Alison Flood

London

Comment and Culture Editor at New Scientist

Comment and culture editor at the New Scientist; formerly @guardianbooks. Reviews thrillers for @ObsNewReview

Articles

Images capture the timeless beauty of America's ancient forests

1 week ago | newscientist.com | Alison Flood

Life Photographer Mitch Epstein's years-long project highlights the majesty and vulnerability of old growth forests across the US Gnarled, wild and majestic: these two very different trees in California form part of Mitch Epstein’s quest to photograph ancient forests across the US.
Crime and thrillers of the month - review

1 week ago | theguardian.com | Alison Flood

Abigail Dean’s The Death of Us (HarperCollins) opens not with a crime, but with news of an arrest. A serial killer who terrorised south London for decades has been caught, and Isabel, one of his victims many years ago, has been told of the arrest. “He’s called Nigel,” she says, sardonically, to her former partner, Edward, who was in bed beside her when their home was invaded by the killer. “What were you expecting? Adolf?” he answers.
Crime and thrillers of the month – review

1 week ago | msn.com | Alison Flood

Microsoft Cares About Your PrivacyMicrosoft and our third-party vendors use cookies to store and access information such as unique IDs to deliver, maintain and improve our services and ads. If you agree, MSN and Microsoft Bing will personalise the content and ads that you see. You can select ‘I Accept’ to consent to these uses or click on ‘Manage preferences’ to review your options and exercise your right to object to Legitimate Interest where used.
Book Club reviews: Readers give their honest thoughts on Dengue Boy by Michel Nieva

1 week ago | newscientist.com | Alison Flood

We have read all sorts in the New Scientist Book Club, from Octavia E. Butler’s classic slice of dystopian fiction, Parable of the Sower, to space exploration in Adrian Tchaikovsky’s Alien Clay. Michel Nieva’s Dengue Boy (and this isn’t the article for you if you are yet to read it: spoilers ahead!) was something else entirely: a weird and technicolour vision of a dire future in a flooded world, where our perspective is that of a humanoid and homicidal mosquito.
New Scientist recommends The Martian - sci-fi fun for all the family

2 weeks ago | newscientist.com | Alison Flood

When your children range from 8 to 14 years old, it’s hard to find a weekend film for the whole family, particularly with a grandad in the mix as well. Happily, the 2015 film adaptation of Andy Weir’s The Martian, starring Matt Damon (pictured above) as Mark Watney, an astronaut who is accidentally abandoned on Mars, fitted the bill. There’s something wonderfully enjoyable about watching people being very clever.
The best new sci-fi of April 2025 features an intriguing new novel from Sayaka Murata

3 weeks ago | newscientist.com | Alison Flood |Neal Asher

When the sun is out, it’s just about warm enough here in north-east London to read outside – which means it’s time to crack out the best new science fiction and find a sheltered spot. I love the way the genre continues to tackle the biggest issues of our day, whether that’s ageing or artificial intelligence.
Crime and thrillers of the month - review

1 month ago | theguardian.com | Alison Flood

The days are lengthening and the temperature warming, so what better time to journey as far south as possible during winter? RS Burnett’s Whiteout (HarperCollins) follows Rachael on a solo Antarctic expedition. She’s already dealing with temperatures of -69C, weeks with no company and endless night (“She felt like she was drowning in it, as if the darkness was leaking into her little hut, ready to overwhelm her at any moment”).
Hypnotic art has its roots in the terrifying reality of nuclear bombs

1 month ago | newscientist.com | Alison Flood

The kaleidoscopic patterns in this artwork draw the eye towards its glowing centre. Despite its dreamy, hypnotic effect, however, the work has its roots in the terrifying reality of a nuclear bomb. Its creator, artist James Stanford, grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada, near where more than 200 above-ground nuclear tests took place in the 1950s and 1960s.
Eerie image of a space-bound rocket among photo contest finalists

1 month ago | newscientist.com | Alison Flood

This ghostly image of a Soyuz MS rocket at Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, shot the night before it took off for the International Space Station in December 2021, has a particularly poignant resonance for its photographer, Rhiannon Adam. Around a month earlier, she had been told that she would be one of eight crew members in the dearMoon project. Set to be the first civilian mission to the moon, it was scheduled to launch in 2023 using a rocket developed by SpaceX, but was later cancelled.
The best new sci-fi this month featuring John Scalzi, Silvia Park and Ai Jang

1 month ago | newscientist.com | Alison Flood |Arkady Martine

My only complaint about the science fiction due to be published in March is: how in the world are we meant to find the time to read all these great novels? There are so many must-reads out this month, whether it’s the latest from Nicholas Binge, Silvia Park’s tale of a lost robot sibling or Laila Lalami’s vision of a future where our dreams are policed for what we might be going to do (sounds quite Minority Report – a very good thing in my view).