"Yet across the gulf of space, minds that are to our minds as ours are to those of the beasts that perish, intellects vast and cool and unsympathetic, regarded this earth with envious eyes, and slowly and surely drew their plans against us."

H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds is a twist on Victorian invasion literature, telling the first-ever story of a Martian invasion of Earth.

A mysterious alien cylinder lands just outside the town of Surrey, filled with grotesque and beastly Martians. Though the aliens can't survive exposed to the Earth's atmosphere and natural conditions, they soon re-emerge in mechanical fighting machines, overtaking the military resistance and laying waste to Surrey before moving on to London and the rest of England. Wells' dramatic sci-fi horror story has had tremendous influence on the science fiction genre and has been reimagined dozens of times in theatre, writing, and media, most notably in the famous 1938 radio broadcast.

Kobo Editions offers this fully-accessible version of the original text for your enjoyment.