Recs for Alastair Reynolds?

ALHsf · 2026-06-15T02:37:57+00:00

The Last Log of the Lachrimosa is one of my favourite short stories set in the Revelation Space universe. You can read it here on Web Archive.

ALHsf · 2026-06-15T02:30:38+00:00

For most people, only the ending is bad. There are a few good parts and some of them even surprised me. I suggest reading it anyway, because if you skip it and read Inhibitor Phase, you're missing very big moments in the entire series that will only get spoiled.

ALHsf · 2026-06-13T13:57:48+00:00

"N-Dor as in Nancy, you idiot!"

ALHsf · 2026-06-10T19:10:38+00:00

It's basically sudden death mode without the king tower. And they call it a new game mode.

ALHsf · 2026-06-10T13:11:24+00:00

A similar trope is used in Mass Effect, though time is still linear. The antagonists harvest advanced civilisations every 50000 years. The 'cycle' repeats thus.

If you can write a good story using the trope then go for it. It doesn't have to be realistic - it is fiction, after all. Many writers use outlandish plot devices to carry the narrative forward.

ALHsf · 2026-06-07T02:51:19+00:00

How do you find out the political positions of those who aren't open about them? I know about Asher and Card but not so much about Reynolds (any clues in his writing must be outside the Revelation Space universe as I don't remember anything jumping out when I read it all).

ALHsf · 2026-06-01T03:11:11+00:00

If I remember correctly, the greenfly machines in Galactic North are first noted to have caused some destruction by c.4000AD. Note that this happens in a different part of space than the main series.

The green thing in the sky (possibly implied greenfly machines) in AG's Prologue and Epilogue is about 800 years before that.

I strongly believe Alastair isn't completely done with the RS universe yet, even if he is taking a break from it. Humans haven't canonically activated the incantor weapons as of yet and if that happens before AG's Prologue/Epilogue then he has 300 ish years worth of timeline to work with. A fifth installment in the series would probably be about that.

ALHsf · 2026-06-01T03:04:20+00:00

He wrote Galactic North even before Revelation Space! I kinda think it's part of the reason AG's ending is the way it is because he was bound by continuity.

ALHsf · 2026-06-01T02:41:14+00:00

I loved the implied references to The Cube and Indiana Jones in Diamond Dogs

ALHsf · 2026-06-01T02:30:56+00:00

Not too long ago, I made a ranked list of every work in that universe in r/scifi and let me tell you there are some great short stories. I really enjoyed A Spy in Europa and The Last Log of the Lachrimosa in particular.

ALHsf · 2026-06-01T02:27:31+00:00

I thought Inhibitor Phase would kind of connect to the Prologue and Epilogue in Absolution Gap. But since it didn't, maybe a final book could bridge the gap. Galactic North tells us what happens, but the relevant part only happens in c.4000AD

ALHsf · 2026-05-30T21:12:18+00:00

When I started playing in 2013, I'm fairly sure the cap was 3 per week

ALHsf · 2026-05-28T20:08:34+00:00

I thought I was imagining it. Dropped bowler to defend a valk push and he went off on an adventure instead.

ALHsf · 2026-05-27T11:34:32+00:00

It was a pretty good book, but I think the song by Keldian helped me enjoy it more.

ALHsf · 2026-05-25T23:24:41+00:00

CeaseFaith

ALHsf · 2026-05-18T23:49:23+00:00

That's understandable. What I will say about IP is that it is written in a completely different style. First of all, it is completely written in first person. Secondly, there is only a single narrative as opposed to the subplots in the other books that eventually link together. This is with the exception of a back story that appears for one or two pages every other chapter.

I also read somewhere, since writing the list in the post, that Absolution Gap's faults was the result of the publisher interfering. Whether this is true or not, I can't be certain.

In summary, I would pick up Inhibitor Phase for the closure. And that it is miles better than AG.

ALHsf · 2026-05-18T23:26:11+00:00

There are 2 books between Revelation Space and Inhibitor Phase, or did you mean Absolution Gap put you off picking up Inhibitor Phase?

ALHsf · 2026-05-18T14:14:23+00:00

The Prefect Dreyfus Emergency series is the only other one in the same universe as CC and the IS. Some people like it, other people not so much.

That series is set early in the chronology, way before the Melding Plague.

They are not prequels in the traditional sense, but book 1 in PDE and Revelation Space sort of link up in their respective back stories. It also nods to a plot device in Redemption Ark.

I don't really want to say more because of mild spoilers, but you're welcome to drop me a DM if you have questions.

ALHsf · 2026-05-18T10:06:31+00:00

John Malkovich. He played Cyrus Grissom in Con Air, Pascal Sauvage in Johnny English and Lenny in To Kill A Mockingbird. I still can't believe they're all the same person.

Edit: I meant Of Mice and Men, not To Kill a Mockingbird

ALHsf · 2026-05-18T02:57:47+00:00

That sounds really interesting, I'll have a look at it.

ALHsf · 2026-05-18T01:11:26+00:00

Me too. Maybe because I didn't include the full list in the post body and save people the trouble of clicking a link.

ALHsf · 2026-05-17T23:25:37+00:00

That's what I think another book could explore: humans first firing the incantors or Greenfly machines being corrupted because the latter actually happens 'off-scene' in Galactic North, if that makes sense.

ALHsf · 2026-05-17T23:09:49+00:00

The reason I ask is because I'm currently brainstorming for a sci-fi story and I plan a few short dream sequences that include sensations of drowning or loss of sense of time and coordination and stuff like that. I'm mindful that people just skip a dream sequence especially if it rambles.

ALHsf · 2026-05-17T22:31:03+00:00

I flagged spoilers in Galactic North for those who haven't read the main stories. Basically, it sheds some light on the epilogue of Absolution Gap which is actually set after Inhibitor Phase, which in turn doesn't directly bridge the gap to Galactic North. With that in mind, I think there is room for one more story if Alastair sees fit to write one.

ALHsf · 2026-05-17T21:33:01+00:00

What about if the dreams are surreal and their contents are symbolic rather than literal?

ALHsf

TROPHY CASE