Masterful, tight sci-fi. I love the slow reveal and sense of wonder instilled in the book. And just a bit of suspense, the author's trick to keep the chapters flowing. Nice hard sci-fi edge, enough character to give the story some personality. Just good all around.

Idiosyncratic to me, but I was struck by the similarity to my favorite Lovecraft story, At the Mountains of Madness. Same sort of setup. Clark's version is better.