The Immortals (novel)
Encyclopedia
The Immortals by Tracy Hickman
is a science fiction
novel originally published in hardcover by Roc
. The novel describes a future America in which a virus
similar to AIDS
has panicked the U.S. government into setting up internment
camps to contain the sufferers. Published in 1996, the AIDS-like disease serves as backdrop and plot device to examine human relationships in circumstances of extreme duress.
produced the work as a podcast novel
, and made it available as a free download from Podiobooks.com.
Tracy Hickman
Tracy Raye Hickman is a best-selling fantasy author, best known for his work on Dragonlance as a game designer and co-author with Margaret Weis, while he worked for TSR...
is a science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
novel originally published in hardcover by Roc
Roc Books
Roc Books is a fantasy imprint of Penguin Group, as part of their New American Library. The imprint was launched in April 1990 after Penguin Chairman, Peter Mayer, asked John Silbersack, the editor in chief of New American Library's science fiction program, to launch a new imprint that would draw...
. The novel describes a future America in which a virus
Virus
A virus is a small infectious agent that can replicate only inside the living cells of organisms. Viruses infect all types of organisms, from animals and plants to bacteria and archaea...
similar to AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
has panicked the U.S. government into setting up internment
Internment
Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people, commonly in large groups, without trial. The Oxford English Dictionary gives the meaning as: "The action of 'interning'; confinement within the limits of a country or place." Most modern usage is about individuals, and there is a distinction...
camps to contain the sufferers. Published in 1996, the AIDS-like disease serves as backdrop and plot device to examine human relationships in circumstances of extreme duress.
Plot
When a cure for AIDS turns out to be more virulent than the disease, the U.S. establishes quarantine camps in the desert southwest. Michael Barris, a TV producer, masquerades as one of the infected and travels to the camps in search of his son. He finds horrific conditions, and learns that the so-called quarantine camps are death camps where the infected are gathered, purposefully brutalized, and ultimately cremated alive, their ashes bulldozed into the desert sand. Barris's son escapes the camp before the cycle of immolation, carrying the evidence he needs to expose the governmental mis-information campaign.Publication history
- 1996, U.S., RocRoc BooksRoc Books is a fantasy imprint of Penguin Group, as part of their New American Library. The imprint was launched in April 1990 after Penguin Chairman, Peter Mayer, asked John Silbersack, the editor in chief of New American Library's science fiction program, to launch a new imprint that would draw...
, ISBN 0451454022, hardcover - 1996, U.S., Penguin GroupPenguin GroupThe Penguin Group is a trade book publisher, the largest in the world , having overtaken Random House in 2009. The Penguin Group is the name of the incorporated division of parent Pearson PLC that oversees these publishing operations...
, ISBN 0614967775, Mass Market paperback - 1997, U.S., RocRoc BooksRoc Books is a fantasy imprint of Penguin Group, as part of their New American Library. The imprint was launched in April 1990 after Penguin Chairman, Peter Mayer, asked John Silbersack, the editor in chief of New American Library's science fiction program, to launch a new imprint that would draw...
, ISBN 0451454049, Mass Market paperback - 2008, U.S., Sovereign PressSovereign PressSovereign Press is the name of two different publishers in the U.S.:* Sovereign Press Incorporated is a publisher and distributor of role-playing games....
, ISBN 1931567395, paperback
Adaptations
In 2006, DragonHearthDragonHearth
Dragonhearth, is a podcast produced by and featuring the voice talents of husband and wife fantasy authors Tracy and Laura Hickman. It first debuted in December 2005 with installments appearing monthly."From the worlds between the pages of your favorite book .....
produced the work as a podcast novel
Podcast novel
The Podcast Novel is a literary format that combines the concepts of a podcast and an audiobook. Like a traditional novel, a podcast novel is a work of long literary fiction, however this form of novel is recorded into episodes that are delivered over the Internet, usually on a regular basis...
, and made it available as a free download from Podiobooks.com.