Out among the moons of Jupiter, the empty spacecraft Discovery and the enigmatic alien monolith still float it the silence of space, mute witnesses to the mysterious disappearance of astronaut David Bowman through the ‘Star Gate’ nine years before. The Leonov is on its way, carrying a joint Soviet American scientific team on a mission of investigation and recovery, but the outcome will be beyond the wildest imaginings of any mere humans involved. Cover art by Michael Whelan.