “Flood” and “Ark” and this was interesting but felt less space-saga-y and more like a Dune prequel without the cross-speciation, drugs and weird sex stuff…
October 5, 2025
This got way too convoluted for me. I kind of liked it but in the end I got kind of tired of trying to keep up with the the weave.
January 31, 2026
So depressing.
May 27, 2018
Flood and Ark are highly entertaining. Landfall is a tour deforce of imagination in futuristic humanity and exoplanet science.
July 28, 2020
My rating is mostly due to the fact that the stories presented in this book make everything that happened in the two previous books more or less moot. Nothing wrong with the quality of the writing and the stories are engaging just somewhat to very depressing(much like the previous two books in the series).
December 21, 2023
Book 3 of Flood/Ark series - A bit of a slog and not the kind of ending I wanted, but resolution! Which honestly was all I wanted.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews