A near-future science fiction novel about first contact with alien life.
The novel covers humanity's preparations for the arrival of alien life - a message has been received, and the arrival date has been calculated. However, this is a future of political, social and environmental strife.
Well-written, tightly plotted and focused. A really interesting examination of a future that is inching closer, and one that isn't entirely implausible.

“The Coming” eBook was published in 2016 and was written by Joe Haldeman (http://www.joehaldeman.com). Mr. Haldeman has published over two dozen novels.

I categorize this novel as ‘PG’ because it contains Mature Language. The story is set in the near future, mid 2100s. Society has advanced, but also decayed. Things change October 1, 2154 when an astrophysicist, Dr. Aurora Bell, at the University of Florida picks up a signal from deep space. The signal, “We are Coming”.

The actual story focuses on Bell, her husband and a circle of friends and associates. The story reflects what happens in the months following the discovery of the signal.

I spent 6.5 hours reading this 288 page Science Fiction novel. I was disappointed. I did think that the round-robin style of switching between characters in each chapter was interesting. The story itself fell flat with me. There was little about the coming aliens and too much about the lives of the people. I had started to call a “Rule of 50” (https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/2015/01/10/using-the-rule-of-50-when-reading/ ) early in my reading and wish now that I had. I give this novel a 2 out of 5.

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