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The Tropic of Eternity

(The Amaranthine Spectrum #3)

Tom Toner (Goodreads Author)

4.13 · Rating details · 39 ratings · 12 reviews

It is the 147th century. The mighty era of Homo Sapiens is at an end. In the Westerly Provinces of the Old World, the hunt is on for the young queen Arabis, and the vile creature that holds her captive. In the brutal hominid Investiture, revolution has come. The warlord Cunctus, having seized the Vulgar worlds, invites every Prism to pick a side. In the Firmament, once the ...more

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Hardcover, 432 pages

Published August 7th 2018 by Night Shade

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Start your review of The Tropic of Eternity (The Amaranthine Spectrum #3)

Jul 25, 2018 Olivia rated it it was amazing

Shelves: sci-fi

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful book. I finally found a series where I will be re-reading the previously released books every time a new book releases!

Tom Toner may be the Steven Erikson of Science Fiction, because he drops the reader straight into an unfamiliar world without any explanation.

I'm a fast reader and sometimes tempted to skim more than I should, which works with books set on our world where not every third word is strange and unfamiliar. After reading a third of the first novel, abo ...more

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Jul 02, 2020 Paul Sánchez Keighley rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: c-united-kingdom, fantasy, steampunk-i-think, sci-fi

Phew. Damn. Well. Brrrrrrr. Wow. Yep. Aha. Okay.

Sometimes the sunk cost fallacy pays off.

Somebody give this man a degree in ambition, because he gets it. I’ve read some ambitious sci-fi and fantasy series over the years, but this one knocks the ball out of the park.

The feelings I experienced reading this book were similar to the ones I described in my review of Last and First Men . I feel like Tom Toner took my sense of self-worth and relevance in the world and crushed them to the point wher ...more

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Jul 14, 2018 Kate rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: favourites-read-in-2018, out-in-2018-and-read

The third novel in the extraordinary, beautiful and original Amaranthine Spectrum series is perhaps the most complex and, for this reader, most difficult of the books, but it is nonetheless a bewitching and enchanting read. There are moments, places and characters here that are described with such gorgeousness, as well as not a little horror, that they more than compensate for the other moments which left me wondering what in the heavens was going on! Review to follow shortly on For Winter Night ...more

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Jul 27, 2018 Elaine Aldred rated it it was amazing

Far into the future humankind has fractured into different species, each with its place in the hierarchy of the extended social structure; the Amaranthine, the descendants of humanity who have unlocked some of the secrets of immortality, right down to the Prism species at the bottom of this vast social order. Each faction now vies for supremacy. Things are going to get very messy, unless a balance can be found.

Imagine the Jabberwocky running amok within a steampunk world, and one with the most s Far into the future humankind has fractured into different species, each with its place in the hierarchy of the extended social structure; the Amaranthine, the descendants of humanity who have unlocked some of the secrets of immortality, right down to the Prism species at the bottom of this vast social order. Each faction now vies for supremacy. Things are going to get very messy, unless a balance can be found.

Imagine the Jabberwocky running amok within a steampunk world, and one with the most sophisticated of ethereal capabilities, catching and dragging all it passes in its wild thrashings, then hurling itself into Gormenghast where it begins ferociously terraforming. In this way you might begin to get a grasp on all that is the Amaranthine series.

The story barrels along with the most vigour I have ever seen in a thickly plotted book, yet somehow manages to fit in the most incredible worldbuilding along the way with fully-formed characters you simply have to follow on their journey.

But a word of warning. This is not a lazy read. You need to pay attention if you are going to feast on this all-you-can-eat gourmet buffet of science fiction and fantasy. The Tropic of Eternity is highly episodic, with so many worthy characters that the sheer volume and seemingly erratic way one chapter follows another it requires a reader with a serious amount of concentration, accompanied by an alphabetically organised notebook to keep track of everything. I was about half the way in before I really got to grips with the whole story arc. But I was having such a glorious time with the lyrical writing and description I really didn’t care how disjointed or bizarre the world became, because I just wanted to wallow in everything on offer.

The mish-mash of low tech (almost medieval in some places) welded to high tech weaponry and space craft, which at times appear to have the type of jointing you feel the need to get out your adjustable wrench to tighten because you can feel the structure creak with exertion, is just wild.

When I had finished I couldn’t believe the series only came on my radar at this stage and am now working my way through the other two (albeit slowly), before I go back into The Tropic of Eternity again, because it just has so much to give. Along with its fellows, The Tropic of Eternity will be a book I return to repeatedly over the years. Definity a classic, because worldbuilding on this scale and with such panache is rarely achieved.

The Tropic of Eternity was courtesy of Orion Publishing via NetGalley. ...more

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Jul 27, 2018 Vicky rated it really liked it

The final installment in The Amaranthine Spectrum series, this book is just as wild, as wacky and generally as weird as its two predecessors. I must also say before we start: it’s probably a good idea to go back and read the first two before you dip into these. This is not a series for the faint-hearted; it’s a series to savour and enjoy, and it’s all to easy to get lost in its labyrinthine passages.

Tom Toner’s incredible imagination takes us back to the world of the Amaranthine and a galaxy bur The final installment in The Amaranthine Spectrum series, this book is just as wild, as wacky and generally as weird as its two predecessors. I must also say before we start: it’s probably a good idea to go back and read the first two before you dip into these. This is not a series for the faint-hearted; it’s a series to savour and enjoy, and it’s all to easy to get lost in its labyrinthine passages.

Tom Toner’s incredible imagination takes us back to the world of the Amaranthine and a galaxy bursting at the seams with life. In the 147th century, humankind have evolved into a dizzying array of different shapes, from the immortal Amaranthine to the Melius, giants who live in the remnants of the Old World. And there’s a fight taking place for supremacy, knowledge and the future of the Empire.

We’re plunged back into the journey of Perception, the machine spirit, with his allies Maneker and Lycaste as they cross the void. They’re in pursuit of the Long-Life, Aaron, as he attempts to wreak his revenge on the world that he believes has wronged him. And things are changing: the Empire is coming to an end, and the warlord Cunctus is becoming ever more of a threat. And, alongside that, a galaxy-wide manhunt is underway for the missing queen Arabis.

The amazing thing about the Tropic of Eternity is its sheer ambition. This is a massive, sprawling epic that crosses timelines, galaxies and viewpoints as easily as crossing the road. Toner’s lyrical prose is massively engaging, sprinkled through as it is with the odd flash of humour, and really creates a universe that feels real (if very, very strange). It’s an almost Terry Pratchett-esque approach to worldbuilding, where you wonder how some things were even thought of, let alone put to paper. It’s engaging, it’s pretty bloody brilliant, and it’s the kind of worldbuilding that will leave you wanting to dive into the world and explore for yourself.

With the return to many familiar places, and the chance to follow a whole host of beloved characters- as well as meet some new ones- there’s a lot to love here, despite the winding and complex nature of the stories that are being told. For people who have loved Toner’s work so far: you won’t be disappointed! Vast, exotic and mind-boggling, this is definitely a book to dive into.

So that was my review, but what did everybody else think? Find out in the rest of the blog tour below! ...more

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Nov 08, 2018 Björn rated it it was amazing

Once upon a time it was the 'sense of wonder' that kindled my love for SciFi and bound me to the genre. The Amaranthine Spectrum-Trilogy by Tom Toner brings back those early sense-of-wonder-y goosebumps. It's a complex, highly ambitious, very differently and originally structured and first and foremost deeply romantic tale of the far future.

I just can't summarize this last book of the trilogy. Summarization is futile. Very far in the future, and very deep in the past, the world(s) is (are) very Once upon a time it was the 'sense of wonder' that kindled my love for SciFi and bound me to the genre. The Amaranthine Spectrum-Trilogy by Tom Toner brings back those early sense-of-wonder-y goosebumps. It's a complex, highly ambitious, very differently and originally structured and first and foremost deeply romantic tale of the far future.

I just can't summarize this last book of the trilogy. Summarization is futile. Very far in the future, and very deep in the past, the world(s) is (are) very, very different to what we perceive nowadays. Humanity has evolved beyond understanding and there are many, many different beings in this full-to-the-brim fictional universe. The Amaranthine Spectrum handles no small themes: (Immortal) Life and Death, Love and Betrayal, Mammalian and Machine Life, the beginning and the end of it all. This final book concludes these struggles of humanity and everything.

The Tropic of Eternity is quite possibly the bravest of the trilogy's three books (and that says a lot after The weight of the world). The story metaphorically and literally transcends the barrier between SciFi and the fantastic realm.
There is so much happening in this impressively realized world that I couldn't pick a favourite character or place easily. Ghaldezuel's rescue of the infamous criminals (living and otherwise) might be one of it. Ghaldezuel and Jathime. Why do I suddenly like cannibals? I can't tell. And what about Cunctus and Scallywag? It's total madness! It's slightly disturbing. I loved it. Or maybe the eon old AI spirit Perception getting an ex-Immortal Body (I sorely missed more of Perception in this book. There was too much Sotiris and too little Perception)?! This list would be almost without end. As I said: there is a lot happening in these books.

I already compared this trilogy with other great works. The Tropic of Eternity grants interesting parallels to Philipp Pullman's famous His Dark Materials-Trilogy. You can simply compare the sheer richness of these fictional universes, and the final books of both trilogies share some world transcending ideas. (That's one of those oooooh Moments I talked about)

Quite some time ago I read an advertorial about a new book coming out, a new masterpiece not to be missed. I read the ad, I looked at the cover and I was hooked. I am happy that I did not miss this book, The promise of the Child, or the trilogy.

So what's next?! I'll be there for sure. (Hint: I hope it'll be something radically different). ...more

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Jan 31, 2019 Pedro L. Fragoso rated it really liked it

“Honeysuckle and warm evenings, the perfume of jasmine on the breeze.” And Tom Toner is still unrelenting, and no-holds-barred uncompromising, on the multigalactic scope of this million years epic-to-end-all-epics saga and on its continuing demands of the readers.

“When I was younger, Jatropha had said as they made their way down, we all thought the world was going to end, sooner or later. But it never did; the new just piled on top of the old, as it always had, and the world carried on.” Exactly “Honeysuckle and warm evenings, the perfume of jasmine on the breeze.” And Tom Toner is still unrelenting, and no-holds-barred uncompromising, on the multigalactic scope of this million years epic-to-end-all-epics saga and on its continuing demands of the readers.

“When I was younger, Jatropha had said as they made their way down, we all thought the world was going to end, sooner or later. But it never did; the new just piled on top of the old, as it always had, and the world carried on.” Exactly how this trilogy unfolds, with all its complexities, scope and rewards.

Improving on Rutger Hauer: “He saw the Colossus battleship Yustafan and its sister the Gorgonn as they moved in stately orbit over Drolgins, searching in vain for any trace of the Lacaille flagship the Grand-Tile, missing now for some months and strongly rumoured to be in Cunctus’s hands. He saw fizzbombs exploding over Shantylands, whipshells cutting through battalions, public executions (by searching for the gathered crowds) and individual acts of extraordinary heroism. He watched a Vulgar mercenary clear a fortification single-handedly before catching a bolt in the eye, spooling back a little more each time to watch the mercenary’s charge, slowing the light to follow the course of the bullet. When he was Satrap of the galaxy, he would go and collect that bolt, lodged in a wall, and wear it on a chain around his neck.”

Doing a GRRM: “May I present Arabis the First, Queen of the Fifteen Provinces, Empress of Sligos and Mansour, Custodian of the Isles of Storn and Ion, Protector of the West and Friend to the East,” Jotroffe said grandly, clearly delighted by all her titles, as if he’d made them up himself.

And, why not, let’s imagine a warm and rural Mediterranean family of human descendants (and more!) under the sun, near the sea, thousands of years into the future, and let’s make them awkwardly British: “Pentas wanted to reach out, to hold him in some way, but could see that their closeness was too fragile to ruin with a touch.”

Never mind. This is (again) an extraordinary tour-de-force, and the trilogy is a miracle of genre literature at its very best. ...more

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Nov 29, 2020 Solomon's rated it did not like it

Shelves: eh-shrug-fantasy, fiction, science-fantasy, space

The Tropic of Eternity, the final book in Tom Toner's trilogy, gives an answer to the question that has been growing in my mind: Is there a grand order to the chaos? Nope. There is no method to the madness and there never was. The storylines and characters do not appear to be a tangled web because they are the weavings of a subtle mind, they appear that way because they are the product of an inexperienced writer.

Particularly frustrating to me now as I look back on the series is that all througho ...more

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Sep 25, 2018 Adamk959 rated it it was amazing

I saw someone refer to Tom Toner as being the Steven Erikson of science fiction, and I think that is fair when referring to the scope and ambition of these books, but I think the spirit of the books, their strangeness and creativity owes something to Iain M Banks as well, who I’m sure would have loved this series as much as I do.

The tension is ratcheted up in this volume and builds and builds to an epic climax, and while the first book was challenging and surreal, the setting and characters hav ...more

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Aug 25, 2018 Paul Trembling rated it it was amazing

Shelves: science-fiction, sci-fi

Tropic of Eternity (Volume Three of this trilogy) has a very useful little summary of past events included at the front. This would have been good to have had at the beginning of volume 2, but was probably essential at this stage. With so many characters, so many places and so many interwoven plotlines I found it impressive that the author managed to keep track of them all, let alone the readers!

And, even though this is the third and final book, Toner doesn't stop introducing new characters, sce ...more

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Aug 28, 2018 Alexander rated it it was amazing

(Advance copy supplied by Netgalley) Bloody hell, this was brilliant! Tom Toner is absolutely the natural heir to Iain M Banks. Stop wasting your time reading my review, go and read the books!

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Oct 20, 2020 Mr Roy Brown rated it really liked it

Unsatisfying ending. Felt like it could have done with another 200 pages

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About Tom Toner

Tom Toner

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Tom Toner was born in Somerset, England, in 1986. The Tropic of Eternity is the concluding volume in Toner’s debut trilogy, following The Promise of the Child and The Weight of the World.