Anvil of Stars

Greg Bear's The Forge of God described the destruction of Earth itself by self-replicating robots, Von Neumann machines designed to use the planet's mass to create more robotic creatures and spread throughout the Galaxy. In Anvil of Stars, only a few humans have survived, aided by a mysterious alien race known only as "The Benefactors", who arrived at Earth too late. Now the small group of human survivors is determined to track down the criminal race who launched the planet killers. Humanity is given a starship by The Benefactors, and driven only by revenge they set out to find the unknown beings who are responsible for the destruction of Earth, and many other worlds.

Greg Bear was the author of more than fifty books of science fiction and fantasy, including The Forge of God, Eon, Slant, and the Nebula Award winning novel Moving Mars. He also wrote gaming tie-ins such as Halo: Cryptum, and Hull Zero Three. Awarded two Hugos and five Nebulas for his fiction, he is one of only two authors to win a Nebula in every category. He was called the "Best working writer of hard science fiction" by The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. His stories were collected into an omnibus volume by Tor Books, The Best of Greg Bear. Bear served on political and scientific action committees and advised Microsoft Corporation, the U.S. Army, the CIA, Sandia National Laboratories, Callison Architecture, Inc., and other groups and agencies. He died at age 71.