At the Edge of the Abyss

Metro 2033: At the Edge of the Abyss is Yuri Kharitonov's debut novel, written as part of the Metro 2033 universe. Released in May 2017, this is the seventy-eighth book in the series. The first novel of The Age of Madness trilogy.

Synopsis
It started like it always does. Of course, they wanted to help. Of course, they believed in their power, their intelligence, their great mission - and in their right to control the destinies of others. After all, what could be more important after the nuclear apocalypse than giving humanity the chance to rise from cramped bunkers and shelters to the sun? No longer afraid of radiation, free to breathe the poisoned air? To return to their abandoned homes? Especially since there was nothing special to do - all that was needed was to activate an existing gene that had been sleeping in the human genome for thousands of years.

As always, they were wrong. The way back to civilization and to the old life led along the edge of a precipice. The very one where it is so easy to fall, dragging with them the remnants of the survivors of the Last War...

Interesting Facts

 * Originally the cover was done by another artist, but as a result of a minor scandal they withdrew the work.
 * This is Yuri Kharitonov's debut novel.
 * The poems used in the text are the author's own.
 * The novel is in many ways quite strongly related to Metro 2035.
 * The plot is heavily influenced by the novels of Tullio Avoledo.
 * There is an overlap with the novel Through Alien Eyes by Sergey Semyonov. The battle with pterodactyls on the Borsky Bridge is mentioned.
 * Near the end, this novel becomes a direct continuation of The Wanderer.