Tchaikovsky (Children of Time) launches his Final Architecture series with a dazzlingly suspenseful space opera. A colossal, sentient entity known as an Architect rips Earth apart into a Continue reading » In the beginning, two English girls are in love and love hunting monsters (think Nessie or Big Foot). One day, they go to Bodmin Moor and one of them, Mal, disappears. But she‘s not dead as everyone had feared. However, when she resurfaces 4 years later, she‘s changed and she hasn‘t come alone.

The Doors of Eden by Adrian Tchaikovsky | Waterstones

When reading Tchaikovsky's science fiction work I always get the feeling that I am reading something that is extremely special. The Doors of Eden come across as intelligent, well-researched, and incredibly detailed. Some of the science-specific language and the interludes written by the fictional Professor Ruth Emerson were a bit "over my head" at times yet this is possibly intentional because as a reader I learned to understand the complexities just as the characters themselves did. I'm afraid that I did skim-read a couple of the interludes to return to the main bulk of the story until I understood their importance and how they actually fit with the overall narrative. If I reread this novel I will not make this mistake again. Lee was devastated, not knowing what had happened to her friend. She thought her lost forever, until four years later she receives a phone call from her friend asking for a meeting. While this is happening a top British scientist, Dr. Kay Khan, has recently begun to theorize there are not only multiple realities, but the fabric between them is wearing down resulting in holes allowing ‘others’ to slip through. Inventive, funny and engrossing, this book lingers long after you close it' - Tade Thompson, Arthur C. Clarke Award-winning author of RosewaterMal, at that time: she was like porcelain. You’d think that she’d break into pieces with a little shove. For the longest time Lee had thoroughly envied her metabolism, because that girl could eat. Twice as much as Lee, whose mother would tut and nag about dress sizes and what nice boys might or might not want (a matter of supreme indifference to her), and yet Mal remained waif-like. She was so pale you could almost see through her; she dyed her short hair platinum because it annoyed her mother, and because she had a love-hate relationship with standing out. She hated strangers staring, hated the thought of people making judgements about her. Yet at the same time she couldn’t dress down and drab, like Lee usually did. A part of her had to be seen and heard, to know she was real. Following the discoveries, the breadcrumbs so to speak, was seriously cool and I adore the author for how he handled the alternate-Earth-trope. Hmm?’ Later, Lee would try to reinterpret that pronouncement into something profound and prophetic, but probably Mal just meant the view. The stones marked out a rise in the moorland, and they could see for miles. What they could not see, however, was any sign of Roberts. The thought was almost as frightening as the sheep slaughter. Why would someone dump their car here and walk off into the tawny forever of the moors? I’ve heard it said that Adrian Tchaikovsky is an incredible writer. I’ve heard The Doors of Eden hailed on Goodreads as ‘an extraordinary feat of the imagination’. Well, I’m here to say I wholeheartedly agree. There’re a lot of characters in The Doors of Eden, and I can’t do them all justice. I loved the representation of sexuality though and typically, it’s the humans that are the douches, not the ‘aliens’.

The Doors of Eden by Adrian Tchaikovsky | Goodreads

Being a bit of a cryptid fan myself, this book was the best of both worlds for me as it scratched that itch as well as gave me a fascinating SFF story to digest as well. The characters are so well done and each has their own motivation (some not exactly ethical) for discovering what happened on that fateful night on Bodmin Moor. This book is also creepy as hell in certain parts and it kept me completely engaged as I couldn't believe what I was reading sometimes. In my opinion this is one of the more brilliantly inventive SFF books to come along in a long time. It reminded me of some of my favorite Neal Stephenson books, but unlike Neal's novels, Adrian Tchaikovsky really knows how to ramp up the tension and always delivers a stunning conclusion that satisfies. There was a moment where the summer sky above Lee was mostly blue, and yet snowflakes were spiralling down – and she was such a city girl that alarm bells were still failing to ring. Then Mal shouted. Lee turned towards her and got a face full of blizzard. I don't know if it's some weird proud thing for some scifi writers to write a book that only serious science people can maybe appreciate but this whole "book" belonged in a science publication. Arthur C. Clarke Award winner Tchaikovsky (Children of Time) takes readers inside the mind of a weaponized bioengineered animal in this imaginative triumph, the first in a series. From the Continue reading » So when they were huddled together on Mal’s bed, blinds drawn and her laptop balancing precariously across their knees, Lee hadn’t exactly been holding her breath.I've been told, by a mostly reliable source, that as long as your ending is satisfying, you just can't complain too much. As much as my instinct is to argue, I've mulled it over and find myself unable to substantially disagree. Perhaps it all comes down to preferences: is it the lure of a story that arouses emotion through admiration and joy, or one that uses the frisson of aggravation as a road to pleasure? The Doors of Eden most definitely chose frustration as it followed a group of mostly exasperating humans as they attempt to decipher strange incursions into their lives. The plot which starts as a mystery, grows in the telling with additional characters and plots being brought in. We have a government Physicist, Kay, an MI5 agent, Julien and his friend and co-worker Alison. They all get brought into the story when some sort of veiled threats or maybe alien threats are being brought against Kay, and then weird, weird things start to link them to the disappearance of Mal and the footage they have of that. She remembered the local police, the hospital staff, all those earnest faces. Of course we’ll find your friend, miss, just tell us everything you remember. The words boiled up inside and choked her, because she couldn’t tell them. They’d think she was mad, that she was guilty of something. She talked about the Roberts farm and the moors. She talked about snow, because that on its own seemed just the right side of Crazy Town, even though it was July. She talked about getting lost. Somehow her mouth stitched together a consistent tarpaulin of fabrication that could be draped over what she actually remembered, so the result had the same general shape but concealed all of the details. She discovered a gift for mendacity that she’d never known she possessed. The all-me part? Oh, that's because I like my characters to do a bit of learning, maybe have a bit of an arc. These people are largely static, despite great discoveries and supposed learning experiences, where horizons are, sometimes quite literally, opening around them. Lee is the only one who has any growth; Mal, Julian and Kay are all largely static, which is particularly frustrating as Tchaikovsky seems to take pleasure in showing us exactly where they could grow.

The Doors of Eden by Adrian Tchaikovsky Book review of The Doors of Eden by Adrian Tchaikovsky

The one Lee was leaning against, a new one, had something painted on the inner face. The snow was doing a good job of washing off the redness it had been daubed with, but the artist had been following lines ground deep. She saw a curved sign – then she reinterpreted it as a figure, leaping high with tail and beak pointed downwards and one leg extended, all depicted in a few elegant lines. With daylight left, they went to find Roberts, armed with nothing but a hiker’s guide and a personal alarm that, out on the moors, nobody could possibly hear. For with The Doors of Eden Tchaikovsky has created something which is not only a great story, but manages to make it relevant to what’s happening in our world today. He not only shows us the ugliness of nationalism and bigotry, but gives us the message we have to change the way we are if we’re going to survive. Mal approached the nearest stone, which wasn’t much taller than she was, flat and irregular, nothing like the decent workmanship of Stonehenge. ‘Six brothers,’ she said derisively. On the inner faces of all three were lichen-clogged scratches that might have been local graffiti or Stone Age ritual magic. While it might be exciting to think of new people and different worlds, the problem Tchaikovsky gives his characters is that the fraying of the fabric is also leading the the end of the universe. If the joint minds of science from all the dimensions can’t figure out a way to control the holes it won’t matter what you evolved into, all life will be dead.Overall, The Doors of Eden is a great book with both heart and science. Tchaikovsky has a real talent and imagination for alternate realities and seems to have a vault of ideas to explore that never runs out. I absolutely loved the glimpses in Earths that could have been, but the characters that were the focus of so much of the story were a bit mixed. Still, I definitely recommend this standalone sci-fi novel as one of the most enjoyable things I have read this year. The novel follows approximately six human point of view perspectives. These include the already mentioned Lee, MI5 agent Julian who is nothing like James Bond, transgender genius scientist Dr Kay Amal Khan, and ex-army type Lucas May. We, as readers, learn about the multiple different species, societies, advancements and Earths from very human perspectives. However, you could say that there is one viewpoint from a species that is not human but I will not go into any further details regarding this. The characters' stories cross over as the walls between Earths become thinner, meaning potential outcomes could be drastic and even Earth(s)-shattering. The majority of the characters are a pleasure to follow. They are likeable, well-developed and relatable. In addition to the main characters, I had a soft spot for the awesome Dr Rat and his translator, and also Mal's "cousin" friend Stig. I’m the one in the corner with my nose in a book. Chances are I’m soaring with dragons right now, but when I’m in reality, I’m a reader, writer, blogger and tea-drinker. This fun, creepy tribute to the works of C.S. Lewis from Tchaikovsky (Children of Memory) finds children’s television presenter Felix “Harry” Bodie having a tough time. He can’t escape the Continue reading » For three billion years the only life here has been microscopic. Bacteria have been leaching sustenance from strange chemicals in the bowels of the Earth or the depths of the sea. Ice comes, ice goes; the atmosphere for most of this time is a heady mix of chemicals either toxic to life or simply useless to it. There is life, though. For almost half the aeons since its formation, this world has known self-replicating organic entities. They’ve been bustling and thriving and dying and trying to outdo one another in a ferocious, invisible war for survival.

The Doors of Eden Review | Adrian Tchaikovsky – A Rambling The Doors of Eden Review | Adrian Tchaikovsky – A Rambling

Abruptly the wind was tearing around her, out of nowhere. It brought great skirls of snow, like the waves of the sea, raking her skin and flurrying at her clothes with a thousand sharp fingers. She staggered forwards, leaning into the wind to make progress. Mal was in the midst of the storm, hunched between two of the stones. She had her phone out, trying to take a picture of the weather. Why not? It was a prime Fortean phenomenon: unseasonal snow from an almost clear sky. Perhaps it would start raining frogs and fish next. The imagery Tchaikovsky creates is sensational throughout, especially when depicting these alien worlds. Some of the set pieces are phenomenal. One moment springs to mind instantly which is when two Earths cross over when members of the ensemble are on the ninetieth floor of a skyscraper. The ending sequence(s) were intriguing and presented in a very clever way. Overall, The Doors of Eden was an outstanding and entertaining thriller that deserves to be Tchaikovsky's next science fiction megahit. Highly recommended. Tchaikovsky again shines with his suspenseful second Final Architecture space opera (after Shards of Earth). The Architects, moon-size alien entities who destroyed Earth 50 years prior, have Continue reading » The premise of multiple timeframes - multiple worlds - is familiar from other SF and actual science. Quantum physics could allow for such, if you want to stretch your mind that way and see how far you get before it breaks. However, the author makes no attempt to explain anything at all. We’re just supposed to buy into all of it anyway. Man I miss Crichton! He mixed science and science fiction so incredibly well! And yes, there are “Jurassic park” references in this book too. The fabric between multiple earths is weakening allowing multiple portals to open between various timelines. Four years before the events in the story take place two young women, Lee and Mal, cryptid, or monster, hunters, went out searching for a mysterious ‘bird-man’ who had been caught on a farmer’s CCT cameras. Unfortunately not only did they find them, Mal disappeared.

Stephen Baxter The Doors of Eden shows a combination of tight, evocative prose combined with erudition. In a story whose scope is the broad canvas of the history of all life in the universe, Tchaikovsky manages to zoom in on human moments without breaking a sweat. Inventive, funny and engrossing, this book lingers long after you close it Adrian Tchaikovsky is among my favorite science fiction writers, a prolific writer maintaining brainy inventive quality in all of his works, not afraid of venturing out into difficult concepts and making them fascinating. And his exceptional forte seems to be exploration of sentient life different from what we are used to, going past the humanoid bipedal relatable lifeforms and venturing into the worlds of spacefaring spiders and technologically advanced octopuses — and why not the worlds of spacefaring trilobites and frozen fish computers? Apparently, the man studied (not “read”, but studied “Lee was studying zoology at Reading, Mal was reading English Lit at Oxford—an establishment so exclusive that they had a whole other verb for what you did there”) Zoology for a reason. All the characters had the emotional range of a dead fish conveniently explained away by them being British. Because, you know Brits have that stiff upper lip thing stereotype going for them.