Children of the Divide

Children of a Dead Earth #3

by Patrick S. Tomlinson

No matter how far humanity comes, it can’t escape its own worst impulses, in this far-future science fiction thriller from the author of The Ark.
 
A new generation comes of age eighteen years after humanity arrived on the colony planet Gaia. Now threats from both within and outside their Trident threaten everything they’ve built.
 
The discovery of an alien installation inside Gaia’s moon, terrorist attacks and the kidnap of a man’s daughter stretch the community to breaking point, but only two men stand a chance of solving all three mysteries before the makeshift planetary government shuts everything down.

Genres: Science Fiction, Adventure

566 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 2017

About the author

Patrick S. Tomlinson lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with his wife, a menagerie of houseplants in varying levels of health, a Mustang, and a Triumph motorcycle bought specifically to embarrass and infuriate Harley riders. When not writing sci-fi and fantasy novels and short stories, Patrick is busy developing his other passion for writing and performing stand-up comedy in the Madison, Milwaukee, and Chicago scenes.

Reviews

[Paul · Rating 1 out of 5]

Seems like a book written by a man who sees himself as inadequate, but will dress it up with false bravado. The kind of guy who would t be allowed to see his kid unless the visit is supervised.

[Sarah B · Rating 4 out of 5]

So this last book in the trilogy was very action packed with tons of danger! It certainly had some truly gasping moments of excitement plus a few twists I had never expected at all... But the book is about freedom and independence... And about the relationships between the humans and the alien Atlanteans on Gaia. Needless to say, there is trouble in paradise and unfairness is raging in the communities.

I had hoped to rate this one 5 stars as I had the previous two and to be honest I had thought about doing that but there were a few things that made me give it 4 stars instead.

The story sort of splits off into sections that follow different characters. One bit follows Jian as he explores the moon with his tiny friend named Polly... And I definitely preferred this part of the story. It was way more mysterious and so it just grabbed my curiosity way more. So when the chapters switched back to the other part of the story - with Benexx - I found myself getting a tad annoyed? I just didn't find myself very intrigued by the plotline she was involved in - even though she was in great danger. And I guess that is kind of odd? I mean shouldn't I care about Benexx? But for unknown reasons I just didn't. And the longer the parts with her continued the less interested I was? I guess her situation was just too "ordinary" while Jian was dealing with stuff more aligned with my other interests: archeology. Even though he is a pilot.

Then there is how this book ends. While it has an end (and this is indeed the last book in the trilogy) it leaves the door open for another possible series. And since it has been years since this was published it seems we may never actually learn the other bits. And I really wanted to know! The stuff about Earth I mean.

I guess I am not really satisfied with the ending at all. Its like hanging a carrot in front of a horse on that rope/stick but he can't get it.

Now there were some truly dazzling action scenes in here, especially near the front half of the book. I did like the front half more. It was more thrilling. Exciting. Surviving by a hair. But then the second half was well... Kind of blah.

I liked Polly and how "she" helps Jian.

I also liked the Star Trek reference in here on how Jian wanted to name the very first warp drive starship the Enterprise. Basically this was just a paragraph in the novel but it was very cool.

I could not relate to Benexx. I think in part because she seemed grumpy, sour and troublesome. That turned me off.

[MadProfessah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third book in the Children of a Dead Earth series by Patrick Tomlinson, which began with THE ARK and TRIDENT'S FORGE.

It's interesting that the word "Children" plays such a central role in the description of the series and in the third book CHILDREN OF THE DIVIDE. I had thought that this was primarily metaphorical but by definition children are living representations of the future and even though the series is set far in the future from the reader's point of view, the central idea of the entire series so far is about the future of humanity.

The first book was about the end of the 200-year journey of a generation ship ("The Ark") from an Earth (which was destroyed by a deliberately targeted black hole) to a new home planet named Gaia in the star system Tau Ceti. The second book is about first contact between the humans and intelligent (but technologically underdeveloped) aliens and the growing pains associated with colonization as humanity adapts to living on a planet after only knowing life in an artificial environment.

The third book in the series builds on this background by focusing on the difficulties and conflicts that arise 15 years after the events of the second book. The human colony is more established and intertwined with the aliens (called Atlantians, after the name of the continent they are mostly found in).

However, in this book the story primarily revolves around inter-generational and cultural conflict, human-Atlantis, father-son and parents-adopted child.

One key feature of this book which seemed to be done more effectively than in the first, was the depiction of the gender-neutral nature of the aliens. In the second book, this seemed like an unnecessary affectation but for some reason, in the third book the regular use of ze/zer/zers to describe the main character of Benexx, an Atlantian teenager works well. (It may just be that as a reader I have grown more accustomed to the idea of of non-binary gender identities.)

Other key developments in the story involve the discovery of an alien artifact, a terrorist attack on the anniversary of First Contact, an important kidnaping and a violent riot between aliens and humans.

Overall, this was a thrilling entry in the series. These books are a compelling combination of science fiction and mystery thriller. I thought the series was a trilogy but it seems like there will be more books as there are developments at the end of the third book which raise issues that question existential premises the story is based upon.

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book free from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. Written by Patrick S. Tomlinson and published by Angry Robot (an imprint of Watkins Media Ltd. in 2017, the book is a Science Fiction novel set in distant future on an inhabited alien planet in a distant star system. To me, the story appears to be primarily aimed at Young Adult (YA) audience, especially the dialogue between the principals in the story, and the emphasis on its younger (teenaged) characters. Although entertaining, I found the plot, and the science, to be mildly unconvincing, and the stilted dialogue did not help in that regard.

The story involves two independent plot lines. One involves a junior space officer who is also the son of the captain of a starship, and his adventures on the moon of the alien subject planet, while another involves a pair of human “parents” who have adopted a young alien “female” and raised her into her teens. The space officer is named Jian, and he has a very strained relationship with his father. The adopted alien is named Benexx, and ze (she) has a mind of her own, and also a rebellious streak. On Jian’s very first command mission using a shuttle to ferry parts to the alien moon, he discovers something unexpected. Trouble begins almost immediately, and it is coordinated with problems that develop simultaneously down on the planet’s surface. Benexx gets herself kidnapped by terrorists, and must save herself, which adds suspense and action to the story.

One thing that bothered me was the author’s use of altered pronouns when referring to the aliens, or when the aliens referred to the humans. He chose to replace the words “he” and “she” with “ze,” and the words “him” and “her” with “zer.” I found this to be contrived and not at all necessary to the readability of the story. In fact, it was sometimes confusing because, when two different aliens were referred to in the same sentence, along with the term “ze’d” to mean either “she had” or “he had,” it was not at all clear which alien was being referred to, especially if they were of different genders.

Loose ends were tied up at the end of the story, but I still believe that it is more suitable for a YA audience than for a seasoned sci-fi fan. It is an easy read, that many will find entertaining. I award three stars of a possible five.

[Alan Ennis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad

Not a bad end to the series, good read good pace. Funny in the right places. I prefer the more recent starship repo series though

[LaShawnda Jones · Rating 1 out of 5]

Poor writing. Unimaginative. Race-baiter. Hate-filled character. DNF. No not recommend.

[Mal Warwick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eighteen years ago, the Ark arrived at Gaia, an Earth-like planet circling the star Tau Ceti. The 30,000 humans who survived the 235-year journey from the dying Earth have established the town of Shambhala on Gaia’s surface. They’re an ocean away from the network of villages and roads where the native inhabitants live on the continent of Atlantis. But now, in addition to the 30,000 humans who live in Shambhala, a young, fast-growing population of Atlantians lives in the “native quarter.” The brewing conflict between species is the setup in the third volume in Patrick S. Tomlinson‘s suspenseful sci-fi mystery series, Children of the Divide.

The people who drive the story

Although the cast of characters is satisfyingly broad, the novel revolves around three principal figures.

** Bryan Benson returns following his adventures in the two earlier books in the trilogy. Now fifty-two years of age, he’s the former Chief Constable of the Ark. He’s humanity’s hero for foiling the terrorist plot that threatened to extinguish Earth’s survivors. His wife, Theresa, is now Constable herself. Together, they’re the adoptive parents of a fifteen-year-old Atlantian child named Benexx. There’s no conflict between species in their family. Benexx is a teenager, and they’re the parents.

** Like human teenagers, Benexx is cranky and rebellious. Ze—the Atlantians’ personal pronouns are ze/zer/zers—regards Bryan as an unreasonable old fossil. Zer kidnapping triggers one of the principal arcs of the story.

** Meanwhile, an equally prominent storyline unfolds far above the surface of Gaia. Twenty-five-year-old Jian Feng, son of the Ark‘s captain, Chao Feng, is Benexx’s best friend. He was newly promoted within the Ark‘s crew and now commands one of the shuttles. On assignment, he leads a team to Gaia’s moon. There, he uncovers an ancient, high-tech installation placed there by yet a third intelligent species unknown to the humans.

Other characters play meaningful roles in the story, many of them holdovers from the earlier books, including Captain Chao Feng and the Atlantian “truth-digger” (detective), Kexx. There’s also an adorable, shapeshifting little automaton that Tomlinson characterizes as a “bionic bug.” Oh, and there are terrorists here, too. Again.

A tale of conflict between species—and collaboration, too

Children of the Divide is fundamentally a story about how two sentient races might interact. It’s also a tale of fathers and the difficult relationships they have with their children. But above all, perhaps, it’s a product of a novelist’s wishful thinking about the abundance of extraterrestrial life.

Given the Great Silence, it seems appropriate to assume that, at the very least, life is rare in the universe. Of course, there are hundreds of billions of galaxies, each of which contains hundreds of billions of stars, so even though rare, life might indeed exist on thousands or even millions of worlds. The problem is, distances in the universe are so unfathomably great that the possibility for humans to encounter another sentient species within twelve light-years—Tau Ceti’s distance from Earth—is vanishingly small.

How accurate is the science in this science fiction novel?

The best answer to this question is, it depends. Tomlinson puts on a good show of demonstrating that he understands perfectly well what space travel might be like and how people would cope with weightlessness and varying levels of gravity. He goes into credible detail about how engineering problems might be solved. And he successfully inserts such technical terms as “van der Waals’ forces,” “orbital insertion,” and “Kardashev Type II civilization” in his text. (Look them up, if you’re wondering.) On the surface, Children of the Divide comes across as hard science fiction. But it’s not.

The two sapient species are unlikely to be so similar

The people who populate the town of Shambhala and the Ark in the skies above are recognizably human. But the native Atlantians are like them in far too many ways to be believed. They’re bipedal, they speak words aloud, they build towns, and they fight battles with weapons that resemble those of fourteenth century Europe. They even share a sense of humor with the colonists! None of this seems likely, given the vast, even inconceivably wide range of possible body shapes and means of communication that life might otherwise have selected. However, the conflict between species seems understated, if anything.

What the new planet is actually like

The planet Tomlinson’s colonists have named Gaia is Tau Ceti g, the innermost of the four “Earth-like” planets discovered orbiting our closest sun-like star. While it’s possible that Tau Ceti e or f could in some way actually resemble Earth—they orbit their primary at distances of 0.5 AU and about 1.3 AU (about 46 million or 121 million miles, compared to Earth’s 93 million—but they’re both about four times as massive as Earth, so the gravity would be punishing for humans. But the planet called Gaia in this novel couldn’t conceivably be anything like Tomlinson says it is. It’s situated extremely close to Tau Ceti, with an orbital radius of 0.13 AU, or about 12 million miles compared to Earth’s 93 million.

The colonists in this novel couldn’t survive on Gaia

In other words, it seems impossible that anything but extremophile life could exist on Gaia because it would be instantly snuffed out by the torrential radiation from the star. That’s if the searing heat didn’t get them instead. (On Mercury, which is five times as far from Sol as Tau Ceti g is from its primary, the surface temperature reaches 800 degrees.) And Gaia circles Tau Ceti every 20 days, which would disorient colonists, to say the least.

The verdict

Children of the Divide is a flawed piece of work, and not just because the planetary science doesn’t hold up or the conflict between species seems too tame. The book abounds with anachronistic figures of speech (“roger that”) and cultural references (“like a famous coyote,” referring to the cartoon figure of Wile E. Coyote). And there are far too many malapropisms (“on the lamb” for “on the lam”) and other abuse of the language. Typographical errors, misspellings (“non-neutonian fluid, with “u” for “w”), and errors in word usage (“too ubiquitous” for just “ubiquitous”) are frequent, too. But it’s still a good story.

Its flaws notwithstanding, Children of the Divide is well-crafted and consistently entertaining. It works both as a mystery and as science fiction. The dialogue is crisp and occasionally amusing. (Tomlinson is a standup comic as well as a writer.) I recommend the book, but I suspect readers would find it most rewarding to begin with The Ark, the first of the three books that have appeared to date in this series.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved the first two could have snoozed through this one. Eighteen years have passed since characters arrived at their new home. Children have grown up, are rebellious teenagers and have some different ideas and feeling from their parents. This has bombs, kidnapping and acts that could be seen as treason but I just did not care about the action. What I did like was the discovery even though it was an old much used trope. This is book three in the series but the ending lead me to believe that there will be more in the future. Even though I was disappointed by book three I still recommend the series based on how much I liked the first two books.

I received a free copy of the book in return for an honest review.

[B · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s weird, when I was reading the first Ark book, I thought it was good so I looked up the sequels to put them in my Libby queue. I swear I read the description of the 3rd book to be that they had received a signal from the Earth they thought was dead and were building new faster spaceships to go check it out with their new alien allies. So I finished Ark and bk 2 expecting to read this great adventure back to earth for book 3, but apparently I completely hallucinated it? But also, {SPOILERS} that IS actually what seems to happen at the end? They have new alien allies, are building a faster ship, and got a signal from earth. So idk wtf, maybe I dreamed it? But I really want there to be a book 4 soon!!

[5t4n5 Dot Com · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really couldn't take any more of this story.   I gave up when Jian was about to crash into the orbital lift.

Yes folks, once again the last remaining humans manage to screw everything up.   Once again there's a human faction trying to destroy everything.

Rinse, repeat, yawn, Zzzzzz.

Some people might like it, i suppose.

[Bob · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, after all the 21st century platitudes (or cliches, or propaganda - including humans "killing" the earth, before an unknown alien attack nearly finished humans, and ze and zers as pronouns for a fictional and apparently non-binary species, actually so, not like our modern humans who try to be non-binary whilst actually being binary, and other such misleading commentary, etc., etc.) serving to aid the character development, the story finally got going about half way through the text, or slightly before that point. Then things got interesting as a newly discovered artifact of an unknown origin came magically (well, perhaps technically) back to life (perhaps artificial) to aid the poor humans. Of course, in the background, the humans rebuilt a segregated society on top of an existing native intelligence on a planet that did not have humans (much worse than Columbus - today is Columbus day in the US - and worse than the other Europeans than overtook most of the world and native cultures over the next few centuries) and this bifurcated society had problems just as we do today in our society. The new world is the same as the old world. And, as seems so odd to me, the human leadership deems it necessary to keep this newly discovered technology secret, and plans on destroying it out of fear that it has an evil origin, while claiming there will be riots if is revealed before it is destroyed, without giving the native population a chance to weigh in on the issues as they see them. It turns out there are riots for other reasons, and terrorists bent on destroying the human domination of society as well, unrelated to the new discovery! Still, the second half was much more fun to read, until...

The acknowledgments, where the author who wrote the book from early 2016 to early 2016, claims dark an malicious forces grabbed hold of the most powerful country on Earth and shook the European Union to its very foundations"! Then using words like "democracy", "pluralistic", "fascism", and "nationalism" indicates that "occasionally violent" rebellion over a duly elected president of the US (and other EU issues, I suppose) is a good thing, and "we will not go backwards" (although a riot seems backwards to me). Hard work, written law and written constitutions that are enforced, rather than ignored or changed, science and engineering and what little progress humans have made are to be destroyed by the hurt feelings of people who take the law into their own hands (or minds) and kill and riot because they lost an election. Well, we have a history of violence as humans, some more organized than others, and we have a history of individuals demanding to rule over others through violence. That doesn't work out well. It destroys rather than creates. Yet, there are those who think their own way is the only valid way, and want to destroy all who follow the "wrong" path. The world of humans, the global society, is complicated. Destruction, is not a good thing, nor is it good to live as slaves of other humans. Dark and malicious forces choose chaos, riots and anarchy over using the power of democratic laws to vote for change for the better using persuasion rather than violence. I don't agree with Mr. Tomlinson's view of our human world today. I don't think the world he created in this fiction is better or different.

So, I liked the second half of the story. I disliked the subtle propaganda when the characters were developed. I extremely disagree with Mr. Tomlinson's view of the 2016 elections in the US or the aftermath of unelected chaos in society and government. The 2020 US election cycle showed how democracy works (and how slowly change occurs, even as our government ignores the law of the land, passed by our government and sworn to uphold by the current administration, and the laws of nature, where construction improves our lives and destruction degrades our lives), while the 2024 cycle is still indeterminate. Let us work together, as individuals, to build improvements for our future, and the future of humanity.

I got carried away and will not even bother to proof read this review and commentary. Enjoy!

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

*copy from Netgalley in exchange for a review*

Patrick S. Tomlinson’s Children of the Divide is the third in his “Children of a Dead Earth” series. The first gave us a murder mystery on a generation ship. The second dealt with the crises and opportunities of first contact and the pitfalls of colonisation as an ethos.

This book takes pointers from both of its predecessors, like their snappy prose and desire to explore complex, contentious issues in a sci fi setting, and runs with them. There’s a lot going on here – from mining helium three, to kidnappings, local acts of violence backdropped against a larger, fearsome context. But to me, the thing that jumps out about this is this; it’s about consequences. Specifically, both for the characters and the world, it’s able to approach how decisions made decades ago are rippling into society today, and explore the results of those decisions – which are by no means all positive.

This is a world where humanity is starting again, its technology streaming down from orbit to spin up a fairy tale colonial city. There are those who remain orbit, keeping their eyes on the heavens, and those beneath, slowly expanding the settlement below. But there’s also the indigenous sentients, divided in cultural conflicts of their own. Some are happy to take the new arrival’s science, their miracle cures and agricultural tips, and otherwise let life carry on as it always has. Some stream into the city of humanity, building their own homes, their own lives, and their own dreams – becoming something new, escaping the social constraints of time immemorial. Some, of course, would rather do neither, and see humanity driven from their shores entirely. All of these are choices, and they come out of those made in earlier books.

But humanity are hardly the white knights of fiction here; their interactions with the indigenes seem, at best, like benign neglect. There’s a Native quarter, with echoes of the ghetto about it. There’s not enough law enforcement officers from the indigene population. The quarter is poorly supplied with electricity or running water, and there’s a simmering tension under the surface of inter-species interactions. These are big issues, but they also come out of those earlier decisions – where humans and indigenes decided on a non-confrontational relationship – and the unintended consequences, where a power dynamic has been left unexplored and unchallenged. It’s not the worst excesses of historical colonialism, but the parallels are there beneath the surface – the worst impulses of humanity and indigene loitering under their skins.

At the same time, there are some great symbols of the best of both species. Our long time hero, Benson, is now older, slower, more thoughtful. His adopted child, one of the indigenes, is coming of age – feisty, fearless, and ready to shape the world. Zer friends are, as well – sons, daughters and other-gendered entities, all stepping from the shadows of their parents. This is a new generation of protagonists, breaking away from the older traditions of their parents. Quite what they want to shape the world into – be it a multicultural society of tolerance, or something else entirely – well, that’s rather up in the air. It’s fantastic to see this sort of inter-generational handover though, and it’s very plausibly done. The teenagers, of any species, are about as insufferable and idealistic as one might expect; but they’re also a driving force for change, their white hot righteousness making them a pleasure to read, and their complex, conflicted relationships we’ve spent two books investing in giving them a depth and context that only deepens that experience.

It isn’t all ideology and family drama either. For those of you that like your sci-fi with some explosions, I can safely say you will not be disappointed. There’s more than a bit of peril, and if there are moments of violent triumph, or jaw-dropping destruction, the story wants us to know about the consequences of that violence too. The broader issues are blended perfectly into some fast-paced action. There’s betrayals, murders, and, yes, explosions – wrapped around stories about how people treat each other, how things reached the state that they did, intergenerational conflict and, basically, what matters to people.

I’ve always said Tomlinson wrote imaginative, interesting books that more people should read. I’ll say it again now. This is intelligent science fiction, with interesting thoughts on the broader human condition, wrapped in an absolutely smashing story. Catch up with the earlier instalments, then give this a read.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 3.5 of 5

This series, 'Children of a Dead Earth,' by Patrick S. Tomlinson, continues to surprise and impress me. Each book manages to be different, each surprises me, and together they tell a continuing story.

It is now eighteen years after humans, who have traveled in the 'ark' from Earth, have settled on Gaia. Humans and the indigenous life forms on the planet have come to better understand and respect one another and to live and work alongside each other. They've even created a pronoun for the multi-sexual indigenous life. It seems to be going well. Until... a terrorist attack on the outskirts of town rock the community. At the same time, a routine flyby of Gaia's moon uncovers a previously hidden, underground alien building. This building is too complex for Gaia's population to have built and human's are still too new in this system to have constructed something this old. Which means...?

As for the terrorist attack, it appears that humans have brought with them the idea of a caste system. Many Gaians are sent to live in a ghetto-like community, where natural resources such as water and the ability to grow and harvest food are in scarce supply, so that humans can live in the wealthier areas of the community. And now some of those Gaians are fighting back.

While we have these two different story-lines going on, we're also seeing the effects of a generation gap. Many of our prime characters are young adults who've grown up with the Gaians as their close friends and allies and are willing to fight alongside them against their own families.

There is so much going on here, and yet Tomlinson moves the story along at a very quick pace. We don't really get to know any of the characters - you probably need to have read the first two books to get a feel for who these people are and why they are doing the things that they do. But for those of us who have already been in this world, this all feels like a very natural progression.

Be warned - the ending is a cliff-hanger. I've written before that I don't care for books that don't have an ending, but this is different. This is a complete story that gives a huge tease to the future of the series.

As much as I've clearly enjoyed this book, it doesn't quite live up to the previous two in the series. It does feel like a natural progression, and perhaps a good bridge (given what appears to be in store), but it's not the strongest book in the series. Read the other two and you will want to read this one, but don't pick this one up if you are not familiar with the series.

Looking for a good book? Children of the Divide is another well-written story in the Children of a Dead Earth series by Patrick S. Tomlinson, but you'll definitely want to be familiar with the series before going into this.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

[John Purvis · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Children of the Divide" eBook was published in 2017 and was written by Patrick S. Tomlinson (http://www.patrickstomlinson.com/). Mr. Tomlinson has published four novels. This is the third novel in his "Children of a Dead Earth" series.

I received an ARC of this novel through https://www.netgalley.com in return for a fair and honest review. I categorize this novel as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of Violence and Mature Language. The story is set in the future. Humanity has fled Earth aboard a generational starship, the Ark. They have arrived at their destination, Gaia, and have begun colonization. The primary character is Bryan Benson.

Benson was police chief on the Ark during the final few years of their journey. Now, on Gaia, he has officially given up law enforcement and is focusing on recreation programs in general and football in particular. Because of his actions that saved the Ark (detailed in earlier books in this series), he is reluctantly a national hero.

During a celebration, there is a terrorist attack and Benson's adopted daughter is kidnapped. At about the same time, an undiscovered cavern on one of Gaia's moons is encountered. Inside the remains of a non-native, advanced civilization is discovered. This stirs fear that Gaia and it's new Earth inhabitants have been discovered by the race that destroyed Earth.

Quickly Benson begins to actively investigate the terrorist bombing and the kidnapping of his adopted child. Far more unrest is discovered among the natives of Gaia as well as within a small portion of the humans now living on Gaia than was understood.

How to react to the alien post of Gaia's moon is hotly being debated with some wanting to nuke it while others want to investigate it further. Benson pursues one clue after another in pursuit of his kidnapped child.

I really enjoyed the 12 hours I spent reading this science fiction novel. I have read and enjoyed both of the prequels in this series. I like the characters developed for the series. The native race to Gaia and their odd sexuality (neither male or female in our sense) adds to the uniqueness of the plot. The cover art is OK. I give this novel a 4.5 (rounded up to a 5) out of 5.

Further book reviews I have written can be accessed at https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/.

[Ralph · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Children of the Divide" is the conclusion of Tomlinson's trilogy on the quest for racial survival of the refugees from an Earth destroyed by a black hole. Book #1 covered life on "The Ark", the human's generation ship, as it headed to a suitable planet for the survivors to begin again. Book #2 told the story of the human's attempts to re-establish their civilization and determine if they could co-exist with the planet's stone-aged level native inhabitants. This book (#3) chronicles the integration of the two civilizations, one generation into human colonization.

The stories are told through the adventures of the books' hero, Benson and his family, along with other characters from "The Ark", and their progeny. "The Children of the Divide" are truly the children of the main characters from book #2. One is an Atlantian raised by Benson's family and another is a human raised by Benson's best Alantian friend. The third is the son of the Ark's current commander a former adversary turned friend of Benson.

All three books are well-written and kept me reading when I should have been sleeping. There is plenty of action and, conflict at several levels. The characters are relatable and the reader can empathize with them as they face their individual challenges. The overall plot reveals human and Atlantian foibles while instilling a feeling of hope and optimism toward the future as the two societies try to become one.

I would recommend this book and I intend to read Tomlinson's other three novels ASAP. I strongly recommend reading the trilogy in order. While this book could be read as a standalone story, the reader would miss out on most of the back story, character development, and relationships that developed throughout the previous two books.

[Daniel Ruffolo · Rating 4 out of 5]

'Children of the Divide' is the third installment of the 'Children of a Dead Earth' series by American author, comedian, political commentator and provocateur Patrick S Tomlinson. Taking place years after the preceding installment Trident’s Forge, things have not necessarily developed as peacefully and cooperatively as everybody might have hoped. As humanity rebuilds and builds anew, the Atlanteans are finding adjusting to this species with advanced technology and strange culture more complicated and not quite as beneficial as they thought. An absolutely shining example of using SF to hold a mirror up to our own society, Children of the Divide deals with racism, prejudice, ghettoization, gentrification, gender politics, sovereignty and terrorism. All in a compelling world with a fascinating alien species and plenty of unanswered questions to keep us eager for the next book.

Read the entire review at Strange Currencies
https://strangecurrencies.org/2017/06...

[Christopher Gerrib · Rating 4 out of 5]

A satisfying conclusion to the series, Children of the Divide starts 18 years after what's left of humanity arrives at a new planet. Alas, the planet is occupied by another intelligent species. In the events of the second book, humanity made peace with the locals. Here, 18 years later, that peace is stretched by a collection of human and "alien" (local) beings. Oh, humanity was wiped out by a third, unknown alien race, and so the humans are on the lookout for an attack. When they discover an alien structure on the local moon, the alarms start ringing.

I found the book entertaining, but it left a few things unanswered. It feels like there's more coming, but it's not clear when.

[Anthony Eichenlaub · Rating 4 out of 5]

Children of the Divide is an excellent finish to the trilogy. It gives us all the mystery and action that we've come to expect from the series, and introduces some really fantastic new characters.

This book not only lets us meet the next generation of humans and aliens, but also allows us to see the complex and difficult growth of the human and alien societies as they learn to live with each other. Sure, a lot of things go well, but there are a lot of problems, too.

Children of the Divide is smart sci-fi wrapped up in a comfortable layer of explosions and action. Definitely worth a read.

[David Miles · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic continuation of the series that draws parallels with the social issues currently facing Western society.

Humor. Action. Intriguing plot lines. Tesosterone-fueled rages only cowed by the sharpness of its estrogen counterpart. This book has it all.

Every book seems to get better and better, and this one ended on a cliff-note that will make you sweat to get your hands on the next novel in the series.

If you haven't started reading Tomlinson's stories yet - start now. You won't be disappointed.

[Gregoire]

Beaucoup de mal à terminer ce 3e tome qui est une transposition des problèmes de racismes ; de terrorismes et d'ados Malheureusement, il n'y a pas, à mon goût, assez de nouveautés ou d'étrangetés pour en faire un 'must read' (avis aux amateurs de SF pure et dure)

Cela ne surprendra personne d'apprendre, qu'une fois de plus (c'est la mode !), l'histoire se termine par une surprise qui laisse présager d'au moins une suite Cette dernière , je l'espère, sera plus originale

[Aly White · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always have a hard time putting down any well-written books and this book series is no different. It is fantastically well done. I just have one thing to say: Patrick, I need MORE please? I have to say, I don't normally like science fiction. Most of the authors I read are women and I normally only read fantasy. That has changed with this series and I look forward to more books from this awesome writer.

[Dominic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fantastic book

Devorah! is my favorite character from book 1 and Mr. Tomlinson does not disappoint in this third book in the series with her crazy, badass character.

The maturation the characters from the previous books, their evolution, lives and relationships are well crafted. People have grown up, changed but are still the  great characters from previous books. I like how Mr. Tomlinson parallels what is going on in the world with his own plausible resolutions.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book three in a trilogy that I can only hope is becoming a quartet...!
Sudden, huge, cliffhanger on the last page keeps it from ending smoothly. What's been going on back on Earth all this time?

And speaking of unfinished business... what happened to Polly??? And someone needs to go back to Varr, to finish sorting out the mystery if that outpost. This series definitely needs a least one more book!

[Judy Llewellyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

The continuing saga of Bryan Benson and the Atlantians

Benson's child is taken and he will do anything too get zer back alive. These trials and tribulations make for another good read, but the ending of the story deserves another story. This series should have at least one more book.

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a strangely intimate entry in this series... in fact I suspect it is really just the preamble for a deeper more interesting novel.

I enjoyed it but didn't love it as much as previous entries.

[hCharles Obert · Rating 4 out of 5]

First work by Patrick S Tomlinson that I have read...
The characters and situation are compelling and the stage is set for a sequel (no really?) while at the same time, the first three books tell a satisfying story by themselves.

[Gary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A new space-opera for fans of gritty scifi. Tomlinson. Knows how to bring everything together to create the right ingredients for a wonderful story. Exciting, intriguing, and an ending that fits very well. Looking forward to reading more of his novels in the future!

[Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recent Reads: Children Of The Divide. The 3rd book in Patrick Tomlinson’s trilogy moves from SF procedural to political thriller as alien mysteries emerge. Under the hood is a story about colonialism and response to trauma, individual and societal. Smart SF asking big questions.

[Martin Willoughby · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a beaut. Civil war's about to break out and someone wants to nuke the moon.

[Lynne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Patrick does a great job of continuing the story of the Children of a Dead Earth. The next generation has all the issues of teenage angst and the wit that goes with it.