I had a few minutes to spare and I wandered to the library and found a book by Stephen Baxter. It was highly engaging. Anyway, I had to leave before I'd got more than a few pages in.

Then some time later when I needed a book to read I went back to try and find it. I couldn't, so I got Exultant.

Well now I've got it all worked out. The book I originally started reading was Transcendent, the second in the Destiny's Children series, but I ended up reading the second book in that series, Exultant.

Are you still with me? Do you still care? Hey, wake up!!

There are great ideas in Exultant. Baxter really is at the top of his game. This is the the first time I can remember that I've come across the idea of life existing at different stages of the universe's early life. In one extraordinary piece, there's a grand war across the whole of the universe between two ancient civilizations. After the saga is told, it is revealed that the universe is now 10cm across, and only a small fraction of a second has elapsed.

As well as having stunning ideas, Baxter writes a good story with well defined characters.

Good though it is, I don't think the future will be anything like this. I should really put my money where my mouth is and write a story myself.

But the only way that's going to happen is if somebody kidnaps me and doesn't let me out until I've written a book.