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A review by antkneeomonster
Inhibitor Phase by Alastair Reynolds
5.0
4.5
First things first, at the start of the book dat boi Alastair Reynolds opines that Inhibitor Phase could be read as a standalone sci-fi yarn that people who've never read a Revelation Space book in their life could enjoy and understand. While I respect ol mate's right to believe that, my response is a fairly ardent "yeah nah, mate."
The number of callbacks, references and straight up continuations contained within Inhibitor Phase are pretty dizzying for someone like me who has read all the books, and I suspect for newbies will basically be borderline bewildering.
Happily, those of you (us) who HAVE read the books, will enjoy this book as the proper fulfilling epilogue to the series we never quite got with Absolution Gap. I'll tread lightly here when it comes to spoilers, but suffice to say a whole bunch of storylines that felt abruptly cut off are continued (and often concluded) in ways that feel apt and emotionally satisfying.
Yet again, Reynolds's extraordinary imagination impresses, but in a disciplined fashion, with little to no bloat and no tangents that feel unnecessary. I have no idea if Reynolds will return to this universe (I'd love to see Dreyfus face the Melding Plague, just quietly), but if not he's finally given it a proper send off and a reminder of why we love these stirring, surreal and utterly transporting tales in the first place.
Cheers ta, Al.
First things first, at the start of the book dat boi Alastair Reynolds opines that Inhibitor Phase could be read as a standalone sci-fi yarn that people who've never read a Revelation Space book in their life could enjoy and understand. While I respect ol mate's right to believe that, my response is a fairly ardent "yeah nah, mate."
The number of callbacks, references and straight up continuations contained within Inhibitor Phase are pretty dizzying for someone like me who has read all the books, and I suspect for newbies will basically be borderline bewildering.
Happily, those of you (us) who HAVE read the books, will enjoy this book as the proper fulfilling epilogue to the series we never quite got with Absolution Gap. I'll tread lightly here when it comes to spoilers, but suffice to say a whole bunch of storylines that felt abruptly cut off are continued (and often concluded) in ways that feel apt and emotionally satisfying.
Yet again, Reynolds's extraordinary imagination impresses, but in a disciplined fashion, with little to no bloat and no tangents that feel unnecessary. I have no idea if Reynolds will return to this universe (I'd love to see Dreyfus face the Melding Plague, just quietly), but if not he's finally given it a proper send off and a reminder of why we love these stirring, surreal and utterly transporting tales in the first place.
Cheers ta, Al.