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mxsallybend's review
4.0
One of the things that I love most about the science fiction of Julie E. Czerneda is that it's never predictable, and never the same thing twice. Currently standing at eight books, her Clan Chronicles is one of the deepest, most diverse series in a genre that's best defined by its grasp of ideas.
With The Gate To Futures Past, the series arrives at a major turning point, one that I doubt most readers will see coming. Sira and Jason, along with member of the Mhiray and Om'ray, are trapped in a dangerous flight aboard the sentient ship Sona. With no bridge and no controls, and levels that rearrange themselves, shunting the passengers into an ever-shrinking living space, all they can do is trust that the ship is indeed taking them home - even if they have no idea where that home may be.
This ship's taking us back where this started . . . What makes you think that's as simple as a world?
It's an odd entry in Czerneda's space-faring epic, with half the novel taking place in the claustrophobic confines of the Sona. The drama and the tension here is largely internal, with the refugees beset by bad dreams and the haunting cries of the dead. It's a story of madness, desperation, and rapidly diminishing hope. The ship itself seems content to take care of its passengers, but only communicates with Sira in short, vague bursts. They don't understand it, and aren't sure they can trust it, especially once it begins herding them all into the core.
"I think we're landing . . . or we're in big trouble and about to die."
The second half of the novel will be more familiar to readers of the series, both in terms of scope and storyline. Once again, the Clan finds that home may not be a home, and that they may not fit with the other races already there. It's clear they're not welcome, and when things begin to go wrong . . . well, they do so in spectacular fashion. I loved the way the world literally explodes around them, forcing past and present, history and mythology to collide.
"I'm not supposed to be here. None of us, the Clan, are."
As it turns out, The Gate To Futures Past is an entirely fitting title for the book, but where that gate leads, and what it will take to pass through, is something of a shock. The final chapters are some of the most sorrowful in a series that previously gone to some dark places. It's appropriately mind blowing, with some really cool revelations about the Clan, but it really leaves me wondering where the story will wrap up. It's not that Czerneda has written herself into a box, but she's cut off a lot of possibilities, and I'm excited by the fact that I can't see the future.
Originally reviewed at Beauty in Ruins
With The Gate To Futures Past, the series arrives at a major turning point, one that I doubt most readers will see coming. Sira and Jason, along with member of the Mhiray and Om'ray, are trapped in a dangerous flight aboard the sentient ship Sona. With no bridge and no controls, and levels that rearrange themselves, shunting the passengers into an ever-shrinking living space, all they can do is trust that the ship is indeed taking them home - even if they have no idea where that home may be.
This ship's taking us back where this started . . . What makes you think that's as simple as a world?
It's an odd entry in Czerneda's space-faring epic, with half the novel taking place in the claustrophobic confines of the Sona. The drama and the tension here is largely internal, with the refugees beset by bad dreams and the haunting cries of the dead. It's a story of madness, desperation, and rapidly diminishing hope. The ship itself seems content to take care of its passengers, but only communicates with Sira in short, vague bursts. They don't understand it, and aren't sure they can trust it, especially once it begins herding them all into the core.
"I think we're landing . . . or we're in big trouble and about to die."
The second half of the novel will be more familiar to readers of the series, both in terms of scope and storyline. Once again, the Clan finds that home may not be a home, and that they may not fit with the other races already there. It's clear they're not welcome, and when things begin to go wrong . . . well, they do so in spectacular fashion. I loved the way the world literally explodes around them, forcing past and present, history and mythology to collide.
"I'm not supposed to be here. None of us, the Clan, are."
As it turns out, The Gate To Futures Past is an entirely fitting title for the book, but where that gate leads, and what it will take to pass through, is something of a shock. The final chapters are some of the most sorrowful in a series that previously gone to some dark places. It's appropriately mind blowing, with some really cool revelations about the Clan, but it really leaves me wondering where the story will wrap up. It's not that Czerneda has written herself into a box, but she's cut off a lot of possibilities, and I'm excited by the fact that I can't see the future.
Originally reviewed at Beauty in Ruins
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary ARC of this title from the publisher in exchange for review consideration. This does not in any way affect the honesty or sincerity of my review.
jwoolley's review
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
kantrah's review
2.0
A strange ending to the series, from a book that crammed a lot in at the end but not much in the rest.
ineffablebob's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
This is the eighth book of the Clan Chronicles, continuing the desperate search of Sira and her Clan for safety and a home. (First time that the author has included a recap at the beginning, useful for anyone reading this one after a delay.) There's a lot of danger in the process, and not everyone makes it through. Much about the Clan's past is revealed along the way, and the implications aren't necessarily good for the present. It's a somewhat dark journey, but it's not without hope, and there is a resolution of sorts by the end...if not a happy one for everyone. I've spent enough time now with these characters that I'm happy with any addition to their stories, but I have to admit the way this one ends is a bit wrenching. Not to say I didn't enjoy the book, I certainly did, but I'm sure glad I have the final book ready to go so I don't have to wait to find out how it all ends!
atarbett's review
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
zylexiaa's review
5.0
This was a very good book. I thought that the twist that the Clan actually came from the M'hir to be very interesting. Them being incorporeal life-forms stuck in physical bodies, and everything else that was revealed was fascinating.
I cannot wait to read the finale when it comes out in October!
I cannot wait to read the finale when it comes out in October!
tilmar's review
Reunification
#1 - This Gulf of Time and Space
#2 - The Gate to Futures Past
#3 - To Guard Against the Dark
#1 - This Gulf of Time and Space
#2 - The Gate to Futures Past
#3 - To Guard Against the Dark
dotsonapage's review
3.0
So first you kill off characters every 5 minutes while driving everyone else to the brink of insanity. Then you throw us this massive curveball of a plot twist regarding the Clan's origins, which I doubt anyone saw coming and which was, I'll admit, pretty cool. And then ... And then ... I really thought you'd pull it off. I was positive you'd find some way to keep Sira and Morgan as they should be, happy and together forever. But no. The book ends with Sira floating through the MHir with her disembodied brethren while poor Morgan, her Chosen and love for life, is left broken and sobbing with Huido. Why Julie? Why? This can't be the end.
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