A Campbell Award winner and Nebula Award finalist from the multi-award winning SF master Jack McDevitt. Fourth in the acclaimed Academy series.

'No one writing today is better than McDevitt at combining galaxy-spanning adventure with the genuine novel of ideas' Washington Post Book World

A civilization-destroying Omega cloud has switched direction, heading straight for a previously unexplored planetary system - and its alien society.

A handful of brave humans must try to save an entire world ... without revealing their existence.

'McDevitt handles the back story so adroitly that readers unfamiliar with earlier volumes in this series should have no trouble following the action' New York Times Book Review

"A story rich in detail and filled with action ... This taut tale of SF suspense belongs in most collections" - Library Journal

"McDevitt honors the memory of his predecessors by writing up to their level" - SciFi .com

"McDevitt handles the back story so adroitly that readers unfamiliar with earlier volumes in this series should have no trouble following the action" - The New York Times Book Review