The Revelation Space Collection

Revelation Space #0.1, 0.5-3.5

by Alastair Reynolds

All seven books set in the REVELATION SPACE universe, now collected in one bundle

Nine hundred thousand years ago, something wiped out the Amarantin. For the human colonists now settling the Amarantin homeworld Resurgam, it's of little more than academic interest, even after the discovery of a long-hidden, almost perfect Amarantin city and a colossal statue of a winged Amarantin. For brilliant but ruthless scientist Dan Sylveste, it's more than merelty intellectual curiosity - and he will stop at nothing to get at the truth. Even if the truth costs him everything. But the Amarantin were wiped out for a reason, and that danger is closer and greater than even Syveste imagines...

Contains seven fantastic novels:
REVELATION SPACE
CHASM CITY
REDEMPTION ARK
ABSOLUTION GAP
THE PREFECT
DIAMOND DOGS & TURQUOISE DAYS
GALACTIC NORTH

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Ebooks, Space Opera

4065 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2011

About the author

I'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.

Reviews

[Tk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a labor of patience. You start out on this drab idiotic setting for anyone to be on. And these idiots are digging in the dirt. They find something. This. is. retarded. Once you get to the marriage gun, it starts getting readable. (and you still have like 7000 pages left) By the time you realize why this drab idiotic setting is so drab, you're hooked. Then you have this whole thing with Hausmann (Book 2). Hooked. Melding Plague? What's that? The scenery? It's like the whole of Bladerunner was shoved into a blender with Alien (the first one, mind you) Then you're off, you need to find out where where everything goes.

Ok. Flaws. Massive plot holes (or rather, subject matter to be filled at a later time?) But the universe it's set in works. Wolves, face heat sinks, fetus stealing, immortal astronauts, religion, god-snails? A lot could be better, sure... (then YOU write it)

This is the most insane universe I have ever seen in sci-fi. The Culture (Banks) stands by itself, unparalleled and spectacular. But the universe Reynolds has created is enormous, and, in my opinion, perfect. If you have a few month (if you're a dork like me) to read many thousand pages, do this. Then ask yourself: Why write anything if it's not going to be this.

This is the same guy that wrote House of Suns and Blue Remembered Earth (if you haven't read these, then you should punch yourself. And then punch the hand that you punched yourself with. Because you're both stupid)

Gibson and Hamilton fans.... oh, what's the point, you guys have already read this.

[John Boettcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great collection of books from one of my all time favorite authors. Three of the books, Revelation Space, Redemption Ark, and Absolution Gap are set as a trilogy, Chasm City is set as a stand alone novel somewhere between the first and second book in the trilogy, and the rest of the short stories in the series are set in the same universe but are not DIRECTLY related to the overall story all though they give context and help the reader become more familiar with the universe and characters.

All in all, I would suggest the Revelation Space trilogy, if you want to call it that, as the best three reads in the collection. You will get the grandest of the stories and the most expansive of world creation.

There is nothing that I am going to write that is going to describe the three books better than if you just go give them a chance.

[David Baird · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good and bad. Many great concepts, but pretty decent is often stentorian and plots too complex for the sake of it. The end of Absolution Gap was dreadful, essentially skipping the resolution of the Inhibitor issue, plus the greenflies are never adequately elaborated. Many great characters and themes that could have been expanded too.

[Shaun · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overblown with too much irrelevant details, duller than a dirty dish cloth. Perhaps I was spoiled from reading the Expanse and Old Man War series coming in to this, but my lord this book put me straight to sleep.

[Selçuk Gökhan Kalkanoğlu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bu devasa kitaplar kitabının sadece %3'ünü okudum. Devamını getirmemeye karar verdim.

Kitabın başları halihazırda var olduğu belli olan ama bir okuyucu olarak benim hakkında hiçbir bilgimin olmadığı bir diyarda geçiyor. Haliyle, hiçbir şey anlamadan, veyahut habire Wiki sayfalarından spoiler yiyerek, on yüz bin milyon tane bu kitaba özel terim arasında yolumu bulmaya çalışarak saatlerim geçiyor.

Devamında az buçuk terimleri anlatıyor ve hikaye (okuduğum spoilererden de güç alarak) bir yere oturmaya başlıyor zihnimde. İçerisindeki komplolar vs. fena değil. Ammmaaa... Yazar gerekli gereksiz her bir şeyi uzun uzun anlatmış. Hikayeye hiçbir katkısı olmayan, anlamsız sekanslara dolu. Çok dağınık, alakasız hikayeler toparlanmış ve diyar hakkında önbilgisi olmayan okuyucu bunlar arasında fena halde yıpratılmış.

Karakterler, cihazlar, teknolojiler çok şişirilmiş. Uçanı kaçanı alt edecek gibi sunuluyor ama nihayetinde yaptıkları neredeyse hiçbir şey dahiyane görünmüyor. İnandırıcılığı düşüren bir unsur. Acemi yazarlarda sıkça gördüğüm bir şeyi böylesine ünlü bir yazarsda da görmek canımı sıktı.
Herkes çok zeki, herkes on numara, alanında süper. Ama nihayetinde yapabildikleri sıradan bir insanınkinden pek de farklı değil.

Kitabın dili çok hoştu. Bir sürü daha önce bilmediğim kelimeye denk geldim vs. Zaten o yüzden kendimi zorlayıp devam ettim. Ama yeter.

Büyük komplolar, enteresan bilimsel fikirler ve uzatılan hikayeler seven insanlar için güzel bir eser ama benlik değil. Bu seriye veda ettiğim için üzgünüm.

[Paraskevi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the whole series. i started reading the books last year and I finished the last book in this collection (not in the series, though, one more to go...).
This is an insane universe full of big and small stories. I only read the last book in the collection these last days, which is Aurora Rising, a story set in the Glitter Band.

[Richard Hakes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good and some not so good!

[Nathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I WANT MORE ❤️

[Deepshikha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved all the stories. Alastair Reynolds is now one of my favourite scifi authors.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

I should probably review each one separately, but I got them in this bundle on kindle having read The Prefect on paper. Reynolds scifi is a fascinating mixture of tech and unyielding physical principles that makes for a much more interesting setting than a poorly imagined tech-as-magic universe. Having everyone stuck traveling realistic distances at light speed defines everything and is a central theme that creeps in to almost every book. Characters tend toward the extreme but they evoke sympathy and keep the stories moving through the planets, suns, dark interstellar places and strange posthuman cultures that you're really there to read about. The highlight is the trilogy in the RevelationSpace arc, but Chasm City and The Prefect also fit perfectly in the setting and history in all the books is consistent.
Would be a 5 for most books and a 3 for the short stories. Well worth reading.

[Jacob Schoerner · Rating 5 out of 5]

High quality hard science fiction. The science in question is usually of the kind that is interesting even to one who doesn't actually understand the, well, science-y aspects of it, because of it's philosophical implications. Overall, the series does a good job of discussing how possible future technologies might affect us as humans on a very deep, psychological level The series reach their definite peak in the second volume, Redemption Ark, and they can be read fairly independently, so if you're unsure of whether you'll manage all three, start there.

[Allen Randall · Rating 4 out of 5]

The books and the whole world of Revelation Space was quite interesting. However, after reading the initial books in the series, the rest of the novellas, short stories, etc were a little confusing because the timeline was a bit jumbled, based on my understanding. If they could have been ordered a bit better, it would have made this very good collection even better.

[Luke Scammell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many, many unresolved threads – so if that bugs you, steer clear – but I love the universe and would gladly read much, much more.

Ilia Volyova is a fantastic character and I'd love to hear more of her story.

[Tony Braner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic universe, would love to read again someday.

[Koen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good!

[Geoffrey Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the greatest SF series I've read. Alastair Reynolds is amazing! Long may he write!