Celestial Matters

by Richard Garfinkle

In the world of Celestial Matters, Ptolemaic astronomy and Aristotelian physics are valid scientific models of the surrounding world and cosmos. The Earth lies at the center of the universe, surrounded by crystal spheres which hold each of the planets, the sun and the moon, all enclosed in the sphere of the fixed stars. Earthly matter, composed of the classical four elements of earth, air, fire, and water, naturally moves in straight lines. Heavenly matter naturally rises and moves in circles. This is the universe as understood by the ancient Greeks.

The science of the ancient Chinese also applies, but as the novel is told from the perspective of the Greeks, it is less well understood. Xi, the Chinese notion of spirit and flow, can be manipulated to move objects and energy. The Chinese five elements of earth, metal, water, wood, and fire are transmuted one into the other. Part of the central theme of the book is the two system's mutual misunderstanding and bafflement of each other.

In this world, the Delian League (Greeks) and Middle Kingdom (Chinese) have been fighting a war for nearly a thousand years, ever since the time of Alexander the Great when the warrior-culture of Sparta and the Athenian Akademe were fused into a half-world conquering force. Their technologies are locked together, however, and neither empire can gain the upper hand. Each side secretly despairs of its chances and has come to consider desperate measures.

The story is narrated by Aias of Tyre, a scientist of the Delian League, who is preparing to embark on Project Sunthief as scientific commander. This project is an audacious and desperate mission to sail a spaceship carved out of a piece of the moon herself out through the spheres, to catch a piece of the sun and bring it back to earth to annihilate the Middler capital city. This, the league hopes, will finally end the war and give it victory.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Fiction, Alternate History, Steampunk, Speculative Fiction, Historical

348 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 1996

About the author

Richard Garfinkle grew up in New York and now lives in Chicago with his wife and children. His first novel, Celestial Matters, won the Compton Crook award for best first science fiction novel of 1996. Garfinkle was twice a finalist for the John W. Campbell Award for best new writer. He has written numerous fiction and nonfiction works on his interests of history, science, imagination, and the preternatural.

More information can be found at www.richardgarfinkle.com.

Garfinkle's blog is "Overdue Considerations,"

Reviews

[Dan Schwent · Rating 3 out of 5]

Commander Aias of the Celestial Ship Chandra's Tear is charged with heading up operation Sunthief, using a ship to steal a piece of the sun and drop it on the capital city of the Middle Kingdom, the enemy of the Delian League.

This is one of those books that's hard to classify. Can something be classified as hard sf if the science in question is that of the ancient Greeks and equally ancient Chinese? That's right. Celestial matters is part hard sf, part alternate history. The Delia League is a Greek Empire founded on the spurious science of the ancient Greeks, which works in this universe. Spontaneous Generation farms are used to create animals. Space is full of air. The humors govern the health of the body. The Delian League is at war with the Middle Kingdom, which is an equally large empire built upon Taoist science.

As you can tell, the world behind Celestial Matters is a very interesting one once you wrap your head around the science. That being said, while the story is good, the writing drags. It took me about seventy pages to be fully invested in the book. It's not a light read and the science takes a bit of getting used to.

Still, I recommend this to alternate history fans who are into the ridiculous and magical science of 2000 years ago.

I'm floating this because it reminds me of the book I'm currently reading, Quintessence

[Alessandra]

I can't review this objectively, because my husband wrote it. I think it's brilliant, naturally, but better check some other people's reviews.

[Laura L. Van Dam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Atrapante y original, me gustó mucho.
Como ucronía, es una de las más ingeniosas que haya leído. No sólo el Imperio Griego ha sobrevivido a la muerte de Alexandros, que sucede mucho después de sus 33 años, sino que se ha extendido por casi todo el mundo, incluyendo Asia y las Américas ("Atlantea") y su único enemigo es el Imperio Medio de los chinos. Y tiene una cierta cuota de steampunk ya que hay numerosos adelantos tecnológicos basados en la física aristotélica y platónica (las esferas celestes, cuerpos pesados y sutiles, los objetos están formados por combinaciones de los 4 elementos, etc) mientras que los chinos son maestros en manipular energías Xi y vuelan en cometas de guerra gigantes.
Igual un par de cositas me hicieron ruido: el uso de medidas métricas como los kilómetros (¿por qué no usar medidas consistentes, por ejemplo estadios?), la mención del vacío interestelar (Natura abhorret vaccuum! Cualquier aristotélico lo sabe.) y que Ramanojon hable en hindi (idioma de aparición muy posterior, debería hablar algún dialecto sánscrito sin influencias del persa). Sí, ya sé que soy muy rompebolas. Lo tengo asumidísimo.
De todas formas el libro me pareció entretenido y pasé un buen rato leyéndolo, a pesar de todos estos elementos tan bizarros, así que lo recomiendo.

[Olethros · Rating 3 out of 5]

-Ciencia-Ficción fantástica o Fantasía científica.-

Género. Ciencia-Ficción.

Lo que nos cuenta. Ajax de Tiro es un científico de la Liga Délica graduado en la Academia de Atenas especialista en pirología y uranología que ha llegado a ser el comandante de la Lágrima de Chandra, nave usada para la investigación y concretamente para los desarrollos del importante proyecto Ladrón Solar, que ha pasado de lo teórico a lo realmente posible. Durante unas inesperadas vacaciones, visita Menfis, Jerusalén, Gaza, Roma, Siracusa, Cartago y Tiro. Cuando se dirige por mar hacia Atenas, es atacado por un dragón de seda al servicio del Reino Medio, en guerra con la Liga Délica desde hace mucho tiempo, repleto de armamento taoísta. Los arcontes sospechan que el ataque no tenía como objetivo el barco sino al propio Ayax, por lo que destinan como su guardaespaldas a la capitana Liebre Amarilla, guerrera espartana de origen xeroqui en la costa este de Atlantea.

¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:

http://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com/...

[Myaru · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was definitely worth reading, both for the steampunk and silkpunk content, and as a speculation on ancient Greek science, which we of course ignore now that we have "real" scientific evidence of how the universe works. I have to disclose that I know very little about Greek celestial theory, and so much of the science was opaque to me - but that didn't make the book less enjoyable or less inspiring.

In a nutshell, the book is about a scientist named Aias, commander of a celestial ship in the service of the Delian League (the Grecian-ruled West), whose goal at the beginning of the story is to lead an operation that will allow his team to capture a fragment of the sun's fire and use it as a weapon to destroy the capitol of the Middle Kingdom (China, and nominal leader of the East), who they've been at war with for hundreds of years. Middle Kingdom spies and agents are sent to stop this, and the first half of the book is spent trying to solve the mystery of who these spies are and how they plan to sabotage the mission.

Aias and his culture use technology derived from ancient Greek theory, and the Middle Kingdom uses Taoist science to produce technology powered by Xi. Scientists from both sides are constantly (hilariously) commenting on how incomprehensible the other side's technology is, and this seeming gulf of understanding is probably the most important mystery of the book. It is eventually solved, but the story ends rather abruptly with the completion of Aias's little political manipulation, and we never learn what happened to the characters once that hurdle was overcome.

That's my biggest gripe with the book, actually; I would've liked a little more closure. Ramonojon's plight isn't really solved, and we don't know what reception Aias and Phan receive in their respective homes, or even if they try to return at all; since Aias's plan has been blessed by all of his gods, you can imagine the future plays out exactly as he lays it out in the last few paragraphs, but we get no indication of what happens to these characters. As characters are generally still the most important part of a book for me, this was a disappointment.

Also interesting: the integration of gods and celestial science. Another thing I appreciated was the lack of an authorial or character-centric opinion of which belief or philosophy (Greek or Tao) was supposed to be judged correct by the reader. The two traditions seem to be given equal validity.

On the topic of Phan, and Middle Kingdom characters in general, I think the author did a good job of portraying them as characters in their own right, instead of as stereotypes - also that they weren't depicted as clearly in the wrong, but that both sides had historical and cultural precedent for their behavior and beliefs. My opinion of Persia via Mihradarius isn't as well-formed, but I mention it because of the part he played in the mystery.

[Marco · Rating 4 out of 5]

As every great best science fiction book, "Celestial Matters" is not just science fiction for the sake of itself. Scientific fiction - or, quite literally in this case, fictional science - is a means to point out some otherwise poorly considered themes of our ordinary world, a strategy to devise mental experiments which, thanks to their anomalous appearence, draw the readers' attention on specific topics.
The main focus of "Celestial Matters", thus, is not "What if Aristotelian Physics was true?" (which is, of course, quite an amazing starting point nonetheless), but "Is it true that there's only one correct viewpoint to explain facts?" or, even more ambitiously: "Can two mutually exclusive worldviews be both valid at the same time?".
Garfinkle's detailed analysis of (fictional) Aristotelian and Taoist science, technology and cosmology, and concurrently of Athenian, Spartan and Han (aka "Middler") ethos, would spark the shadow of doubt even in the mind of the most inflexible flagbearers of objectivity and pens��e unique. The importance of history is another key theme which Garfinkle hides between the lines: the protagonist lives in a world where the study of history is deeply neglected by hard-science-dominated academia, and it's only by his contrariant interest for the discipline and his personal connection with the muse Kleo that he manages to salvage and otherwise doomed space mission.
A brilliant and amusing book which would serve perfectly as a light but worthy literary companion for college physics courses.

[Carmelo Medina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Novela de 3. Ucronía que mantiene el ritmo pero que no es tampoco para volverse loco y eso que a priori pinta bien. Eso sí, la documentación y la manera de crear unas reglas basadas en la mitología clásica para su ciencia y ceñirse a ellas es de 10.

[David Montgomery · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating, and very well-executed, novel of "alternate science." It's set in a world in which what Aristotle posited about the nature of the world — four elements, rotating geocentric celestial spheres, four humour-based medicine, etc. — are actually true. (Mostly. More on this.) Furthermore it's a novel of alternate history, for which the point of divergence appears to be that the Peloponnesian War never occurred. Rather, Athens and Sparta united in the Delian League and eclipsed Macedonia culturally and militarily. Alexander, as a League general instead of a deified emperor, lived until old age. His tutor Aristotle used his science to create new weapons of war that led to an even larger, and much more durable, Hellenic empire.

In the time of the novel's setting — the world is essentially divided in a forever war between the Greek Delian League and the Chinese Middle Kingdom, with the battle lines in Tibet and central North America. (The time period is never quite specified; it's said Alexander's empire has lasted a thousand years, which would put it about 700 AD, but the feel of the setting, with motorized ships and space travel, is more 20th Century.) The needs of the great war have led to accelerated science but atrophied culture, with philosophy and history both low-prestige disciplines.

I've talked mostly about the setting rather than the plot, but honestly, the setting is the reason to read the book. It's a clever conceit that's executed well, with a first-person narration that drops you into the deep end of an unfamiliar world but doles out details on its rules in a steady fashion as the book goes on. This includes not just science but culture, as the characters of the book hold to ancient Greek traditions: the Olympic pantheon, funeral games, inspiration from the muses, a Spartan sense of honor, and a huge classical influence on the ideals of heroism.

My biggest qualm with the book is the way its final act developed, which stepped into the realm of world-saving, world-shaking heroism. The too-neat conclusion was justified by a little divine intervention, though I suppose one could argue that is itself authentic to the material's inspiration. Regardless, it felt a little narratively implausible; I'd have felt it to be more earned if the novel's conclusion had been the end of a trilogy that started on a very grounded level and only gradually raised the stakes.

I was also left with questions about the world. Though by the end I understood the Aristotelian physics undergirding the universe rather well, in a confusing twist the Taoist model of the universe ALSO turns out to be true. The novel never really explains how two contradictory models of reality can be true at the same time — the narrator and protagonist figures it out but doesn't actually tell us what he's figured out. Given that the author thought out the implications of both physics models with great care that suggests he didn't quite square that circle either.

But altogether it was an enjoyable read, at least for someone like me who is vaguely familiar with Aristotle. (A lover of speculative fiction with no background might still enjoy the story; I can't say how that experience would be different — or the experience of someone who's actually an expert in Aristotelian or Taoist physics.) The writing style seemed accessible, though I'm not particularly picky on that matter; particularly well done seemed to be the narrator's habit of periodically expressing regret for not noticing something important, foreshadowing future developments without giving it away.

[Andrés Zelada · Rating 4 out of 5]

En un mundo donde la física aristotélica funciona de verdad (las cosas están compuestas de cuatro elementos, en el cuerpo hay distintos humores cuyo desequilibrio causa enfermedades, la Tierra es el centro del universo, hay un Primer Motor inmóvil...) y donde una poderosísima Liga de Delos lucha por todo el mundo contra un no menos poderoso Reino Medio, el comandante Ayax de Atenas tiene la misión que acabará con la guerra. Debe capitanear una nave hecha con un fragmento de la Luna y llevarla hasta el Sol, de donde arrancará un pedazo de fuego eterno que lanzará sobre la capital china. Por supuesto, los chinos no están dispuestos a permitírselo tan fácilmente...

Una obra con semejante premisa no tiene derecho a ser aburrida, y Materia celeste no es aburrida. Espías, batallas en el cielo, intentos de asesinato, mezcla de distintas filosofías y un mundo complejo y completo, que se presenta sin sobreexplicaciones. Los personajes no son demasiado memorables, por desgracia, y es cierto que a veces flaquea un poco en el ritmo, pero sus virtudes lo compensan de sobra. Es un derroche de imaginación muy bien ejecutado.

[Guilherme Solari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uma ficção científica que segue astronomia de Ptolomeu, física e biologia de Aristóteles e também o taoísmo

Celestial Matters é um caso interessante de ficção científica, pois mostra que não apenas os preceitos da ciência moderna podem ser utilizados para se enquadrar no gênero. A história se passa em um mundo no qual o império de Alexandre o Grande jamais caiu e muito em breve se viu numa guerra constante com a China que durou milhares de anos.

A narrativa seque um capitão helênico chamado Aias que é incumbido de viajar até o Sol e roubar um pedaço da chama divina para destruir a capital dos seus adversários, o Reino do Meio. O interessante é que o espaço que a nave Chandra’s Tear –que foi esculpida de um pedaço da Lua- encontra não é aquele que estamos acostumados, mas regidos pela astronomia de Ptolomeu. Ou seja, nada de vácuo e sim diversas esferas celestes girando em estruturas de cristal indestrutível. As naves são movimentadas por canhões que criam túneis de ar mais rarefeito e a tripulação é alimentada por fazendas de geração espontânea de animais; seguindo as teorias aristotélicas.
E esse mundo ricamente construído dobra de tamanho quando o leitor descobre que ele também é regido pela ciência e alquimia taoista, com linhas de fluxo de chi, transmutações de materiais e curas pela acupuntura.

Os melhores momentos são justamente quando há um embate entre essas duas formas díspares de ver o mundo. A ciência grega é baseada em formas e estruturas, enquanto a chinesa pensa em interações e transformações e a única forma de um lado compreender o outro é esquecer todos os seus preceitos e tentar aprender com a ingenuidade e abertura de uma criança.

Dessa forma, Richard Garfinkle cria uma bela alegoria sobre as dificuldades de se compreender outras culturas e é refrescante ler um romance de ficção científica que trate não de conquista ou de apenas um indivíduo conhecendo novas formas de pensar, mas da interação de duas visões de mundo na qual a outra não faz nenhum sentido. Celestial Matters metaforiza bastante a Guerra Fria devido à semelhança entre o fogo solar e a bomba atômica.

Os personagens são intrigantes, como a guarda-costa espartana, o navegador indiano budista, o pirocientista persa que desenvolveu o método de capturar um pedaço do Sol e o próprio capitão Aias, que narra a história. Só achei o final um pouco fraco e certinho demais para uma história que lida com tantos pontos de vista ambíguos.

Este livro é um pouco raro e tive que comprar usado depois de atazanar parentes e amigos no exterior para vasculhar livrarias em busca de um exemplar. Celestial Matters é um belo exemplo de algo que eu acho que a ficção científica faz de melhor: criar um universo único e diferente para no final poder falar sobre o nosso.

[Ivan Yordanov · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was actually very impressed with this book.

Behind the facade of the question "what if?" lies serious reflection on the situation which gives rise to two explanatory models of the world, irreducible to each other but describing the world with equal validity and efficiency. It is also a comentary on the role of the cultural context in a military conflict and on the significance of history for the practice of science.
There is also a very interesting moral dilemma involving Hellenistic type of ethics, colliding with its eastern variants, and with the perspective for a weapon of mass destruction.
The ability of the book to derive empirical and engineering consequences from an Aristotelian type of physics is impressive as well. Unfortunately, in terms of character development we don't have a lot of fleshing out. This however fits with the writhing style, which is trying to follow the form of an ancient epic account and the overall story compensates for it.

I would recommend this book to any science fiction reader with a thing for alternate history fiction, or who is just trying to find something truly different thematically and storywise. I would also recommend it to philosophy students and students in the field of natural sciences, who would enjoy an elegant and imaginative game with fundamental concepts within their fields.

[manuti · Rating 1 out of 5]

Si el libro del mes anterior que comenté ya hace mucho tiempo, dije que me había salvado el verano, este fue el que estuvo a punto de arruinarlo.

Un libro muy malo y aburrido, con una trama simplona. Tiene como idea de partida una distopía en la que la ciencia griega es totalmente acertada (esferas celestes, movimiento uniforme, los principios tipo arjé o arké). Vamos un desastre que compré de saldo y que más me valdría no haber visto en la estantería de la librería. Le doy una puntuación de cero estrellas porque no puedo ponérsela negativa o algo peor.

Sin embargo, voy a añadir un enlace a una reseña más entusiasmada.

ver reseña en mi blog

[Gloin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Confieso que lo he terminado por saber si se cerraba la historia de alguna forma y, sobre todo, por orgullo torero. La sinopsis me había hecho recordar el primer cuento de La historia de tu vida, de Ted Chiang, por lo que me las prometía felices. Y algo de ello se encuentra... entre centenares de epifanías de dioses varios (me han recordado algunos comentarios exasperados sobre la "diosa" de las 50 sombras de Grey) y decenas libaciones y ceremoniales, por no hablar de las divagaciones y los infodumps. Mención aparte merecen algunas incoherencias en la historia que omito por no poder utilizar spoilers. Todo para llegar a un final que peca de optimista hasta parecer infantil.

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an amazing trip this was. What if the Ptolemaic model of the universe -epicycles and deferents and all - was correct? What if Spontaneous Generation, the Four Humours, the Five Elements and the confusingly overlapping pantheons of ancient Greek, Hindu, Zoroastrian and other peoples were not just real, but weaponized? What if Alexander's empire, actively aided by Aristotle, endured and perpetuated a cold war with the Chinese empire?

Well, obviously, an Athenian and his (Spartan) Cherokee bodyguard would fly a spaceship to steal a piece of the sun and bring this war to an end.

[Cate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Describes a world in which Aristotelian Physics are real, the Delian League of Alexander the Great never collapsed, and they now do battle against the Middle Kingdom (China) by attempting to steal a piece of the sun.

[Aislinn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has the kind of setting that makes you incredulous - or aghast - at the depth of human creativity. Or rather, it makes you wonder, with a laugh, how something can be so absurd and yet brilliant at the same time.

The story is about space Greeks. It is a kind of alternate history mixed with fantasy mixed with science fiction. Four basic truths underlie this world:

1. The Alexandrian Empire never fell and lasted nine hundred years. 2. Everything Aristotle said is true; the world is made up of earth, water, air, and fire; Earth lies at the center of the universe and all the stars, including the sun, revolve around us. 3. The not-so-ancient Greeks have refined their science to the point where they can travel between the different stars in a giant airship. 4. Best of all - the Greeks are developing their version of an atomic bomb to nuke not-so-ancient China.

This is completely insane and I love it.

┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅┄┅

About the actual execution of this acid trip ... it is good enough. All the ingredients of an enjoyable story are smoothly rolled out: a world full of descriptive detail, a plot with enough twists and conflicts, and characters with intelligence and competence in their jobs. In short, it manages to deliver, relatively successfully, what it promised to its readers.

But other factors prevent the story from going beyond good to great.

The writing has a formal, stilted tone, the somewhat typical style reserved for uptight and "educated" narrators, with not a few technical descriptions of the inner workings of airships and other technologies. Our narrator himself, Aias, reads like an uptight and "educated" character who reacts rationally, but also very predictably, to most of the situations he encounters - I find him an acceptable narrator, never once annoying, but also never once interesting. The ending, in particular, becomes wishy-washy and increasingly light on political realism, moving in an almost Hollywood direction.

The main character single-handedly stops the Nine Hundred Year War and brings about peace between two halves of the world previously incapable of mutual comprehension. The A-bomb is split in half, the superpowers happily take one half and go home, the scientists from both sides start collaborating and falling over themselves to understand the other side's science ... yeah, good luck with that.

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However, it would be disingenuous to say that the Hollywood approach doesn't work. The world feels rich and believable, the plot revolves around a high-stakes conflict, and many scenes read quite epic in their tension and implications.

Steal a fragment of the sun! Like Prometheus! Then be torn apart by that fragment! Only to rein it in and steer it like a horse, driving the chariot of your half-torn spaceship! How's that for a big-budget sci-fi movie!

Again, if I had to describe this book in one sentence:

The whole thing is completely insane. And I love it for its insanity.

[David · Rating 1 out of 5]

Give the author a marginal amount of credit for attempting to be creative. That one positive said, all else is bad about this book. I presume the author must have believed his audience would have zero familiarity with ancient Greece and zero knowledge of logic as it pertains to science. Early on at that point where the author ascribes modern American weights and measures to the Greek empire dependent on ancient beliefs, it was more a matter of attempting to reign in the gag reflex rather than trying to fathom any pleasure from this horrible tome. Probably skipped about 100 pages in total and without ever reading the ending, I really don't feel like I missed anything. The juvenile writing style was a major detraction along with the thorough inanity of the story line itself. A simplistic writing style poorly suited to obtuse content. For example, in describing the no longer operational guns of the ship they "jutted defiantly upward" what kind of phrasing is that? Gag...! When naming the heroes of Greece why are they all from a period over a thousand years ago? Hmmm... what does that tell us about the story? And the chief protagonist, the captain? One would naturally think that one of the two most powerful nations on earth would make some attempt at selecting a person in such an important position who actually had some knowledge of what they were about and someone who would exhibit some sort of emotional balance? However the summary phrase that leapt to my mind was -- a solid portrayal of a blind one legged strutting peacock arbitrarily driven by the whim of nonexistent gods. Gag again. Not sure it can get much worse than this. True rating: 0.

[Evan Þ. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This could be called a sci-fi novel, but it's a really weird one: basically, "what if the Ancient Greek worldview was exactly correct?" In a geocentric cosmos, the Delian League (i.e. Greek empire) is locked in a generations-long war with the Middle Kingdom (Chinese Empire). Imploring the aid of the Greek gods (who clearly exist), they send our protagonist on a mission through the celestial spheres to bring down celestial fire from the Sun.

The best part of this novel, to me, was just watching people live and make decisions in a universe where (for example) when someone speaks wisely, it's literally because the goddess Athena has come on him and inspired him. Or, when people have mined out the face of the Moon, it's literally an affront to the goddess Selene.

The plot about spies and sabotage around the mission is well done, and evokes very well the author's themes around the dichotomy between war and science. He symbolizes that beautifully with the dichotomy between Athens and Sparta - which are the memetic Athens and Sparta, not the actual historical versions; for example, this Sparta actually does produce peerless warriors.

I think the author meant the utter difference between Greek and Chinese science to fit in with this theme as a new mystery - but if so, it doesn't feel that way through most of the book. Perhaps instead he meant it to be one other difference between this universe and ours, playing in with polytheism? If so, I wish he had been clearer.

But that's just one flaw in a very fun and unusual story.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5
I enjoyed reading this book, and I'd recommend it, despite my low rating.
My first issue: it needed another proofing pass. I've seen much worse, but still, too many typos for me to ignore.
Second: I think I would have appreciated it more if I had a better understanding of Aristotelian physics, but it's been at least 15 years since I read Aristotle, so I'm more than a little rusty.
Third:

**SPOILER ALERT**

The explanation of Taoist physics is pretty thin to begin with, which would be fine, since the protagonist is Greek. But the conclusion of the story involves a reconciliation of Aristotelian and Taoist sciences. And for all the evident thought the author has given to illustrating a world governed by Aristotelian physics, he makes virtually no effort to explain how these schools of thought are brought together. Felt like a lot of hand waving at the end, leaving the ending feeling rather thin for me. The Promethean analogue seemed fitting, but I would have liked to actually know how things worked.

**END SPOILER ALERT**

[Borja Pontecanedo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unha ucrónica guerra fría.

A idea de o imperio de Alexandre Magno sobrevivir no tempo resultoume atractiva nun inicio, especialmente tras ter lido, neste mesmo ano a biografía do antedito conquistador.

Ao meu ver, estaría ben que se advertise de que estamos nunha obra practicamente de ciencia ficción que, abofé que ten uns cimentos ucrónicos; no entanto, as viaxes polo espazo non son o que procuramos aqueles aos que nos venden a continuidade do goberno mundial ateniense.

Sexa como for, a chiscadela nacionalista dun persa mal agusto co domino grego-macedónico constitúe o punto máis fermoso dunha obra con personaxes aos que se lles pode coller agarimo e pouco máis.

O espírito humanista amosado na fin do relato é, no tocante ao meu parecer, o segundo punto positivo mais tamén, escasamente aproveitado polo autor. Afirmo isto porque a batalla ou “guerra fría” entre medianos “China” e délicos “Grecia” daría para outras 500 páxinas sen deixarmos de ser escravos/as da gravidade pero, en troques, engulindo unha sociedade burocrática e intelectual. Nin tan mal, como di a mocidade.

[Al · Rating 3 out of 5]

I couldn't fully suspend my disbelief regarding the premise, the setting, and the mechanics of the world Garfinkle constructs in this book (how and why are the greeks able to sustain and expand their imperialism across half the world? or the chinese?), but it's a very enjoyable read. If you know anything about physics and can't turn that part of your brain off, then you'll probably struggle as much as I did to understand the actual voyage that the ship takes through space - just remember, in this book everything revolves around the earth! So it makes logical sense to encounter the moon, then venus, then mercury, then the sun, and then mars.

My brain hurts but I appreciate what this book tried to do. Some aspects are yikesy (a Cherokee woman abandons her culture to adopt the Spartan way of life, is assigned to be bodyguard to the protagonist, and then SPOILER ALERT ends up being his romantic interest), but your mileage may vary.

[Chupacabracito · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing world-building! Especially if you happen to love both sci fi and classical Greek and/or Chinese physics / philosophy / theories of how the world works. Garfinkle perfectly captures and embodies how spaceships and future would be if the ancient Greek's ideas of how the universe worked (celestial spheres, four elements of matter, four humours of medicine, etc.) were actually the way things worked. And simultaneously if ancient Chinese theories of how the universe worked (chi flows, five elements, etc.) were also how the world actually worked. The attention to detail is perfect, all the way down to how names are spelled in the way an ancient Greek would transliterate them to English.

The characters are nothing special, and the plot is fine but not remarkable, but I didn't really care because I was so completely enchanted by the world! Really phenomenal.

[A · Rating 2 out of 5]

It is a shame I couldn't finish this book, because the premise was brilliant: Imagine Alexander the Great didn't die young and his empire lasted for centuries. More importantly, all the ptolemaic physics are true! (earth IS the center of the universe, there are 4 humours in the body, etc). This would be great, except that the story is super sluggish and hard to read. I reached page 100 and then I simply couldn't go on.

[Xabi1990 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me lo pasé como un enano leyendo esta ucronia donde el imperio griego sobrevive a Alejandro (que vive hasta los 70) y se enfrenta en un futuro con el imperio (Medio) Chino.

La ciencia griega se basa en eso 4 elementos que estudiábamos en el instituto. La china en energías, taoísmo y demás.

Dioses, naves interplanetarias, los 4 elementos, pajas mentales del autor y acción e intrigas. Una gozada.

[José Alejandro Vázquez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro muy bueno, especialmente su worldbuilding, que es increíblemente complejo y desarrollado, mostrándonos un posible mundo en el que Alejandro hubiera conquistado el mundo. Como único defectos está que su trama no resalta demasiado y sus personajes pueden resultarnos demasiado alienígenas, pero son el resultado del mundo en que viven.

[Jukaschar · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a debut novel Celestial Matters is quite good. I would even go so far as to say that the general idea behind the book is brilliant.
Sadly, the literary style and the research that was done are lacking. Very unfortunate indeed.

[Kimberly Tremblay]

This novel does an amazing job of dropping you directly into a fully-formed world with scientific rules and logic and a compelling cause for conflict. Richard Garfinkle is a new favorite author after reading this one!

[Amelia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book I always wanted to exist, without realizing it. I am so glad someone wrote it in real life.

[TlalocGG · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sin duda alguna, se ha ganado el puesto a mi libro favorito hasta el momento y grandioso sin duda, leanlo si les gusta lo que es bueno!

[William Golson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the way the author took early ideas on science and physics and created working technology around them.