Tchaikovsky's work is consistently excellent and his Children of Time series is no exception. The themes of sentience and what constitutes life value are thoroughly canvassed in the first two volumes, so you could be forgiven for thinking there wasn’t much more to say on the subject, but it’s Tchaikovsky so of course there’s more entertaining and thought provoking discourse to be had. Highly recommend this entire series.

Another fantastic book from Tchaikovsky, his world building and epic sci-fi stylings are fast becoming a favourite of mine. If you are into sci-fi at all I would positively recommend his works. This book is no different, atmospheric and thought provoking this is a fantastic conclusion to the series, only enriched by the excellent narration.

Many thanks to Macmillan UK and Adrian Tchaikovsky for the advanced audio copy of Children of Memory via NetGalley, in return for my honest and unbiased review. Quick note: I don’t recap plots in my reviews, as it’s easy enough to read the book’s synopsis and blurbs, I purely focus on my feelings & opinions of how the books makes me feel.

Wow – what a ride! I can’t believe this was the first Adrian Tchaikovsky book I’d ever read, but it certainly won’t be the last. Despite this being the third in the series, and it being such a complicated and, at times absolutely bonkers storyline, the preceding two books are explained so well at the beginning that you can absolutely read this book without needing to read the others.

It’s hard to describe what I feel about the book without giving away spoilers but suffice it to say that it’s beautifully written. It is a complex, woven tapestry of prose, which gave me the mental image of Tchaikovsky having an enormous wall of plot points and ideas, connected by pieces of string, in an enormous building somewhere. The ideas and the subtleties are vast, and I’m sure that, upon re-reading this, you would pick up on more and more. These books are designed to be reread, for sure.

Mel Hudson was a wonderful narrator. Her reading was smooth and effortless, and she knew the storyline. I found myself just sitting back, relaxing, and listening to her voice whilst trying to puzzle out the complicated things she was telling me. Superb.

Moods: adventurous, challenging, dark, mysterious, tense
Pace: medium-fast
Character development: weak-medium
Plot or character driven: plot
Diversity: medium
Trigger warnings: Death

Rating
Story: 5
Audio: 5

Oh how I love this series! Although, this is potentially my least favourite of the three. I found it to be a little confusing in the second half but I still really enjoyed reading it!

My thanks to Macmillan Audio U.K. for a review copy via NetGalley of the unabridged audiobook edition of ‘Children of Memory’ by Adrian Tchaikovsky. The audiobook is narrated by Mel Hudson.

This is the third book in his award winning epic space opera series, the Children of Time. Tchaikovsky opens with a very handy ‘What Has Gone Before’ followed by a Dramatis Personae. I so appreciated it as it set the scene for what was to come and helped me keep track of who was who.

Given the epic nature of the plot it is quite hard to adequately summarise. In brief terms: following the failure of Earth, a number of arkships were sent out to establish new colonies. The spaceship Enkidu, captained by Heorest Holt, has arrived with its precious human cargo at a suitable planet, named Imir. Generations later a fragile colony has managed to survive on Imir. Yet life is tough and much technological knowledge has been lost.

Strangers arrive on Imir in possession of knowledge and new technology. In actuality they have come from the stars seeking to assist humanity’s lost colonies. They have to keep a low profile as the colonists live in fear of unknown enemies. I won’t say more in order to avoid spoilers though I will say the situation become quite complicated and eventually dangerous.

An important point of contact for the newcomers among the colonists is an imaginative child, named Liff. She serves as one of the point of view characters. Other points of view are provided by new as well as recurring characters from the earlier books including humans, aliens and AI.

I didn’t think I could love this series more until I met Gothi and Gethli, members of an alien species of crows - the Corvids. These join the series other alien species of evolved Portiid spiders and octopi.

Adrian Tchaikovsky is my favourite writer of modern science fiction. His world (or rather galaxy) building is breathtaking, his themes complex and thought provoking, his characters well realised and always relatable. Alongside the science and adventure there is always a degree of wit.

With respect to the audiobook, British actor Mel Hudson has been the narrator for all three of the Children of Time audiobooks. Her reading was excellent as she moved seamlessly between its various characters bringing them and the tale of the colony on Imir vividly to life.

Overall, I highly recommend ‘Children of Memory’ along with the previous two in this outstanding science fiction series.

‘Children of Memory’ by Adrian Tchaikovsky
- the unmissable follow-up space opera to the highly acclaimed Children of Time and Children of Ruin.

This gripping and immersive book continues to stretch the imagination, evoking curiosity and amazement.
At first this series can come across complex/ esoteric but that’s what I love about Adrian Tchaikovsky writing - utterly unique and exceptional.

A fellow reader said “the synopsis or description does not do the book justice”and I completely agree. It’s such a riveting space opera - an absolute masterpiece that has left me utterly wowed!

If you are in the mood for a stunning, applaudable and mind-blowing sci-fi read, then this series is for you!

Thank you so much @aptshadow & Stephen at @BlackCrow_PR @panmacmillan @UKTor for having me on the book tour and for my advanced readers copy and audiobook.

5 stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

¡Qué difícil es hacer lo que hace Adrian Tchaikovsky y qué suerte tenemos de que escriba género fantástico! Ya es complicado mantener el nivel de publicación del que hace gala el autor, pero es que además lo hace con una calidad media más que notable, ofreciéndonos siempre obras interesantes que le dan nuevos giros a la ciencia ficción y la fantasía.


Con Children of Memory vuelve a sorprender, ya que si esperabas otra historia de evolución de alguna especie gracias al virus que vimos en acción en las dos primeras entregas, te verás decepcionado. Y sin embargo, Tchaikovsky consigue volver a crear toda una nueva especie para que reflexionemos sobre lo que es ser en realidad, definiéndola en un momento del libro como un “simple” motor de resolución de problemas, pero indagando mucho más en un tema apasionante como es el autoconcepto. El hecho de que los individuos de esta especie no sean plenamente funcionales a menos que estén asociados por parejas me parece una idea deslumbrante.

Y todo esto sin dejar de embarcarnos en una lectura apasionante, aunque tiene un comienzo un tanto titubeante y extraño debido a la propia naturaleza del juego que propone el escritor al lector. Algunas veces he tenido que releer desde el principio algún libro porque pensaba que me estaba perdiendo y Children of Memory ha sido una de las obras que me han provocado esta sensación de extrañeza. Estos primeros capítulos, que recuerdan poderosamente a Planetfall de Emma Newman, solo están sentado las bases para todo lo que acontecerá después, pero he de reconocer que me resultaron algo confusos. También hay que hacer hincapié en que yo he disfrutado de la versión en audio del libro, lo cual añade una capa más de dificultad a la interpretación del libro, porque hay veces que se tienen lapsos en la lectura cuando tu cerebro divaga y en el caso de esta novela se paga caro. Sirva esto como aviso a navegantes, no como crítica a la labor desarrollada por Mel Hudson como lectora del libro, que es excelente.

Me parece que Children of Memory es una loa constante a la colaboración entre especies y al entendimiento entre los pueblos, aunque haya habido grandes impedimentos en el pasado para este trabajo en equipo y todavía haya recelo con algunos de los integrantes de los equipos.

También hay que reconocer que el recurso que utiliza Adrian Tchaikovsky para dar integridad a la novela puede resultar un poco tramposo una vez descubierta la realidad de la narración, pero creo que el escritor sale bien librado de este envite si se repasan esos primeros capítulos en los que ya deberíamos haber tenido un atisbo sobre lo que en realidad estaba sucediendo.

Además, utiliza con tanta maestría los recursos y la historia que nos está narrando es tan amplia que queda muchísimo espacio abierto para nuevas entregas de la saga, en el hipotético caso de que deseara continuar con esta línea de desarrollo. Y esa es una buenísima noticia para los fans del autor en general y lo de la saga Children of Time en particular.

The third book in the Children of Time and is as good as the first two if not better. Adrian Tchaikovsky is one of the best authors around. Great characters and great story. I hope this is not the last of this series.
Mel Hudson's narration adds to the book.
I received this audiobook from Macmillan UK audio and Netgalley for a review.

Another amazing book from AT. His writing reminds me of Andy Weir. I live this trilogy and when I spotted it, it was a must listen. Great narration. Defo reccomend.