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The Transcendent Tide

The epic, profound, awe-inspiring new novel from the author of The Space Between Us – as seen on BBC2’s Between the Covers

Published by Orenda Books
Distributed by Simon & Schuster

About The Book

Lennox, Vonnie and Ava head to Greenland to meet up with Heather, Sandy and the Encedalons, commencing an epic showdown that will change everything … The emotive, devastating yet ultimately life-affirming conclusion to the bestselling Encedalons Trilogy, as seen on BBC2’s Between the Covers…

‘A barnstorming thriller … and a wonderful and radical sense of a greater, wider way of seeing life on our planet’ Martin MacInnes

`Science fiction gains a new author´ Derek B. Miller

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It’s been eighteen months since the traumatic events of The Collapsing Wave, where the Enceladons escaped the clutches of the American military intent on exterminating the peaceful alien creatures.

Lennox and Vonnie have been lying low in the Scottish Highlands, Ava has been caring for her young daughter Chloe, and Heather is adjusting to her new life with Sandy and the other Enceladons in the Arctic Ocean, off the coast of Greenland. But fate is about to bring them together again for one last battle.

When Lennox and Vonnie are visited by Karl Jensen, a Norwegian billionaire intent on making contact with the Encedalons again, they are wary of subjecting the aliens to further dangers. But when word arrives that Ava’s daughter has suffered an attack and might die without urgent help, they reluctantly make the trip to Greenland, where they enlist the vital help of local woman Niviaq.

It's not long before they’re drawn into a complex web of lies, deceit and death. What is Karl’s company really up to? Why are sea creatures attacking boats? Why is Sandy acting so strangely, and why are polar bears getting involved?

Profound, ambitious and immensely moving, The Transcendent Tide is the epic conclusion to the Encedalons Trilogy – a final showdown between the best and worst of humanity, the animal kingdom and the Encedalons. The future of life on earth will be changed forever, but not everyone will survive to see it…

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Praise for The Encedalons Trilogy

**Selected for BBC 2 Between the Covers 2023**
**Longlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Book of the Year**

`A gateway book to sci-fi … I loved it´ Sara Cox

`So readable and accessible´ Alan Davies

`If you read one life-affirming book this year, make sure it's this one´ Nina Pottell, Prima

`Prioritising pace, tension and high stakes … a plea for empathy, compassion and perspective´ Herald Scotland

`An emotionally engaging read´ Guardian

`A delicious, demanding departure´ Val McDermid

`As moving as it is magical and mysterious´ Mark Billingham

`A first-contact tale full of heart and high-octane action´ D.V. Bishop

`An adrenaline-filled ride of a novel, laced with empathy and understanding´ Rachelle Atalla

`Pay attention, Steven Spielberg! This could be your next film´ Marnie Riches

`Clever and unusual … I was on a journey with these characters, and completely transfixed´ Susi Holliday

`A mesmerising tale of wonder and hope´ Marion Todd

`Johnstone doesn't shy away from complex themes and smartly leverages the lens of science fiction to cut deep into the human experience … the well-paced and carefully breadcrumbed plot is fed to the reader with tender finesse´ SciFi Now Book of the Month

`Terrifyingly plausible and an excellent allegory for our times … I'll be recommending this to everyone´ James Oswald

`A powerful and epic multi-layered story. Doug Johnstone is a true literary master´ Michael Wood

About The Author

Photograph © Orenda Books

Doug Johnstone is the author of twelve novels, most recently The Great Silence, the third in the Skelfs series, which has been optioned for TV. In 2021,The Big Chill, the second in the series, was longlisted for the Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year. In 2020, A Dark Matter, the first in the series, was shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year and the Capital Crime Amazon Publishing Independent Voice Book of the Year award. Black Hearts (Book four), will be published in 2022. Several of his books have been best sellers and award winners, and his work has been praised by the likes of Val McDermid, Irvine Welsh and Ian Rankin. He's taught creative writing and been writer in residence at various institutions, and has been an arts journalist for twenty years. Doug is a songwriter and musician with five albums and three EPs released, and he plays drums for the Fun Lovin' Crime Writers, a band of crime writers. He's also player-manager of the Scotland Writers Football Club. He lives in Edinburgh.

Product Details

  • Publisher: Orenda Books (August 14, 2025)
  • Length: 300 pages
  • ISBN13: 9781916788626

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