(2000) Alastair Reynolds, Gollancz, trdpbk, £10.99, 476pp,ISBN 0-57506-876-0
(2007 reprint) Gollancz, pbk, £7.99, 585pp. ISBN 978-0-752-8-8908-5
Dan Sylveste is exploring the archaeological remains of a million-year gone race, the Amarantin. Ilia Volyova is looking for him so that he can help cure her plague-ridden captain; Ana Khouri has been hired to kill him. Their destinies entwine aboard the ship Nostalgia for Infinity, with its cache of planet-killing weapons, and the billion year-old entity, Sun Stealer, that inhabits it. Though this novel is somewhat dense, it does reward reading: the backdrop is compellingly drawn, the characters are engaging, and the central mystery does draw the reader in. Reynolds manages to tell a complex (though, ultimately, simple) story without too much confusion, but his pacing needs work. Still, all in all a very good book and, on the strength of it, I would say that he’s worth looking out for in future.
Tony Chester
Since the above we have also reviewed other Reynolds novels including: Century Rain, Chasm City, Diamond Dogs, Turquoise Days, Pushing Ice (hardback), Pushing Ice (paperback) and Redemption Ark.
So, was he worth looking out for in the future?
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