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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
So somehow this was my first ever Adiran Tchaikovsky book. I have no idea how I've managed this, but I can guarantee you that it won't be the last.
This book is an incredible feat of world-building, multiple times over. It is insanely well researched, as he takes us through different evolutionary paths that the parallel Earths have taken, and how the world could have ended up incredibly different to the one that we know today. The interludes kept me fascinated as these parallel worlds are explored and I loved that they aren't human-centric, not every dominant species is another version of humans, some never evolve speech or communities as we imagine it.
There's a whole bunch of main character here, who we individually follow until their stories become intertwined to create a plot of epic proportions. There's the ones you love, and the ones you hate. But they all play their part and they help create conflict where there perhaps might have been none. They are engrossing characters who all have their own interests in the parallel Earths, from scientific fascination, to dreams of lording it over the other places.
Tchaikovsky launches us through a series of parallel Earths, many of which are re-visited several times and their mysteries are slowly unravelled and their links to the plot become solid and clear. Specifically the world with the rats and the ice world are really going to stick with me. The world-building is so impressive and expansive that they really do feel individual and with a tonne of depth to them.
I loved this book. It's epic and fascinating and will change your perspective of sci-fi and parallel worlds. It's well-researched and the world-building is some of the best I've come across. Read it and you will not be disappointed.
So somehow this was my first ever Adiran Tchaikovsky book. I have no idea how I've managed this, but I can guarantee you that it won't be the last.
This book is an incredible feat of world-building, multiple times over. It is insanely well researched, as he takes us through different evolutionary paths that the parallel Earths have taken, and how the world could have ended up incredibly different to the one that we know today. The interludes kept me fascinated as these parallel worlds are explored and I loved that they aren't human-centric, not every dominant species is another version of humans, some never evolve speech or communities as we imagine it.
There's a whole bunch of main character here, who we individually follow until their stories become intertwined to create a plot of epic proportions. There's the ones you love, and the ones you hate. But they all play their part and they help create conflict where there perhaps might have been none. They are engrossing characters who all have their own interests in the parallel Earths, from scientific fascination, to dreams of lording it over the other places.
Tchaikovsky launches us through a series of parallel Earths, many of which are re-visited several times and their mysteries are slowly unravelled and their links to the plot become solid and clear. Specifically the world with the rats and the ice world are really going to stick with me. The world-building is so impressive and expansive that they really do feel individual and with a tonne of depth to them.
I loved this book. It's epic and fascinating and will change your perspective of sci-fi and parallel worlds. It's well-researched and the world-building is some of the best I've come across. Read it and you will not be disappointed.
adventurous
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
It was a rip-roaring hard science fiction adventure. Thoroughly wholesome.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
There are multiple versions of Earth out there, but they’re all starting to splinter into each other, and it’s up to a strange assortment of humans, humanoid creatures, and rats to fix it.
The Plot: A Dizzying Assortment of Edens
Best friends and lovers Lisa “Lee” Pryor and Elsinor “Mal” Mallory are monster hunters (think the Yeti). They don’t seek to find proof of strange creatures, but instead dream of being the ones to capture the blurry photo. Until they end up on Bodmin Moor, on the other side of a doorway. Only one girl comes back.
Years later, the brilliant Dr. Kay Amal Khan is virtually kept under lock and key by Her Majesty’s Government, but that doesn’t stop the mysterious Daniel Rove’s men and some seriously foreign individuals, including Mal, from trying to extract her for their own uses. Mal can’t stop herself from contacting her friend, but, as much as she tries to warn Lee, it’s inevitable that The Girl Who Came Back is about to tumble back into parallel worlds she can’t even comprehend.
In a dizzying maze of worlds with an incredibly strange and diverse set of companions, Lee finds herself running in and out of trouble, but at least her best friend is at her side again. They have a bigger problem, though: whatever created all the parallels is collapsing and the seriously foreign individuals are assembling a team to solve the problem, all while Rove is at their heels.
With parallels drawn to Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking Glass, it’s impossible to not think of a crazy maze in and out of reality, where things are and are not as they seem, where the impossible is indeed possible, where what cannot exist does. I loved the exploration of multiple Earths, each branched off from different points in time and left to its own devices. The Doors of Eden is such a massive story because of it, but really boils down to the boundaries between each offshoot breaking down and needing to be fixed. Simple, but so complicated because it deals with foreign (really foreign) creatures, dodging in and out of parallels, and trying to stay one step ahead of the ever-calculating Daniel Rove.
This is an amazing massive story that somehow rests quite comfortably on the single point of: what if the world is collapsing? The reader is drawn across our own London, dodging human and non-human pursuers, and somehow leaping into other parallels. There are so many threads, so many characters with their own motivations and story lines that somehow tie the whole story together. It was almost too much for my mind to make sense of. But then it narrowed, became focused, with the single question of how to save every iteration of Earth. While I often felt like I was swimming out to sea, I managed to take comfort in the fact that most of the human characters also had no clue what was going on. It made it so much easier to figure things out as they figured them out. What could have been a completely overwhelming story somehow managed to keep its focus and never, ever forget what it revolved around, which made it easier to focus my reading mind. Most of the time.
The Characters: An Incredible Set of Main Characters
The Doors of Eden has so many characters, but I still somehow wish there had been more. Kind of a head scratching idea, but, with so many worlds introduced, I really wanted to meet creatures from all of them. Friends Lee and Mal, government agents Julian and Alison, the devious Mr. Rove and his man Lucas, Dr. Khan, the Nissa, and the rats did a great job of shouldering the story, though.
The roles the characters played was the most fascinating thing. Usually I find it easy to pick out the main protagonist, as well as the antagonist, but something about how The Doors of Eden was written made that seem irrelevant. Most of the characters shouldered the weight equally, telling different parts of the story to sew it neatly up into a single massive story. Every time I thought I had pinpointed the main character, there was a shift and I suddenly wasn’t so sure. I even had a hard time envisioning Rove as the clear antagonist because his motivations were so clear and his characterization was interesting.
Alison, though, felt like the lynch pin, the one the whole story revolved around even though she self-deprecatingly kept saying she wasn’t of much use to anyone. She felt like she’d been placed in the Alice role, the one tumbling down the rabbit hole, the one who was granted special access that was indispensable. Perhaps the one the reader is supposed to latch onto in order to even begin to understand what’s going on, to see the bigger picture.
But, if I had to pick favorites, I’d go with Lee and Mal. The story starts with them and they help get things spinning. But I love them because they were just so true to each other. Even after four years apart, they were still each others’ whole world and, when the world seemed to be collapsing, it feels like they were the only thing that made sense, that held it together. They’re an incredible couple and really brought a beautiful emotional undercurrent to this crazy story that had me spinning in so many directions.
The Setting: Earth, Earth, Earth, Earth, etc.
The Doors of Eden is set on Earth, but various iterations of Earth. This was masterfully set up, not so much in the descriptions as we tumbled into them along with the characters, but by the Interludes. Supposedly a book or manuscript written by Professor Ruth Emerson of the University of California discussing the possibility of multiple parallels, it takes every major era in Earth’s history and supposes how life could have evolved differently from what we know. While they initially seemed a bit dry and dusty, much like an academic tome, they quickly became utterly fascinating and, slowly, the different worlds came into focus. It became easier to see how these different parallels might have diverged and how it would have affected life if it had continued on to their present. As the story itself wound it’s way to its conclusion, I became very excited to see some of the worlds that had been discussed in earlier Interludes, and my mind couldn’t work fast enough to make all the connections.
Overall: Incredible
The Doors of Eden is an incredible novel. It’s a massive story with a lot to wade through, but it’s only as overwhelming as the reader lets it be. I, for one, had to pause once in a while to really gnaw over the information and story presented to me. It sometimes felt like it was going at a dizzying pace, but, at the same time, it wasn’t actually difficult to keep up with. It turned out to be a beautiful story of interconnectedness, though I would surely freak out if rats came out of thin air and started trying to talk to me. I adored the characters, every one of them, and how they took up the mantle of the story together to create something incredible. This is one book I’ll be thinking about for a long time, a story a part of me will always wonder if it could possibly be true. I mean, it does make a compelling argument…
Thank you to Angela Man at Orbit for a free e-copy. All opinions expressed are my own.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The world is stranger than they'd thought. And more dangerous than they'd feared. Lee’s best friend went missing on Bodmin Moor, four years ago. She and Mal were chasing rumours of monsters when they found something all too real. Now Mal is back, but where has she been, and who is she working for? When government physicist Kay Amal Khan is attacked, the security services investigate. This leads MI5’s Julian Sabreur deep into terrifying new territory, where he clashes with mysterious agents of an unknown power who may or may not be human. And Julian’s only clue is some grainy footage – showing a woman who supposedly perished on Bodmin Moor. Khan’s extradimensional research was purely theoretical, until she found cracks between our world and countless others. Parallel Earths where monsters live. These cracks are getting wider every day, so who knows what might creep through? Or what will happen when those walls finally come crashing down...
Adrian Tchaikovsky returns with another gloriously thrilling world hiding many dark secrets. From the opening chapter, I was intrigued and had the drive to need to know more and fast. At its heart, this is a page-turning adventure about parallel universes and the monsters that they hide. It's a lush and richly-imagined work full of the type of creativity and bizarre themes we readers have come to know and love from this science fiction fan favourite. The level of intricate detail given to both the world and the characters is nothing short of amazing and you find you become easily invested in both of these aspects of the story. Following the characters across many alternative Earths, we are treated to a superbly told story with everything required to make cracking sci-fi. A sensational, entertaining and outstanding read. Highly recommended. Many thanks to Tor for an ARC.
Adrian Tchaikovsky returns with another gloriously thrilling world hiding many dark secrets. From the opening chapter, I was intrigued and had the drive to need to know more and fast. At its heart, this is a page-turning adventure about parallel universes and the monsters that they hide. It's a lush and richly-imagined work full of the type of creativity and bizarre themes we readers have come to know and love from this science fiction fan favourite. The level of intricate detail given to both the world and the characters is nothing short of amazing and you find you become easily invested in both of these aspects of the story. Following the characters across many alternative Earths, we are treated to a superbly told story with everything required to make cracking sci-fi. A sensational, entertaining and outstanding read. Highly recommended. Many thanks to Tor for an ARC.
This was my first Adrian Tchaikovsky book and I really wanted to love it but I didn’t. I know a couple of people who have raved about his work and another who loved this one so it was likely just not my cup of tea.
The writing itself was brilliant, the plot so intricate and some great characters so I know people will love it. It gave me Northern Lights and Island of Doctor Moreau vibes, and it was at those points I was most interested. Part crime, thriller, mystery and sci-fi, it has a lot going for it; creature hunting, super computers, rips in the universe, political and social issues, the secret service, evolutionary science...
...it just wasn’t for me so I don’t want to say anymore and put people off what is actually a great book.
Thank you for NetGalley for my copy in Exchange for an honest review.
The writing itself was brilliant, the plot so intricate and some great characters so I know people will love it. It gave me Northern Lights and Island of Doctor Moreau vibes, and it was at those points I was most interested. Part crime, thriller, mystery and sci-fi, it has a lot going for it; creature hunting, super computers, rips in the universe, political and social issues, the secret service, evolutionary science...
...it just wasn’t for me so I don’t want to say anymore and put people off what is actually a great book.
Thank you for NetGalley for my copy in Exchange for an honest review.
Received via Tor and NetGalley in exchange for an completely unbiased review.
Also posted on Silk & Serif
The Doors of Eden is a tome at over 600 pages, but is written so beautifully that is doesn’t feel like 600 pages. It was a delight to read.
I had a really difficult time writing this review. I wrote and rewrote my review before taking a break and then make this final attempt. My review doesn't do this book justice and some aspects of the book I found had my opinion waffling over whether this was a Very Good Book or just A Goo Book. In the end, regardless of my struggles, the crux of this review is: Its a worthy read and you wont be sorry you read it!
This is my first Tchaikovsky book, so going in I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. Sure, Tchaikovsky is known as a brilliant voice in fantastical literature, but sometimes an author everyone loves can, frankly, be a slog or often over-hyped. I recently read the Book of Koli by M.G. Carey which had rave reviews on Goodreads, but undoubtedly was one of my least favourite novels of the year thus far. Unpopular opinion? Yes. But a very good example of how a really popular and beloved novel may not work for everyone. Fortunately, this was not the case for The Doors of Eden and I think I found a new favourite author.
The Doors of Eden is an extremely expansive story that tries to tie in science, fantasy and politics in a cohesive but fun package. It was a pleasure to read and captured my attention from the start. The novel also explores the many parallel earths theory without getting too complex or ungainly.
What if cockroaches become sentient long before humanity, or dinosaurs or even plants? What would such a world look like? I loved the "intermissions" between chapters where the history of each parallel earth is outlined and further develops the reader's understanding of the different parallel universes and how a slight change in Earth's history lead to divergent evolution.
I also loved that Tchaikovsky captured the feeling of being a government spook. The main characters Julian and Allison work for an intelligence agency and felt surprisingly authentic (or so i imagine) given the fantastical nature of the story overall. I think Tchaikovsky tried to develop a cast of characters who are the modern day “every man” in a diverse set of circumstances: a cryptologist, a set of spies, a touch of LGBTQ and even a CEO with nazi-esque leanings. All of the characters have a part to play at the end of time - some of their roles surprising, some not.
The characters themselves made this review so difficult for me to write: near the end, many of the characters became politicized or unlikable making the story a little less enjoyable. Also, with all the diversity represented in this book, the lack or respect for certain minor characters soured me on the ending somewhat. Regardless, the story itself was fun and filled with so many interesting things and unexpected plot twists, that the characters became secondary to the story itself.
In addition, the end felt a little rushed and could have used some more TLC - but it wasn’t a deal breaker. I’d immediately TBR and pre-order a follow up novel in this universe because I loved Tchaikovsky the uniqueness of The Doors of Eden and am incredibly curious what other creatures exist in this really complex and ODDLY realistic world.
Also posted on Silk & Serif
The Doors of Eden is a tome at over 600 pages, but is written so beautifully that is doesn’t feel like 600 pages. It was a delight to read.
I had a really difficult time writing this review. I wrote and rewrote my review before taking a break and then make this final attempt. My review doesn't do this book justice and some aspects of the book I found had my opinion waffling over whether this was a Very Good Book or just A Goo Book. In the end, regardless of my struggles, the crux of this review is: Its a worthy read and you wont be sorry you read it!
This is my first Tchaikovsky book, so going in I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. Sure, Tchaikovsky is known as a brilliant voice in fantastical literature, but sometimes an author everyone loves can, frankly, be a slog or often over-hyped. I recently read the Book of Koli by M.G. Carey which had rave reviews on Goodreads, but undoubtedly was one of my least favourite novels of the year thus far. Unpopular opinion? Yes. But a very good example of how a really popular and beloved novel may not work for everyone. Fortunately, this was not the case for The Doors of Eden and I think I found a new favourite author.
The Doors of Eden is an extremely expansive story that tries to tie in science, fantasy and politics in a cohesive but fun package. It was a pleasure to read and captured my attention from the start. The novel also explores the many parallel earths theory without getting too complex or ungainly.
What if cockroaches become sentient long before humanity, or dinosaurs or even plants? What would such a world look like? I loved the "intermissions" between chapters where the history of each parallel earth is outlined and further develops the reader's understanding of the different parallel universes and how a slight change in Earth's history lead to divergent evolution.
I also loved that Tchaikovsky captured the feeling of being a government spook. The main characters Julian and Allison work for an intelligence agency and felt surprisingly authentic (or so i imagine) given the fantastical nature of the story overall. I think Tchaikovsky tried to develop a cast of characters who are the modern day “every man” in a diverse set of circumstances: a cryptologist, a set of spies, a touch of LGBTQ and even a CEO with nazi-esque leanings. All of the characters have a part to play at the end of time - some of their roles surprising, some not.
The characters themselves made this review so difficult for me to write: near the end, many of the characters became politicized or unlikable making the story a little less enjoyable. Also, with all the diversity represented in this book, the lack or respect for certain minor characters soured me on the ending somewhat. Regardless, the story itself was fun and filled with so many interesting things and unexpected plot twists, that the characters became secondary to the story itself.
In addition, the end felt a little rushed and could have used some more TLC - but it wasn’t a deal breaker. I’d immediately TBR and pre-order a follow up novel in this universe because I loved Tchaikovsky the uniqueness of The Doors of Eden and am incredibly curious what other creatures exist in this really complex and ODDLY realistic world.