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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
Really more like 3.5 stars. I LOVED the branching timeline interludes, and was considerably less compelled by the actual story happening between them.
Such a great story! This book gets you accustomed to multiple contemporaneous alternate universes and then makes that part of the story itself, so much so that I thought there was an error or that I accidentally went back. I also confess to googling Ruth Emerson hoping to read more of her research.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Adrian Tchaikovsky is an author whose work consistently surprises and engages me. I knew I’d like this story when I saw a timeline of the history of this planet, shown by age (e.g., Ordovician, Permian, etc) before the story even started. And the story was wonderfully complex, fast-moving, with compelling situations and characters, with my favourite being Kay Amal Khan, profane, funny, and a massive genius of really esoteric and difficult mathematics, and Alison Mitchell, MI5 analyst and professional worry wort, whose analyses, guesses and hunches tend to be often better than anyone else’s, being a close second.
There are others we follow also as the story has disappearances, kidnappings, an evil rich dude manipulating things in the background, a multitude of strange creatures, and loads more great detail in a long but really interesting story of the ancient past, evolution, multiverses, and possibility.
There are others we follow also as the story has disappearances, kidnappings, an evil rich dude manipulating things in the background, a multitude of strange creatures, and loads more great detail in a long but really interesting story of the ancient past, evolution, multiverses, and possibility.
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Transphobia
Minor: Homophobia
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4/5. MI5 agent Julian Sabreur investigates an attack on top physicist Kay Amal Khan. This leads Julian to clash with agents of an unknown power – who may or may not be human. His only clue is grainy footage, showing cryptid hunter Mal, who supposedly died on Bodmin Moor while searching for the mythical ‘Birdman of Bodmin.’
The Doors of Eden is a roller coaster ride that is part spy novel, part X-Files, part Dr. Who, and entirely a delight. There are about a dozen characters to follow in a book that moves through different versions of earth’s history.
While there are almost too many characters to spend time with, some are richly drawn, though almost all exist to service the plot. Scientist Kay is a sheer delight, Julian is all very stiff upper lip, Lee is a lovable, insecure, determined teen. Others, such as henchman Lucas or Dr. Rat, have backstories but there’s not enough time spent with them to really let the characters develop.
There are a series of interstitials throughout the book, that explain the development of different species on different planet earths, and I’m glad I didn’t skip them because everything comes together at the end.
Speaking of endings, I have a friend who says that the end of a book (or a movie) is everything. I’m not sure about this ending. I loved the sequence of alternate scenarios but they started to go on, and the final one wrapped up the story but felt a bit tidy, considering the nature of the book. This brings me back to my friend’s comment about endings. I enjoyed the book so, so, so much that,as I read it, I raved about it to everyone within earshot, and I bought a copy for a friend. By the time I finished it, my enthusiasm had diminished, and I’m not entirely sure why. It’s well written, tackles big topics, has great characters, some of whom I would have liked to spend more time with. The story got bigger and bigger as the book progressed, almost too much for the book’s size. And the ending, well.
4 stars for a book that was a 5 for most of the book. I’ll suss out other books by the author.
The Doors of Eden is a roller coaster ride that is part spy novel, part X-Files, part Dr. Who, and entirely a delight. There are about a dozen characters to follow in a book that moves through different versions of earth’s history.
While there are almost too many characters to spend time with, some are richly drawn, though almost all exist to service the plot. Scientist Kay is a sheer delight, Julian is all very stiff upper lip, Lee is a lovable, insecure, determined teen. Others, such as henchman Lucas or Dr. Rat, have backstories but there’s not enough time spent with them to really let the characters develop.
There are a series of interstitials throughout the book, that explain the development of different species on different planet earths, and I’m glad I didn’t skip them because everything comes together at the end.
Speaking of endings, I have a friend who says that the end of a book (or a movie) is everything. I’m not sure about this ending. I loved the sequence of alternate scenarios but they started to go on, and the final one wrapped up the story but felt a bit tidy, considering the nature of the book. This brings me back to my friend’s comment about endings. I enjoyed the book so, so, so much that,as I read it, I raved about it to everyone within earshot, and I bought a copy for a friend. By the time I finished it, my enthusiasm had diminished, and I’m not entirely sure why. It’s well written, tackles big topics, has great characters, some of whom I would have liked to spend more time with. The story got bigger and bigger as the book progressed, almost too much for the book’s size. And the ending, well.
4 stars for a book that was a 5 for most of the book. I’ll suss out other books by the author.