Fractal Noise is a compelling story of first contact and a gripping standalone prequel to the To Sleep in a Sea of Stars - by internationally bestselling author Christopher Paolini. Humanity is not alone... 25 July 2234: The crew of the Adamura discovers an anomaly on an uninhabited planet. They find a circular pit, fifty kilometres wide, its curve not of nature but design. A small team must land on Talos VII and journey on foot across the surface to learn who built the hole – and why. But they all carry the burdens of lives carved out on disparate colonies in the cruel cold of space. For some, the mission is the dream of the lifetime; for others, a risk not worth taking. For one, it is a desperate attempt to find meaning in an uncaring universe. Every step they take towards the mysterious abyss is more punishing than the last. And the ghosts of their past follow.