The classic first-contact science fiction novel that launched the career of Jack McDevitt, the national bestselling author of Coming Home—now revised from the original edition, and featuring a new foreword. 

From a remote corner of the galaxy a message is being sent. The continuous beats of a pulsar have become odd, irregular…artificial. It can only be a code.

Frantically, a research team struggles to decipher the alien communication. And what the scientists discover is destined to shake the foundations of empires around this world—from Wall Street to the Vatican… “The logical heir to Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke.”—Stephen King

“The Hercules Text is much more than a knowledgeable scientific mystery; it is simply the most thoughtful and engaging first-contact story I have ever read.”—Paul Preuss, author of Secret Passages

“A good read…Delightful.”—Gregory Benford, Nebula Award–winning coauthor of Shipstar