The Themis Files

Sylvain Neuvel

When a young girl falls through the earth near her South Dakota home, she discovers something impossible: a colossal metal hand buried beneath the ground, its origins and purpose shrouded in mystery. Seventeen years later, physicist Rose Franklin leads a clandestine team investigating the artifact, racing to unlock its secrets before shadowy forces exploit its immense power. As Rose and her colleagues piece together an ancient puzzle that defies scientific explanation, they must confront a terrifying question: is this discovery humanity's salvation or its doom? Blending hard science fiction with geopolitical intrigue and relentless pacing, Neuvel crafts a high-concept thriller that honors the traditions of classic speculative fiction while charting bold new territory. The first installment in The Themis Files, Sleeping Giants is a gripping page-turner that will leave readers desperate for answers.

Sylvain Neuvel

Twenty-six years after a young woman in South Dakota falls through the earth and awakens on the palm of a colossal metal hand, her life becomes the key to a mystery that refuses to stay buried. Now a leading physicist, she and her team race to decode the origin and purpose of the buried artifact—only to find that each answer multiplies the stakes. As a second, newly surfaced robot threatens to reshape the world from the skies above London, the story turns into a high-velocity blend of scientific wonder and existential dread. With Sylvain Neuvel’s cinematic, puzzle-driven storytelling, the book explores themes of discovery, responsibility, and what it means to meet an intelligence that may be older—and far more consequential—than humanity itself.

Sylvain Neuvel

After nearly a decade away, Dr. Rose Franklin returns to a fractured Earth—only to find that the alliances that once held the line have collapsed and the Earth Defense Corps is unraveling. With the alien-origin robot Themis still shaping the world’s fate, Rose must navigate betrayal, political upheaval, and the lingering consequences of survival on another planet. As she gathers old allies and confronts new threats, the story blends high-stakes action with hard-won questions about what it means to be human when technology, language, and power collide. In Sylvain Neuvel’s signature cinematic, puzzle-box style, *Only Human* delivers an explosive continuation of the Sleeping Giants saga—equal parts wonder, suspense, and moral reckoning.