The novel will spearhead a re-launch of all Arthur C. Clarke backlisttitles in 2008 and 2009. The proofs for this novel were signed offonly a week before his death earlier this year. Clarke worked withFrederik Pohl, who completed the writing due to the SF grandmaster's failing health. It is a fitting tribute to man whose visionary writing predicted communications satellites and created the landmark work 2001AD: A Space Odyssey, that The Last Theorem is a stunning work of big ideas with a mesmerising narrative. A young maths prodigy discovers a brilliantsolution to Fermat's Last Theorem and is recruited to the Space Elevator project; the eventual success of this is celebrated by hosting the Olympics in space, but when one of the competing solar yachts brushes against a cloaked alien spaceships it reveals that Earth stands on the brink of invasion.
Editor Chris Smith says: ‘I am thrilled to be able to bring Sir Arthur back to HarperCollins, to re-establish a very successful publishing partnership which we both have enjoyed during the past four decades, and in particular to Voyager, the premiere list of Science Fiction and Fantasy. How fitting that, for his final journey, he returns to his spiritual home.’
