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Into Deepest Space
The "Big Blaze" Theory was about to be tested with Earth as the laboratory. A giant cloud of hydrogen gas was being propelled toward Earth by the Yela -- terrifying opponent of all other beings of the starways. Should the hydrogen reach Earth's atmosphere, the entire planet would go up in explosive flames.
The people of Earth had no choice but to combine forces and, with physicist Dick Warboys and his three alien friends Betelgeuse, Rigel, and Alcyone as their leaders, take to space to combat the Yela peril. But instead of solar-system-wide warfare, Dick and his shipmates found themselves irresistibly pulled away from their fleet, captured by a dangerously desperate Yela, and bound on an incredible journey where man was never meant to go...
The people of Earth had no choice but to combine forces and, with physicist Dick Warboys and his three alien friends Betelgeuse, Rigel, and Alcyone as their leaders, take to space to combat the Yela peril. But instead of solar-system-wide warfare, Dick and his shipmates found themselves irresistibly pulled away from their fleet, captured by a dangerously desperate Yela, and bound on an incredible journey where man was never meant to go...
173 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1974
4 people are currently reading
186 people want to read
About the author
Fred Hoyle
115 books174 followersProfessor Sir Fred Hoyle was one of the most distinguished, creative, and controversial scientists of the twentieth century. He was a Fellow of St John’s College (1939-1972, Honorary Fellow 1973-2001), was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1957, held the Plumian Chair of Astronomy and Experimental Philosophy (1958-1972), established the Institute of Theoretical Astronomy in Cambridge (now part of the Institute of Astronomy), and (in 1972) received a knighthood for his services to astronomy.
Hoyle was a keen mountain climber, an avid player of chess, a science fiction writer, a populariser of science, and the man who coined the phrase 'The Big Bang'.
Hoyle was a keen mountain climber, an avid player of chess, a science fiction writer, a populariser of science, and the man who coined the phrase 'The Big Bang'.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
November 28, 2015
There is nothing special about this average work. It is OK to pass the time if one likes SF.
March 24, 2022
Four adventurers who forget to bring a flashlight as they embark into the deepest reaches of space!
Into Deepest Space is a vintage scifi novel written in 1974 by Fred and Geoffrey Hoyle. Fred Hoyle is best known for being an astronomer who came up with the theory for stellar nucleosynthesis, and for his controversial views on the Big Bang theory. Hoyle actually originated the term “big bang” while rejecting the theory in favor of the steady state theory of the universe. He also wrote a few hard scifi novels, including one of my favorites and lesser known novels, The Black Cloud.
When I picked up Into Deepest Space I had almost zero expectations. It is a really interesting novel in a number of ways. It reads like something from the early 60s, very original series Star Trekish mixed with a feel of the old black and white scifi movies. The story starts with a character named Dick Warboys (odd name right?), and three of his friends, who are aliens but are no different from modern humans, actually very little is said about their appearance. A giant cloud of hydrogen gas is on its way towards Earth, pushed by a mysterious space entity called the Yela. Dick and friends set off into space to confront the Yela, and craziness ensues.
The first half of the novel is very heavy on dialogue, and reads like a different book than the second half. In the second half of the novel, the rocket ship carrying Dick and the aliens is captured by the Yela, and the story takes a different turn. This is where the gang goes into deepest space. The story becomes heavily bogged down by mathematical and astronomical explanations. I struggled through much of the second half as it was incredibly boring at times. I wonder if Geoffrey wrote the first half, and then Fred took over in the second and flooded the novel with a deluge of textbook paragraphs. I was nearly hating the book as I reached the end, forcing myself to read through very little story and character development, and nonsense about space travel. The ending of the book, however, the last 5 or so pages, changed yet again into a third book with a wildly different tone from the first and second half. The ending was very conceptually interesting and had sort of a Planet of the Apes-esk ending.
Into Deepest Space has a fair amount of silliness in it as well. The dialogue at the beginning is amusing at times, verging on satire. At one point in the story the spaceship loses its lighting, and the characters are stuck in complete darkness. Did no one think to bring a flashlight? The entity of the Yela is sort of comical, and in the end, we get no explanation as to what it is.
Is this novel worth reading? Probably not in the end, but it does have its moments.
Into Deepest Space is a vintage scifi novel written in 1974 by Fred and Geoffrey Hoyle. Fred Hoyle is best known for being an astronomer who came up with the theory for stellar nucleosynthesis, and for his controversial views on the Big Bang theory. Hoyle actually originated the term “big bang” while rejecting the theory in favor of the steady state theory of the universe. He also wrote a few hard scifi novels, including one of my favorites and lesser known novels, The Black Cloud.
When I picked up Into Deepest Space I had almost zero expectations. It is a really interesting novel in a number of ways. It reads like something from the early 60s, very original series Star Trekish mixed with a feel of the old black and white scifi movies. The story starts with a character named Dick Warboys (odd name right?), and three of his friends, who are aliens but are no different from modern humans, actually very little is said about their appearance. A giant cloud of hydrogen gas is on its way towards Earth, pushed by a mysterious space entity called the Yela. Dick and friends set off into space to confront the Yela, and craziness ensues.
The first half of the novel is very heavy on dialogue, and reads like a different book than the second half. In the second half of the novel, the rocket ship carrying Dick and the aliens is captured by the Yela, and the story takes a different turn. This is where the gang goes into deepest space. The story becomes heavily bogged down by mathematical and astronomical explanations. I struggled through much of the second half as it was incredibly boring at times. I wonder if Geoffrey wrote the first half, and then Fred took over in the second and flooded the novel with a deluge of textbook paragraphs. I was nearly hating the book as I reached the end, forcing myself to read through very little story and character development, and nonsense about space travel. The ending of the book, however, the last 5 or so pages, changed yet again into a third book with a wildly different tone from the first and second half. The ending was very conceptually interesting and had sort of a Planet of the Apes-esk ending.
Into Deepest Space has a fair amount of silliness in it as well. The dialogue at the beginning is amusing at times, verging on satire. At one point in the story the spaceship loses its lighting, and the characters are stuck in complete darkness. Did no one think to bring a flashlight? The entity of the Yela is sort of comical, and in the end, we get no explanation as to what it is.
Is this novel worth reading? Probably not in the end, but it does have its moments.
January 22, 2022
Deep space exploration and a mysterious opponent gifted with an intelligence beyond human comprehension are two components that when intertwined will always make for an interesting premise, hence me picking up this book . This idea had so much potential, it could've been much more. I can't say I enjoyed Into Deepest Space, but it's also true that I didn't thoroughly hated it, some parts were interesting enough to keep me steadily reading, although I have two fundamental problems with Hoyle's writing: First and foremost, the scientific language is overused and at points nearly unintelligible, almost as if the author was attempting to pour all of his technical knowledge into every little explanation even if it meant sacrificing some of the much needed flow of reading. The second problem I encountered was the spoilers Hoyle scatterd throughout the book... I can't even fathom a reason as to why did he tell us of the protagonists fate in advance, and even more so, why did he do it two or three times, even going as far at one point as to tell us that the characters would make it back to earth safe and sound... while there's a third of the book still left to be read. Huge turn off, If I'll know beforehand what the ending is, then the journey that'll take me there needs to be absolutely great to make up for it and this wasn't the case. All of this combined with a criminal underdevelopment of the alien enemy, the 'Yela' (which left us with no real insight to their motives, who they are or what's their plan) made for a book that could've been so much more and ended up being anticlimatic. 2/5
July 13, 2021
I really liked Into Deepest Space. It left a lot to be imagined, and was paced well, building up a lot of ship-stuck tension. Fred Hoyle's background in astronomy bleeds through the text, it added a great sense of realism at most times that made all the phenomena and interactions in space feel very possible, and all the more thrilling. The end note was subtly executed, and has influenced tropes in media that still persist today. I found Dick Warboys to be an enjoyable protagonist that didn't feel pushed or shoeshined, and deeply enjoyed the characters of Alycone, and especially Betelgeuse. Geoffrey Hoyle did a stellar job at unravelling each characters personality gradually through many dialogues. Overall, this was a thrilling and exciting book that stirred my space wanting mind.
April 23, 2019
I had to pick this up because of its condition: Signet New American Library (1975, $1.25), worn, creased cover. Inside stamped "Airport Library, Alaska State Lib., Pouch G, Juneau, Ak. 99801" It was like going back in time. I recognized the name Fred Hoyle as a scientist so was interested in what he would have penned as 'science fiction'. Kind of clunky. It's like a pile of white rice next to a pile of beans. That's not 'beans and rice'. There is a heavy focus on the science and mechanics. Not why I read 'science fiction'.
June 13, 2021
This is clear masterpiece. Yela is the best sci-fi antagonist you will find. Not sure why its not talked of highly enough or not many have read this one.. maybe a hard to find book? But i sure did enjoy this when i read it.. would like to get hold of a copy if ever it gets available again for posterity!
January 12, 2019
Typical Hoyle. Great scientific precision, less conflict and drama.
February 9, 2019
Might actually be the most boring book I ever read. It was kind d of a struggle. Which is a bummer cause Im a huge fan of some of Boyle's other work.
November 24, 2019
Very weak story, poorly written and characters totally undeveloped. I found some elegance across the last chapter, but that was all.
Actually I am not stating that this is a bad book, I just think I wasn't written for me.
Actually I am not stating that this is a bad book, I just think I wasn't written for me.
March 16, 2017
This is a sequel to 'Rockets in Ursa Major' (1969), and is no better written. The one thing that distinguishes these books from other space thrillers is that the senior author was a brilliant astronomer, so the astronomy actually works (as of the 1960s and 70s of course). They even include a little math.
March 14, 2016
In which three dudes mansplain science to a girl, travel across the universe... And then they wake up! Just kidding, it wasn't a dream. But they did travel millions of years into the future of an alternate earth in the very last chapter so the main character could spend a paragraph speculating about the future of mankind... so...
In summary, this book is what happens when two British scientists think to themselves, "what if white holes?"
In summary, this book is what happens when two British scientists think to themselves, "what if white holes?"
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 4, 2012
Great, deep and honestly entertaining .
November 27, 2014
1982 grade D-
December 20, 2007
read 04.08.84
August 11, 2017
I read this not knowing it was the second of two...this didn't spoil the experience too much because the book is not particularly challenging or filled with many plot complexities.
I love reading Hoyle(s) and enjoyed this...but I'd not recommend it to many. It's poorly written, has a plot that leaps impossibly and swims too knowingly in its scientific posturing. It works as escapism, however, and made a fine companion on two Eurostar journeys.
I love reading Hoyle(s) and enjoyed this...but I'd not recommend it to many. It's poorly written, has a plot that leaps impossibly and swims too knowingly in its scientific posturing. It works as escapism, however, and made a fine companion on two Eurostar journeys.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews