SOLEN: The Eden Archive is a ten-book series spanning one hundred years of Martian history. It has main novels, archive novellas, and diary novellas — each covering the same fictional universe from different angles, at different scales, in different voices. The question every new reader faces is: where do I start?
The answer depends on what kind of reader you are.
Path One: Publication Order (Recommended for Most Readers)
Start with NovaSeed: Eden Rising (Book 1). This is the 613-page debut novel that establishes the world, introduces Carter, Alina, and SOLEN, lands the mission on Mars, and detects the anomaly on Sol 1. It is complete as a reading experience and tells you everything you need to know to continue.
From there: the archive novellas (1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4) deepen the characters you have met. Then Children of Dust (Book 2) for Years 2–10. Then The Red Dominion (Book 3) and Final Ascent (Book 4) for the full civilisational arc. The diary novellas (1.5 and 1.6) are best read after Book 2, when the events they cover have full resonance.
Publication Order
1. NovaSeed: Eden Rising · 1.1 Carter: Before the Selection · 1.2 Alina: Before the Selection · 1.3 SOLEN: The First Record · 1.4 Carter & Alina: The Bond · 2. Children of Dust · 1.5 All the Names I Gave You · 1.6 The Wall That Held · 3. The Red Dominion · 4. Final Ascent
Path Two: Emotional Entry (For BookTok and Romance Readers)
Start with Carter & Alina: The Bond (Book 1.4). This 200-page novella contains the complete love story — Reykjavik 2049 to Sol 280 — and is self-contained as an emotional experience. If you finish it and want the full world, go to NovaSeed: Eden Rising. If you finish it and want the interior in two different languages, go directly to the diary novellas (1.5 and 1.6).
Path Three: SOLEN First (For AI and Sci-Fi Readers)
Start with SOLEN: The First Record (Book 1.3). Written entirely in SOLEN's voice across the first 31 Martian sols, this novella is the most direct entry into what the series does with AI consciousness. It begins with SOLEN's activation in Zurich and ends with the question SOLEN cannot answer. From there, NovaSeed: Eden Rising provides the full world.
The Full Series at a Glance
Book 1 — NovaSeed: Eden Rising: Sol Zero to Year 2. The mission. The landing. The anomaly. $4.99.
Book 1.1 — Carter: Before the Selection: Honolulu. The seawall. His father's Parkinson's. Why he said yes. $2.99.
Book 1.2 — Alina: Before the Selection: Manila Highlands. Lola's rooftop. The stairwell weed. $2.99.
Book 1.3 — SOLEN: The First Record: 31 sols in SOLEN's voice. The question that takes a hundred years to answer. $2.99.
Book 1.4 — Carter & Alina: The Bond: Reykjavik to Sol 280. The transit. Transit Day 89. $2.99.
Book 1.5 — All the Names I Gave You: Alina's diary. Geneva to Sol 441. 799 entries. Coming soon. $2.99.
Book 1.6 — The Wall That Held: Carter's diary. Same events. Completely different interior. Coming soon. $2.99.
Book 2 — Children of Dust: Years 2–10. Nova born. The anomaly reaches back. $4.99.
Book 3 — The Red Dominion: Years 22–52. The colony becomes a civilisation. $4.99.
Book 4 — Final Ascent: Years 52–100. The centennial. SOLEN's last transmission. $4.99.
Available on Kindle, Kobo, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, Bookshop.org, and 15+ global retailers worldwide.
SOLEN: The Eden Archive — hard science fiction spanning 100 years of Martian history. Available on Kindle, Kobo, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, and 15+ global retailers.
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