Reynolds space revelation. Alastair reynolds space revelation

Alastair Reynolds

Space of Revelation

REVELATION SPACE Alastair Reynolds

AZBUKA publishing house

All rights reserved. No part of the electronic version of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, including posting on the Internet and corporate networks, for private and public use, without the written permission of the copyright owner.

©The electronic version of the book was prepared by Litres (www.litres.ru)

Chapter first

Mantel Sector, Northern Nekhbet Massif, Resurgem, Peacock Delta System, year 2551

A razor storm was brewing.

Sylvest stood on the edge of the excavation and wondered if the fruits of his labors would survive this night. The territory of the archaeological excavations was a series of deep square-section pits, separated by steep hills of excavated earth. The pits were laid according to the classic Wheeler grid. They went tens of meters deep and were covered with a transparent fabric woven from hyperdiamond threads. Millions of years of stratified geological history lay behind this cover. But what's next? One single sandstorm - and all the pits will be filled up to the very top.

“Confirmation received, sir,” one of the workers said, approaching Sylvest from the side of the first rover; the breathing mask muffled his voice. “Cuvier has just broadcast a storm warning for the entire northern part of the Nekhbet mountain range. All brigades working on the surface are advised to return to the nearest bases.

“Are you saying that we should pack up our belongings and drive off to Mantel?”

- A storm of incredible strength is expected. The worker nervously pulled down the collar of his windbreaker. “Will you order a complete evacuation order?”

Sylvest glanced at the excavations. The walls of the pits sparkled under the beams of searchlights installed throughout the site. The Peacock delta at these latitudes never rose high enough above the horizon to give good illumination. Now it hung almost at the very line of the horizon, and besides, it was half-hidden by thick clouds of dust - a faint rusty smear in the sky, almost imperceptible to the naked eye. Soon dust whirlwinds will also appear, they will rush over the ptero-steppe in thousands of tops spun to a frantic speed. And they will be followed by the main blow of the storm, rising over the horizon like a huge black anvil.

“There is no need to leave,” said Sylvest. We're pretty well covered up here. You must not have noticed, but those boulders over there show little evidence of wind erosion. If there is a very strong storm, well, we will lock ourselves in all-terrain vehicles.

The worker glanced at the boulders and shook his head as if he couldn't believe his own ears.

“Sir, Cuvier gives warnings of this categorical nature only once or twice a year. This storm is stronger than any we've seen.

- Do not speak for everyone; she is stronger than any that you have seen, ”Sylvest replied, noticing that the interlocutor’s gaze wriggled to the side. “I'll tell you what: we can't stop excavating. It is clear?

The subordinate looked around the area again.

“We can cover the pits with something on top. Dig in radio beacons. Even if the pits are covered by a storm, we will find them and return. This is where we stand. Frightened, pleading eyes darted about behind the thick glasses of goggles. “Isn’t it better than risking people and equipment?”

Sylvest stepped forward, forcing the interlocutor to retreat to the nearest pit.

“Here's what you're going to do now. Tell all crews to keep digging until new orders come in. And no talk of going back to Mantel. Okay, the most sensitive devices can be stowed in all-terrain vehicles. Is the command clear?

“But what about the people, sir?

And people will do what they came here for. They will dig.

Sylvest looked at the worker angrily, as if provoking him to bicker, but after a long pause, he ran with his usual agility along the path through the dumps. Arranged around the site, flimsy gravitometers, like cannons with their barrels bowed to the ground, trembled slightly in the increasing gusts of wind.

Silvest waited, and then followed the same path past several pits to the center of the excavation site. There, four pits were combined into one shaft with a section of thirty meters by thirty; its walls were also reinforced with hyperdiamond. Sylvest stepped onto the stairs leading down. He had descended into this shaft so many times in recent weeks that the absence of dizziness surprised him almost more than the picture that opened up to his eyes. Moving along the wall lined with transparent material, he seemed to float through the layers of time: more than nine hundred thousand years had passed since the Event. Most of these layers were permafrost, which was typical for the subpolar latitudes of Resurgem. This land has never thawed. Below it, very close to the Event, lay a layer of regolith, evidence of shock-explosive processes that took place in the subsequent period. The Event itself was marked by a thin black line - the ashes of burnt forests.

The wonderful book "The Space of Revelation" from the writer Alastair Reynolds is part of the amazingly interesting book series "The Space of Revelation".
Let's see why you should definitely start reading this novel? The genre of this book belongs to fantasy literature. This is a very adventurous work, cheerful and cheerful. In terms of the setting where the main events of this novel unfold, the writer Alastair Reynolds preferred that the events on the pages of the book "The Space of Revelation" unfold in extraterrestrial space - in outer space, on Mars, on other planets in other star systems. Since we have already said that this is a fantasy book, it would be logical to assume that the time of action in the Revelation Space edition will also refer to the distant future.
I would like to acquaint readers with what they will read about on the pages of this novel. There will be the following plot moves: mutations, quest games, scientific research, artificial intelligence, genetic experiments, alien invasion, saving the world, inventions and star arks.
Let's make a reservation right away that this is a linear-parallel plot, so don't let that scare you. The book "The Space of Revelation" has no age restrictions. Alastair Reynolds wrote it for the widest possible readership. So reading this novel will be interesting at any age: we guarantee you one hundred percent.
So what is this novel about? Once upon a time, humanity went into open space and began to explore, explore new planets. People wanted to find other civilizations. They hoped to find aliens and other signs of life in the galaxy. This desire is very commendable, but there was one big but in this. The fact is that instead of signs of a different life, people found only fragments and ruins of the former splendor.

More and more often, people began to raise the question of how diverse the world of stars and planets is, so why is there no prosperity and the emergence of life? Yes, curiosity does not always lead to good. And such questions did not turn out to be good for people.
The Space of Revelation is one of the most brilliant fantasy fiction of the last decade. Alastair Reynolds was able to create a great fantasy, a great space opera.
This sci-fi novel Revelation Space features mutiny, murder, crime investigation, escapades. Of course, there is also a love line. Reading this book is an absolute pleasure. We wish you a pleasant and exciting reading.

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Powerful, multi-dimensional, twisted fantasy of the highest order.

My favorite and first read novel in the series is The City of the Abyss. This is where the author was not bound by the bonds of self-created misfortunes of an excessively large scale. It is in The City that we, like the protagonist, rush into the maelstrom of events, remembering our history along the way and being distracted by an amazing interlude. It is in the "abyss" that we see the whole diversity of this universe, its entire volume and immensity. And how good are the main "heroes"! So "gray", so charismatic, but they are worth all the characters in the next trilogy.

The core of this cycle is the trilogy, as I called it, "Nostalgia for Infinity". The ill-named and sensibly renamed "Space of Revelation" is the first to introduce us to this universe and its mysteries; with the infinite cosmos, connected only by sublighters who literally travel through space and lost time; we see a world in which people can not only build cyclopean cities, but also rebuild themselves in immense vanity; and then we see the price paid. And this novel introduces the author's signature style - three parallel plots

Spoiler (plot reveal)

which unexpectedly intertwine in the final

The next two books, so late in translation, will tell about the further misadventures of Nostalgia. And although they are completely logical and continue a straight line, towards the end you yourself begin to yearn for the infinity that was in the first book. In it, the space was huge, and the heroes could fly anywhere, find themselves in any place where they were not expected, see a new unusual world, but responsibility imposes obligations, and obligations take away freedom.

With the last lines of Redemption Abyss, it even seemed to me that Alastair himself was not happy that he raised the bar for cosmic events, and although he honorably brought the plot to completion, and even left a hint of saving his beloved heroes from the City of the Abyss, I fear the possible sequels, or maybe Reynolds himself, who was more willing to write a prequel novel and stories from the universe's past.

Score: 10

Chilling image of the future, so attractive for its realism

5 novels (three of them make up a trilogy, two are completely independent), 2 novellas, 2 short stories (one of which, alas, cannot be found in Russian, since it was prepared for the convention), all this makes up a large-scale cycle "The Space of Revelation", if talk about translations into Russian. If we talk about the original language, then 1 novel (a continuation of the Prefect), 3 stories and as many as 6 stories are added to the above. Quite a weighty appendage, which we are unlikely to see in the near future, no matter how much we would like it. The Reynolds cycle is quite voluminous both in terms of the number of works (here we also include the volume of works as such - the books are quite long), and in terms of the scale of actions. Moreover, the "Space of Revelation" is a storehouse of ideas, plot moves and intrigues. But more on that later. Regarding the chronology of reading - there are two options. The first is to read according to the chronology of writing, the second is to read according to the chronology of the events of the universe. A similar approach is applicable to many cycles a priori. In my opinion, "The Space of Revelation" is better to read according to the chronology of events. Yes, there is a certain disadvantage to this (Reynolds put most of the information into the first [by writing] books), but then there will be no confusion about the history of the universe. But this is just my opinion, everyone is free to choose for themselves. Since I have already written reviews for each novel, here I only summarize the information on them concisely.

"The Great Wall" is a small story, it does not contribute much to the cycle as a whole (we are talking about a through plot). It has factions that will lay the foundation for other races in the future. She is most closely associated with The Ark of Salvation through a character named Nevil.

"Prefect" is an interesting, rather driving novel. Written in the style of a neotechnodective. Reminds me of Hamilton's Star Road. The book is strong but leaves a lot of questions. Believe me, you will find the answers to them a little later. There are no strong links to other works, but many things (Eighty, for example) get a response in subsequent books. The novel does not provide much for a general setting, but information is information. It is interesting that Yellowstone appears here in its dawn.

"City of the Abyss" is the strangest novel. The genre is adventure with action elements. Fiction minimum. In it, the author arranges the pieces on the chessboard for a very long time. The book is very local, almost all the action takes place in the City of the Abyss. The novel is interesting in that here the main character is Tanner Mirabelle. He will definitely appear in future novels. Plus the Abyss City itself will be mentioned. Finally, the Order of the Mendicants. He also has a place. For a general setting, the novel provides quite solid information. Perhaps this is the only objective plus of the book. Otherwise, this is the weakest product of the cycle (at least in large form).

Sleep Stretch is a short story with horror elements. This is a pure "star ark", an extremely local product. For the shared universe, the value is zero.

Revelation Space is a novel that is a bombshell in terms of overall setting. A lot of information. After the "City of the Abyss" - this is a breath of fresh air. Lots of action, lots of secrets and mysteries. Genre is an adventure within the framework of hard sci-fi. Two obvious plus points are answering some past questions and setting the direction for future books. One of the most powerful novels in the cycle, although it is the debut for the author.

The Ark of Salvation is a direct continuation of the Space of Revelation. Many heroes are returning (I deliberately do not name them so as not to spoil). The world of conjoiners is revealed (it is extremely interesting). The nature of the "hell" class weapons is explained. The most hard (in the sense of hard sci-fi) book of the cycle. Lots of links explaining the terminology. The novel is decently connected with the story "The Great Wall". More local connection to "City of the Abyss" - at least three characters will appear in the "Ark of Salvation". One of them will not be called by its own name, but it is not difficult to guess if the "City" is read.

"Abyss of Redemption". This is a direct continuation of the previous two books. The same heroes, the same opposition to the overwhelming. This is a planetary novel, there is practically no space opera in it. The author clearly did not pull out some storylines. The ending ended up being blurry. Both for the trilogy and for the entire "Revelation Space". The characters didn't really like it. Those who used to be a flamboyant character are now a function character.

"Nightingale". A little creepy story. It's an interesting read, and the atmosphere is uplifting towards the end. Reminds me a bit of Alien (the very first film in the franchise). For the general history of the cycle does not give absolutely nothing.

What can be said about the cycle as a whole? The author raised a lot of topics. It is hardly possible to list all of them, but I will name those that have received a response from me: this is responsibility for discoveries and one's own actions (Creator-Being conflict); this is the disclosure of Fermat's paradox; this icy future - full of hopeless dreams; this is a pessimistic assessment of the current state of our world (as a critical view of what the author draws before the reader); this is a view of cosmogony in general terms - our world is as young as we can imagine the number of stars in the universe. In addition, Reynolds uses (somewhere new, but somewhere borrowed, modified and modified) other interesting finds and ideas, more local. For example, alphas and betas; clones and cloning; the mind of the shells of ships; human evolution into new races (conjoiners, ultras, hyperpigs).

A few words about publications. Now many books of the cycle cannot be found in paper form, so I had to read something on paper and download something from the Internet. It was a surprise for me to find different terminology (the biggest questions to the translation of "Abyss of Redemption"). Therefore, I will make a small educational program on different interpretations of terms and unique words to make it easier for future readers. Abyss City = Chasm City; conjoiners = articulators; suppressive = inhibitors; Scorpio = Scorpio; Remontoire = Remontoir;

Conclusion: the cycle is not without its shortcomings. There are rather weak works (in isolation from the cycle, at least), but there are also incredibly powerful novels (and short stories). But all the minuses melt before our eyes before the author's ideas and their implementation. The works are not so easy to read, but it is not necessary to wade through the text too much. Reynolds is quite savvy in science and psychology - the cycle is strong in terms of social overtones. To everyone who is just going to get acquainted with the "Space of Revelation", I want to wish a little patience - books have a high percentage of entries (this is typical for hard sci-fi), but the author is definitely able to pleasantly surprise.

P.S. I sincerely hope that the ABC will take up additional. circulations (we are talking about the “Trilogy of Inhibitors”) or for additional editions of works (the continuation of “Prefect” and a collection of small forms). If not ABC, then hope only for the fans (I personally am ready to participate both in raising money and proofreading translations). FanZone could do this, but they deny such a prospect. It's a pity.

Score: 10

An interesting cycle - voluminous, large-scale, with a well-written universe, amusing characters, a twisted plot and a good scientific component, it is clear that the author is a doctor of astronomical sciences. And, although many point to an extremely depressing and gloomy writing style, it doesn’t seem like that to me, the author showed us life, albeit fantastic, but the way it really is: not simple, but complex, full of struggle, difficult decisions and deprivation. I began to read from The Great Wall and further along the internal chronology of the cycle. Prefect and City of the Abyss, as a kind of prelude to the Inhibitor trilogy, provide a good description of the world in which subsequent events unfold.

The cycle is read quickly, but at times you “sag” due to the abundance of meticulous descriptions of mechanisms and secondary events. And at times, the heroes "piss me off" because of their decisions, which are not always logical, as for me. Speaking of logic, I was somewhat disappointed with inhibitors (they are also Suppressors, Devourers, Wolves),

Spoiler (plot reveal) (click on it to see)

a formidable merciless force that suppresses life, and the purpose of all their manipulations is still not clear, how the suppression of life can help save the galaxy in a ghostly future in a collision with Andromeda, I did not understand

The intrigue did not justify itself. If anyone understands otherwise, I would be grateful for an explanation. That's who I really liked, so it's the Jointers (they are United, Conjoiners), if I lived in this Universe, I would definitely pump myself like that =)

The cycle turned out to be worthy: dynamic, exciting, sometimes adventurous, sometimes funny (as for me) - in general, a pleasant pastime is guaranteed. Although I lacked the depth of reasoning, but it's like anyone, after all, this is still a space opera.

Score: 9

10 out of 10! One of my favorite book series. This is a great piece of space opera. Reading is a pleasure. The plot is twisted so famously that you will never guess what will happen next! Amazing events in incredible scenery. And the characters? .. What is only the captain of Nostalgia for infinity fused with the ship! I take my hat off to the genius of the author.

Score: 10

Alastair Reynolds

Space of Revelation

REVELATION SPACE Alastair Reynolds

AZBUKA publishing house

©The electronic version of the book was prepared by Litres (www.litres.ru)

Chapter first

Mantel Sector, Northern Nekhbet Massif, Resurgem, Peacock Delta System, year 2551

A razor storm was brewing.

“Are you saying that we should pack up our belongings and drive off to Mantel?”

- A storm of incredible strength is expected. The worker nervously pulled down the collar of his windbreaker. “Will you order a complete evacuation order?”

The worker glanced at the boulders and shook his head as if he couldn't believe his own ears.

“Sir, Cuvier gives warnings of this categorical nature only once or twice a year. This storm is stronger than any we've seen.

The subordinate looked around the area again.

Sylvest stepped forward, forcing the interlocutor to retreat to the nearest pit.

“But what about the people, sir?

And people will do what they came here for. They will dig.

The bottom of the mine was not completely flat. It descended in a tapering staircase to a depth of forty meters from the surface. At the very bottom, additional lighting fixtures had to be installed. The small excavation site literally seethed with human energy. The breath of the approaching storm was simply not felt here. A group of diggers worked almost silently, kneeling on mats. The instruments that were used to work were so thin and complex that in another era they could have served surgeons. The main ones here were three students from Cuvier - natives of Resurgem. A robot languished nearby, waiting for orders. Although the machines did not have to stand idle in the early stages of the excavation, they were not trusted at the final stage. Next to the diggers sat a brunette in a black coat, with geometrically defined bangs; the compad in her lap showed a chart of the evolution of the Amaranthian skulls. As soon as the woman saw Sylvest, who was descending almost silently, she stood up and slammed the compad.

“Yes, you were right,” she said. “Whatever lies here is large and looks well-preserved.

– Do you have any suggestions, Pascal?

“And that’s more for you.” I'm only allowed to comment here. – Pascal Dubois, a young journalist from Cuvier, from the very beginning covered the excavations in the press, but did not hesitate to pick up a shovel, easily mastering the intricacies of archeology. “A grim sight, these skeletons. Even though they are aliens, I still feel sorry for them.

In one of the walls of the mine, where the steps leading even lower began, two burials lined with stone slabs were unearthed. Although the graves were at least nine hundred thousand years old, they are well preserved. The anatomical structure of the bones suggested that they belonged to relatives. These were the typical bones of the Amaranthians. An observer inexperienced in archeology would take them for human ones, since these creatures also had four limbs, two of which served for movement; growth approximately corresponded to the growth of a person. The similarity was also observed in other details: the volume of the skull is approximately the same, the organs of sense, respiration and speech are located similarly. But the skulls of both Amaranthians were elongated and bird-like, with a clear crest going forward from the back of the head, past the voluminous eye sockets, to the beak-shaped upper jaw. There were tatters of brown cloth hanging here and there on the bones, as if they were meant to hold the dying in a pose of agony. These were not fossils in the full sense of the word: there was no mineralization of the bones. The graves themselves were empty, except for the bones and a few items of clearly man-made origin, with which the dead were buried.

“Perhaps,” said Sylvest, leaning over and touching the skull with his finger, “they wanted to make us feel exactly that way.

“No,” Pascal replied. “It's just that the tissue dried up and the bones changed their position.

Maybe they've been like this since the beginning?

Feeling the skull through the fabric of the glove, which conveyed sensations to his fingers, he suddenly remembered the yellow hall on the upper tier of the City of the Abyss, with watercolors on the walls depicting methane glaciers. Livery robots moved among the guests, offering sweets and liquors, drapes of bright silks hung from the vaults of the palace. In the air, according to the latest fashion, images of seraphim, cherubim, hummingbirds and fairies shone and waved. He even remembered the guests, mostly family-related, people he either barely knew or didn't like; there were very few of his friends here. Father, as usual, was very late. The night was approaching when Calvin finally deigned to appear. However, this did not surprise anyone: it was the time of Calvin's latest and greatest project, so the very process of its implementation was, as it were, the slow death of its creator. Not to mention the subsequent suicide that happened in the midst of work.

Space of Revelation [Cosmic Apocalypse] - 1

Chapter first

Mantel Sector, North Nekhebet, Resurgem, Peacock Delta System, year 2551

A razor storm was coming.

Sylvest stood on the edge of the excavation and wondered if the fruits of his labors would survive this night. The territory of the archaeological excavations consisted of a series of deep square-section pits, separated by areas of hilly barren soil. The pits were laid according to the classic Wheeler grid. They went tens of meters deep and were lined with transparent slabs woven from hyperdiamond threads. Millions of years of stratified geological history lay behind these plates. But now - only one sandstorm, and all the pits will be filled up flush with the surface of the surrounding dunes.

“Confirmation received, sir,” one of the workers said, approaching Sylvest from the side of the first crawler. From under his breathing mask, his voice sounded muffled - Cuvier had just broadcast a storm warning for the entire continent of Northern Nekhebet. All surface teams have been ordered to return to nearby bases.

"Are you saying we should pack up and go to Mantel?"

“The storm is expected to be incredibly strong,” the worker nervously pulled off the collar of his windbreaker. “Will you order a complete evacuation order?”

Sylvest glanced at the excavations. The walls of the pits sparkled under the rays of lanterns installed throughout the site. The Peacock delta in these latitudes never rose so high above the horizon as to give good illumination. Now it was almost at the very line of the horizon, and besides, it was half-hidden by thick clouds of dust and looked like a faint rusty-red smear in the sky, which the human eye hardly noticed. Soon, soon, "dusty devils" will appear, who will rush over the surface of the Pterosteppes with thousands of toy tops. And they will be followed by the main blow of the storm, rising over the horizon like a huge black anvil.

“No,” said Sylvest. - There is no need to leave. We're pretty well covered here. On those boulders over there, for your information, there are almost no traces of wind erosion. I guess you just didn't notice. If the storm is very strong - well, we lock ourselves in the crawlers.

The worker glanced at the boulders and shook his head, as if doubting his hearing.

“Sir,” he said, “Cuvier gives warnings of this categorical nature no more than once or twice a year. The strength of this storm is greater than any we have seen.

“More than anything you've seen, you mean,” Sylvest replied, noticing that his interlocutor's gaze swerved to the side. “I'll tell you what. We can't abandon this dig. Are you clear?

The man looked around the area again.

— We can cover the pits with something from above. Dig in radio beacons. Even if the pits are filled with a storm, we will find this place and return to it. To where we are now standing, - wild frightened eyes darted around behind the thick glasses of goggles. “Isn’t it better than risking people’s lives and equipment?”

Sylvest stepped forward, forcing the interlocutor to retreat to the nearest pit.

“You have to do this. Tell all working groups to keep digging until new orders come in. And no talk of going back to Mantel. Okay, let's put the most sensitive devices in the crawlers for now. Clear?

“But what about the people, sir?

And people will do what they came here for. They will dig.

Sylvest looked at the worker with disapproval, as if provoking an argument, but he turned on his heels and ran across the platform, jumping over the tops of the barchans with his usual dexterity.