But what if the Martian invasion was not entirely the product of H.G. Well's vivid imagination? What if Wells witnessed something that spurred him to write The War of the Worlds not as a form of entertainment, but as a warning to the complacent people of Earth?

THE MARTIAN WAR takes the reader on an exhilarating journey with Wells and his companions, from dreary London flats to the steamy Sahara, to the surface of the moon, and beyond. Discover the truth about Martian invasion not only from Wells himself, but also from the enigmatic Dr. Moreau, who documents the very first alien autopsy!

Hardcover: May 31, 2005
Paperback: August 15, 2006

Publishers Weekly Review

February 7, 2005

What if H. G. Wells's War of the Worlds had a basis in fact? That's the premise of Mesta's high-spirited, heart-felt tribute, in which Wells, his second wife, Amy Catherine ("Jane") Robbins, and his inspiring biology professor, T. H. Huxley, join forces with other real Victorians and various characters from Wells' books to thwart the Martian invasion of Earth in 1894. At Huxley's behest, the emerging writer agrees to participate in the secret super-science work of Britain's Imperial Institute, where he learns of experiments in invisibility by Dr. Hawley Griffin and of the existence of Martians, courtesy of Dr. Moreau and astronomer Percival Lowell. Accidentally propelled into space, he, Jane, and Huxley hear of the Martians' earlier enslavement of the hive-mind Selenites from their leader, the Grand Lunar. Proceeding to Mars, they trigger a revolt among the Selenites and unleash cholera on the canal water-dependent Martians.

Mesta smoothly mixes Victorian sober rationalism with the fast pace of the period's boys' adventure yarns. The result is a thoughtful pastiche of Wells' groundbreaking "scientific romances" that should intrigue both historical/literary SF readers and action-adventure SF fans.

scifidimensions.com reviews The Martian War
 

Hardcover ISBN 0-743-44639-9

Paperback ISBN 0-743-44655-0