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Beyond the Aquila Rift: The Best of Alastair Reynolds
The very best of his more than sixty published short stories are gathered in Beyond the Aquila Rift: The Best of Alastair Reynolds, a sweeping 250,000 word career retrospective which features his very best stories.
Table of Contents:
• Great Wall of Mars
• Weather
• Beyond the Aquila Rift
• Minla's Flowers
• Zima Blue
• Fury
• The Star Surgeon's Apprentice
• The Sledge-Maker's Daughter
• Diamond Dogs
• Thousandth Night
• Troika
• Sleepover
• Vainglory
• Trauma Pod
• The Last Log of the Lachrymosa
• The Water Thief
• The Old Man and the Martian Sea
• In Babelsberg
• Story Notes
Table of Contents:
• Great Wall of Mars
• Weather
• Beyond the Aquila Rift
• Minla's Flowers
• Zima Blue
• Fury
• The Star Surgeon's Apprentice
• The Sledge-Maker's Daughter
• Diamond Dogs
• Thousandth Night
• Troika
• Sleepover
• Vainglory
• Trauma Pod
• The Last Log of the Lachrymosa
• The Water Thief
• The Old Man and the Martian Sea
• In Babelsberg
• Story Notes
784 pages, Paperback
First published June 30, 2016
736 people are currently reading
4934 people want to read
About the author
Alastair Reynolds
313 books9,301 followersI'm Al, I used to be a space scientist, and now I'm a writer, although for a time the two careers ran in parallel. I started off publishing short stories in the British SF magazine Interzone in the early 90s, then eventually branched into novels. I write about a novel a year and try to write a few short stories as well. Some of my books and stories are set in a consistent future named after Revelation Space, the first novel, but I've done a lot of other things as well and I like to keep things fresh between books.
I was born in Wales, but raised in Cornwall, and then spent time in the north of England and Scotland. I moved to the Netherlands to continue my science career and stayed there for a very long time, before eventually returning to Wales.
In my spare time I am a very keen runner, and I also enjoying hill-walking, birdwatching, horse-riding, guitar and model-making. I also dabble with paints now and then. I met my wife in the Netherlands through a mutual interest in climbing and we married back in Wales. We live surrounded by hills, woods and wildlife, and not too much excitement.
I was born in Wales, but raised in Cornwall, and then spent time in the north of England and Scotland. I moved to the Netherlands to continue my science career and stayed there for a very long time, before eventually returning to Wales.
In my spare time I am a very keen runner, and I also enjoying hill-walking, birdwatching, horse-riding, guitar and model-making. I also dabble with paints now and then. I met my wife in the Netherlands through a mutual interest in climbing and we married back in Wales. We live surrounded by hills, woods and wildlife, and not too much excitement.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 232 reviews
January 31, 2017
Great Wall of Mars
A really complex scenario for a short story, but it works, with a good core narrative and glimpses of a coherent larger universe and history outside it.
A small group of implant-enhanced humans is holed up in a Martian colony, under threat from a vastly larger force who view their actions - attempts to 'escape' - as military provocations. Two brothers are part of that larger force. One, motivated by revenge, wants war. The other, a former POW, insists on going down for peace negotiations.
An interesting entry into the transhumanist genre, and a nice introduction to this universe.
Weather
Due to this book's formatting, I wasn't immediately certain I had started a new story. 'Weather' is in the same universe as 'Great Wall of Mars,' but set a few generations later.
Out in deep space, a stroke of luck allows a crew to repel a pirate attack. From their attacker's drifting hulk, the victors reluctantly rescue a young woman who's a 'Conjoiner' - a member of a borg-like, 'post-human' collective who are both feared and hated - even as they make the best starship engines to be found anywhere.
One crewman becomes her advocate, trying to protect her from his captain's seemingly irrational animosity toward the refugee...
Beyond the Aquila Rift
There's a reason this is the title story! Great sci-fi!
Thom is the captain of a small ship doing a routine cargo run, along with his two crewmates. Although the run - and indeed, all of human civilisation - depends on the wormhole-like routes between stars that are assumed to be the remnants of some long-lost alien civilisation, the use of these routes has become pretty much taken for granted. Sure, there are occasional glitches, but interstellar travel is now as safe and reliable as airline travel is today. The worst that usually happens when a glitch occurs is a minor delay. The crew might be disappointed to make it home late to their families, and pissed off to not receive their bonus pay.
And within these pages, unfortunately for Thom, is a situation where a glitch occurs.
The story does a great job of setting up a completely plausible scenario... and then just wrenching the reader's perspective dizzyingly. Loved it.
Minla's Flowers
A solo captain on a mission unexpectedly falls out of warp drive near an unknown system. In search of repairs, he finds a planet which has been out of touch with the rest of human civilization for millennia. His visit seems almost like a pastoral idyll, a time-out from the larger universe of vicious war with nasty aliens - until he discovers that this planet is running on borrowed time: a 'natural' disaster looms in the near future.
What he chooses to do next will affect the fate of the entire planet...
A sadly believable, but ultimately satisfying tale.
Zima Blue
Famous galaxy-wide, an artist is known for his use of one particular shade of blue. Now, he's announced that he'll be retiring - but he has one last work to unveil. Journalists and media have flocked to the location, but he's denied interviews to everyone... except one.
But when she meets the artist, it seems that rather than his work, he wants to talk to her about the gadget she uses to record her memories.
Where the story goes from there is profoundly disquieting - and very interesting.
Fury
Works nicely as a thematic companion to the previous story ('Zima Blue.')
For millennia, the Emperor of the known universe has ruled justly and wisely. His intellect cannot be confined to one mere human body, so when one of his host of cloned bodies is assassinated, it's no big deal... seemingly. But his faithful retainer, who's been at the Emperor's side for longer than even he can remember, is compelled to find out who was behind the act of violence, and what the motivations could have been.
What he finds is not what he expected.
The ending is... strange.
The Star Surgeon's Apprentice
Fleeing a bad situation on a rough-and-tumble spaceport, a young man takes the first and only option available to him - a job as a doctor's assistant on a ship he knows nothing about except that it's leaving immediately. The surgeon - well, let's just say he's no Dr. McCoy, and soon enough our 'hero' realizes that he may have jumped out of a frying fan into a fire.
Classic sci-fi - and excellently done.
The Sledge-Maker's Daughter
Although the sci-fi elements emerge from this story, it starts out with almost a traditional fantasy feel, as a poor village girl tries to avoid abuse from her father's boss' son as she runs an errand to the home of the old woman who's known - and feared - locally, as a witch. At the witch's house, the girl will receive a way to defend herself - and secrets will be revealed about not only her people's history, but what they may face in the future.
Diamond Dogs
EXTREMELY similar premise to Algis Budrys' 'Rogue Moon.'
As in that story, a mysterious extraterrestrial structure is discovered which seems to be designed to challenge all those who enter it - and failures are destroyed. As in the other story, exceptional contenders are recruited, and 'duplicate' bodies are considered as a possible method of solving the puzzle.
The main differences are that this story is not at all sexist, unlike Budrys', and that this piece focuses on telling a good story, rather than spouting off on random theories about 'manliness.' (Although, this one does indeed have something to say about what constitutes "hu-manliness.")
I have read that this is part of Reynolds' 'Revelation Space' writings, and it is clearly presented as a single incident in the life of a character who undoubtedly appears in other books.
Thousandth Night
In an extreme far-future, humanity has spread throughout the galaxy, splitting and dividing into different cultures and civilisations, adapting itself to wildly multifarious forms of existence. One strand of humanity originated with one individual in the distant past. Cloning herself, she then sent her clones out to range the stars, exploring and pursuing their separate interests. But at set times, they all return to share their experiences and memories. It's become an ancient tradition.
But at this one reunion, two of these posthuman individuals, who are especially close to one another, begin to suspect that someone is breaking the rules - and that something is being hidden from them. Investigating the omissions and disparities will uncover something bigger than they could have guessed.
A nice example of an accessibly-sized story set against an epic backdrop.
Troika
Once a cosmonaut, now an inmate at a mental hospital, our protagonist escapes his confinement for a final mission: to find an aging, discredited astronomer and deliver something to her.
His reasons are gradually explained in flashbacks to his notorious mission: a brave expedition to investigate what might be an alien construct which has suddenly appeared in orbit around our sun. Its strange, layered structure lends it the nomenclature: Matryoshka. Three Russian cosmonauts hope to penetrate its layers and discover invaluable data - but what they discover will not bring them the fame and glory they hoped for.
Unusually for this collection, the setting here is extremely near-future and the plot is anchored firmly in the current concerns of our world. Honestly, I felt that the tone of the story verged on negative propaganda (not that I'm any huge fan of Russia, but...). However, it was written well enough for me to forgive its slant.
Sleepover
My favorite one in this collection so far. 'Sleepover' takes a familiar sci-fi theme and does something totally unexpected with it.
Our protagonist, formerly the billionaire CEO of a technology company, awakes from medical cryosleep expecting what he had asked for when he paid handsomely for the procedure: that he's hibernated until the secret of immortality - or at least, life extension - has been discovered. But the dingy room and disrespectful attendants don't seem like part of the bright, shiny and wealthy future he expected.
He's been revived for a reason, and, he realizes, as he discovers the gritty, decaying off-shore oil rig he's on, in rough Patagonian waters, it's not a glamorous reason. But, it could be meaningful...
Vainglory
An artist is unexpectedly approached by a private investigator, bringing up an incident which she had thought long past and forgotten - and really, unimportant to anyone except herself, as a bit of a romantic embarrassment. But there were unforeseen consequences to that commission she did for a wealthy and untrustworthy playboy. And now the investigator has a threat to make - or is it an offer?
Trauma Pod
Military Sci-fi horror! And it really is quite horrifying. Seriously injured on a devastated battlefield where the main combatants are massive robots, a soldier has been bundled into a medical pod for emergency treatment. Advanced telemedicine lets him know that while the damage is severe, help is on the way. But is the doctor keeping vital information from him?
I guarantee you're going to come away from this one with an unpleasant feeling about technology.
The Last Log of the Lachrymosa
Another really-quite-horrific sci-fi story. The narrative intercuts between a scene which seems to be a crewmember doing something quite awful and definitely mutinous to her former captain, and a past narrative in which we gradually find out why. Apparently, the small crew - two hired spacers, the captain, and his rather horrible pet monkey - are treasure-hunters, so when they find an old wreck in a remote corner of space, they investigate in hopes of finding a big score. But the body of the downed spacer is mysteriously missing, and the nearby volcano seems to be emanating bad vibes. What they find is definitely not going to make their fortunes...
The Water Thief
Wow. Great story. The themes and treatment remind me of Paolo Bacigalupi.
A woman in a refugee camp scrapes by, earning a living for her daughter and herself by working freelance jobs where she operates robots through VR.
A situation in her camp where an individual is 'apprehended' for stealing water rations is neatly paralleled by a dilemma she must face on one of her jobs, when, for the first time, she experiences through VR the lunar colony she's dreamed of as a symbol of success and escape.
A difficult and thought-provoking example of the intersection of - and conflicts between - compassion, justice, and ethics.
The Old Man and the Martian Sea
Even on Mars, teenagers go through the same angst, for the same reasons. Family conflict spurs one young teen, Yukimi, to run away from her home in a colony on the half-terraformed planet by stowing away on an unmanned cargo transport - which turns out to be a supremely bad idea. Luckily, she encounters a solitary, elderly worker at a remote delivery drop-off point. The encounter could shift the girl's perspective on several things she had taken for granted. Poignant and thoughtful.
In Babelsberg
Eh, this one was good, but probably my least favorite in the collection. I wouldn't have chosen it as the finale to the anthology. The narrative balances absurdity with sci-fi's traditional distrust of robots. Our main character is an AI in an android body, back from an exploration mission of the outer solar system. He's got celebrity status, and is booked to appear on a series of ridiculous popular talk shows. There's a newer, equivalent AI space probe who's recently been introduced, and the media is eager to play up an imagined rivalry... or, is it imagined?
I really can't explain why, but this collection was my first introduction to Alastair Reynolds' work. I'm impressed - this is good stuff! Many thanks to Subterranean and NetGalley for encouraging me to discover an author I really ought to have been reading long before this! As always, my opinions are solely my own.
A really complex scenario for a short story, but it works, with a good core narrative and glimpses of a coherent larger universe and history outside it.
A small group of implant-enhanced humans is holed up in a Martian colony, under threat from a vastly larger force who view their actions - attempts to 'escape' - as military provocations. Two brothers are part of that larger force. One, motivated by revenge, wants war. The other, a former POW, insists on going down for peace negotiations.
An interesting entry into the transhumanist genre, and a nice introduction to this universe.
Weather
Due to this book's formatting, I wasn't immediately certain I had started a new story. 'Weather' is in the same universe as 'Great Wall of Mars,' but set a few generations later.
Out in deep space, a stroke of luck allows a crew to repel a pirate attack. From their attacker's drifting hulk, the victors reluctantly rescue a young woman who's a 'Conjoiner' - a member of a borg-like, 'post-human' collective who are both feared and hated - even as they make the best starship engines to be found anywhere.
One crewman becomes her advocate, trying to protect her from his captain's seemingly irrational animosity toward the refugee...
Beyond the Aquila Rift
There's a reason this is the title story! Great sci-fi!
Thom is the captain of a small ship doing a routine cargo run, along with his two crewmates. Although the run - and indeed, all of human civilisation - depends on the wormhole-like routes between stars that are assumed to be the remnants of some long-lost alien civilisation, the use of these routes has become pretty much taken for granted. Sure, there are occasional glitches, but interstellar travel is now as safe and reliable as airline travel is today. The worst that usually happens when a glitch occurs is a minor delay. The crew might be disappointed to make it home late to their families, and pissed off to not receive their bonus pay.
And within these pages, unfortunately for Thom, is a situation where a glitch occurs.
The story does a great job of setting up a completely plausible scenario... and then just wrenching the reader's perspective dizzyingly. Loved it.
Minla's Flowers
A solo captain on a mission unexpectedly falls out of warp drive near an unknown system. In search of repairs, he finds a planet which has been out of touch with the rest of human civilization for millennia. His visit seems almost like a pastoral idyll, a time-out from the larger universe of vicious war with nasty aliens - until he discovers that this planet is running on borrowed time: a 'natural' disaster looms in the near future.
What he chooses to do next will affect the fate of the entire planet...
A sadly believable, but ultimately satisfying tale.
Zima Blue
Famous galaxy-wide, an artist is known for his use of one particular shade of blue. Now, he's announced that he'll be retiring - but he has one last work to unveil. Journalists and media have flocked to the location, but he's denied interviews to everyone... except one.
But when she meets the artist, it seems that rather than his work, he wants to talk to her about the gadget she uses to record her memories.
Where the story goes from there is profoundly disquieting - and very interesting.
Fury
Works nicely as a thematic companion to the previous story ('Zima Blue.')
For millennia, the Emperor of the known universe has ruled justly and wisely. His intellect cannot be confined to one mere human body, so when one of his host of cloned bodies is assassinated, it's no big deal... seemingly. But his faithful retainer, who's been at the Emperor's side for longer than even he can remember, is compelled to find out who was behind the act of violence, and what the motivations could have been.
What he finds is not what he expected.
The ending is... strange.
The Star Surgeon's Apprentice
Fleeing a bad situation on a rough-and-tumble spaceport, a young man takes the first and only option available to him - a job as a doctor's assistant on a ship he knows nothing about except that it's leaving immediately. The surgeon - well, let's just say he's no Dr. McCoy, and soon enough our 'hero' realizes that he may have jumped out of a frying fan into a fire.
Classic sci-fi - and excellently done.
The Sledge-Maker's Daughter
Although the sci-fi elements emerge from this story, it starts out with almost a traditional fantasy feel, as a poor village girl tries to avoid abuse from her father's boss' son as she runs an errand to the home of the old woman who's known - and feared - locally, as a witch. At the witch's house, the girl will receive a way to defend herself - and secrets will be revealed about not only her people's history, but what they may face in the future.
Diamond Dogs
EXTREMELY similar premise to Algis Budrys' 'Rogue Moon.'
As in that story, a mysterious extraterrestrial structure is discovered which seems to be designed to challenge all those who enter it - and failures are destroyed. As in the other story, exceptional contenders are recruited, and 'duplicate' bodies are considered as a possible method of solving the puzzle.
The main differences are that this story is not at all sexist, unlike Budrys', and that this piece focuses on telling a good story, rather than spouting off on random theories about 'manliness.' (Although, this one does indeed have something to say about what constitutes "hu-manliness.")
I have read that this is part of Reynolds' 'Revelation Space' writings, and it is clearly presented as a single incident in the life of a character who undoubtedly appears in other books.
Thousandth Night
In an extreme far-future, humanity has spread throughout the galaxy, splitting and dividing into different cultures and civilisations, adapting itself to wildly multifarious forms of existence. One strand of humanity originated with one individual in the distant past. Cloning herself, she then sent her clones out to range the stars, exploring and pursuing their separate interests. But at set times, they all return to share their experiences and memories. It's become an ancient tradition.
But at this one reunion, two of these posthuman individuals, who are especially close to one another, begin to suspect that someone is breaking the rules - and that something is being hidden from them. Investigating the omissions and disparities will uncover something bigger than they could have guessed.
A nice example of an accessibly-sized story set against an epic backdrop.
Troika
Once a cosmonaut, now an inmate at a mental hospital, our protagonist escapes his confinement for a final mission: to find an aging, discredited astronomer and deliver something to her.
His reasons are gradually explained in flashbacks to his notorious mission: a brave expedition to investigate what might be an alien construct which has suddenly appeared in orbit around our sun. Its strange, layered structure lends it the nomenclature: Matryoshka. Three Russian cosmonauts hope to penetrate its layers and discover invaluable data - but what they discover will not bring them the fame and glory they hoped for.
Unusually for this collection, the setting here is extremely near-future and the plot is anchored firmly in the current concerns of our world. Honestly, I felt that the tone of the story verged on negative propaganda (not that I'm any huge fan of Russia, but...). However, it was written well enough for me to forgive its slant.
Sleepover
My favorite one in this collection so far. 'Sleepover' takes a familiar sci-fi theme and does something totally unexpected with it.
Our protagonist, formerly the billionaire CEO of a technology company, awakes from medical cryosleep expecting what he had asked for when he paid handsomely for the procedure: that he's hibernated until the secret of immortality - or at least, life extension - has been discovered. But the dingy room and disrespectful attendants don't seem like part of the bright, shiny and wealthy future he expected.
He's been revived for a reason, and, he realizes, as he discovers the gritty, decaying off-shore oil rig he's on, in rough Patagonian waters, it's not a glamorous reason. But, it could be meaningful...
Vainglory
An artist is unexpectedly approached by a private investigator, bringing up an incident which she had thought long past and forgotten - and really, unimportant to anyone except herself, as a bit of a romantic embarrassment. But there were unforeseen consequences to that commission she did for a wealthy and untrustworthy playboy. And now the investigator has a threat to make - or is it an offer?
Trauma Pod
Military Sci-fi horror! And it really is quite horrifying. Seriously injured on a devastated battlefield where the main combatants are massive robots, a soldier has been bundled into a medical pod for emergency treatment. Advanced telemedicine lets him know that while the damage is severe, help is on the way. But is the doctor keeping vital information from him?
I guarantee you're going to come away from this one with an unpleasant feeling about technology.
The Last Log of the Lachrymosa
Another really-quite-horrific sci-fi story. The narrative intercuts between a scene which seems to be a crewmember doing something quite awful and definitely mutinous to her former captain, and a past narrative in which we gradually find out why. Apparently, the small crew - two hired spacers, the captain, and his rather horrible pet monkey - are treasure-hunters, so when they find an old wreck in a remote corner of space, they investigate in hopes of finding a big score. But the body of the downed spacer is mysteriously missing, and the nearby volcano seems to be emanating bad vibes. What they find is definitely not going to make their fortunes...
The Water Thief
Wow. Great story. The themes and treatment remind me of Paolo Bacigalupi.
A woman in a refugee camp scrapes by, earning a living for her daughter and herself by working freelance jobs where she operates robots through VR.
A situation in her camp where an individual is 'apprehended' for stealing water rations is neatly paralleled by a dilemma she must face on one of her jobs, when, for the first time, she experiences through VR the lunar colony she's dreamed of as a symbol of success and escape.
A difficult and thought-provoking example of the intersection of - and conflicts between - compassion, justice, and ethics.
The Old Man and the Martian Sea
Even on Mars, teenagers go through the same angst, for the same reasons. Family conflict spurs one young teen, Yukimi, to run away from her home in a colony on the half-terraformed planet by stowing away on an unmanned cargo transport - which turns out to be a supremely bad idea. Luckily, she encounters a solitary, elderly worker at a remote delivery drop-off point. The encounter could shift the girl's perspective on several things she had taken for granted. Poignant and thoughtful.
In Babelsberg
Eh, this one was good, but probably my least favorite in the collection. I wouldn't have chosen it as the finale to the anthology. The narrative balances absurdity with sci-fi's traditional distrust of robots. Our main character is an AI in an android body, back from an exploration mission of the outer solar system. He's got celebrity status, and is booked to appear on a series of ridiculous popular talk shows. There's a newer, equivalent AI space probe who's recently been introduced, and the media is eager to play up an imagined rivalry... or, is it imagined?
I really can't explain why, but this collection was my first introduction to Alastair Reynolds' work. I'm impressed - this is good stuff! Many thanks to Subterranean and NetGalley for encouraging me to discover an author I really ought to have been reading long before this! As always, my opinions are solely my own.
May 31, 2021
Let the feast begin! ;)
And what a feast this was! I relished every word - great collection of stories!
Although half of them weren’t new to me, they are even better at a second reading for you find new nuances in the words AR masterfully lays. As for the new ones, some are real gems, some good, none that I can say I didn't like.
Great Wall of Mars and Weather – 2nd reading and for sure not the last. Read first in Galactic North - my thoughts on them here. 5/5
Beyond the Aquila Rift, Minla’s Flowers, Zima Blue – read them already in Zima Blue and Other Stories collection.
Minla’s Flowers is the 2nd in a 3 mini-series featuring Merlin, but has a standalone plot.
Beyond the Aquila Rift I could read over and over and over again and I will never get enough of it; it remains my favorite of all times.
Details on all here. 5/5
Fury - (new) could a lifetime of goods deeds erase one evil done a long time ago? Is it excusable if that evil deed was the foundation on which it was built all the good afterwards? To summarize, does the end justify the means? You’ll have to decide that. 4/5
The Star Surgeon’s Apprentice - (new) in his try to escape from some pursuers, young Peter Vandry accepts a job on a cyborg’ ship, which turns out to be not what he imagined. More on the horror side, quite gruesome but gripping nonetheless; Rev Space style. I would have liked the ending not to be so precipitate. 4/5
The Sledge-Maker’s Daughter - (new) in a post glacier era, a 16 years old girl receives the inheritance of her ancestors and also learns to stand up for herself. 3/5
Diamond Dogs – also read previously as part of Revelation Space universe, as one of the two stories originally published in this collection. 5/5
Thousandth Night – previously read as a standalone, sort of a prequel to House of Suns. 4/5
Troika – also read as a standalone, my first encounter with Al Reynolds works and the one which made me read further of him. 5/5
Sleepover - (new) a story about accepting your faith; Matrix’ style ;) 4/5
Vainglory - (new) interesting allegory for vanity. 3/5
Trauma Pod - (new) Rev Space style, loved it to pieces! 5/5
The Last Log of the Lachrimosa – found and read on Subterranean Press Magazine, part of Rev Space universe. My thoughts on it and link here. 5/5
LE 31.05.2021: looks like the page for The Last Log of the Lachrimosa was deleted from GR, so here are my thoughts, and link to read it online on Subterranean Press:
An Ultras’ ship, Lachrimosa, came across a wreckage on planet Holda and based on the log found on board, begin following the footsteps of last member of the lost crew, Teterev, in hope they’ll find some ‘treasures’. What they found instead, is another matter…
“But we continued.[…] and saw things we should not have seen. […] I doubt she wanted to go on, no. If she had a sane bone in her body by that point, she’d have felt the way the rest of us did. Terrified. Scared out of her fucking skull. Every nerve screaming turn around, go back, this is wrong.
Wrong, wrong, wrong.”
Dark, somber, a bit lovecraftian; the only fault of it is that it’s too short ;)
You can enjoy it here: https://subterraneanpress.com/magazin...
The Water Thief - (new) part of Poseidon’s Children universe, featuring Soya Akinya, Eunice’s mother. Same claustrophobic setup as in Blue Remembered Earth but so well outlined. 4/5
The Old Man and the Martian Sea - (new) touching story about a thirteen little girl who ran away from home and is saved by an old man. 5/5
In Babelsberg - (new) quite satirical this one and came as a surprise to found here a character from At Budokan. 3/5
Story Notes – some thoughts and explanations from AR on how his stories came to life.
Should I say once again that I highly recommend Alastair Reynolds? Nope, but I will say it nonetheless :)
And what a feast this was! I relished every word - great collection of stories!
Although half of them weren’t new to me, they are even better at a second reading for you find new nuances in the words AR masterfully lays. As for the new ones, some are real gems, some good, none that I can say I didn't like.
Great Wall of Mars and Weather – 2nd reading and for sure not the last. Read first in Galactic North - my thoughts on them here. 5/5
Beyond the Aquila Rift, Minla’s Flowers, Zima Blue – read them already in Zima Blue and Other Stories collection.
Minla’s Flowers is the 2nd in a 3 mini-series featuring Merlin, but has a standalone plot.
Beyond the Aquila Rift I could read over and over and over again and I will never get enough of it; it remains my favorite of all times.
Details on all here. 5/5
Fury - (new) could a lifetime of goods deeds erase one evil done a long time ago? Is it excusable if that evil deed was the foundation on which it was built all the good afterwards? To summarize, does the end justify the means? You’ll have to decide that. 4/5
The Star Surgeon’s Apprentice - (new) in his try to escape from some pursuers, young Peter Vandry accepts a job on a cyborg’ ship, which turns out to be not what he imagined. More on the horror side, quite gruesome but gripping nonetheless; Rev Space style. I would have liked the ending not to be so precipitate. 4/5
The Sledge-Maker’s Daughter - (new) in a post glacier era, a 16 years old girl receives the inheritance of her ancestors and also learns to stand up for herself. 3/5
Diamond Dogs – also read previously as part of Revelation Space universe, as one of the two stories originally published in this collection. 5/5
Thousandth Night – previously read as a standalone, sort of a prequel to House of Suns. 4/5
Troika – also read as a standalone, my first encounter with Al Reynolds works and the one which made me read further of him. 5/5
Sleepover - (new) a story about accepting your faith; Matrix’ style ;) 4/5
Vainglory - (new) interesting allegory for vanity. 3/5
Trauma Pod - (new) Rev Space style, loved it to pieces! 5/5
The Last Log of the Lachrimosa – found and read on Subterranean Press Magazine, part of Rev Space universe. My thoughts on it and link here. 5/5
LE 31.05.2021: looks like the page for The Last Log of the Lachrimosa was deleted from GR, so here are my thoughts, and link to read it online on Subterranean Press:
An Ultras’ ship, Lachrimosa, came across a wreckage on planet Holda and based on the log found on board, begin following the footsteps of last member of the lost crew, Teterev, in hope they’ll find some ‘treasures’. What they found instead, is another matter…
“But we continued.[…] and saw things we should not have seen. […] I doubt she wanted to go on, no. If she had a sane bone in her body by that point, she’d have felt the way the rest of us did. Terrified. Scared out of her fucking skull. Every nerve screaming turn around, go back, this is wrong.
Wrong, wrong, wrong.”
Dark, somber, a bit lovecraftian; the only fault of it is that it’s too short ;)
You can enjoy it here: https://subterraneanpress.com/magazin...
The Water Thief - (new) part of Poseidon’s Children universe, featuring Soya Akinya, Eunice’s mother. Same claustrophobic setup as in Blue Remembered Earth but so well outlined. 4/5
The Old Man and the Martian Sea - (new) touching story about a thirteen little girl who ran away from home and is saved by an old man. 5/5
In Babelsberg - (new) quite satirical this one and came as a surprise to found here a character from At Budokan. 3/5
Story Notes – some thoughts and explanations from AR on how his stories came to life.
Should I say once again that I highly recommend Alastair Reynolds? Nope, but I will say it nonetheless :)
October 26, 2018
Representing another excellent work by this very gifted author, this book contains a brilliant collection of short stories, all of them highlighting Reynold's great imaginative powers and his first-class world-building narrative capabilities.
I loved almost every story of the collection, and some of them (like "Diamond Dogs" - a much more intriguing, complex and riveting version of the famous sci-fi-horror "The Cube"), will stay with me for a long time.
Alastair Reynold is rapidly becoming my most favourite science-fiction author, and I have come to regard him as a brilliant mixture of Asimov and Ray Bradbury, my two favourites authors.
Absolutely terrific, visionary, imaginative, well-written and epic in its scope and breadth. 5 stars.
I loved almost every story of the collection, and some of them (like "Diamond Dogs" - a much more intriguing, complex and riveting version of the famous sci-fi-horror "The Cube"), will stay with me for a long time.
Alastair Reynold is rapidly becoming my most favourite science-fiction author, and I have come to regard him as a brilliant mixture of Asimov and Ray Bradbury, my two favourites authors.
Absolutely terrific, visionary, imaginative, well-written and epic in its scope and breadth. 5 stars.
March 31, 2016
I remember Galactic North fondly, but I must be honest here. This collection, while it picks up two stories from the previous collection, namely Great Wall of Mars and Weather, everything else is new to me. Alastair Reynolds is easily one of the best SF authors writing today. He's not sneaky about it, either. This isn't any kind of artsy-fartsy writing. This is Space-Opera filled with so much imagination and planning and detail and truly wide vistas of thought, time, and space, that I'm surprised I don't hear fanboys and fangirls screaming his name from the rooftops.
Well, maybe they do. I've usually got my earbuds in my ears so I find it hard to hear them. :)
Let me tell you: These stories of his are SO COOL. I mean, like glittering jewels of complete mind-blowing and written with real talent and clear vision, dense and perfect world-building and a plethora of seriously interesting characters.
I'll try not to spoil anything, and I'll skip a few directed reviews for some of the stories, but there were a few that you should really pay close attention to. (And I doubt you'll have any problems doing so, because they're also fun as hell.) Most of them are placed outside of his Revelation Space universe, but there are a handful that is firmly ensconced. Diamond Dogs is a who's who of places and peoples and a really sharp cut. :)
But mostly, I'll focus on the pure creations:
The story that bears the name of the novel. Beyond the Aquila Rift. It's a mindfuq. Clever and interesting space mechanics and a really cool surprise. No more spoilers. :)
Minla's Flowers was an awesome telling/retelling of Merlin and a bootstrap raising of a civilization... Also with a twist.
Zima Blue is was probably my favorite story out of the entire collection. And yes, it had a twist.
Fury could have been the start of one of my most loved novels ever, but no, it was just a novella, and very much a homage to Asimov. :)
The Star Surgeon's Apprentice was scary and delightful at the same time, and dare I say horrific? Oh yes. A dear story.
Skipping a few stories, I get to Troika, and don't miss out with a little listening time to the original music as you read this beauty. There's a bit of reality modification, but mostly it's very Russian. :)
Sleepover really grew on me by the end until I was completely giddy with the implications and the imagery.
Trauma Pod was an absolutely delicious body-mod Punk-AI horrorshow and I just had to laugh.
Las Log of the Lachrimosa will be fun along with Diamond Dogs for those of you still devoted to the Revelation Space books. I know I enjoyed them.
The Old Man and the Martian Sea was a fine capstone to the stories and I think it might have been better moved below Babelsberg, but I still liked them both. :)
In some ways, this short story collection is better than at least 3 or 4 of his full length novels. That's pretty impressive since he writes truly mean novels. :)
Thanks goes to Netgalley for this wonderful opportunity to read one of the greats of SF!
Well, maybe they do. I've usually got my earbuds in my ears so I find it hard to hear them. :)
Let me tell you: These stories of his are SO COOL. I mean, like glittering jewels of complete mind-blowing and written with real talent and clear vision, dense and perfect world-building and a plethora of seriously interesting characters.
I'll try not to spoil anything, and I'll skip a few directed reviews for some of the stories, but there were a few that you should really pay close attention to. (And I doubt you'll have any problems doing so, because they're also fun as hell.) Most of them are placed outside of his Revelation Space universe, but there are a handful that is firmly ensconced. Diamond Dogs is a who's who of places and peoples and a really sharp cut. :)
But mostly, I'll focus on the pure creations:
The story that bears the name of the novel. Beyond the Aquila Rift. It's a mindfuq. Clever and interesting space mechanics and a really cool surprise. No more spoilers. :)
Minla's Flowers was an awesome telling/retelling of Merlin and a bootstrap raising of a civilization... Also with a twist.
Zima Blue is was probably my favorite story out of the entire collection. And yes, it had a twist.
Fury could have been the start of one of my most loved novels ever, but no, it was just a novella, and very much a homage to Asimov. :)
The Star Surgeon's Apprentice was scary and delightful at the same time, and dare I say horrific? Oh yes. A dear story.
Skipping a few stories, I get to Troika, and don't miss out with a little listening time to the original music as you read this beauty. There's a bit of reality modification, but mostly it's very Russian. :)
Sleepover really grew on me by the end until I was completely giddy with the implications and the imagery.
Trauma Pod was an absolutely delicious body-mod Punk-AI horrorshow and I just had to laugh.
Las Log of the Lachrimosa will be fun along with Diamond Dogs for those of you still devoted to the Revelation Space books. I know I enjoyed them.
The Old Man and the Martian Sea was a fine capstone to the stories and I think it might have been better moved below Babelsberg, but I still liked them both. :)
In some ways, this short story collection is better than at least 3 or 4 of his full length novels. That's pretty impressive since he writes truly mean novels. :)
Thanks goes to Netgalley for this wonderful opportunity to read one of the greats of SF!
February 22, 2024
This sure was my cup of tea and then some! A collection of decidedly enjoyable hard SF novellas and short stories, written by one of the masters of the genre, which I would recommend to anyone interested.
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Questa era sicuramente la mia tazza di caffè e anche di più! Una raccolta di romanzi brevi e racconti di fantascienza “hard” decisamente godibili, scritti da uno dei maestri del genere, che consiglierei a chiunque sia interessato.
-------
Questa era sicuramente la mia tazza di caffè e anche di più! Una raccolta di romanzi brevi e racconti di fantascienza “hard” decisamente godibili, scritti da uno dei maestri del genere, che consiglierei a chiunque sia interessato.
April 22, 2023
Wow wow wow...what an incredible ride through one of the very best collections of SF short stories and novelettes I've ever read. Packed with wonder, mind bending ideas, and intriguing mystery. Highly recommended!
GREAT WALL OF MARS: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
WEATHER: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
BEYOND THE AQUILA RIFT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
MINLA'S FLOWERS: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
ZIMA BLUE: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
FURY: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
THE STAR SURGEON'S APPRENTICE: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
THE SLEDGE-MAKER'S DAUGHTER: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
DIAMOND DOGS: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
THOUSANDTH NIGHT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
TROIKA: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
SLEEPOVER: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
VAINGLORY: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
TRAUMA POD: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
THE LAST LOG OF THE LACHRIMOSA: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
THE WATER THIEF: ⭐⭐ ⭐
THE OLD MAN AND THE MARTIAN SEA: ⭐⭐⭐
IN BABELSBERG: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
GREAT WALL OF MARS: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
WEATHER: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
BEYOND THE AQUILA RIFT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
MINLA'S FLOWERS: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
ZIMA BLUE: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
FURY: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
THE STAR SURGEON'S APPRENTICE: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
THE SLEDGE-MAKER'S DAUGHTER: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
DIAMOND DOGS: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
THOUSANDTH NIGHT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
TROIKA: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
SLEEPOVER: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
VAINGLORY: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
TRAUMA POD: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
THE LAST LOG OF THE LACHRIMOSA: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
THE WATER THIEF: ⭐⭐ ⭐
THE OLD MAN AND THE MARTIAN SEA: ⭐⭐⭐
IN BABELSBERG: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
December 9, 2016
Fleeing a bad situation on a rough-and-tumble spaceport, a young man takes the first and only option available to him - a job as a doctor's assistant on a ship he knows nothing about except that it's leaving immediately. The surgeon - well, let's just say he's no Dr. McCoy, and soon enough our 'hero' realizes that he may have jumped out of a frying fan into a fire.
Classic sci-fi - and excellently done.
Classic sci-fi - and excellently done.
October 8, 2016
4'5/5.
An essential anthology of the best short fiction of one of the best space-opera writers.
English review: http://dreamsofelvex.blogspot.com/201...
Reseña en español: http://dreamsofelvex.blogspot.com/201...
An essential anthology of the best short fiction of one of the best space-opera writers.
English review: http://dreamsofelvex.blogspot.com/201...
Reseña en español: http://dreamsofelvex.blogspot.com/201...
October 13, 2019
big questions and existential dread creeping through the elegantly described universes <3
May 16, 2018
In an article I read recently, the author opined that would-be novelists shouldn't consider writing short stories as training for the craft of novel-writing, as the discipline is totally different. This is certainly true for most short stories - but, strangely, this collection by Alastair Reynolds (almost all on the long side as short stories go) is the exception that proves the rule. The majority of these pieces are, in effect, the seeds of novels.
Usually a short story will be a compact, self-sustained morsel of reading - a tiny delight, often with a twist in the tail. These chunky pieces feel as if they could so easily be continued to fill out a full novel. It's not that they don't work standalone. This book isn't like reading a collection of opening chapter samples (thank goodness). The stories are satisfying as they stand - but cry out to be expanded. They're rather like the pilot episodes for TV shows.
I don't think this is a bad thing at all - there is some scintillating fiction here. But it did get a trifle overwhelming as the reader works through the 784 pages of this massive collection. I think I'd have preferred it had there been just a few of these pilot stories, and more snappy little true short stories. (There are a couple, but not many.) Real short stories may be limited in opportunity for character and world building, but they are miniature masterpieces when written well, and a lighter read than this collection proved to be.
Don't get me wrong. It's a great collection - it's just almost too much for one book, and when you're expecting the chocolate box delights of a short story collection, getting a meaty banquet can be overwhelming. Even so, there are at least half a dozen absolutely superb stories here and only one or two that don't quite make the grade. It's a remarkable collection.
Usually a short story will be a compact, self-sustained morsel of reading - a tiny delight, often with a twist in the tail. These chunky pieces feel as if they could so easily be continued to fill out a full novel. It's not that they don't work standalone. This book isn't like reading a collection of opening chapter samples (thank goodness). The stories are satisfying as they stand - but cry out to be expanded. They're rather like the pilot episodes for TV shows.
I don't think this is a bad thing at all - there is some scintillating fiction here. But it did get a trifle overwhelming as the reader works through the 784 pages of this massive collection. I think I'd have preferred it had there been just a few of these pilot stories, and more snappy little true short stories. (There are a couple, but not many.) Real short stories may be limited in opportunity for character and world building, but they are miniature masterpieces when written well, and a lighter read than this collection proved to be.
Don't get me wrong. It's a great collection - it's just almost too much for one book, and when you're expecting the chocolate box delights of a short story collection, getting a meaty banquet can be overwhelming. Even so, there are at least half a dozen absolutely superb stories here and only one or two that don't quite make the grade. It's a remarkable collection.
December 8, 2016
I bought this because I knew it contained at least one novella I hadn't read that wasn't easily obtainable elsewhere. I now wish I had waited for the UK edition which has a much better cover. I also wish that the editors had done a better job - by which I mean who-ever was responsible for ensuring a high quality, accurate text. This edition contains a large number of mistakes involving wrong word order, missing words or incorrect homophones. I don't know if the UK edition is any better in this respect.
There's some great stuff in this collection but as with any other short story collection, there's some variation in quality. On this front what concerned me was a trend towards poorer efforts as the book goes on. Since they are in publication order, does this mean Reynolds is getting worse?
That said, this is still a great introduction to Reynolds for those unfamiliar with him and is worth the price for Diamond Dogs alone.
There's some great stuff in this collection but as with any other short story collection, there's some variation in quality. On this front what concerned me was a trend towards poorer efforts as the book goes on. Since they are in publication order, does this mean Reynolds is getting worse?
That said, this is still a great introduction to Reynolds for those unfamiliar with him and is worth the price for Diamond Dogs alone.
sampled-fiction-anthologies
November 19, 2021By this point, everybody has probably either watched or at least heard of the Netflix animated anthology series Love, Death & Robots, but did you know that two of the best-received episodes in the first season are based on stories found in this anthology of Alastair Reynolds' best short fiction? I myself didn't know until recently, so now I'm on a mission to spread the word. (In fact, a lot of the episodes are based on stories by pretty well-known authors, such as Ken Liu and John Scalzi. The second series also features one episode based on a Harlan Ellison story, and another based on a Ballard story. Yet strangely, I don't hear that mentioned often when people discuss the series. Go figure.) The episodes I'm talking about are Beyond the Aquila Rift and Zima Blue, and they are of course the first stories I read when I got my hands on this collection. Chilling and inspiring and absolutely recommended.
January 23, 2020
I’ve had mixed success reading Reynolds. At his best, he’s great. For me, mostly at shorter lengths. Most of my favorites are collected here. Reynolds, a former professional astrophysicist, specializes in hard science fiction. Note that this is a *massive* collection. I’d read about half of the stories before, and most of those stood up well to rereading. Recommended, especially for Reynolds fans. My overall rating: 3.5 stars, rounded up.
Highlights:
• Thousandth Night (2005).This long novella is my favorite of his shorter works. In the very far future, humans have near-godlike powers, but some things never change. The technology on display is breath-taking. An easy 5 stars on my second read.
• Beyond the Aquila Rift (2005), novelette. On a long starship journey gone wrong, the story features . A masterful piece. 4+ stars
• Minla's Flowers (2007), novella. A lost civilization faces a deadly threat. Fine story, sad details, bittersweet ending. 4 stars.
Good short review at Publisher’s Weekly (starred): https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-...
TOC: http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pl.cgi?5...
• Great Wall of Mars • [Revelation Space] • (2000) • novella. Not reread.
• Weather • [Revelation Space] • (2006) • novella. A Conjoiner girl is found hiding in the wreckage of a pirate ship. 3 stars.
• Beyond the Aquila Rift • (2005) • novelette. Things are not what they seem, on a long starship journey gone wrong. 4+ stars
• Minla's Flowers • (2007) • novella. A lost planet faces a deadly threat. Fine story, bittersweet ending. 4 stars.
• Zima Blue • (2005) • short story. A famous artist is *very* fond of his eponymous color. Eh, 2.7 stars.
• Fury • (2008) • novelette. A very odd Galactic Emperor story. Works well, 3.8 stars.
• The Star Surgeon's Apprentice • (2008) • novelette. Gritty Pirates in Space story. OK+, 3.3 stars.
• The Sledge-Maker's Daughter • (2007) • short story. Not reread.
• Diamond Dogs • [Revelation Space] • (2001) • novella. A “Rogue Moon” tribute. Partial reread, eh.
• Thousandth Night • [House of Suns] • (2005) • novella. Far-future short novel, breath-taking in its setting and execution. Easily my favorite here. Reread, 5 stars!
• Troika • (2010) • novella. Cosmonauts from a near-future Second Soviet visit a mysterious alien spacecraft that appeared in our solar system. Weak 3 stars.
• Sleepover • (2010) • novelette. Militarized-math AIs in a bleak near future. Imaginative setup, plus sea-monsters! Reread, 3.5 stars.
• Vainglory • (2012) • short story. A future sculptor takes on a massive commission: carve an asteroid into a likelness of Michelangelo’s Head of David. Unexpected consequences. 3+ stars.
• Trauma Pod • (2012) • short story. Very dark story, of field surgery gone wrong in a future war. 3.5 stars.
• The Last Log of the Lachrimosa (2014) • novelette. https://subterraneanpress.com/magazin... A horror story of hapless treasure-hunters in a cave, on a marginally-habitable exoplanet. Skimmed, not for me. 2 stars.
• The Water Thief • (2012) • short story. A woman in a refugee camp barely earns a living working freelance jobs where she operates robots through VR. She gets a rescue job, and into trouble, on the Moon. Very good story, 3.5 stars.
• The Old Man and the Martian Sea • (2011) • novelette. A young girl runs away from home on a future Mars. She meets a kind old man in a near-derelict terraforming machine. Nice, 3.8 stars.
• In Babelsberg • (2014) • short story. An odd story about the avatars of two space probes meeting on a future talk-show circuit. Reread, 2.7 stars.
The best aide-memoire review here is Althea Ann’s, https://www.goodreads.com/review/show.... Thanks, AA!
The best to capture the flavor of the collection is Manuel Antão’s, https://manuelaantao.blogspot.com/201...
Highlights:
• Thousandth Night (2005).This long novella is my favorite of his shorter works. In the very far future, humans have near-godlike powers, but some things never change. The technology on display is breath-taking. An easy 5 stars on my second read.
• Beyond the Aquila Rift (2005), novelette. On a long starship journey gone wrong, the story features . A masterful piece. 4+ stars
• Minla's Flowers (2007), novella. A lost civilization faces a deadly threat. Fine story, sad details, bittersweet ending. 4 stars.
Good short review at Publisher’s Weekly (starred): https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-...
TOC: http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pl.cgi?5...
• Great Wall of Mars • [Revelation Space] • (2000) • novella. Not reread.
• Weather • [Revelation Space] • (2006) • novella. A Conjoiner girl is found hiding in the wreckage of a pirate ship. 3 stars.
• Beyond the Aquila Rift • (2005) • novelette. Things are not what they seem, on a long starship journey gone wrong. 4+ stars
• Minla's Flowers • (2007) • novella. A lost planet faces a deadly threat. Fine story, bittersweet ending. 4 stars.
• Zima Blue • (2005) • short story. A famous artist is *very* fond of his eponymous color. Eh, 2.7 stars.
• Fury • (2008) • novelette. A very odd Galactic Emperor story. Works well, 3.8 stars.
• The Star Surgeon's Apprentice • (2008) • novelette. Gritty Pirates in Space story. OK+, 3.3 stars.
• The Sledge-Maker's Daughter • (2007) • short story. Not reread.
• Diamond Dogs • [Revelation Space] • (2001) • novella. A “Rogue Moon” tribute. Partial reread, eh.
• Thousandth Night • [House of Suns] • (2005) • novella. Far-future short novel, breath-taking in its setting and execution. Easily my favorite here. Reread, 5 stars!
• Troika • (2010) • novella. Cosmonauts from a near-future Second Soviet visit a mysterious alien spacecraft that appeared in our solar system. Weak 3 stars.
• Sleepover • (2010) • novelette. Militarized-math AIs in a bleak near future. Imaginative setup, plus sea-monsters! Reread, 3.5 stars.
• Vainglory • (2012) • short story. A future sculptor takes on a massive commission: carve an asteroid into a likelness of Michelangelo’s Head of David. Unexpected consequences. 3+ stars.
• Trauma Pod • (2012) • short story. Very dark story, of field surgery gone wrong in a future war. 3.5 stars.
• The Last Log of the Lachrimosa (2014) • novelette. https://subterraneanpress.com/magazin... A horror story of hapless treasure-hunters in a cave, on a marginally-habitable exoplanet. Skimmed, not for me. 2 stars.
• The Water Thief • (2012) • short story. A woman in a refugee camp barely earns a living working freelance jobs where she operates robots through VR. She gets a rescue job, and into trouble, on the Moon. Very good story, 3.5 stars.
• The Old Man and the Martian Sea • (2011) • novelette. A young girl runs away from home on a future Mars. She meets a kind old man in a near-derelict terraforming machine. Nice, 3.8 stars.
• In Babelsberg • (2014) • short story. An odd story about the avatars of two space probes meeting on a future talk-show circuit. Reread, 2.7 stars.
The best aide-memoire review here is Althea Ann’s, https://www.goodreads.com/review/show.... Thanks, AA!
The best to capture the flavor of the collection is Manuel Antão’s, https://manuelaantao.blogspot.com/201...
Want to read
April 21, 2020No spoilers follow. I'll occasionally update as I read through this collection. Due to the complexity of core story concepts I'll likely not include synopses, rather my general impressions.
Overall book rating to follow once finished.
**** The Great Wall of Mars
Impressive world-building is on display here. The manner in which Reynolds is able to drop volumes of backstory into so few pages is skillful indeed, but not nearly so masterful as his ability to make complex concepts simple to grasp without diminishing their grandeur. A fine story with a peculiar arc, exciting in its strangeness. A film adaptation would be a sight to behold.
*** Weather
Another masterful demonstration of word-building and storytelling prowess, this story more conventional than the last but still delivers the goods. The structure of the story is traditional but the arc is not; I'd venture to say it's more about the journey than the destination. The author appears to strive to breathe vitality into the characters, but only partially succeeded in making this reader emotionally invested.
***** Beyond the Aquila Rift
A masterpiece of literature, science fiction and horror. Perhaps the most singularly perfect short story I've read as an adult, in competition with with "Tight Little Stitches on a Dead Man's Back" by Joe Lansdale (which is somehow a similar and different creature simultaneously).
This story was adapted with beautiful animation for the Netflix series Love, Death & Robots, but if possible do yourself a favor and read this breathtaking story first.
Overall book rating to follow once finished.
**** The Great Wall of Mars
Impressive world-building is on display here. The manner in which Reynolds is able to drop volumes of backstory into so few pages is skillful indeed, but not nearly so masterful as his ability to make complex concepts simple to grasp without diminishing their grandeur. A fine story with a peculiar arc, exciting in its strangeness. A film adaptation would be a sight to behold.
*** Weather
Another masterful demonstration of word-building and storytelling prowess, this story more conventional than the last but still delivers the goods. The structure of the story is traditional but the arc is not; I'd venture to say it's more about the journey than the destination. The author appears to strive to breathe vitality into the characters, but only partially succeeded in making this reader emotionally invested.
***** Beyond the Aquila Rift
A masterpiece of literature, science fiction and horror. Perhaps the most singularly perfect short story I've read as an adult, in competition with with "Tight Little Stitches on a Dead Man's Back" by Joe Lansdale (which is somehow a similar and different creature simultaneously).
This story was adapted with beautiful animation for the Netflix series Love, Death & Robots, but if possible do yourself a favor and read this breathtaking story first.
July 31, 2019
The recently featured Netflix show - Love, Death, and Robots was the main reason why I came looking to read this weighty tome. And let me tell you, the old adage - the book is usually better, holds true here!
Containing some 18 short stories written by Reynolds, of wide-varying lengths, he achieves with his stories something sublime in science fiction writing. There are some truly inspiring ideas and fantastic tales to be read here. I can truly attest that Reynolds is a true genius in the short story form and perhaps can even be regarded as the modern day Asimov for this.
My favorites: Beyond the Aquila Rift, Minla's Flowers, Great Wall of Mars, Diamond Dogs, Weather, The Old Man & the Martian Sea
One last thing, the Netflix show corrupts the story of "Beyond the Aquila Rift" quite a bit and the story is much better!
My Rating - 5/5
Containing some 18 short stories written by Reynolds, of wide-varying lengths, he achieves with his stories something sublime in science fiction writing. There are some truly inspiring ideas and fantastic tales to be read here. I can truly attest that Reynolds is a true genius in the short story form and perhaps can even be regarded as the modern day Asimov for this.
My favorites: Beyond the Aquila Rift, Minla's Flowers, Great Wall of Mars, Diamond Dogs, Weather, The Old Man & the Martian Sea
One last thing, the Netflix show corrupts the story of "Beyond the Aquila Rift" quite a bit and the story is much better!
My Rating - 5/5
May 30, 2025
Not every one of the 18 (!) short stories in here was a 5-star piece, but many were, and the experience of crushing so many short stories by one of my favourite authors was certainly 5 stars.
I skipped Diamond Dogs as I'd read that in "Diamond Dogs, Turquoise Days".
I skipped Diamond Dogs as I'd read that in "Diamond Dogs, Turquoise Days".
September 3, 2016
Wow! With this collection of stories (it does them a disservice to call them 'short', as they're mostly novellettes and novella's) Reynolds has ascended to the very top of my list of currently active Sf-authors. Hannu Ranajiemi is more mindblowing, but can be a bit obscure with all the techno babble, John C. Wright is entertaining with huge concepts, but can fall back on archetypes a bit, and Stephen Baxter is hard as hard SF can get, with a solid grasp on science and deep time, but also with the cold and ultimately anti-human vision that materialist science ultimately leads to. His characters never really coalesce for me. I had read some Reynolds novels (Blue remembered earth and sequels) and found them well written, with great characters and idea's, but still keeping me at arms length so to speak. But his book with the aforementioned Stephen Baxter was a gem, and the humanist touch added to Baxters scientific precision lifted it to another level. And in this collection Reynolds strenghts to me really come through. This is at the same time oldfashioned SF (lots of faster than light travel, robots, and aliens), but with a modern attitude. Reynolds writes sympathetic characters, which makes his taste for a bit of (implied) body horror all the more powerful. There's some scenes here that will be hard to scrub from my mental eyeballs, especially in 'Diamond dogs' (with a very powerful ending, I must say). There's deep time in here too, and terraforming, and space surgeons, all featuring in strong stories, with a strong build up to their climaxes, that never lose sight of the human and the personal. These are stories the way I like them (and like to write them, though not nearly as well as Reynolds). I admire his vision, and can only hope to emulate him in the works I write. Very heartily recommended. And also recommended if you haven't read that much SF, and have an interest in the genre. I think these stories will be relatively accessible for newcomers to the genre (as they contain lots of tropes from the genre), and will at the same time show what this genre is possible of, opening up whole reaches of human experience. It's a pretty big collection (more than 700 pages!) but worth every minute reading it. I for one am sad it's over. Time to start reading more Reynolds!
May 25, 2016
This is an exciting collection of stories from Alastair Reynolds, one of the masters of hard science fiction. Probably 4.5 stars in toto, but several of the stories are 5 star experiences and none of the stories are bad, so let's round up. :)
First, let me say that I received an advance copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. (I'll also note that my electronic copy was not formatted properly so neither on my Kindle or on the Kindle App was I able to click on story titles and go to them in the corpus. For some stories, there was no apparent heading so they simply bled together. That probably increased the time it took me to read the collection, and I'm actually not completely sure I read every story because I skipped around in the reading order. To me that is one of the features of a story collection, it's a "choose-your-own-adventure" kind of book.)
Short story collections can often be hit or miss, but the fact that this is titled "The Best Of Alastair Reynolds" should give you an anticipatory thrill for what you will experience if you delve into this volume.
Some of my favorites stories here are:
Minla's Flowers
The Sledge-maker's Daughter
The Star Surgeon's Apprentice
Beyond the Aquila Rift
Fury
There are some very well-known classic stories like "Great Wall of Mars" (which is set in Reynolds' Revelation Space universe). Another great story was "Troika," his Nebula-nominated novella. These two are worth the price of admission alone! But, wait, there's more...
Some people who are fans of his novel "House of Suns" (I thought it was just okay) will enjoy seeing and reading the story's"Thousandth Night" which is set in the same universe. I think I liked the story better than I liked the book based on the premise.
A lot of these stories are really quite long, but almost all of them leave you wanting more. Several of them have scenes and settings which will haunt you for a LONG time after you have read them. And can you really ask for anything else from a short story collection than that?
First, let me say that I received an advance copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. (I'll also note that my electronic copy was not formatted properly so neither on my Kindle or on the Kindle App was I able to click on story titles and go to them in the corpus. For some stories, there was no apparent heading so they simply bled together. That probably increased the time it took me to read the collection, and I'm actually not completely sure I read every story because I skipped around in the reading order. To me that is one of the features of a story collection, it's a "choose-your-own-adventure" kind of book.)
Short story collections can often be hit or miss, but the fact that this is titled "The Best Of Alastair Reynolds" should give you an anticipatory thrill for what you will experience if you delve into this volume.
Some of my favorites stories here are:
Minla's Flowers
The Sledge-maker's Daughter
The Star Surgeon's Apprentice
Beyond the Aquila Rift
Fury
There are some very well-known classic stories like "Great Wall of Mars" (which is set in Reynolds' Revelation Space universe). Another great story was "Troika," his Nebula-nominated novella. These two are worth the price of admission alone! But, wait, there's more...
Some people who are fans of his novel "House of Suns" (I thought it was just okay) will enjoy seeing and reading the story's"Thousandth Night" which is set in the same universe. I think I liked the story better than I liked the book based on the premise.
A lot of these stories are really quite long, but almost all of them leave you wanting more. Several of them have scenes and settings which will haunt you for a LONG time after you have read them. And can you really ask for anything else from a short story collection than that?
September 13, 2016
Beyond The Aquila Rift: The Best of Alastair Reynolds es el larguísimo título de esta antología que reúne lo mejor del autor británico. Mi única experiencia con Reynolds hasta ahora ha sido la novela House of Suns, una fantástica muestra de esa nueva space opera que me ha hecho volver con muchas ganas a la ciencia ficción. A pesar de mi desconocimiento generalizado de la obra del autor (especialmente su saga Espacio Revelación) y mi escasa experiencia con las antologías (de las que siempre termino huyendo) las recomendaciones de Leticia Lara (experta residente en Reynolds y que compartió conmigo la lectura [podéis leer su reseña, que incluye una estupenda infografía, aquí]) me animé a darle un tiento.
Resumen: tras leer esta antología, he decidido que deberían haberla llamado simplemente The Very Best y dejarse de zarandajas.
Sigue en...
http://sentidodelamaravilla.blogspot....
Resumen: tras leer esta antología, he decidido que deberían haberla llamado simplemente The Very Best y dejarse de zarandajas.
Sigue en...
http://sentidodelamaravilla.blogspot....
November 18, 2022
Alastair Reynolds is my favorite author, and I have praised his work many times in the past. So it may come as no surprise that I loved Beyond the Aquila Rift: The Best of Alastair Reynolds. This book is a collection of short stories and novellas published by Reynolds throughout his career. It contains stories set in his famous Revelation Space series, a sort of prequel to his novel House of Suns, a story set in his Merlin’s Gun series, and many other standalone tales. All of the stories in this collection are excellent top-notch science fiction.
The highlights of the collection are the stories Zima Blue, Minla’s Flowers, Beyond the Aquila Rift, Diamond Dogs, and The Old Man in the Martian Sea. That’s not to say the rest of the stories not mentioned here are not excellent as well, these are simply the stories I liked best.
Zima Blue and Beyond the Aquila Rift may be familiar to viewers of Netflix’s recent anthology series Love, Death, and Robots. Zima Blue, in particular, is a fantastic story about an artist in the far future who has come to be famous throughout the galaxy. He has one more story to tell as he presents his next work of art. In Beyond the Aquila Rift we see what happens when space travel goes beyond the known limits at the edge of the Aquila Rift.
Minla’s Flowers is the story of Merlin, who, on his way to find the ultimate weapon, makes a stop at an isolated planet that has yet to develop space travel. Merlin decides to help the inhabitants of the planet due to a galactic catastrophe headed their way. The planet has decades to prepare and Merlin shows them how to build technology far beyond their development. During this time he hibernates on his spaceship while the society progresses. His assistance comes with disastrous consequences for some on the planet. This story reminded me of Star Trek’s Prime Directive.
Diamond Dogs is perhaps my favorite novella of any I have read, and is set in the Revelation Space universe. It is a horrifying tale of a group of thrill seekers determined to solve the puzzle of an alien artifact. The Blood Spire presents a series of puzzles to those who venture inside. Each puzzle solved unlocks a door into the next chamber, with another puzzle and another door to unlock. The catch is that the Blood Spire punishes wrong answers to the puzzles. How far will a group of seekers go to solve the mystery of the Blood Spire? Quite far, it seems.
I’d encourage any reader who has never read Alastair Reynolds to try out the stories in this collection. It is a great overview of who Reynolds is as a writer, and offers some truly spectacular stories.
The highlights of the collection are the stories Zima Blue, Minla’s Flowers, Beyond the Aquila Rift, Diamond Dogs, and The Old Man in the Martian Sea. That’s not to say the rest of the stories not mentioned here are not excellent as well, these are simply the stories I liked best.
Zima Blue and Beyond the Aquila Rift may be familiar to viewers of Netflix’s recent anthology series Love, Death, and Robots. Zima Blue, in particular, is a fantastic story about an artist in the far future who has come to be famous throughout the galaxy. He has one more story to tell as he presents his next work of art. In Beyond the Aquila Rift we see what happens when space travel goes beyond the known limits at the edge of the Aquila Rift.
Minla’s Flowers is the story of Merlin, who, on his way to find the ultimate weapon, makes a stop at an isolated planet that has yet to develop space travel. Merlin decides to help the inhabitants of the planet due to a galactic catastrophe headed their way. The planet has decades to prepare and Merlin shows them how to build technology far beyond their development. During this time he hibernates on his spaceship while the society progresses. His assistance comes with disastrous consequences for some on the planet. This story reminded me of Star Trek’s Prime Directive.
Diamond Dogs is perhaps my favorite novella of any I have read, and is set in the Revelation Space universe. It is a horrifying tale of a group of thrill seekers determined to solve the puzzle of an alien artifact. The Blood Spire presents a series of puzzles to those who venture inside. Each puzzle solved unlocks a door into the next chamber, with another puzzle and another door to unlock. The catch is that the Blood Spire punishes wrong answers to the puzzles. How far will a group of seekers go to solve the mystery of the Blood Spire? Quite far, it seems.
I’d encourage any reader who has never read Alastair Reynolds to try out the stories in this collection. It is a great overview of who Reynolds is as a writer, and offers some truly spectacular stories.
May 30, 2016
I absolutely adore the Revelation Space series. It's one of my all-time favorites (not just in science fiction, but any genre). Oddly enough, I've only read one other Reynolds book--Slow Bullets--which I also loved. So why haven't I read more from him? It's truly a mystery. I'm hoping to get through his entire bibliography one day, and this is really a great place to start. It covers quite a few of his universes and series with tons of stand-alone content as well, and is just brimming with insanely original ideas and concepts. I don't know how he comes up with so many truly astounding ideas but they're on full display here!
Great Wall of Mars & Weather: these were re-reads for me, as both were included in Galactic North. Both are set in the Revelation Space world and in fact are some of the first stories chronologically, so it's a perfect place to start if you're new to the world. Or to re-read and get really nostalgic about.
Beyond the Aquila Rift: the title story which deals with the grim realities of space travel that goes a little too far into the galaxy. There are layers of twists here, each one building slowly but surely to a real mindfuck. This is a story that I immediately wanted to re-read in order to find all the little clues I missed.
Minla's Flowers: this is a very loose interpretation of Arthurian myth, only you know... in space. And without the magic. While the plot is great and it's got a clever twist, this is a really character-driven piece that focuses on human evolution and war in a somber, interesting fashion.
Zima Blue: Possibly my favorite (new) read of the collection. This story focuses on a famous artist's last installation piece and it's one of several in the book that focus on art. It's a slow, beautiful tale with a really hard-hitting ending.
Fury: This reads like Asimov fanfiction (in a really good way). The pacing of this, like many in the collection, is slow and thoughtful. It's interesting: I usually expect short stories to be fast & furious but these have an almost luxurious build to them. There's a focus on interesting scifi elements and characters that almost make you forget it's just a short story, until the inevitable twisty gut-punch end.
The Star Surgeon's Apprentice: I love Reynolds' take on young adult. The character here is a teen, but other than that it reads no differently from his other things (in fact, it's one of the most gruesome in the collection!).
The Sledge-Maker's Daughter: I would read a whole book set in this world, it was so interesting. A far future setting that's also quite historical fiction-y.
Diamond Dogs: this was a re-read for me and to be honest, the high point of the whole book. I mean, I just LOVE THIS STORY SO MUCH. It's my all-time favorite novella and kind of started my obsession with space horror.
Thousandth Night: This is apparently a prequel to House of Suns, the next Reynolds book on my to-read list. It's a very far-future take on humanity with an additional A Thousand and One Nights spin (obviously, from them name). Really enjoyed this one.
Troika: Like an evil Rendezvous with Rama, loved it. Menacing, dark, creepy.
Sleepover: Another world I'd like to spend an entire book in. It's just... really, wickedly weird and awesome. Definitely one of the most interesting almost-apocalypse scenarios I've seen in literature.
Vainglory: Another art-based story! This was my least favorite (possibly because I didn't connect to either of the characters and the world wasn't as intense as most of his others), but still enjoyable.
Trauma Pod: Creepy and plausible, one of my favorites. I tend to like Reynolds best when he flirts with body horror and this definitely does. Super disturbing ending!
The Last Log of the Lachrimosa: I legit freaked out when I saw this was a new story in the Revelation Space universe. What!! So excited. It could have been terrible and I would be happy as a clam, but it was amazing. Creepy, strange, with a recognizable backdrop that made it feel super nostalgic.
The Water Thief: A short and interesting tale that reminded me of Paolo Bacigalupi's worldbuilding (and not just because of the name!). Resources are short, poverty is up, and people are just struggling to survive--sometimes by doing the wrong things.
The Old Man & The Martian Sea: Man, what a tearjerker. This was a soft, slow, bittersweet tale that really moved me. You see the end coming, it's not a twist, but oh my god... just perfect.
In Babelsberg: This story involves a tv talk show with a t-rex hosting (and possibly trying to eat the guests). What more can you want?
And at the end, we get story notes about every single one! Which is one of my favorite aspects of collections: I love to hear what an author thinks about their work, where the inspiration came from, or future plans. Like apparently there are going to be more RS stories. AW YES. I'll seriously read anything Reynolds writes, he could pen a guidebook to Chicago's best restrooms and I'd gobble it up.
Great Wall of Mars & Weather: these were re-reads for me, as both were included in Galactic North. Both are set in the Revelation Space world and in fact are some of the first stories chronologically, so it's a perfect place to start if you're new to the world. Or to re-read and get really nostalgic about.
Beyond the Aquila Rift: the title story which deals with the grim realities of space travel that goes a little too far into the galaxy. There are layers of twists here, each one building slowly but surely to a real mindfuck. This is a story that I immediately wanted to re-read in order to find all the little clues I missed.
Minla's Flowers: this is a very loose interpretation of Arthurian myth, only you know... in space. And without the magic. While the plot is great and it's got a clever twist, this is a really character-driven piece that focuses on human evolution and war in a somber, interesting fashion.
Zima Blue: Possibly my favorite (new) read of the collection. This story focuses on a famous artist's last installation piece and it's one of several in the book that focus on art. It's a slow, beautiful tale with a really hard-hitting ending.
Fury: This reads like Asimov fanfiction (in a really good way). The pacing of this, like many in the collection, is slow and thoughtful. It's interesting: I usually expect short stories to be fast & furious but these have an almost luxurious build to them. There's a focus on interesting scifi elements and characters that almost make you forget it's just a short story, until the inevitable twisty gut-punch end.
The Star Surgeon's Apprentice: I love Reynolds' take on young adult. The character here is a teen, but other than that it reads no differently from his other things (in fact, it's one of the most gruesome in the collection!).
The Sledge-Maker's Daughter: I would read a whole book set in this world, it was so interesting. A far future setting that's also quite historical fiction-y.
Diamond Dogs: this was a re-read for me and to be honest, the high point of the whole book. I mean, I just LOVE THIS STORY SO MUCH. It's my all-time favorite novella and kind of started my obsession with space horror.
Thousandth Night: This is apparently a prequel to House of Suns, the next Reynolds book on my to-read list. It's a very far-future take on humanity with an additional A Thousand and One Nights spin (obviously, from them name). Really enjoyed this one.
Troika: Like an evil Rendezvous with Rama, loved it. Menacing, dark, creepy.
Sleepover: Another world I'd like to spend an entire book in. It's just... really, wickedly weird and awesome. Definitely one of the most interesting almost-apocalypse scenarios I've seen in literature.
Vainglory: Another art-based story! This was my least favorite (possibly because I didn't connect to either of the characters and the world wasn't as intense as most of his others), but still enjoyable.
Trauma Pod: Creepy and plausible, one of my favorites. I tend to like Reynolds best when he flirts with body horror and this definitely does. Super disturbing ending!
The Last Log of the Lachrimosa: I legit freaked out when I saw this was a new story in the Revelation Space universe. What!! So excited. It could have been terrible and I would be happy as a clam, but it was amazing. Creepy, strange, with a recognizable backdrop that made it feel super nostalgic.
The Water Thief: A short and interesting tale that reminded me of Paolo Bacigalupi's worldbuilding (and not just because of the name!). Resources are short, poverty is up, and people are just struggling to survive--sometimes by doing the wrong things.
The Old Man & The Martian Sea: Man, what a tearjerker. This was a soft, slow, bittersweet tale that really moved me. You see the end coming, it's not a twist, but oh my god... just perfect.
In Babelsberg: This story involves a tv talk show with a t-rex hosting (and possibly trying to eat the guests). What more can you want?
And at the end, we get story notes about every single one! Which is one of my favorite aspects of collections: I love to hear what an author thinks about their work, where the inspiration came from, or future plans. Like apparently there are going to be more RS stories. AW YES. I'll seriously read anything Reynolds writes, he could pen a guidebook to Chicago's best restrooms and I'd gobble it up.
August 2, 2023
This is an impressive collection of Alastair Reynolds' work from across his writing career and at 900 odd pages long, must count as one of the longest anthology books I have ever read.
With 18 stories in total, there are inevitably a few duplications with other collections. I note on some reviews the number of stories varies from 20 to 60; since there are some novella length stories in here, I can assure you that both are incorrect and besides I just counted them. If I am missing a few stories I would like to know where they are as I just can't get enough of this chaps stuff! Also another review mentions an introduction by Jonathan Strahan, again absent (it's a kindle edition so the pages can't have slipped out). There are notes from the author at the end of the collection which go through each and every story.
For people new to Alastair Reynolds' writing I think this work represents a good introduction. Many of the themes and tropes that are developed in his longer series of novels- such as the Revelation Space series can be found in embryonic form in this work, as well as some that form part of that universe- such as The Great Wall of Mars, Diamond Dogs and The Last Log of the Lachrimosa.
The title story (Beyond the Aquila Rift) is an excellent piece of cosmic horror type science fiction that leaves one deliciously unsettled. This story and Zima Blue were both adapted into TV episodes for the Netflix series Love, Death and Robots.
With 18 stories in total, there are inevitably a few duplications with other collections. I note on some reviews the number of stories varies from 20 to 60; since there are some novella length stories in here, I can assure you that both are incorrect and besides I just counted them. If I am missing a few stories I would like to know where they are as I just can't get enough of this chaps stuff! Also another review mentions an introduction by Jonathan Strahan, again absent (it's a kindle edition so the pages can't have slipped out). There are notes from the author at the end of the collection which go through each and every story.
For people new to Alastair Reynolds' writing I think this work represents a good introduction. Many of the themes and tropes that are developed in his longer series of novels- such as the Revelation Space series can be found in embryonic form in this work, as well as some that form part of that universe- such as The Great Wall of Mars, Diamond Dogs and The Last Log of the Lachrimosa.
The title story (Beyond the Aquila Rift) is an excellent piece of cosmic horror type science fiction that leaves one deliciously unsettled. This story and Zima Blue were both adapted into TV episodes for the Netflix series Love, Death and Robots.
June 19, 2019
8.7/10
Was drawn to this book primarily because I absolutely adored "Love, Death + Robots" the science-fiction anthology series on Netflix. Discovered that certain episodes, such as Zima Blue and Beyond the Aquila Rift were adapted from this book, so I dove headlong into it.
Fantastic book, a sci-fi lovers dream. Very well written. Would recommend heartily.
Was drawn to this book primarily because I absolutely adored "Love, Death + Robots" the science-fiction anthology series on Netflix. Discovered that certain episodes, such as Zima Blue and Beyond the Aquila Rift were adapted from this book, so I dove headlong into it.
Fantastic book, a sci-fi lovers dream. Very well written. Would recommend heartily.
May 5, 2023
I know nobody on my friends list will read this giant-ass collection, but do yourselves a favor and hop on Netflix to watch the 17 min adaptation of Behind The Aquilla Rift in season 1 of Love Death & Robots, that shit is off the chain.
August 16, 2020
I had the honor of narrating this story for StarShipSofa podcast in 2008 - on of my first. A fantastic story.
August 17, 2020
After enjoying the Revenger series by Alastair Reynolds, I decided I needed more of the author. I had planned to dive into the author’s most popular work, the Revelation Space series, but the library gave me a collection instead. Some of these stories are set in the Revelation Space universe, and I think I would have understood them a bit better if I’d first read the series, but it wasn’t enough to completely ruin my enjoyment of the stories.
Great Wall of Mars was a two-star rating. It’s a story that had me curious, and I believe I would have enjoyed it more if I’d read the Revelation Space series. As it was, I was interested in seeing how the story would come together but I would have liked a wee bit more detail. In truth, this two-star rating is a rounded-down rating.
Weather was a three-star rating. This is another story that was clearly set in the Revelation Space series, but I found this one much easier to follow. Although I saw certain details coming, the story kept me gripped throughout.
Beyond the Aquila Rift was a four-star rating. This was another story that had me gripped, one that had me intrigued by the way it would play out. There was more packed into it than I’d expected, and I loved the way it came together in the end.
Minla's Flowers was a four-star rating. This one had ups and downs for me, making it more of a rounded-up rating. Although I loved the way things developed with this one and was hooked, there were certain parts that I felt could have done with a wee bit more detail.
Zima Blue was a three-star rating. I enjoyed this one more than I’d initially anticipated, finding myself gripped by the way it developed. It’s certainly one that makes you think, one that packs a more powerful punch than expected.
Fury was a three-star rating. This one did not go in the way I had anticipated, and it kept me gripped throughout. In truth, this is another rounded-down rating. I was hooked, but I would have liked a bit more from it than I was given.
The Star Surgeon's Apprentice was a two-star rating. This was a rounded-down rating, one that wasn’t quite enough for me to round-up. It was intriguing, it had some nice surprises thrown in, but I wanted more from it than was given.
The Sledge-Maker's Daughter was a two-star rating. In truth, this was a rounded-down rating. Although there were some three-star moments, I wanted a bit more from it. It ended just as it was becoming the most interesting, and I would have liked to see how certain elements played out.
Diamond Dogs was a four-star rating. In truth, this wasn’t quite a full four-star rating. However, it was so close I had to round it up. It had me hooked and curious from the start, and I was eager to see how all the pieces would come together. In fact, I could easily see this as a full-length novel with even more surprises thrown in.
Thousandth Night was a four-star rating. Although this one was slow in a few places, it had me hooked throughout. It was an addictive read, one filled with intrigue, and I was desperate to see how the pieces came together. With plenty of layers in this story, I could not put it down.
Troika was a three-star rating. In truth, this was a rounded-down rating. I debated whether to round this one up, but I couldn’t quite bring myself to do so. Although it came together well, it was a bit slow in places and didn’t quite pack the punch it could have.
Sleepover was a three-star rating. This was another rounded-down rating, one I couldn’t quite bring myself to round up. It was unique and had me curious as to how it would play out, but I was left wanting more from it. With a bit more, it could have been a four-star rating. As it was, it was lacking that final touch.
Vainglory was a two-star rating. This one had the potential of being a three-star rating, but it wasn’t quite enough. It was interesting and I enjoyed watching the pieces come together, but I would have liked more from it than I was given.
Trauma Pod was a two-star rating. This was another rounded-down rating, one that hinted at being a three-star rating. Although I enjoyed it, there was nothing surprising about it and I easily worked out where it was going. With more, it could have been a three-stat rating, but it wasn’t quite there.
The Last Log of the Lachrymosa was a three-star rating. In truth, this was a rounded-up rating. The story had me curious throughout, but I failed to connect with it. The details were great, but it would have hit harder if I’d felt something for the characters.
The Water Thief was a two-star rating. This was a great idea, but I feel it was never taken as far as it could have been. I wanted more, and I especially wanted answers to the questions that were still lingering at the end of the story.
The Old Man and the Martian Sea was a two-star rating. This was a rounded-down rating, one that didn’t wow me in the way I had hoped but did have potential. For me, this was too much of a cliché young adult story for me to be moved by this one.
In Babelsberg was a three-star rating. This one had some four-star moments, but not quiet enough for me to round my rating up. It was different and entertaining in unexpected ways, and it certainly kept me hooked throughout.
All in all, this was a mixed bag for me. Some I enjoyed, others I wasn’t crazy about, and all ensured I want to read more of the author’s work.
Great Wall of Mars was a two-star rating. It’s a story that had me curious, and I believe I would have enjoyed it more if I’d read the Revelation Space series. As it was, I was interested in seeing how the story would come together but I would have liked a wee bit more detail. In truth, this two-star rating is a rounded-down rating.
Weather was a three-star rating. This is another story that was clearly set in the Revelation Space series, but I found this one much easier to follow. Although I saw certain details coming, the story kept me gripped throughout.
Beyond the Aquila Rift was a four-star rating. This was another story that had me gripped, one that had me intrigued by the way it would play out. There was more packed into it than I’d expected, and I loved the way it came together in the end.
Minla's Flowers was a four-star rating. This one had ups and downs for me, making it more of a rounded-up rating. Although I loved the way things developed with this one and was hooked, there were certain parts that I felt could have done with a wee bit more detail.
Zima Blue was a three-star rating. I enjoyed this one more than I’d initially anticipated, finding myself gripped by the way it developed. It’s certainly one that makes you think, one that packs a more powerful punch than expected.
Fury was a three-star rating. This one did not go in the way I had anticipated, and it kept me gripped throughout. In truth, this is another rounded-down rating. I was hooked, but I would have liked a bit more from it than I was given.
The Star Surgeon's Apprentice was a two-star rating. This was a rounded-down rating, one that wasn’t quite enough for me to round-up. It was intriguing, it had some nice surprises thrown in, but I wanted more from it than was given.
The Sledge-Maker's Daughter was a two-star rating. In truth, this was a rounded-down rating. Although there were some three-star moments, I wanted a bit more from it. It ended just as it was becoming the most interesting, and I would have liked to see how certain elements played out.
Diamond Dogs was a four-star rating. In truth, this wasn’t quite a full four-star rating. However, it was so close I had to round it up. It had me hooked and curious from the start, and I was eager to see how all the pieces would come together. In fact, I could easily see this as a full-length novel with even more surprises thrown in.
Thousandth Night was a four-star rating. Although this one was slow in a few places, it had me hooked throughout. It was an addictive read, one filled with intrigue, and I was desperate to see how the pieces came together. With plenty of layers in this story, I could not put it down.
Troika was a three-star rating. In truth, this was a rounded-down rating. I debated whether to round this one up, but I couldn’t quite bring myself to do so. Although it came together well, it was a bit slow in places and didn’t quite pack the punch it could have.
Sleepover was a three-star rating. This was another rounded-down rating, one I couldn’t quite bring myself to round up. It was unique and had me curious as to how it would play out, but I was left wanting more from it. With a bit more, it could have been a four-star rating. As it was, it was lacking that final touch.
Vainglory was a two-star rating. This one had the potential of being a three-star rating, but it wasn’t quite enough. It was interesting and I enjoyed watching the pieces come together, but I would have liked more from it than I was given.
Trauma Pod was a two-star rating. This was another rounded-down rating, one that hinted at being a three-star rating. Although I enjoyed it, there was nothing surprising about it and I easily worked out where it was going. With more, it could have been a three-stat rating, but it wasn’t quite there.
The Last Log of the Lachrymosa was a three-star rating. In truth, this was a rounded-up rating. The story had me curious throughout, but I failed to connect with it. The details were great, but it would have hit harder if I’d felt something for the characters.
The Water Thief was a two-star rating. This was a great idea, but I feel it was never taken as far as it could have been. I wanted more, and I especially wanted answers to the questions that were still lingering at the end of the story.
The Old Man and the Martian Sea was a two-star rating. This was a rounded-down rating, one that didn’t wow me in the way I had hoped but did have potential. For me, this was too much of a cliché young adult story for me to be moved by this one.
In Babelsberg was a three-star rating. This one had some four-star moments, but not quiet enough for me to round my rating up. It was different and entertaining in unexpected ways, and it certainly kept me hooked throughout.
All in all, this was a mixed bag for me. Some I enjoyed, others I wasn’t crazy about, and all ensured I want to read more of the author’s work.
May 14, 2020
Some stories are really good while some are somewhat lacking. Especially I don't like a number of endings. My favorite ones are Zima Blue, The Sledge-Maker's daughter, Troika and The Old Man and the Martian Sea.
July 24, 2019
I usually don't enjoy short stories. They typically seem like the introduction to a novel, which was never written. The Revelation Space stories are not like that because the novels provide the context which is missing in most short stories.
November 26, 2016
This is the collection that definitively crowns Reynolds as the undisputed king of hard science fiction. He has been on my “to-follow” list as one of the big three in New Space Opera, along with Banks and Hamilton, for years. Some of his books have been good, others not so, but some have been simply astounding. ,Beyond the Aquila Rift is among the latter ones and also the book that singles him out, at least for me, as the best space opera writer of the new century.
Reynolds of Beyond the Aquila Rift is the Reynolds we all know from the novels. Unadorned, economical style of writing and almost Japanese minimalist elegance combined with immense compassion and humanity. The themes are also his usual recurring themes: memory, identity, what makes us human. To my surprise, the short form seems to work even better for him as his short stories and novellas do not seem to suffer from the usual flaws that plague his novels, e.g. the inability/unwillingness to describe culmination points.
There are no bad stories in this collection, but I can certainly single out the great ones: the immensely humane Great Wall of Mars, Weather and The Star Surgeon’s Apprentice, the eerily prescient of current events Troika with its resurgent Soviet Union, the disturbing and rather Cube-sque Diamond Dogs, and the utterly wonderful Thousandth Night, which seems to be even better than its successor novel, House of Suns. As most of the stories are set in his Revelation Space universe, previous experience with it would be a good idea if you want to get some of the more subtle points. Lean back and enjoy the ride.
Reynolds of Beyond the Aquila Rift is the Reynolds we all know from the novels. Unadorned, economical style of writing and almost Japanese minimalist elegance combined with immense compassion and humanity. The themes are also his usual recurring themes: memory, identity, what makes us human. To my surprise, the short form seems to work even better for him as his short stories and novellas do not seem to suffer from the usual flaws that plague his novels, e.g. the inability/unwillingness to describe culmination points.
There are no bad stories in this collection, but I can certainly single out the great ones: the immensely humane Great Wall of Mars, Weather and The Star Surgeon’s Apprentice, the eerily prescient of current events Troika with its resurgent Soviet Union, the disturbing and rather Cube-sque Diamond Dogs, and the utterly wonderful Thousandth Night, which seems to be even better than its successor novel, House of Suns. As most of the stories are set in his Revelation Space universe, previous experience with it would be a good idea if you want to get some of the more subtle points. Lean back and enjoy the ride.
May 9, 2020
My yearning for more Revelation Space led me to this book and to my surprise, only 4 of the 18 stories were set in that universe. I'm usually weary of spoilers so I avoid reading the blurb, with the exception of standalones and first in series. I also avoided short stories, focusing on novels.
Nonetheless, I'm really glad that I've read this one, as the stories were well written, very imaginative, emotional and explored interesting themes - they've certainly opened up my appetite for more of this kind of fiction.
The story set in the House of Suns universe was a nice surprise.
The highlights for me were:
- Great Wall of Mars
- Weather
- Beyond the Aquila Rift
- Zima Blue
- Minla's Flowers
- Sleepover
- Troika
- The Last Log of the Lachrymosa
- Diamond Dogs
Nonetheless, I'm really glad that I've read this one, as the stories were well written, very imaginative, emotional and explored interesting themes - they've certainly opened up my appetite for more of this kind of fiction.
The story set in the House of Suns universe was a nice surprise.
The highlights for me were:
- Great Wall of Mars
- Weather
- Beyond the Aquila Rift
- Zima Blue
- Minla's Flowers
- Sleepover
- Troika
- The Last Log of the Lachrymosa
- Diamond Dogs
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