Toby, a survivor of the man-made plague that has swept the earth, is telling stories.

Stories left over from the old world, and stories that will determine a new one.

Listening hard is young Blackbeard, one of the innocent Crakers, the species designed to replace humanity. Their reluctant prophet, Jimmy-the-Snowman, is in a coma, so they've chosen a new hero - Zeb, the street-smart man Toby loves. As clever Pigoons attack their fragile garden and malevolent Painballers scheme, the small band of survivors will need more than stories.

The final volume in the extraordinary speculative fiction trilogy - a decade in the making - from one of the greatest writers in the English language today.