The Saints of Salvation

Salvation Sequence #3

by Peter F. Hamilton

Earth is falling. Will our call for help be heard? The Saints of Salvation is the extraordinary conclusion to Peter F. Hamilton’s Salvation a high-octane adventure from a master of the genre.'The most powerful imagination in science fiction' – Ken Follett, author of The Pillars of the EarthLive in hiding – or die for freedomHumanity welcomed the Olyix and their utopian technology. But mankind was tricked. Now these visitors are extracting a terrible price.For two years, the Olyix have laid siege to Earth, harvesting its people for their god. One by one, cities are crumbling beneath their devastating weaponry. And while millions have fled to seek refuge in space, others continue to fight an apparently unwinnable war.As Earth's defeat draws near, a team attempts to infiltrate the Salvation of Life – the Olyix’s arkship. If it succeeds, those chosen will travel to a hidden enclave thousands of light years away. Once there, they must signal its location to future generations, to bring the battle to the enemy. Maybe allies scattered throughout space and time can join forces. Yet in the far future, humanity are still hunted by their ancient adversary. And as forces battle on in the cold reaches of space, hope seems distant indeed . . .The Saints of Salvation is the third and final book in the Salvation Sequence by Peter F. Hamilton.'A stirring finale' – Guardian'It delivers on every level' – Daily Mail

Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera, Fiction, Audiobook, Aliens, Space, Science Fiction Fantasy

528 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 27, 2020

About the author

Peter F. Hamilton is a British science fiction author. He is best known for writing space opera. As of the publication of his tenth novel in 2004, his works had sold over two million copies worldwide, making him Britain's biggest-selling science fiction author.

Reviews

[Mario the lone bookwolf · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the greatest current space opera conductors finishes his possibly best series

Incredible complexity
About in the middle of the work the concepts, philosophy, technobabble got so amazingly complex, dense, and astonishing that it was tricky to both get the full picture and pleasure and follow the plots. This is one of the most amazing showing of what Hamilton got I saw in all of his works, an ultimate I´ll Chuck out everything I have in an epic overkill. Because it combines

So many fields of science
by mixing real theories with alternative physics, Clarketech, relativity, theory of mind, AI, consciousness, and great characterization to a tour de force of to what sci-fi can lift off. No other genre is able to integrate science, the full potential of fantasy and horror combined, and do critical vivisection of past, current, and future human societies bursting from irony and cynicism, at the same time.

Preparation is everything
Some people can´t get into Hamiltons´work because he does mega expositions, often in the scale of shorter average books. And in this case, he lead all the opened storylines, characters, timelines to a conclusion so epic that my poor little brain really had problems getting everything out of this whole thing, although it´s amazingly never difficult to still somewhat follow the storyline.

Switching between timelines and even splitting a fraction
Current and future storylines come closer and closer together, a group splits into two, all characters fully live up to the expectations in great showdowns, and a feeling of satisfaction sets in after finishing another series that lets real life seem both so trivial and primitive at the same time.

This wise, just joking, advice is added to all reviews of Hamiltons´series.
One of the most fascinating aspects of Hamilton´s future vision is to see the technology and society developing in very detail over long periods of time, making a return to his universe something always stunning and inspiring. It also makes me wonder why he is the only author I know of who did this. One, who is new, lucky you, by the way, ought consider reading it in chronological order:

Salvation year 2200
Commonwealth year 2400
The Night´s Dawn trilogy year 2700
The Chronicle of the Fallers year 3400
Void trilogy year 3600

You can of course do as you wish, it´s just how I arrange my rereading to get the most out of it and slowly move further and further away from the boring present.

Tropes show how literature is conceptualized and created and which mixture of elements makes works and genres unique:
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...

[Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have nothing but positive things to say about Peter F. Hamilton's new series, now on its third book.

It has everything I dream of in a story. Not just a good story that takes on the full subjugation of humanity, but tens of thousands of whole technological alien species, but a rebellion story that goes all the extra miles with solid tech, solid circumstances, and mind-blowing ramifications.

For not only did we start out with micro-black-hole technologies in the first book, but we go way beyond that with post-human neutron-star hacking, expanded and split consciousness immortals, standard and not-so-standard cyberpunk, and a scope that spans the entire freaking galaxy.

The stakes? Freaking end-of-the-universe stakes. The enemies? An alien species that started its monocultural crusade to cocoon ALL other species to "save" them for the end of times more than a couple of a million years ago. The resolution?

Muahahahahahaha it's epic, man. It's epic.

Hamilton rocks. I've known this for a while. I did take some time to get into his earlier works, it's true, but now I'm a believer.

[Krystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay I followed maybe 75% of this but it was still 100% EPIC.

WARNING: This review contains spoilers for the previous two novels in the series.

HERE WE ARE AT THE END.

The Saints are tasked with infiltrating an Olyix ship and stowing away until they reach the enclave. The hope is that they'll be able to send out a signal so that future generations can send the cavalry. Of course, we're familiar with some members of that future generation - and they are going to need some serious firepower if they're going to succeed.

I've never been big on sci-fi, but this trilogy has completely turned that around. Even though the science is mostly completely beyond me, I've immensely enjoyed my time spent with Dellian, Yirella and the Saints. These are some cool cats making science fun again. I'm definitely keen to explore the genre further, thanks to this trilogy.

The stakes are super high for this grand finale, so the tension is way up. The plots are thickening and technology is advancing at a crazy rate. My head was properly spinning for most of it.

Yirella's always been the smart one, so it's fun watching her work her way through the problems in this book. Dellian is mostly just along for the ride, but he's still one tough cookie and he provides some interesting insights to mull over. But the Saints are still my favourite. They're such an interesting bunch and the dynamics between them are a lot of fun. I love grumpy old Yuri and sarcastic Alik; I love badass Kandara and sulky Callum; I love how Jessika does all the work and is still patient when the others constantly bug her about Neana things and she keeps explaining that she doesn't know. I love how much they get on each other's nerves and yet still work together as such a solid unit.

They're the most relatable unit in this whole series for me.

I can't talk too much about the story because I'm not kidding when I say a lot of it went over my head. *nervous laughter* But it was still just such a rocking good time and it still threw me some serious curve balls. I think the great part is that, even if you're not entirely following the science, you still pick up the essentials. It reiterates the important stuff and, while I mostly had no idea what anything looked like, I was able to follow along what was good, what was bad, and what was about to go down. And it was seriously about. to. go. DOWN.

The epic scale of this novel is exhilarating, and it just keeps building. It was a little trickier to get into because of the science, but by the end I was on the edge of my seat, anxious to discover how things would end.

The conclusion is satisfying, but there are still some loose threads which hopefully suggests we can look forward to more stories set in this world. I know that, if that's the case, I will definitely be strapping in for that ride, too. I'm committed to these guys for life, now.

With thanks to Mamillan for my ARC

[Claudia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible third volume! PFH manages every time to make me gape in awe at the concepts he comes up with. What he did here with time manipulation is simply astounding. I will never get tired of these kind of ideas and their development.

And what is best about this universe is that more will come in the next years (he said that in a FB post). I can't wait to follow Yirella further in her quest.

Mr. Hamilton, I can't even imagine where you get all these ideas from, but please, don't dare stop. Ever!

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free advance copy of this from NetGalley for review.

This final installment in Peter Hamilton's latest standalone Salvation Sequence trilogy goes above and beyond what I could have hoped for or imagined.

This is galaxy and millennia spanning, alien apocalypse mania that continues the parallel narratives, past and present, of the previous books. Many of the narrative threads are personal stories of triumph and tragedy that Hamilton masterfully weaves together in some unexpected and intriguing ways, converging in an ultimate showdown with the Olyix and the God at the End of Time. Instant galactic travel via quantum spatial entanglement, gender (and age) bending bio-engineering, time travel paradoxes and quantum temporal theory that twist your brain in knots, timeshifting via time flow control technology, post-human "corpus" aspects, von Neumann style self-replicating tech and more, even some cyberpunk vibes, mix with a thrilling story of humanity's fight for survival against an enemy of implacable, highly advanced alien zealots.

Part War of the Worlds, part Battlestar Galactica and even part Ender's Game, this is a fantastic end to an exhilarating, mind blowing trilogy that few authors could have imagined, let alone wrote so deftly. While this ends in a very satisfying way there is still a rather crucial component that Hamilton leaves wide open, possibly for exploration in future stories.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Human civilization is always regulated, Del. It’s how it maintains itself, the eternal balance between freedom and authority. We all live in the middle, obeying the rules for the common good.”
I’ve actually finished a sci-fi trilogy: I think my first. Many of the characters from the first two are here as well, although inevitably a few are killed off. Hamilton leads a number of loose ends, so I suspect that he may revisit the world at a later date. Hamilton clearly enjoys playing around with ideas and concepts. He has done it with gender and in this one he does it with the nature of time with a number of clever ideas. He manages the two main storylines well and brings them together at the end. Quite a neat trick as they start out several thousand years apart. The whole novel spans twenty thousand years in all.
There is lots of speculative technology and the book is full of passages like this:
“The Signal transmitter vehicles were the best stealth technology Kruse Station could devise, combining human and Neána technology. The development team had utilized the concept employed by the Neána insertion ship to produce spheres four meters in diameter with a matte black body that was totally light absorbent. Internal heat sinks meant they maintained an ambient thermal profile, and their systems were shielded to prevent any electromagnetic emission. Instead of a gravitonic drive, they had an external layer of active molecular blocks, which meant the entire fuselage was a rocket motor with an exhaust of cold neutral atoms, which left only the faintest of traces. In theory, it should be no different from a gust of solar wind particles.”
All perfectly clear! Seriously though, if you don’t like speculative fiction, avoid this.
Hamilton also manages to give the antagonists (the Olyix) all the worst aspects of humanity. Which, of course, gives a good deal away about Hamilton himself as they are essentially religious fundamentalist fascists who are doing what they do for love and the good of everyone else, whether they like it or not.

[Chris Berko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Prior to 2013 I did not read much science fiction. I read some classics like 2001 and Dune and some of Ted Chiang's short stories but not much else. I am also a lover of long books. If I'm into a story it doesn't matter if it's seven thousand six-hundred and fifty-seven pages long, I'm there for it. So, point being is that in 2013 someone recommended I read some Peter F. Hamilton because his books tended to be on the long side and the stories were pretty vast, so I read Pandora's Star and Judas Unchained back-to-back and while not only totally blowing my mind those two books opened my eyes to a genre I have been devouring ever since.

That brings us to Saints of Salvation, the conclusion to what I think might be his most accessible series to date. The trilogy as a whole is more streamlined and focused than some of his earlier stuff but it retains everything that makes Mr. Hamilton one of the best science fiction writers writing today. This last book is almost too much to comprehend in terms of scope and some of the time fluctuation stuff and few authors would be able to pull off explaining some of the ideas and technology without becoming totally incomprehensible or turning my brain to mush. Ole Pete pulls it off while instilling a sense of wonder and excitement that I liken to what it was like for me to see The Empire Strikes Back in the theaters as a five year old and how at ten years old at Boardwalk and Baseball I overcame my fears and rode my first roller coaster. Sincerely, this book takes you up down, left right, and it made my stomach plunge, but in a good way. There are bigger action scenes than anyone could ever imagine filming for a movie and some serious fist-pumping, yell-out-loud moments in the third act. I thought I knew a few times where the book was going and what was going to happen and was deliciously surprised when I turned out to be wrong and unthinkable unfathomable ideas began to be poured into my brain. Epic writ so large it would look like an infinitely high wall if you were standing in front of it and fun beyond my wildest expectations, this book is spectacular in every sense of the word. There was not a boring page in this, as it is a culmination of events introduced in the previous two books. I loved the way everything came together and appreciated the few dangling carrots left to pursue in future books but those strands did not take anything away from the way it ended and how things turned out.

I can't thank NetGalley, Del Rey Books, and Peter F. Hamilton enough for the arc copy and how that in no way impacted my opinion or review.

[Nicholas Kotar · Rating 2 out of 5]

Peter F Hamilton is a confident writer at the height of his powers. So why the 2 star rating?

Primarily worldview dissonance, though that alone wouldn't be fair on my part.

It's the ending. The whole thing was set up as a David/Goliath kind of conflict. But when David has to become something more powerful, bigger, and probably scarier than Goliath to beat him, then, in my humble opinion, the author has pulled the rug out from under this reader's feet.

The characters by and large are not likable, especially in the 23th century setting. The villains lose all their bite toward the end. And the resolution is not satisfying, at least to me. This sort of post-human utopia, I think, would be endlessly boring.

Still, I didn't regret reading the series. The first two books are really strong. The conflict really was epic. Probably too epic to be able to conclude in a satisfying way.

[Carlex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four well deserved stars

Well, my beloved Peter F. Hamilton does it again. The author constructs an evocative space opera trilogy full of highly speculative science and amazing adventures that spanns thousands of years of galactic-scale history.

[Gyorgy Boda · Rating 5 out of 5]

PFH is by far my favourite sci-fi writer. Actually, cannot even name who would be the distant second (maybe Vernon Vinge). However, I am not an unconditional fanboy: I hated Misspent Youth and - much to my shame - never finished Night's Dawn, gave up during the last book.

Now - somewhat unexpectedly - I find myself in a tough spot: I promised a honest review easily as it never occured to me there is any chance to give anything less than 5 stars. However, having finished Saints of Salvation, I walked away with the impression that, while the book provides a real good closure to the main story and a few twists along the way, it falls a bit short of the masterpiece status I expected. Simply put, PFH has raised the bar so high with his own books - including the first two in this very series - that cannot be always surpassed. There is still a very strong finish, but those who have read the Void & Fallers series, know that he can bring his amazing ideas to even more amazing conclusions.

So what do I think exactly? Let's find out.

Spoiler-free summary

The present time plot picks up two years after the events of the second volume. The humans and the the assessment team are preparing for the ultra-secret mission outlined in Salvation Lost. We get nail-biting thrills and terrific battles both on Earth and in space, superb stuff, really. We also continue following story of Horatio and Ollie: their viewpoints keep the story grounded, providing a welcome view into the life of besieged London. I have always loved the Earth chapters, as they ground the story in a world, that has been so vividly realized in the first book.

Then, we have the far-future storyline, where Yirella and Ainsley are the lead characters now, Dellian is relegated to the background. They are recovering from their harsh awakening at Vayan and now trying come up with new schemes against the - even more powerful - Olyix. In this storyline Yirella and Ainsley bonds together and takes matters into their own hands in an unexpected way. I touch on this part more in the spoilery part of the book.

Later the focus shrinks down to the remaining two plotline: the Saints and Yirella & Co. From this point forward the book is entirely focused on taking the fight the Olyix enclave's doorstep. It is a more straightforward story, grander in scope, having plenty of battles of both ships and wits, with the Olyix fighting back, of course. Without going into specifics, there is a retaliation which displays nicely how the fate of a person may carry more emotional impact than the destruction of a planet (this is just a metaphor, no planets get destroyed, ...or yes...who knows?:).

This being the last book of the trilogy, we get a closure to the Olyix storyline in a way that is sort of expected. At the same time, several aspects remain wide open. I was surprised, as PFH have always closed his series completely so far. That's not the case here. Reading the last few chapters, it is very clear he is not done yet with Olyixverse .

Overall, I believe this is a fantastic series. It is not a character-driven story: we get glimpses of decent characters (Callum, Gwendoline, Horatio), but there is no Edeard (Void) or Angela (Great North Road) level of characterization in there. Plot dominates this trilogy from start to finish. That's fine. I personally loved the first book the most, with its elaborate world-building, the criminal investigations and wonderfully executed 'wolf in the fold' concept, with perhaps the most shocking cliffhanger I have ever read. However, I acknowledge others may feel differently, and for some the first book may have been too slow and they may prefer the more action-packed volumes. That being said, the whole trilogy is excellent, so grab it and start reading. Still 5 stars :)

Further thoughts with mild spoilers

At one point in the book Yirella goes rouge, and together with Ainsley, she guerrilla-starts a new human civilization, hoping this new society can bootstrap itself up to a level where they have a chance against Olyix. Sure, I get how very special circumstances they had, considering its special location; the best human technology available as a starting base; the presence and cooperation of Ainsley (a super-advanced entity) and time pressure to advance. But, still, in earlier books it was stated several times, that humans have plateaued. And then, all of a sudden they cracked a lot of magical technology, that brought them up to be a real challenger. Yes, PFH does his best to elaborate how the unusual circumstances made this possible, but after spending several books being afraid how superior and invincible the Olyix were, it was a very sudden change to have something that actually kicks Olyix ass fairly easily. I understand this was necessary to be able to to close the trilogy with a win. Still, I guess your enjoyment of the final book will be down to this single plot element, how well it resonates with you.

The other aspect I have been slightly disappointed about is the role of the assessment team. Yes, they go on their mission, and it is engaging to follow them on their once-in-the-history roadtrip to the other side of the galaxy, but ultimately I was hoping that their arc factors more heavily into the endgame. This is acknowledged even by themselves at the end of story when they discuss how the humans managed to find another way. So they provide an interesting viewpoint, but in fact are not contributing that much to the final outcome. I have not expected this considering how well PFH weaves his threads together in a natural and satisfactory way in his other books.

Finally, as I said earlier, it is obvious that PFH will return to this universe and he is holding back stuff. We are teased about the message from the future - which has been first mentioned in Salvation Lost. We have an old-new plot seed about seeking the Sanctuary. We still don't know much about Neana, Angelis and Katos races including how the Factory was coming together, and how it dissolved. We are also very mildly teased that Jessica may have some additional hidden purpose after all. So, a lot of plot hooks left open on purpose. For all these reasons, it is hard to view the last book as a complete closure: it ends the Olyix conflict, but at the same time it is a new beginning for a galaxy we still barely know. Naturally, I am looking forward to have more books in this universe, but at the same time I was expecting few more answers at the end of the series.

A really minor note is there are some editing inconsistencies: in second book the portal missiles are called "callumites", while in the last book they are "calmissiles". In the last book there is a single occurence of Olyix "Redemption" ship, but they are never referred again, so I guess they should be "Resolution" ships. I indicated this to publishers, hopefully gets fixed in the print edition.

I was lucky to receive an advance copy of my most anticipated release of the year in exchange for a honest review. Thank you from here as well to Mr. Hamilton's awesome PR represenative (his name is secret, identity protection and all, you see)

[MadProfessah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter F. Hamilton is definitely my favorite science fiction author, and since since science fiction is my favorite genre, he is probably my favorite author overall. He is on my short list of must-buy authors that also includes literary mystery writer Tana French, epic fantasy writer Brent Weeks and British speculative fiction noir aficionado Richard K. Morgan. My must-read list of authors is much longer and includes people like Louise Penny, Peter V. Brett, Alastair Reynolds and many, many mystery-thriller authors whose series I’m making my way through methodically and contentedly. Hamilton has a special place in my heart as the author of the Night’s Dawn trilogy, which is probably my favorite science fiction work. But his duology Pandora’s Star/Judas Unchained is not very far behind that classic at the very top of my list of most esteemed reads. Hamilton’s books are huge sprawling works, often thick tomes running into page lengths of 4-digits, peopled with large casts of characters and featuring mind-bending technologies and bizarre physical phenomena.

Hamilton’s latest work is another trilogy, intriguingly called The Salvation Sequence. (This is intriguing because maybe this sequence of books won’t end at three? Hamilton has written many books in what is called the Commonwealth Universe but none of his prior book series using a majority of the same characters and/or same timeline has ever had more than three entries.)

The third book in The Salvation Sequence is The Saints of Salvation, which follows Salvation and Salvation Lost. As I have mentioned before, there are certain themes that often reappear in Hamilton’s works and many, if not all, of these are also present in the Salvation Sequence. Some of these themes are: a futuristic/utopian society, disruptive technology (often involving novel transportation methods), culturally opaque aliens, incredibly wealthy and powerful tycoons, secret/double agents and extinction-level threats to civilization.

In The Saints of Salvation, the two timelines of the plot from the previous books in the sequence (one plot line depicts the invasion of Earth by previously benevolent aliens and the other plot line is 10,000 years in the future where technologically advanced humans are planning to strike back against the aliens after the surviving human refugees escaped into the empty spaces of the galaxy) eventually intersect in a surprising way.

Time, especially the manipulation of time as another feature of the physical world like gravity, becomes an increasingly important of the story in The Saints of Salvation. The animating reason behind the alien invasion of Earth is that the aliens claim to have received a message from the future from a being whom they call “The God at the End of Time” telling them to bring as many sentient creatures to him as they can. The aliens’ response to their God’s message is to seek out intelligent civilizations and place individuals in life-preserving cocoons in their ships and take them to their secret enclave until the end of time. The aliens have been doing this for literally millions of years and are often an order of magnitude more advanced than the other civilizations they meet/cull/kidnap and bring back to their enclave, whose location is their greatest secret. We learn that the aliens have the ability to slow and accelerate the passage of time, which they use to maintain the alien civilians they have collected in stasis. Humans eventually also learn how to manipulate time as well, which makes travel at relativistic speeds over vast distances possible within a human lifetime.

Hamilton’s books are often peopled with huge casts of characters, many of whom don’t make it to the end. The Salvation sequence is anchored around a group of five main characters, called the Saints. One of the key plot points in the first two books when we’re experiencing the story told in two time lines set thousands of years apart is to try and figure which characters in the earlier time line become beatified as Saints by the surviving humans in the later time line.

In The Saints of Salvation, we follow the Saints for a large part of the story. The other main thread in this books follows two advanced humans, named Dellian and Yirella, who lead a cadre of humans in the far future that are trying to finally get revenge on the aliens who forced humanity to abandon Earth and go into hiding millennia before.

One way that The Saints of Salvation and the other books in the Salvation sequence is very different from prior Hamilton works is the depiction of gender. As an indicator of technological and sociological advancement, Hamilton has characters who are non-binary and uses specialized pronouns (like sie, hir) to describe them. This occurs in the earlier timeline (which is set in the early 23rd century), where humanity has started forming habitats with their own cultural and social standards. In addition to non-binary characters, there are also characters who cycle between more male and more female presentations. In the beginning these depictions of gender can be somewhat distracting but eventually the reality of non-binary or (literally) gender-fluid characters becomes pretty standard. None of the main characters are non-binary but several of the important/pivotal ones, especially in the last book, are. A definite gap in the diversity of Hamilton’s characters is the lack of any openly LGB characters as we would perceive them, although there is some same-sex attraction (and perhaps bisexual sexual activity?) portrayed. Interestingly, he often does go out of his way to indicate racial and ethnic diversity in his books, and this is true here as well, although white British people are (unsurprisingly) over represented.

Overall, The Saints of Salvation is a fantastic final entry in another amazing, mind-bending space opera written by a science fiction grandmaster operating at the peak of his powers. If you have enjoyed his other similar, equally impressive works, such as Pandora’s Star / Judas Unchained, the Night’s Dawn trilogy, Great North Road, and A Night Without Stars / The Abyss Beyond Dreams, I am very confident you will enjoy the Salvation Sequence as well.

[Luke Burrage · Rating 5 out of 5]

A five star conclusion to a five star trilogy! Unexpectedly a massive hit for Luke and Juliane in 2020.

Full review on my podcast, SFBRP episode #437:
Luke and Juliane are joined by special guest Peter F Hamilton to talk about The Saints of Salvation, the conclusion to the Salvation Trilogy.



https://www.sfbrp.com/archives/1766

[Gerhard · Rating 4 out of 5]

What!?
That's NOT an ending.
Review to follow, once I get over my grumpiness at how this (does not) fucking end.
Mmm. Did Hamilton ever say this was only going to be 3 books?

[aPriL does feral sometimes · Rating 4 out of 5]

'The Saints of Salvation' by Peter Hamilton is another mind-boggling novel as well as the conclusion (?) of the The Salvation Sequence trilogy. Readers MUST begin with Salvation - none of these books are standalone.

Below is the book blurb on the cover:

Humanity is struggling to hold out against a hostile takeover by an alien race that claims to be on a religious mission to bring all sentient life to its God at the End of Time. But while things may look grim in the immediate aftermath of the attack, mankind is busy playing an even longer game than the aliens may have expected. Will a strategy millennia in the making finally be enough to defeat this seemingly unstoppable enemy? And what secrets are the aliens truly hiding in their most deeply protected stronghold?

With his trademark optimism about humanity's tenacity and capacity for greatness, Peter F. Hamilton ends this brilliant saga with a bang--and reveals a few startling surprises along the way.

Although the blurb is accurate, it leaves out the incredible high tech developed from quantum and particle science as imagined by Hamilton. Portals for traveling between planets have been developed from quantum entangled particles, personalities are transferred into warships traveling throughout the Galaxy, food and clothes are printed out on demand - some of the examples of ordinary life in these books. The timespan of this series is 20,000 years, made possible by manipulations of space/time. Bodies are recreated as easily as manufacturing dolls are today, so characters from 'Salvation' are still battling the evil Olyix millennia later in 'The Saints of Salvation', although the end, final death, does come for some characters. Who? Not telling....

Highly recommended for hardcore science fiction readers! FYI, my favorite character is Kandera, for those of you have read the series.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of people like this book and the whole series.
They praise it for "No cringe sex scenes" - a point I can agree upon -, a less meandering plot and less "unnecessary" details. It's more modern with gender fluidity and time travel paradoxes.
It didn't really come together for me.
I can still remember characters from his Commonwealth Saga. I'm not only talking about Paulo Mayo or the Sentient Intelligence. I don't know if it's because it's the first big series of his that I read, because the characters are more distinctive, or because later characters feel a bit like shallower copies of these earlier characters. He repeats his ideas with variations, space travel via portals, city shields, wealthy benefactors, criminal gangs, even a personality with multiple bodies, ...
It's becoming a blur for me.
Technology has become fantastical. It feels like there are no rules. You can't predict the outcome of space battles because the "laws of physics" are only partially revealed or changed in the thick of it.
An aspect of Hamilton's Commonwealth Saga I really liked, the science fiction technology felt like a logical extension of the present.
I don't like time travel. It usually leads to untidy illogical scenarios and it feels a bit tagged on here because nowadays everybody needs to include the grandfather paradox or parallel universes. Fortunately these scenarios are only theoretically discussed in the book and not really relevant for the plot.
It's Alastair Reynolds meets Ann Leckie meets Doctor Who.

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thrilling and apt end to the Salvation Sequence without a doubt. Hamilton continues with story arcs consisting of two different time lines-- the 'now of 2200 or so and 10,000 years in the future. In this installment, Hamilton winnows down the cast as many of them were on Earth when the Aliens finally came back to 'cocoon' the remaining humans. I dug the aliens-- rather than just seeking conquest and so forth, the Olyix are motivated by a holy mission. The Olyix seem to go about the galaxy and 'prepare' other species for the end of days. They do this by capturing the populations, 'treating' them so their brains remain alive, and then sequestering them on arks which finally arrive back at their enclave.

In the 'future' story arc, the humans plan a 'final strike' to banish the Olyix and take back the kidnapped humans. In the 'now' arc, the focus shifts to the 'Saints' who undertake a mission to infiltrate the Olyix mothership/ark around Earth. The plan: find the location of the hidden/mysterious Olyix enclave and send a Signal to the fleeing humans. In the 'future' story arc, humanity has spread across half the galaxy, being chased by the implacable Olyix...

Hamilton deftly weaves together all the story threads of the series here with a bow, while at the same time leaving plenty of room for more sequels. Definitely a step up from the Void series, which seemed to focus on strange sex! Yeah, some sex here (Hamilton...), but not as juvenile as other of his works. The science is fun, albeit with lots of quantum handwaves (quantum batteries?!?) and such. Still, a rousing epic. 4 saintly stars!

[8stitches 9lives · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saints of Salvation is the third and final book in the Salvation Sequence series where, with refreshing determination and hopeful grit, humanity activates a bold endgame against an alien invasion. Humanity is struggling to hold out against a hostile takeover by an alien race that claims to be on a religious mission to bring all sentient life to its God at the End of Time. But while billions of cocooned humans fill the holds of the Olyix’s deadly arkships, humankind is playing an even longer game than the aliens may have anticipated. From an ultra-secret spy mission to one of the grandest battles ever seen, no strategy is off the table. Will a plan millennia in the making finally be enough to defeat this seemingly unstoppable enemy? And what secrets are the Olyix truly hiding in their most zealously protected stronghold?

This is captivating and exciting read which has you fully engaged and engrossed by the tension, exhilarating incidents and danger running throughout. It's highly entertaining, fast-paced and will have your nerves jangling and your heart pounding for the characters we have grown to love and admire as they try to evade the enemy. The complexity and intricate world-building had me immersed so much that I didn't want the book to conclude. It's a richly-imagined story with a positive message about the importance of freedom and the ability to choose our own path in life. A compulsively readable and beautifully written work of science fiction. I look forward to whatever Hamilton publishes next. Unreservedly recommended. Many thanks to Pan Macmillan for an ARC.

[Gernot1610 · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 Sterne, einen für die vielen Buchstaben und einen dafür, dass diese Saga endlich ein "Ende" gefunden hat. Das Buch hat von allem zu viel! Zu viele Wörter, zu viele geklaute Ideen, zu viele Handlungen, zu viele Zeitebenen, zu viel FATASY, und zum Schluss noch zu WENIG INHALT. Ich bin ja ein bekennender Peter F. Hamilton Fan, aber leider holt er mich seit einigen Büchern nicht mehr wirklich ab. Ach so, wer abgefahrene Ideen und wahrlich Kosmische Weiten mit Bombastischen Settings sucht sollte Dirk van den Boom lesen, der Kanns wirklich!

[Hank · Rating 4 out of 5]

How else can you describe Hamilton's trilogies besides epic. This one was only 1600 pages total vs some of his 4000 page series. This final book was more of the same with a fairly satisfying conclusion. The characters you have grown attached to are all there fighting the good fight, the time distortions both entertaining and confusing but ultimately fitting perfectly into the story.

Of the four series I have read this one ranks just below the Commenwealth Saga and well above the Void trilogy.

Recommended to Hamilton fans and lovers of very long space operas

[Nikhil Saxena · Rating 2 out of 5]

Peter Hamilton is lot about how the heroes overcome impossible odds. And that is what I love.

However other than few minor instances this installment is about "My ship is bigger than yours.. Magically".

Several scenes added deliberately to keep characters relevant and some lose ends left unanswered

[Ints · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kā jau visas Hamiltona kosmiskās operas arī šī bija vērienīga. Telpā stiepās veselus 50000 gadus un telpā aptuveni tikpat. Katrs, kurš lasījis viņa iepriekšējos darbus jau zinās, ko no šī autora sagaidīt.

Pati centrālā grāmatas tēma ir reliģoza apsēstība. Apsēstie ir kāda citplanētu rase, kuras uzdevums ir aizgādāt visas saprātīgās radības līdz Visuma beigām. un viņi to dara ar vērienu. Paaudžu kuģi, episkas cīņas kosmosā, varoņi kuri iespiežas atmiņā. lielākā daļa mums ir līdzās visas triloģijas garumā, jo relativitāte ir īsta lieta.

Vai man patika autora piedāvātais situācijas atrisinājums, teiktu, ka nē. Es pat teiktu, ka autoram acīmredzams, nebija ideju, kā visu atrisināt un nācās vien izstumt ārā "klavieres no krūmiem". Visa pasākuma racionalizācija bija pamatota, bet nu kas tad liedz cilvēkiem veikt tādu triku pirms tūkstoš gadiem? Kosmosa cīņu apraksti gan ir noslīpēti, autors piekrīt konceptam, ka pie relatīviem pārvietošanās ātrumiem pat gultņu lodīšu spainis ir nāvējošs ierocis. Tādēļ te nav nekādi mistiski spēka lauki, kuri, ja to spētu absorbēt atrisinātu arī abu pušu pamatproblēmas.

Grāmatai 9 no 10 ballēm. Nepatika ka grāmata beidzās ar klifhangeri un bez cerībām redzēt turpinājumu.

[Andy Lewis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this a lot more. Really liked the first book - and I loved the way Peter Hamilton managed to hide from us the main premise of the series until that final jaw-dropping book 1 revelation (and the way he used the whole "alien monsters after your BRAINZ" trope in such an original way.

A trilogy like this though - it lives or dies by the conclusion - and to me, this final volume ran of steam a little. It was still enjoyable - and it was epic on a scale that few authors can pull off, but which Peter Hamilton generally excels at - and it wasn't *bad* - just a little underwhelming, and, for me, a bit too long and drawn out. Things like the reveal of where the saints had been, and what they'd been up to all this time... felt a little anti-climactic, and there was a touch too much of the conveniently develop better tech to beat the previously unbeatable bad guys with trope - which first came in in Salvation Lost.

All in all, a decent series, but, IMO, not his best.

[Sharondblk · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was quite frustrating. Peter F. Hamilton gave up on any character development. He did the development in previous books, and now you just have to take it as read. Yirella is smart but scared of battle (so smart she's basically physic). Yirella and Del love each other. No reason for that, they just do. Del thinks he's dumb, and on and on.
There is a weird nostalgia for an earth that none of the characters knew, and time travel (of a sort). I hate time travel. And some really lazy writing - one of the characters gets old and starts using the word "dear" a lot. Why?
Meanwhile, all I want to know is what are the Neana. Do you think we find out? I'm not going to add spoilers here, but let's just say this book could have been so much more satisfying. But it wasn't.

[eisn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Really really weak book. Major narrative threads are shown at the start and they mean nothing in the end. And the whole thing devolves into a deus ex machina where the /only/ thing holding back a human civilization was just spending 50 years around a particular type of star (without being any kind of relevant reason for why they didn't do that before either).

We also have some POVs from pre-Fall Earth that served almost no purpose other than padding out the book some more.

And worst of all is that the entire premise of the series - that the aggressive and fanatical aliens are like this despite the fact that it defies logic - is left with a gigantic cliffhanger. This series is the literary equivalent of blue balls.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a good trilogy and I enjoyed its conclusion. I must admit to have trouble remembering events and people from earlier books in trilogies, but it soon came back to me. I loved seeing the strands come together, in the near future and thousands of years from now. Peter F Hamilton is such a fantastic story teller and imaginer of strange and wonderful - and frightening - worlds, futures and aliens. Review to follow shortly on For Winter Nights.

[Judy Lesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

How I do wish book rating systems allowed for decimal designations of some sort. The previous two books in this trilogy (hmm, can't help but wonder if that will really hold true) were solid 5 star books for me. This one wasn't as good for me but it certainly didn't slip too far backward either. 4.5 would definitely come closer to an accurate rating. I latched on to one of the main big concepts flowing throughout the series and discovered in this book that I had been sold a slightly incorrect bill of goods. I was disappointed about that.

I do not recommend that any reader begin this Salvation Sequence series with this third book. Author Peter F. Hamilton never does any kind of recap of at least book two - Salvation Lost, so anyone new to this series will be pretty much lost the whole time. The concepts in this series are large and it takes the full three books for them to unfold completely. But, was it completely? There seemed to be some niggling dangling threads still unresolved. As with the first two books I thoroughly enjoyed the portions of the book which described what was happening on Earth. Living under protective shields and having Olyix ships bombarding those shields constantly made the efforts of the human population so poignant, a touching tribute to the human will to survive. Most of the earth portions take place in London which is suffering under what the people are calling Blitz2, a description that took me back to the real history of an heroic population trying to find some normal ways of living during the World War II years. That touch of quasi realistic life made portions of the book more relative to me.

I must admit that I bought into what was being urged on me throughout the first two books, so the conclusion of this third book made me go back and re-read portions to see if I had gotten what was being presented correctly. After thinking over the full story I can't help but wonder if this is really the end. There is a very large number of characters in these books and it seems a shame for them to stop being used to tell stories. Maybe some of them will migrate over into another series and the adventure can continue.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group, Ballantine for an e-galley of this novel.

[Alvar Borgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Im Grunde bekommt man mit diesem Buch das, was man von den beiden Vorgängern kennt. Es ist beeindruckend, wie es Peter F. Hamilton gelingt, die Extreme zu verbinden: Er erzählt gleichzeitig die Erlebnisse einer kleiner Gruppe innerhalb eines überschaubaren Zeitraums und die Geschichte der Menschheit über Jahrtausende und quer durch die halbe Galaxis. Letztlich finden die Handlungen auch noch zusammen!

Im ersten Band der Trilogie (?) wurde ja durchgespielt, was es bedeuten würde, wenn es wirklich Portale gäbe. In ähnlicher Form wird diesmal gezeigt, was sich mit Zeitmanipulation alles anstellen ließe.

Nur - irgendwie hat es mich diesmal nicht mehr gepackt. Klar, alles ist um eine weitere Größenordnung gewachsen, trotzdem stellt sich der "Sense of Wonder" nicht ein. Es ist ein bisschen wie bei Star Wars: der erste Sternenzerstörer, der damals durchs Bild flog, war WOW! Die zehntausend Zerstörer aus Episode 9 hingegen: Gähn ...

Natürlich muss die Menscheit jetzt den Aliens überlegen werden, die Guten sollen ja schließlich gewinnen. Das geschieht dann aber - zack!- im Hintergrund, wir werden einfach mit dem Ergebnis konfrontiert. Jo, wir haben uns also superschnell weiterentwickelt und sind supermächtig. Die Olix hingegen beherrschen auch zehntausend Jahre nach der Eroberung der Erde die Portaltechnologie immer noch nicht. Sie werden teils mit den altbekannten Portal-Raketen zur Strecke gebracht. What the ...?

Zusätzlich hat sich in den drei Bänden auch ganz schön viel angesammelt an Story-Elementen. Das macht das Lesen anstrengend. Wie war das noch mal mit "Der Fabrik"? Sollte ich die Angelis kennen und die Kato? Trotzdem ist die Story übrigens nicht zu Ende. Yirella nimmt noch eine Aufgabe mit, die einen Folgeband rechtfertigen dürfte. (Den ich dann allerdings nicht mehr lesen werde.)

Die schiere Menge SF-Sprech kann einen erschlagen. "Gravitationsverzerrungsfeld", "Invertierte Gravitationswirbel", "Quanten-Varianten-Sprengkopf", "exotische Materie" "Kanalisierungsaktivierung" und so weiter.

Wie gehabt ist die Übersetzung eine Zumutung. Der automatische Übersetzer kann das "Image" einer Person immer noch nicht von einem "Bild" von einer Person unterscheiden. Beides heißt einfach Image. "Negative Energiegeneratoren" fand ich auch hübsch. Muss sowas sein wie das "Erneuerbare Energiengesetz". Oder: "Ich habe die Urquy und die Konvo, zwei Astronomische Einheiten der Hauptflotte, vorausgeschickt." Schon vor zwei Lichtjahren, nehme ich an.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having originally welcomed the Olyix and their technologies, it became apparent that they had tricked mankind. They laid siege to the Earth and began harvesting the people there, cocooning them and shipping them back through their wormholes as offering to their god. They claim it is a mission to present all sentient life to this god at the end of time. Humanity is fighting back though, and they are prepared to play the long game, their plan has been millennia in the making and they are starting to reach the point where the final elements can be put into action.

The final part of this huge trilogy is set in two separate timelines. The main story is of Yirella and Ainsley and their efforts to take the fight to the Olyix. They decide to take a few calculated risks in their preparation to stop the Olyix taking humans and other species to their deity. The second smaller sub-plot is set on Earth; it is not a place as we would recognise. Cities are protected by shields to stop the harvesting of the population by the Olyix. They have laid waste to the world and slowly their agents and are some traitors are ensuring that the shields are coming down so their capturesnakes can capture the people left.

The final battle between humanity and the Olyix is frantically paced and contains all the things that I have come to expect from Hamilton, new concepts like time flowing differently only meters apart, wormholes linking places thousands of light-years apart, star-sized weapons, huge 3-metre tall humans that have evolved down a different path. On top of that, all the technologies feel plausible and utterly alien at the same time.

I really liked this as with the other two books in the trilogy. He has a knack of writing the huge galaxy-wide space operas that still have those intimate stories woven through it. It is very much plot-driven and the various threads that were teased out from the first two books are concluded almost neatly. I say almost, as there are certain suggestions in the book that implies there is much more to come from this universe that he has created here. I really hope that is the case.

[Omar Iquira · Rating 3 out of 5]

LE DOY 3 ESTRELLAS PORQUE NOS PRESENTA UNAS ESCENAS DE BATALLA FINAL DIGNAS DE ADMIRACIÓN. Y PORQUE NOS MUESTRA UN NIVEL DE "EVOLUCIÓN" DE NUESTRA ESPECIE REALMENTE SORPRENDENTE... YA DICHO ESO, A PESAR DE QUE MANTIENE LA CALIDAD DE LAS ENTREGAS ANTERIORES, EL FINAL ES UN POCO TRIVIAL.

Si hay algo que tengo que otorgarle a esta trilogía de libros, es el hecho de que desde el principio representa un reto lector muy interesante. Toda esta saga (desde el primer libro) ha sido narrada en dos espacios temporales muy separados el uno del otro. El primero, nos muestra la caída de nuestro planeta después de un ataque sorpresa por parte de los "Olyx" (una raza que considerábamos nuestra aliada). El segundo, nos muestra acontecimientos 10000 años en el futuro, donde lo que queda de la humanidad aún lucha por sobrevivir y derrotar a los Olyx. Siendo sincero, no ha sido fácil reconciliar las dos líneas temporales. Como lector, uno puede llegar a confundirse por momentos y perder el hilo de la historia (en especial si no lees los 3 libros uno después del otro). Pero en este último volumen finalmente vemos como ambos tiempos colisionan para regalarnos una de las batallas espaciales más sorprendentes y originales que he visto.

Para entender esto debemos hablar primero algo del fenómeno llamado "Dilatación de Tiempo". La dilatación del tiempo es un fenómeno predicho por la teoría de la relatividad que describe cómo el tiempo transcurre de manera diferente para observadores en diferentes marcos de referencia, especialmente cuando están en movimiento relativo o en campos gravitacionales distintos. La dilatación del tiempo es una consecuencia de la teoría de la relatividad de Einstein, que establece que el tiempo no es absoluto, sino que es relativo al observador. Aquí llegamos al punto importante del asunto. La así llamada "Dilatación del tiempo por velocidad", que ocurre cuando un observador se mueve a velocidades cercanas a la de la luz. Cuanto más rápido se mueve el observador, más lento transcurre el tiempo para él en comparación con un observador en reposo.

Explico esto, porque eso es precisamente lo que ocurre en este libro para explicar que los dos espacios temporales colisionen uno con la otro. En el primer tiempo (el pasado), mientras la tierra cae bajo el ataque de los Olyx, los protagonistas de la historia mandan una misión de infiltración a una de las naves nodrizas enemigas. Su objetivo, esconderse dentro de la nave y dejar que esta los lleve al "Enclave", que vendría a ser el núcleo de mando desde donde los Olyx dirigen sus ataques y a todas las razas del cosmos. Este grupo de infiltradores tiene la misión de permanecer escondidos hasta llegar al Enclave, porque solo entonces podrán transmitir las coordenadas del mismo. Lo cual será la señal para que los sobrevivientes de la humanidad ataquen el núcleo central de poder de sus enemigos. Pero esta es una misión sin regreso, ya que los infiltradores deberán viajar con la nave nodriza a la velocidad de la luz hasta llegar al Enclave. Para el equipo de la misión, este viaje consistirá en algunos años. Pero para cuando lleguen, en el el resto del universo habrán pasado el equivalente a 10000 años. Es decir, que ninguno del grupo volverá a ver a nada ni a nadie de los que conocieron. Eso además de que cuando transmitan las coordenadas, los Olyx sabrán de su presencia, y buscarán matarlos al instante... En otras palabras, es una misión suicida.

Solo diré que con mucho esfuerzo el plan resulta. Y lo que queda de las fuerzas de la humanidad recibe la transmisión del grupo de infiltración y prepara el ataque final en contra del Enclave. Para entonces, la humanidad es muy diferente de la que conocemos. Nuestros valores, forma de vida, principios, sistemas de gobierno, cultura, incluso nuestra biología, son distintos (existen incluso diferentes "tribus" de humanos, algunas más avanzadas y progresistas que otras). Pero la misión de vengarnos, y terminar de una vez por todas con los Olyx, aún permanece con la mayoría de nosotros. Así se inicia la contraofensiva final que definirá el destino de ambas razas y de todo el cosmos. Recordemos que los Olyx son una raza que ha existido por miles (sino millones) de años, y que han sistemáticamente capturado y puesto en suspensión a miles de especies a lo largo del cosmos, solo para llevarlas en su peregrinación hasta el fin de los tiempos, donde ellos creen encontrarán a su dios. La humanidad es una de las pocas especies que no han sido completamente suprimidas (aunque millones de nuestra especie ya están en estado de suspensión en el Enclave), pero sabemos que hay al menos otras dos especies que han conseguido escapar y resistirse. Una son los "Neána" (que trataron de advertirnos sobre los Olyx en el pasado). Y también están los así llamados "Constructores", que al parecer encontraron a algunos humanos a lo largo de su huida de la tierra, y se los llevaron consigo a una especie de "Zona Segura" construida por ellos en alguna parte del cosmos.

Cuando llega la batalla final, se produce una especie de estrategia de "Pinza Temporal". El ataque de las fuerzas de la humanidad llega en Enclave dispuestos a todo, mientras que el equipo de infiltración (aún vivo) lucha por ganar tiempo y mandar una desesperada señal de rescate a sus aliados. Esta batalla tiene de todo, y por momentos uno se sorprende del alcance de las armas que ambos bandos están dispuestos a utilizar en contra del otro. La más terrible sin embargo, es una arma Olyx de "Dilatación del tiempo por gravedad", que es utilizada casi al final de la contienda con resultados de lo más bizarros (y crueles) para todos.

Al final, la humanidad sobrevive. Pero no todos obtienen su; "y vivieron felices para siempre". De hecho, hay un personaje en especial que se merecía un final así, pero que al final se ve en la necesidad de tomar una decisión de lo más drástica para asegurar la victoria en contra de los Olyx (lo cual te deja con un mal sabor de boca). No quiero dar más detalles de esto, pero solo diré que el desenlace, aunque casi completamente cerrado, te deja con algunas preguntas importantes. La mayor de todas es quizás; ¿Quiénes eran los Olyx realmente? Para ser los antagonistas de toda la saga, uno se queda con preguntas importantes sobre ellos. Lo mismo sucede con los Neána (aunque hay una teoría bastante interesante en medio del libro que te da que pensar). Así como también el destino de ciertos personajes que jugaron un papel importante en la historia nunca se conoce. Y ciertos hechos te dan a entender que la guerra no ha terminado del todo... y que algo más grande está por suceder.

Todo esto se acumula en las paginas finales del libro, lo cual no fue totalmente de mi agrado. No puedo negar que esta saga ha sido una lectura interesante y original. Es la tercera saga de Peter F. Hamilton que he leído, y tengo que decir que no decepciona. Es un gran autor de ciencia ficción y sabe entretener a su publico. Pero a diferencia de sus libros anteriores, uno casi puede sentir que el desenlace es demasiado abrupto. Uno incluso piensa que podría haber un libro más, escondido para completar la saga (lo cual, por supuesto, no es cierto). Todo estos sentimientos e impresiones se conjugan al final, y personalmente me dejaron algo desilusionado y atribulado. Pero aun así, no puedo negar que la historia es buena. Y si te gusta la opera espacial, esta es una gran opción de lectura para ese genero en particular.

¿La recomiendo?
Si, sin duda.
Pero ojo que es una lectura compleja y con muchos altos y bajos...

[Ralph Blackburn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saints of Salvation by Peter F. Hamilton- The third book in this exciting trilogy is full of strange twists and turns as we find out more about the Olyix and their strange Enclave. Across several timelines, humans are playing a millennial-long game after their rude awakening at the Vayan trap. They need to outthink and outmaneuver their deadly foe, who has become even more resourceful and dangerous. Once again Peter F. Hamilton gives us a daring space epic, where the human condition stands steadfast and unbent. Thanks to NetGalley for this great ARC!