The Tropic of Eternity
‘Marvellous . . . a space opera of surpassing gracefulness, depth, complexity, and well, all-round weirdness’ Locus
Perfect for fans of Iain M. Banks and Peter F. Hamilton.
It is the 147th century. The mighty era of Homo Sapiens is at an end.
In the Westerly Provinces of the Old World, the hunt is on for the young queen Arabis, and the beast that holds her captive. In the brutal hominid Investiture, revolution has come. The warlord Cunctus, having seized the Vulgar worlds, invites every Prism to pick a side. In the Firmament, once the kingdom of the Immortal Amaranthine, all ships converge on the foundry of Gliese. The grandest battle in the history of mammalian kind has begun.
Perception, ancient machine spirit, must take back its mortal remains in a contest for the Firmament itself. Ghaldezuel, now the Grand Marshal of Cunctus’ new empire, must travel to the deepest lagoon in the Investiture, a place where monsters dwell. Captain Maril, lost amongst the Hedron Stars, finds himself caught between colossal powers the likes of which he’d never dreamt.
And for Aaron the Long-Life, he who has waited so very, very long for his revenge, things are only getting started . . .
‘(An) unceasing display of wonders…This third novel honours the accomplishments of and promises of the first two, and serves as a fitting capstone to a unique creation…’ Paul Di Filippo, Locus Magazine
‘The final book in Toner’s ridiculously ambitious trilogy will force you to redefine what space opera can do… ‘ Barnes & Noble
‘Among the most significant works of science fiction released in recent years. Granted, you’ve got to give it your all, but give it that and you’ll get all that and more besides back’ TOR.COM [The Promise of the Child]
Perfect for fans of Iain M. Banks and Peter F. Hamilton.
It is the 147th century. The mighty era of Homo Sapiens is at an end.
In the Westerly Provinces of the Old World, the hunt is on for the young queen Arabis, and the beast that holds her captive. In the brutal hominid Investiture, revolution has come. The warlord Cunctus, having seized the Vulgar worlds, invites every Prism to pick a side. In the Firmament, once the kingdom of the Immortal Amaranthine, all ships converge on the foundry of Gliese. The grandest battle in the history of mammalian kind has begun.
Perception, ancient machine spirit, must take back its mortal remains in a contest for the Firmament itself. Ghaldezuel, now the Grand Marshal of Cunctus’ new empire, must travel to the deepest lagoon in the Investiture, a place where monsters dwell. Captain Maril, lost amongst the Hedron Stars, finds himself caught between colossal powers the likes of which he’d never dreamt.
And for Aaron the Long-Life, he who has waited so very, very long for his revenge, things are only getting started . . .
‘(An) unceasing display of wonders…This third novel honours the accomplishments of and promises of the first two, and serves as a fitting capstone to a unique creation…’ Paul Di Filippo, Locus Magazine
‘The final book in Toner’s ridiculously ambitious trilogy will force you to redefine what space opera can do… ‘ Barnes & Noble
‘Among the most significant works of science fiction released in recent years. Granted, you’ve got to give it your all, but give it that and you’ll get all that and more besides back’ TOR.COM [The Promise of the Child]
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Reviews
To call The Promise of the Child one of the most accomplished debuts of 2015 so far is to understate its weight-instead, let me moot that it is among the most significant works of science fiction released in recent years
One of the most ambitious and epic-scale pieces of worldbuilding I've read. Reading The Promise of the Child, you feel you're in the presence of an author at the height of his powers. If this is what Toner is like when he's just getting started, I think we can expect great things from him. Utterly absorbing; a tremendous adventure
An amazing debut. Intriguing, disorientating. Like Hannu Rajaniemi's The Quantum Thief or Moorcock's Dancers At The End OF Time, it's told with the heightened vibrancy of a fable, and the melancholic sense of age and decadence so prevalent in Jack Vance's Emphyrio
Extraordinary, beautiful and original... there are moments, places and characters here that are described with such gorgeousness, as well as not a little horror, that the book bewitches... I'm in awe of Tom Toner's genius in creating this extraordinarily rich, warm, frightening, loving and rewarding future universe. There is so much to wonder at, puzzle over, be scared of and enjoy... glorious
(An) unceasing display of wonders... Toner has a knack for maximum suspense and variation. His dialogue is precise, witty and revelatory. His neologisms and general nomenclature rivals that of Jack Vance. And his staging of action scenes, both small and large, is laudable. This third novel honours the accomplishments of and promises of the first two, and serves as a fitting capstone to a unique creation... tempering the challenging abstruseness of Ada Palmer's novels with the anything-goes action swerves of A.E. Van Vogt and with the poetry of Le Guin, Tom Toner's Amaranthine Spectrum delivers a new flavour of space opera that is bound to dazzle and delight
A series to savour and enjoy... The amazing thing about The Tropic of Eternity is its sheer ambition. This is a massive, sprawling epic that crosses timelines, galaxies and viewpoints as easily as crossing the road. Toner's lyrical prose is massively engaging... It's an almost Terry Pratchett-esque approach to worldbuilding, where you wonder how some things were even thought of, let alone put to paper. It's engaging, it's pretty bloody brilliant, and it's the kind of worldbuilding that will leave you wanting to dive into the world and explore for yourself... Vast, exotic and mind boggling
The final book in Toner's ridiculously ambitious trilogy will force you to redefine what space opera can do... To put it simply, this is bold, challenging science fiction... those who have challenged themselves to absorb the breadth of Toner's vision of the future will find themselves satisfied by its striking conclusion
An amazing debut-a colorful space opera in the post-human tradition of Iain M. Banks, combined with the razor-sharp plotting of Alastair Reynolds. It left me feverish with delight
Fans of George R. R. Martin's works will appreciate Toner's similar ability to draw distinctive and compelling personalities out of such a vast cast... it will throw you in at the deep end, but richly reward your patience
Bold and intense from start to finish, The Promise of the Child is a master-class in innovative, evocative world-building. The entire book buzzes with imagination
Humming with energy, this is space opera like you've never seen it before. Absolutely brilliant
A gorgeously-written, wildly imaginative book. It's like no space opera I've ever read-compelling and addictive