Michael Cobley's "Ancestral Machines"

Michael Cobley was born in Leicester, England, and has lived in Glasgow, Scotland, for most of his life. He has studied engineering, been a DJ and has an abiding interest in democratic politics.

His books include the Shadowkings dark fantasy trilogy, and Iron Mosaic, a short story collection. Seeds of Earth and The Orphaned Worlds, books one and two of the Humanity’s Fire sequence, are his first full-length foray into space opera.

Here Cobley dreamcasts an adaptation of Ancestral Machines, the latest Humanity's Fire novel:

My next book is called Ancestral Machines and one of the main characters is a smuggler captain called Brannan Pyke, a scallywag chancer of Irish extraction, a self-centred charmer who also has a good side, sort of. And I've just recently found out that the actor who plays Hook in the TV series, Once Upon A Time, is Irishman Colin O'Donoghue, and having now heard him speak with his own voice I know and am utterly convinced that he should be the one to play Pyke in Ancestral Machines The Movie, no question.

Dervla is Pyke's 2nd-in-command and not-quite girlfriend, also of Irish extraction, and I reckon that Mallory Jansen, the Australian actress from Galavant, would be perfect as a strong willed woman who absolutely won't stand for Pyke's off the cuff, back-of-the-envelope plans.

Samantha Brock is an officer in the Earthsphere military, and Zoe Saldana would be a fantastic choice to play her, another strong character trying to salvage something from the chaos.

Director? My first choice would be Josh Whedon for his ability to choreograph actor ensembles, and for his brilliant ear for dialogue; but if he wasnt available, I'd go for David Goyer and/or Peter Hoar, who both worked on the series, Da Vinci's Demons.

Visit Michael Cobley's website.

The Page 69 Test: Ancestral Machines.

--Marshal Zeringue