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Children of Time
Publisher's Summary
Adrian Tchaikovksy's critically acclaimed stand-alone novel Children of Time is the epic story of humanity's battle for survival on a terraformed planet.
Who will inherit this new Earth?
The last remnants of the human race left a dying Earth, desperate to find a new home among the stars. Following in the footsteps of their ancestors, they discover the greatest treasure of the past age - a world terraformed and prepared for human life.
But all is not right in this new Eden. In the long years since the planet was abandoned, the work of its architects has borne disastrous fruit. The planet is not waiting for them pristine and unoccupied. New masters have turned it from a refuge into mankind's worst nightmare.
Now two civilizations are on a collision course, both testing the boundaries of what they will do to survive. As the fate of humanity hangs in the balance, who are the true heirs of this new Earth?
What the critics say
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What members say
Average Customer Ratings
Overall
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4.5 out of 5 stars
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5 Stars351
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4 Stars133
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3 Stars20
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2 Stars7
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1 Stars6
Performance
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4.5 out of 5 stars
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5 Stars339
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4 Stars111
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3 Stars25
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2 Stars5
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1 Stars6
Story
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4.5 out of 5 stars
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5 Stars336
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4 Stars108
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3 Stars23
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2 Stars9
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1 Stars7
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Blythe
- 2018-09-16
SF masterwork in the style of Brin or Vinge
OK, wow. Occasionally a book comes along that makes me want to go back and downgrade all my previous 5-star reviews to 4-stars just so this one can be clearly ahead of all the rest. This is definitely that book. I picked it up fairly randomly on Audible and holy crap, this is an amazing masterwork. Apparently winner of the 2016 Arthur C. Clarke Award, and can we give it all the other awards too? If you enjoyed David Brin's Uplift Trilogy, if you enjoyed Diane Duane's spider scientist K't'lk, if you enjoyed Raising the Stones by Sherri Tepper .... then you will love this book, and love finding elements of all of these in it.
It starts with a clear nod to the Uplift Trilogy as the terraforming ship "Brin II" begins preparing a potential colony world for a long process of terraforming, ultimately with the hope of creating a new earthlike planet and "uplifting" monkeys using a custom nanovirus. Long story short - things don't go according to plan, either for the human race or the monkeys, nor for a charming and unusually intelligent species of jumping spider that turns out to be somewhat susceptible to the virus also.
The scope is literally epic, spanning millenia, and touching on humanity's self-destructive instincts, the end of the human race as we know it, space exploration, uplift, insane artificial intelligence, extremely sympathetic spider characters, and programming via ants (couldn't help wondering if this was a nod to Terry Pratchett also...) It is a LONG book, 16.5 hours in audio form and massive in scope, but beautifully written and I can't imagine any science fiction fan who enjoys authors like Brin and Vinge would not also enjoy this. But enough review writing, I must now go and read everything else by this author. #Audible1
10 of 10 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Utilisateur anonyme
- 2019-08-04
Simply wonderful
I'm not sure if it's the wonderfully written semi hard SciFi, so deep her approachable, or the Rincewind in space feeling sup plot that really set this one apart, but it is smart and delightful and will make you think n giggle. try it
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Pulprat
- 2019-09-08
An original masterpiece!
incredibly well written and well performed story. one of the most original science fiction stories I've listened to in years. the narrator does an amazing job.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Andrew
- 2019-07-14
Unique, fascinating and a bit confusing
The concept and time passage of this novel is ambitious and mostly successful. It’s an interesting thing, to read about the genesis of a sentient species so alien from our own. Star Trek fans would be impressed with that aspect of it. The cynicism about humanity though, I was not as much a fan of. The time jumps make following the story, at least listening to it, very difficult. I was often confused about time passage and by the time I caught up I felt like I’d missed important character beats. The spiders’ descendants were an interesting attempt to keep us engaged in characters with short lifespans, but because spiders are so alien, it really is difficult to empathize with them. That may be the point, but it also makes for difficult storytelling and I don’t think it’s always successful. The story on the Gilgamesh was a bit frustrating too, because for a human perspective it lacked humanity, or any kind of argument for humanities survival. As for the villain, Kern (unsure on the spelling), she doesn’t have much depth or much of an ending and her story is perhaps the most fascinating. Some really good ideas, a great reading from Hudson, but not much feeling. Hardcore science fiction fans looking for something unique might enjoy.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Anthony
- 2019-05-29
Overall, it was “okay”...?
So without giving anything away, this wasn’t a stand out book. The narration was decent. I think that the story didn’t afford the narrator the opportunity to shine.
Now, for the story itself... the human characters feel lacking. Very little depth to them. However the other characters in the story seem to have far more, and thus far more interesting.
It’s not a bad book, but it did have some elements that teasing that it could have been much better than it was.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Fabiano Pereira Soriani
- 2019-03-08
A sci-fi masterpiece
It's very creative, inventive and masterfully executed. The author can intertwine 2 tales at once.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Desiree
- 2019-02-09
Really great sci fi
This was the best book I've read in a while. Engaging story with compelling characters, fabulous prose, and a wonderfully hopeful twist at the end of what seemed like a bleak prospect for humanity. The narrator did a fantastic job as well.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Seamus
- 2019-01-15
Not just great science fiction
This is the best book I have read in years. It's intelligent, fun, interesting, and emotional. I loved it.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- GoPro user
- 2018-06-20
Loved it.
Really great read. very enjoyable hard SciFi. has a different perspective that was fascinating to see.
5 of 7 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- David M. Sullivan
- 2019-10-15
A new hope
Smart and sassy cross between “Frankenstein” and “A Canticle for Liebowitz,” set on terraformed worlds with genetically modified inhabitants, and brilliantly read.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kurt Schwoppe
- 2017-07-30
Fascinating Premise Within an Excellent Story
This is everything you expect from good Science Fiction. I love it when an author can take a potentially hokey storyline and turn it into a stunning work of believable fiction. A work of this type takes detailed knowledge and superior writing ability. Mostly this is a book about the known characteristics and behavior of a certain species, and how that species would hyper evolve with the right catalyst. But it also has some awesome hard science fiction involving terraforming, long distance space travel, and an number of other more common sci-fi themes. The science was logical throughout while the story remained unpredictable - a great combination. Sometimes female narrators struggle with male voices, but Mel Hudson does an excellent job. This book is at the top of my list so far for 2017, so it gets 5 stars across the board.
334 of 364 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jarno
- 2017-05-16
A unique take on the alien
This was a very nice surprise. I read a lot of science fiction, and it's rare to come across a take on an alien society that is unique, and as well fleshed out as the author has achieved here.
The story concept is great, and the execution does not disappoint.
The start of the book didn't leave me expecting much - I found the main character in that early part pretty... cliche. Very glad to say that quickly got better though, much better.
279 of 309 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Simon
- 2017-06-17
A very pleasant surprise
What a pleasant surprise. I had never heard of this author and have become very hesitant to download books by authors new to me. In a time where the traditional barriers to publishing have crumbled, I tend to start with listening to the narrator in the sample on the premise that a talentless self publisher probably cannot afford a professional.
This is a well written and expertly narrated book. The premise interesting and the science believable. The characters are engaging and the storyline moves along at a nice pace.
Sorry for not giving away any of the storyline. Let's just say it's a story of humanity, survival, and some really intelligent mistakes. I enjoyed it and hope ypu will too.
430 of 477 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Michael G Kurilla
- 2017-06-24
All we need is enough time
Adrian Tchaikovsky's Children of Time presents an interesting take on intelligence development among insect species (mainly spiders) due to unintended human intervention. After an experiment designed to observe evolution at an accelerated pace in primates goes awry and Earth implodes itself, a colony ship is all that remains of humanity. While the terraformed world is lush and inviting, a psychotic human / AI chimera refuses to allow the last remnants of the human race to settle and forces them to wander, all the while slowly devolving, while the rapidly developing insect world is progressing through the stages of creating a sustainable civilization. With nowhere else to turn, humanity must make a play for the planet to survive.
The sci-fi elements are mainly centered around evolutionary biology and the development of intelligence and civilization. Intriguingly, spiders come to dominate with females being the dominant gender evolving as a mirror image of humanity. Rather than a random or artificial rationale for this development, the author identifies size (females being larger as a consequence of reproductive necessity) and the lack of need for child rearing duties as the basis for this development which provides a sharp juxtaposition and contrast relative to humanity. The devolution of humanity on the colony was less well handled and the final denouement was tending towards the preachy, but overall the tale is a fresh take on the evolution of intelligent life in a somewhat alien species without simply "aping" human developmental lines.
The narration was excellent overall with a solid range of voices of both genders. In addition, the insectoid vocals were handled nicely without resorting to nasal or flat affect renditions and rapid transitions between the human / AI chimera were skillfully relayed. This is a thought provoking tale that starkly portrays evolution as an unfeeling taskmaster without the concept of right or wrong, but rather only consequences.
182 of 204 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Brian Douglas
- 2019-08-17
Accountability
Instead of writing the Pros and Cons of this book (nothing wrong with the book just not necessary to write a review on everything) I think it is time we discuss the elephant in the room. Namely, the never ending fake reviews being generated to artificially inflate the ratings of mediocre books. If you have no idea what I’m talking about go check out “Dead Moon by Peter Clines” It currently has a 4 star average, but if you look at the first 30 top reviews they are all negative ratings. This went from being an exception to the new norm for Audible/Amazon. I’m sure you have seen other books with similar ratings which the reviews do not support.
Most of the fake reviewers only have 1 book (the book they are currently reviewing) in their reviews. So who are these fake reviewers? Why does Audible/Amazon allow it? Why is the rating system based upon number of reviews instead of helpful ratings? Do they condone it?
I understand they have a product they wish to sell and I do buy it (I have an Audible and Amazon account with over 600 books). I love audible books. I loved them from back in the 80’s where most narrators were monotonic, and I love how they have evolved.
Once again, there is nothing wrong with this book where you find this review. I just needed to vent and wanted to see if anyone else is feeling my pain. Is a little accountability too much to ask for?
186 of 211 people found this review helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Steve Tomlinson
- 2019-05-09
Couldn’t Get into It
I thought this book would be better than it was, based on reviews and awards.
Overall, it wasn’t bad, but I just couldn’t get into it. Maybe it’s because I’m so impressed with The Expanse and Red Rising series’ , and I expected more. Maybe it just wasn’t for me...
13 of 14 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kirk
- 2017-12-07
Thought provoking, timely and optimistic
Adrian Tchaikovsky is a busy author. Children of Time is the first book of his I have read and visits a familiar landscape in contemporary sci-fi: the Earth is becoming unlivable and great ships are being built to send stores of humans to far off worlds to begin new, terraformed colonies. In this story there are some fascinating wrinkles.
The story opens with a ceremony marking the beginning of a terraforming project on one such far off world. The point of view is the narcissistic designer of this world drearily waiting through the formalities of her grand plan being put into effect. At the penultimate moment the pilot of the lead ship reveals himself to be a saboteur, a man whose personal convictions are that humans should not be imposing their view of the Universe on unsuspecting worlds. His efforts result in the grand plan mostly failing and the designer escaping death by placing herself in a hibernation chamber.
The plan for this project centered on a proto-virus that was introduced into the planetary ecosystem. The intent was for it to act as a catalyst and accelerator for evolutionary development of monkeys who were also to be introduced. The idea was to inoculate the planet with these elements, wait a few thousand years then descend a world pre-populated with humans at an early technological age and live as gods.
The monkeys did not make it and though the proto-virus had constraints to keep it from affecting every species, because only the monkeys were supposed to be affected, it turns out the native spider and ant populations were affected.
Meanwhile, time passes for the Earth. A lot of time. Time enough for the fall of the technological greatness allowing such project, an ice age, and a rebirth of technology eventually allowing for a new series of colony ships to be built and sent out.
Time is everywhere in this story. We watch the spiders evolve on their planet. The humans traveling in their colony ship have a stasis like sleep which can last for hundreds of years. They are periodically woken by the ship when their input or expertise is required to deal with issues and return to sleep. It's a fascinating plot device that allows for characters to age at different rates and wake to completely different realities within the confines of the same ship they start in.
The inevitable meeting of the two species, humans and spiders, in space is entertaining and exciting. I've written before about an author's ability to tell a story without breaking my suspension of disbelief and Tchaikovsky manages it well with his telling of the battle that ensues.
There is a fair amount of what I consider contemporary commentary of issues of the day like power, fairness, equality and the effects of technology on life.
69 of 79 people found this review helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Debera
- 2018-12-20
Interesting Plot
Intersting story with a couple twists that keeps the listener engaged till the end. Unfortunately the narrator is a little flat when it comes to story telling. She was spot on with the character "Lane," but a limited repertoire when it came to differentiating the others.
11 of 12 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- perezdev
- 2019-01-13
A bit rough in the beginning, but well worth the read.
It might just be me, but it was a little hard to follow along at the beginning of the book. But it picked up fast and ended up being a wonderful read.
What I really enjoyed about the book was my inability to predict what was going going to happen. The author had me on my toes the entire novel because of this. Every big twist and guess was just so far out from what I had in my mind. Really incredible novel.
10 of 11 people found this review helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Michael
- 2018-12-04
Did not make sense
Overall I don't regret the time I spent on this. The spider aliens were an interesting concept and the spider motivations were unusual and compelling.
I am surprised by the many very positive reviews of this book. I found it light at best, ridiculous at worst.
I did not find the premise believable, then the motivations did not make sense, then the AI stuff did not make sense. then the spiders vs. space ships did not make sense. There are lots of spider analogies to modern earth social issues, which seemed heavy handed to me. The narration stance shifted on a whim from first person spider to current day human. If this was a fantasy social analogy (like Gulliver's Travels) it might have worked, but not as adult Sci Fi.
The narration was not particularly bad, but I can't say I appreciated the narration very much.
14 of 16 people found this review helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Mr Vincent SONG
- 2019-03-18
prenant, visionnaire, mais aussi décevant ...
difficile d'expliquer sans spoilers... bref pas déçu de l'aventure, mais déçu par l'histoire :) j'ai bien aimé la lecture, par contre la fin semble bâclée et trop simpliste
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- leloo
- 2018-01-25
Une autre vision d'humanité
J'ai adoré. Une redéfinition de l'humanité. Une histoire raconté sur deux perspectives dont l'une a des milles de toute personification.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 2017-08-09
Captivating and imaginative.
The amount of time which passes during this story is fantastic and kept me hooked to the tale. Listening at every opportunity to ideas and concepts which are unique and inspirational. Great listen, highly recommend.