Absolution Gap

Great ending to a fantastic read, tye ending nicely set out, leaving the reader with so many questions and unlimited answers, the universe, is Indeed a mysterious amazing place.

Absolution Gap is a wonderful novel, full of big ideas beautifully executed. It's wonderfully baroque in its design, managing to marry themes as diverse as a convincingly weird religious zealot living amongst mobile cathedrals, and the slow, inexorable extinction of the human race at the hand (or mechanical claws) of relentless machine intelligences. Along the way it manages to hook into several deep, satisfying veins of narrative - the cost and prizes of redemption, insolence in the face of inevitability, loss in the face of triumph, and what it means to choose wisely when no truly wise course is obvious. It's a more coherent book than its precursors in the Revelation Space universe, coming as it does as the final capstone of a vast and satisfying operatic epic. Unlike some of the earlier books, there is almost nothing in here that seems arbitrary - nothing that seems irrelevant - nothing that seems wasteful. That is, in terms of its own internal narrative.All that said, it's not flawless. The most significant question I had about the book as it made its way to the end is 'How can Reynolds possibly end this tale in a way that is truly satisfying?'. Spoiler - he doesn't. In fairness, I'm not sure there *was* a way to end a series like this in a way that would have left me feeling sated, but I was hoping for something a little more than the pound shop James Bond-esque theatrics that concludes it. Reynolds is at his best when he's tackling big, deep themes, and that's not really executed well in the finale. It's not enough to spoil an excellent book - it is after all the voyage, not the destination, that matters the most in fiction. It just casts the book into an odd orbit in the series - with the right ending, this would have been the crowning jewel. As it is, in terms of sheer narrative catharsis it ultimately feels - unnecessary. There is nothing wasteful in the way it tells the story, but also nothing vital in helping come to terms with the universe in which it is set.If this sounds conflicted, then it's just an expression of how I felt at the end of it. I loved the book, but I don't feel I would have lost anything truly irreplaceable if I had stopped reading the Revelation Space series at Redemption Ark.

I re-read Absolution Gap a decade or more after the first time in anticipation of the next part coming out in July of this year (2021). It was always the weakest of the trilogy, but not nearly as bad as I remember. In fact this time I devoured it in a relatively, for me, short period of time.It’s true, as some other reviewers have said, that the story here could have been told in far fewer words, but then much of the texture of the story telling would have been lost and I think this is what makes this such a great book!The characters and themes are believable in this universe. I think the story could have been very different if certain characters had not been killed off so early or at all. It’s always a shame when a lot of the main thrust of a previous book (Redemption Ark) is undone, but this is often how things play out in the real world.I achieved what I wanted by re-reading Absolution Gap, I’m up to speed ready for the next installment. The problem is that there is so much in the Revelation Space universe I now feel the need to go back and read it all again.Ignore the naysayers. Read this book. Love this book.

Enjoyed this a lot. The scales of space and time are fabulous. Some of the plot twists are a little far fetched like the cathedrals travelling round the moon, but on the whole it's great yarn, and I both couldn't put it down, and am now sad it's finished. The concept of the inhibitors is delicious and the captain becoming fused with his ship was another super twist is this epic story.

Each book in this trilogy is a belter (Revelation Space, Redemption Ark, Absolution Gap), plenty of technology, science (quantum stuff, relativity stuff, cosmology stuff), good characters and a plot with enough twists and turns to keep you interested. The story does not fade or lose pace in this book, as I feel other famous series have (I got bored of Dark Tower quite quickly, I felt His Dark Materials severely lost its way in book 2, Harry Potter series was 1000 pages too long). Its not as easy on the eye as Greg Bear, or as 'classic' as Asimov, but as an all round pleasing read, I can heartily recommend this book / trilogy.

Previous reviewers have stated that this book has a disappointing end. They are entirely correct, but it's not just the ending where it goes wrong. Perhaps the last third of the book is markedly inferior to the rest of the story, both in Absolution Gap and the previous books of Revelation Space and Redemption Ark.The first two books are excellent. Full of intricate plotlines spanning across the years. I particularly like the way that two initially unrelated storylines taking place years apart eventually converge due to the relatavistic effects of almost-light speed travel.The first two thirds of Absolution Gap are equally interesting and well written. But (assuming you are enjoying the story) you will get to the final third where you can see the writing has taken a turn for the worse. The story becomes very rushed. Various things occur and are simply explained away very casually without any of the usual intricacies. Loose ends abound and finally the book comes to a very unsatisfying end as if Renolds suddenly realised he had a week left to finish it or have to return his publisher's advance. It just feels very untidy, which is a shame as until I hit that point I thought this was turning out to be one of the most epic trilogies I had read.I really think the series should have been extended to another book, allowing the full story to be told in all the glory it deserves. Certainly worth buying if you have read the first two oustanding books. But unfortunately this one is the weakest of the series and will leave you feeling underwhelmed and a little disappointed.

Liked the breadth and scope of the books. The ending leaves things open but is still very satisfying. Look forward to reading more from this author.

Trilogia de extrema inteligência e realismo, com conceitos que fazem sentido tanto com a realidade quanto como a fantasia.Quando a história, acho que poderia ter uma conclusão melhor

A very hasty and vague end to a suspense build over 3 books spanning over 2000 pages ...in a couple of pages ....very disappointed

Reynolds has created a universe replete with high end sf memes and added some twists of his own. He has told a grand sweeping story that achieves both an epochal sweep of history and thoroughly developed characters worthy of our interest. Bravo!

I don't know why I waited so long to read this series of books, they're fantastic. Smart, great stories, fantastic characters, I'm not sure I could fault them. If you're a fan of Peter F Hamilton you'll love this.