The Afterlife Project: A Novel

With humanity facing imminent extinction, Centauri Project scientists use technology originally designed for interstellar travel to send a test subject ten millennia into Earth’s future. Marooned in an uninhabited wilderness, microbiologist Nicholas Hindman searches for evidence of remnant populations. He has a protocol to follow and is determined to do so to the bitter end—though he knows he’s probably searching in vain, stranded on an empty planet silently orbiting the sun.

Meanwhile, back in 2068 AD, a devastating hyperpandemic has quelled all talk of interstellar travel and thrown the future of humanity into grave doubt. Four surviving members of the Centauri team board a vintage solar-powered sailing yacht for a harrowing journey in search of a second test subject. Their destination is a small volcanic island north of Sicily rumored to harbor that rarest of creatures: a woman capable of getting pregnant, thereby ensuring this generation of Homo sapiens isn’t the last. But first they must make it halfway across the post-apocalyptic globe, risking heatwaves, oceanic megastorms, murderous gangs, deranged cult leaders, a volcanic eruption, and the dangerous microbes that continue to circulate through the planet’s atmosphere.

A finalist for the Prism Prize for Climate Literature, The Afterlife Project encompasses a desperate quest for the key to the future of humanity, an impossible love story, and a search for meaning across the inconceivable vastness of geological time.

“Smart, achingly beautiful, and (yes) important: a gripping novel of climate cataclysm with a cast of characters I cared about deeply.” —Chris Bohjalian, #1 New York Times–bestselling author of The Flight Attendant

“A super-smart, super-fun page-turner about a scientist trying to survive alone on Earth in the deep future—and the love of his life trying to travel through time to find him. I can’t think of a single page that didn’t make me pause to admire a sentence, an image, or a particularly fascinating idea. I loved this book.” —Angie Kim, New York Times–bestselling author of Happiness Falls

“The Afterlife Project isn’t just a story about the end of the world as we know it—it’s an exploration of beauty, and love, and hope in the darkness. If you were a fan of Cloud Atlas, you won’t want to miss this one.” —Janelle Brown, New York Times–bestselling author of What Kind of Paradise

“This beautiful and heartbreaking book reminds us of what we have, and what we stand to lose. Unforgettable.” —Danielle Trussoni, New York Times–bestselling author of The Puzzle Master

“A brave and brilliant imagining of Earth in the years just after a megapandemic has killed almost everyone, and ten thousand years hence, when a test subject emerges from suspension to explore a wilderness echoing with solitude. . . . Riveting and wrenching and suffused with beauty—the haunting and intimate beauty of the natural world rendered by a master.” —Peter Heller, bestselling author of The Dog Stars

“Weed is a fabulous storyteller working at the top of his game. I predict this novel will become a classic.” —Joseph Monninger, author of The World As We Know It

“It’s a relatively simple idea, but Tim Weed makes it into something special with first-rate nature writing and a story that underlines how connected we all are to our human and physical environment—which can be a source of resilience even as everything falls apart.” —The Toronto Star

“The writing . . . is as lush and beautiful as the far-future Earth itself . . . The Afterlife Project provides a thought-provoking look at how beautiful the world could be without anyone like us in it.” —Washington Independent Review of Books

“Rousing seafaring adventure . . . contemplative musings on life . . . [and] a compelling romance make this a fascinating tale that is difficult to put down.” —Library Journal, starred review

“A tale that feels wholly original and movingly conveys the full weight of the circumstances while providing a riveting read in the process.” —BookLife by Publishers Weekly

“This engaging dystopian tale deftly blends enthralling fiction with real-life fears.” —Kirkus Reviews

“The dangers [the characters] endure along the way are set against an unfolding and impossible love story across the vastness of geological time, as the scientists work to keep humans in existence. It may sound like an end-of-the-world tale, but it defines the strength and bravery of human beings and what they will do to preserve this precious thing we call life in the face of overwhelming odds.” —Middlebury Magazine (Editors’ Pick)

“A dark yet hopeful story that is engrossing enough to be a beach read . . . Weed reminds us why cli-fi matters.” —Seven Days

“A dystopian masterwork.” — The Brattleboro Reformer

“This genre-defying novel blends literary fiction, climate science, and speculative imagination in a haunting narrative that spans millennia.” — The Vermont Journal