"Brin has shown beyond doubt that he is a master of plot and character and incident, of sheer storytelling, while he is also thoughtful enough to satisfy anyone's craving for meat on those literary bones. Don't miss this one, folks, or the next." — Analog
Open Road Media, 2021; Bantam Spectra, 1995
Read the first few chapters online, or scroll down to purchase BRIGHTNESS REEF.
film & media queries
Vince Gerardis
Created-By Agency
email: rightsqueries@gmail.com (with cc: to DAVID BRIN at books@davidbrin.com)
refugees & renegades & rebels & rapscallions — and earthlings
"It's how creativity works. Especially in humans. For every good idea, ten thousand idiotic ones must first be posed, sifted, tried out, and discarded. A mind that's afraid to toy with the ridiculous will never come up with the brilliantly original." — Brightness Reef
The first book in the Uplift Trilogy, Brightness Reef chronicles life on the planet Jijo, where a million years ago the advanced Buyur civilization abandoned the world, leaving it to rest and restore its ecological balance. The vast civilization of the Five Galaxies uses patrols, guardian machines, and sanctions of law to prevent resettlement until the planet is once more deemed ready for civilized life.
But over the centuries it has been resettled. Groups of sapient beings, fleeing persecution or neglect, have ignored the laws, evaded the patrols, and landed in secret. First came the mysterious hoon, then the crablike qheuens, the centaurlike urs, the wheel-borne g'Kek, the multiple-personality-bearing graeki, and last of all to land on Jijo, humans from Earth, bringing with them a new technology allowing civilization to blossom in the wilderness. Abandoning millennia of warfare and mistrust between the six intelligent species, a new society based on tolerance and respect has evolved on forbidden Jijo. They all now live in hiding under canopies of camouflage, in dread of Judgment Day, when the Five Galaxies discover their illegal colony.
Then the unthinkable happens. A strange starship arrives in Jijo's skies, landing near the settlers' holiest place. The passengers' appearance is familiar, their manners friendly. But do they bring long-feared judgment, or something far worse? Are they willing to destroy the six races of Jijo to cover their crimes?
As secrets, plots, and schemes unfold, life on Jijo enters a time of great peril. A scientist will find his most cherished beliefs put to the test. A young girl will flee a brutal outlaw tribe, drawing on her deepest reserves of courage and cunning. One woman will search for hope amid the chaos of language. And a group of exuberant youngsters from four races, bent on having the adventure of their lives, will discover wonders beyond all imagination.
about the uplift series
The uplift series of novels and short stories is set in a future universe in which no species can reach sentience without being "uplifted" (genetically brought to sapience) by a patron race, which then "owns" the uplifted species for 100,000 years. But the greatest mystery of all remains unsolved: who uplifted humankind? Earth has no known link to the Progenitors — and that terrifies client and patron species alike. Should its inhabitants be allowed to exist?
purchase Brightness Reef
Read the first few chapters online, or purchase BRIGHTNESS REEF from your favorite online store.
Amazon.com US: paperback and Kindle ebook
Amazon.co.ca Canada: paperback and Kindle ebook
Amazon.co.uk UK: paperback and Kindle ebook
#AmazonCommissionsEarned
Apple Books US: iBook
Barnes and Noble US: paperback and NOOK Book
Kobo.com US: ebook
Mysterious Galaxy San Diego: paperback
other uplifting novels
The stirring saga that begins with Sundiver continues in Startide Rising, and climaxes in The Uplift War.
A second uplift series begins with Brightness Reef, continues with Infinity's Shore, and concludes with Heaven's Reach.
Is Existence: an uplift "prequel"? In many ways, yes. David Brin's bold newest novel explores the ultimate question: Billions of planets may be ripe for life, even intelligence. So where is Everybody?
An illustrated companion to the series, Contacting Aliens: An Illustrated Guide To David Brin's Uplift Universe, is a fun tour of the many alien races in the Uplift Universe.
Learn more about all of Brin's novels and books here.
uplifted short stories
These three stories are set in the uplift universe. Learn more about all of Brin's shorter fiction here.
foreign-language editions
Brightness Reef has been translated into Dutch, French, German, Italian, Polish, Russian, Serbian, and Spanish. Here are some of the covers of the foreign and foreign-language publications.
a brief intro to science fiction author DAVID BRIN
To learn more, visit his books page, or see his "about me" page or detailed biography.
novels
David Brin's science fiction novels have been New York Times Bestsellers, winning multiple Hugo, Nebula and other awards. At least a dozen have been translated into more than twenty languages. They range from bold and prophetic explorations of our near-future to Brin's Uplift series, envisioning galactic issues of sapience and destiny (and star-faring dolphins!). Learn More
shorter fiction
Short stories and novellas have different rhythms and artistic flavor, and Brin's short stories and novellas, several of which earned Hugo and other awards, exploit that difference to explore a wider range of real and vividly speculative ideas. Many have been selected for anthologies and reprints, and most have been published in anthology form. Learn More
Contrary Brin blog
Since 2004, David Brin has maintained a blog about science, technology, science fiction, books, and the future — themes his science fiction and nonfiction writings continue to explore. Learn More
social media influencer
Who could've predicted that social media — indeed, all of our online society — would play such an important role in the 21st Century — restoring the voices of advisors and influencers! Lively and intelligent comments spill over onto Brin's social media pages. Learn More
scientist
David Brin's Ph.D in Physics from the University of California at San Diego (the lab of nobelist Hannes Alfven) followed a masters in optics and an undergraduate degree in astrophysics from Caltech. Every science show that depicts a comet now portrays the model developed in Brin's PhD research. Learn More
transparency expert
Brin's non-fiction book, The Transparent Society: Will Technology Force Us to Choose Between Freedom and Privacy?, continues to receive acclaim for its accuracy in predicting 21st Century concerns about online security, secrecy, accountability and privacy. Learn More
speaker & consultant
Brin speaks plausibly and entertainingly about trends in technology and society to audiences willing to confront the challenges that our rambunctious civilization will face in the decades ahead. He also talks about the field of science fiction, especially in relation to his own novels and stories. To date he has presented at more than 200 meetings, conferences, corporate retreats and other gatherings.Learn More
future/tech advisor
Brin advises corporations and governmental and private defense- and security-related agencies about information-age issues, scientific trends, future social and political trends, and education. Urban Developer Magazine named him one of four World's Best Futurists, and he was appraised as "#1 influencer" in Onalytica's Top 100 report of Artificial Intelligence influencers, brands & publications. Past consultations include Google, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble, and many others. Learn More
