Grand Design

by A.M. Parilla

Humanity once ruled space, building an empire that stretched across hundreds of stars. Now Earth is a cold cinder in the void, its colonies and ships annihilated in an instant. For five thousand years the surviving races have huddled in the dying light of those few stations which avoided total destruction to eke out their existence in the shadow of the long-dead humans who built their homes. When a piece of that lost legacy resurfaces the few who still remember humanity have one last opportunity to find the truth and avenge the fallen.

Genres: Science Fiction

811 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 10, 2019

Reviews

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, what a great find! A thorough, strong 4 stars. I discovered the author via another novel, one that's currently being serialized on Reddit (Inheritors of Eschaton, and OMG go find it). I think I had only made it as far as the 2nd or 3rd chapter of Inheritors when I decided the writing was better than several well-known authors I'd read this year and thusly set out *immediately* to find and join the author's Patreon as well as to hunt down any other works I could find (this being one of them). Grand Design was excellent and kept me off-balance in a good way: nearly every time I thought I knew what the book was about / where the plot was heading, it took an unexpected turn. This was abundantly worth my time reading, though I think that Inheritors of Eschaton (not yet on GR, but you can Google it to find the reddit serialization) is an even tighter work with even stronger characterization --not to mention probably being my favorite-ever portal fantasy. This one, though, is... well, sort of a space operatic post-apocalyptic tale of naval Valkyrie super-soldiers who outlived humanity but not their mission. Or is it a story about simulated universes and unfathomably powerful alien intelligence? Or a ragtag band of lovable quirky characters with meditations on culture and power and ethics? There's a lot going on, but for me it never felt as though it got lost or tried to take on too much. Recommended.

[Tuftears · Rating 5 out of 5]

Epic story of humanity's last champions

I read this on Royal Road but after finishing it, I feel I owe it to the author to pick it up here and leave a review. Humanity's champions are two women who are more than they seem- but that power is little avail against an enemy that destroyed the human race they served. The fun alien races and characters they meet along the way of pursuing one last hope really make the story come alive, and the story surprises with its twists and turns. Truly epic SF!

[Keivida Rountree · Rating 5 out of 5]

HFY!

When my husband recommended this story, he was only a dozen chapters in. He linked me to the post on Reddit and, since I get distracted on Reddit, here I am, owning a fantastic novel!

The summary my husband gave me blew my mind. I love the simulation theory of our existence and hadn’t ever read anything using it functionally. What a frickin’ ride!! A glorious ode to space operas, thank you for writing this and sharing! If this author starts another project, I’m 100% on board and belted in!

[H Rez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent read, fun with lots of action, not sure how much I liked the ending.

[Anna]

We built our robots with our ideals, and they outlived us. At least there are still dogs.

[Alden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a ride! Interesting take on the “our universe is a simulation” trope. Not a perfect novel, but quite entertaining.