Rating: 
Summary: An Excellent Read
Review: Alastair Reynold's strength comes from the fact that he has crafted a truly remarkable world, with extraordinarily imaginative beings. His greatest triumph, however, is that he has brought back what the sci-fi genre truly needs: REAL SCIENCE. This novel is for those of us who love Robert Heinlen, Poul Anderson, Larry Niven, Isaac Asimov, and Arthur C. Clarke.Too many people were brought up with Star Wars and Star Trek which are 95% fantasy and 5% melodrama. As good as they may be, they have NOTHING to do with science fiction. Reynolds uses both fantasy elements and science elements to create a strange and horrific, yet alluring vision of the future. A place where humans have reshaped themselves into things almost unrecognizable, where you can travel to other worlds only if you're willing to forever leave behind your family and friends. Redemption Ark is not as good as Revelation Space. Part of the attraction I found to Revelation Space was the feeling of a vast history that is merely referred to by the characters but never shown the reader. I found the mystery of this undiscovered knowledge to be attractive. Redemption Ark reveals the answers to many questions, and though it brings up many questions of its own, it takes away from that alluring mystery. Again, the book contains multiple plot lines just like Chasm City and Revelation Space. The style is relatively the same, lacking in characterization but very strong in style, science, and intelligence. I highly recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys REAL science fiction, not dumbed down nonsense that condenses easily into a 1 hour tv program (hint hint: star trek).
Rating:
Summary: Reynolds' Best Work of Fiction to date
Review: Alastair Reynolds confirms his reputation as one of our finest hard science science fiction writers in this worlds-spanning sequel to "Revelation Space". Here he shows why he's Arthur C. Clarke's literary heir, posing many of the same technological and religious questions found in many of Clarke's finest works of fiction. Two factions of humanity - the group-mind Conjoiners and the Demarchists - are in the midst of a civil war with the Conjoiners on the verge of victory. However - unknown to the rest of humanity - Conjoiner expeditions into the farthest reaches of interstellar space have stumbled upon a machine intelligence - known as the Inhibitors (referred to as wolves by the Conjoiners) - dedicated to eradicating all emergent intelligence - namely new spacefaring civlizations - within the galaxy. The inhibitors are billions of years old, dating from a remote past near the time of the Dawn War. Soon the Conjoiners build themselves an exodus fleet, hoping to flee before humanity is the next sapient species exterminated by the Inhibitors. One Conjoiner, Neil Clavain - a former Demarchist warrior who defected - flees to the planet Yellowstone and its major city, Chasm City, intending to warn the rest of humanity of the imminent threat and to seek out secret Conjoiner weapons hidden in the Delta Pavonis solar system which may be humanity's last hope against the Inhibitors. Meanwhile the lighthugger starship Nostalgia for Infinity, is still in the Delta Pavonis system, under the nominal command of Ilya Voloyva, the Triumvir of the planet Resurgam. Both she and Ana Khouri, now an operative of the Resurgam government, are aware of the Inhibitor's radical transformation of the outer reaches of the Delta Pavonis system, creating a superweapon which will destroy again all intelligent life on Resurgam. "Redemption Ark" is a spellbinding rollercaster of a ride. It is one of the best written space operas I have come across, replete with excellent characters and drama. Not only is it one of the finest science fiction novels of 2003 (American publication date), but remains on the top of my list as among the best in the last fourteen years.
Rating:
Summary: Reynolds' Best Work of Fiction to date
Review: Alastair Reynolds confirms his reputation as one of our finest hard science science fiction writers in this worlds-spanning sequel to "Revelation Space". Here he shows why he's Arthur C. Clarke's literary heir, posing many of the same technological and religious questions found in many of Clarke's finest works of fiction. Two factions of humanity - the group-mind Conjoiners and the Demarchists - are in the midst of a civil war with the Conjoiners on the verge of victory. However - unknown to the rest of humanity - Conjoiner expeditions into the farthest reaches of interstellar space have stumbled upon a machine intelligence - known as the Inhibitors (referred to as wolves by the Conjoiners) - dedicated to eradicating all emergent intelligence - namely new spacefaring civlizations - within the galaxy. The inhibitors are billions of years old, dating from a remote past near the time of the Dawn War. Soon the Conjoiners build themselves an exodus fleet, hoping to flee before humanity is the next sapient species exterminated by the Inhibitors. One Conjoiner, Neil Clavain - a former Demarchist warrior who defected - flees to the planet Yellowstone and its major city, Chasm City, intending to warn the rest of humanity of the imminent threat and to seek out secret Conjoiner weapons hidden in the Delta Pavonis solar system which may be humanity's last hope against the Inhibitors. Meanwhile the lighthugger starship Nostalgia for Infinity, is still in the Delta Pavonis system, under the nominal command of Ilya Voloyva, the Triumvir of the planet Resurgam. Both she and Ana Khouri, now an operative of the Resurgam government, are aware of the Inhibitor's radical transformation of the outer reaches of the Delta Pavonis system, creating a superweapon which will destroy again all intelligent life on Resurgam. "Redemption Ark" is a spellbinding rollercaster of a ride. It is one of the best written space operas I have come across, replete with excellent characters and drama. Not only is it one of the finest science fiction novels of 2003 (American publication date), but remains on the top of my list as among the best in the last fourteen years.
Rating:
Summary: Best of the Best right now
Review: Alastair Reynolds has it, and he is running with it. Somehow out of a genre that hasn't had much interesting things happen to it in recent history (I think) Alastair has created a unique and highly colorful landscape of technology, characters, motivations, and catastrophes that is simply incredible. I usually read fantasy, but I picked up Revelation Space and couldn't just stop with that one and continued on with Chasm city and now, Redemption Ark the newest book in his science fiction futuristic series. The complexity of this book alone should win awards within literary circles, the sheer number of plots, subplots and threads of storyline is staggering, but somehow, surprisingly, Reynolds weaves it all together and the reader is completely in the story for the entire length of the book. I think that this is probably one of the best books out today for science fiction or for fantasy, and I highly recommend reading this book to whoever has a rainy Sunday to read good literature (good luck putting it down once you start.). I highly anticipate the new book in the series and hope it is as good as the last 2. Thank you Alastair for bringing some excellent literature to this genre of writing.
Rating:
Summary: Best of the Best right now
Review: Alastair Reynolds has it, and he is running with it. Somehow out of a genre that hasn't had much interesting things happen to it in recent history (I think) Alastair has created a unique and highly colorful landscape of technology, characters, motivations, and catastrophes that is simply incredible. I usually read fantasy, but I picked up Revelation Space and couldn't just stop with that one and continued on with Chasm city and now, Redemption Ark the newest book in his science fiction futuristic series. The complexity of this book alone should win awards within literary circles, the sheer number of plots, subplots and threads of storyline is staggering, but somehow, surprisingly, Reynolds weaves it all together and the reader is completely in the story for the entire length of the book. I think that this is probably one of the best books out today for science fiction or for fantasy, and I highly recommend reading this book to whoever has a rainy Sunday to read good literature (good luck putting it down once you start.). I highly anticipate the new book in the series and hope it is as good as the last 2. Thank you Alastair for bringing some excellent literature to this genre of writing.
Rating:
Summary: More great Reynolds!!!!!
Review: Chasm City, and the Revelation Space books, bring to life a universe, that is as rich, dark, and weird as the early Greg Bear novels. If you like your science fiction hard and fast, with rich characters, these books are for you. Reynolds somehow brings the tremendously long distances and time spans between stars up to the speed of heat in his "lighthuggers" (relativistic starships) in Revelation Space, and describes a culture that had great wealth in technology, and lost it in Chasm City. So, go find yourself an intelligent weapon of planetary destruction in your lighthugger weapons bay, get your mods implants, and get ready for some kick-ass gunnery training. Sci-Fi doesn't get much better than this.
Rating: 
Summary: Running out of steam....
Review: First, I'd give Revelation Space and Chasm City 5 stars. Both are masterpieces. This book retains some of the same brilliant energy and gnarly braininess, but just feels padded out toward the end. The ideas are there, the plot is good, but it could have had about 200 pages hacked out and been a far better book. Still a good read, but I think I'll lay off the Reynolds for awhile...I feel a little betrayed.
Rating:
Summary: ...tears in my eyes dude...
Review: I just read Revelation Space(re-read), Chasm City, and now this book, all in the last 3 weeks. What an trip! I usually prefer fantasy-especially Gene Wolfe-but I have to say, this book was delightfuly and surprisingly "human" for a "hard sci fi" novel. Dont get me wrong. It has intricacies of plot and characterization and oogles and shmoogles of "hard-science" (you might actually learn something! wow!). But it is a work that I found very edifying to the soul on a spiritual level. This is a great series and I cannot wait to read Absolution Gap. I actually loved the ending. I recommend you read them in this order 1.Revelation Space 2.Chasm City 3.Redemption Ark 4.Absolution Gap.(Chasm City is a prelude and not part of the trilogy but this is the order that they were written in, and the order that you will find them most enjoyable.)
Rating:
Summary: If you like top notch Space Opera this is for you...
Review: Redemption Ark is a 'can't put it down' read. Make sure that you have read both Revelation Space and Chasm City prior to this one to get the full effect. Reynolds writes with a breadth of story that compares to Iain Banks or Vernor Vinge in terms of pace and characters. The story line sucks you in and the only bad thing about this book is that is leaves you wanting more...right now. I guess I'll just have to wait for the next one.
Rating:
Summary: Another Mind Bending Space Opera
Review: Redemption Ark is another great novel from Reynolds. Just like Revelation Space and Chasm City, I've been unable to put this book down. He masterfully continues the story from Revelation Space, and delves into the histories he created in Chasm City. The characters feel like they are real, something I don't get from much sci-fi. I feel their fears and anxieties as they move through the vast distances Reynolds universe is set in. If you read Redemption Ark before Revelation Space or Chasm City however, you'll be missing out on a lot. Throughly happy with the purchase, and I await the last book in the series with great anticipation.
| 
