AustLit

' In this science-fiction thriller, the second novel by the Australian writer Richard Maynard, seven astronauts leave Earth in search of life on other planets. They have no reason to believe that their society's social and technological development will not continue to flourish. After spending 15 years in space, they know that much more time - perhaps as much as several centuries - has passed on Earth, yet still they expect a warm welcome home. Instead they discover that in their absence man has devolved to a level of prehistoric savagery. Presented as a memoir by the spaceship's captain, 'The Return' chronicles the men's adventures as they struggle to retain a trace of civilization in a ruthless land where only the strong survive. In the process, scenes of ritual human sacrifice and cannibalism are juxtaposed with glimpses of great pastoral beauty; as the men move through the countryside, abandoned, overgrown cities loom as symbols of their lost greatness. At the same time, the astronauts' attempts to discover the cause of mankind's decline is central to the story's momentum. The solution they finally piece together is an ironic one, with a terrifying implied threat to the future of today's world. ''The Return'' is gripping in its portrayal of seven men trapped in a place that is both familiar and horrifyingly unfamiliar. More than that, it is a chilling vignette of an all too plausible fate that may await us.' Sharon Shervington, 'In Short; Fiction', New York Times (21.8.1988)