Inhibitor Phase

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Alastair Reynolds: Inhibitor Phase (2021, Orion Publishing Group, Limited)

English language

Published Nov. 19, 2021 by Orion Publishing Group, Limited.

ISBN:
978-0-575-09071-2
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4 stars (29 reviews)

6 editions

Another Revelation Space Universe book!

5 stars

Content warning Spoiler warning

Review of 'Inhibitor Phase' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

I really do like the continuation of Revelation Space! There is some of that grand scale of things still in there. But the dialogue, and the way the characters interact (and forgive?!) each other just feels off. Like canny valley. And that’s by an already lower threshold I set for sci-fi. My memories of previous instalments is far more favourable than my experience with this book. A bit of a let down. Ro summarise: it’s good, just not really good.

Review of 'Inhibitor Phase' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Read this if you are already invested in Revelation Space series.

Good:
Familiar characters & locations show up.
Ties to the war on Mars, which is one of my favorite parts of the lore.
Story beats reminded me of a Culture series novel.

Bad:
Drawn-out midsection, rushed & unnecessarily complicated ending.
Aliens end up feeling mundane.
Not a viable entry point into the series, despite being advertised as standalone.

Review of 'Inhibitor Phase' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

As one of Alastair Reynolds's more sarcastic characters, such as Scorpio the Hyperpig - or Triumvir Ilia Volyova - might say, 'you don't read Alastair Reynolds for the breakneck, frenetic pacing.' His dialogue also tends towards the wordy. But you do read Alastair Reynolds for the jaw-dropping concepts.

In the case of Inhibitor Phase, the title promises to bring some kind of significant event - or maybe even a denouement - to this cosmic scourge, which is a huge drawcard. The Inhibitors emerged as the main protagonists of Reynolds's Revelation Space Trilogy, sort of like souped-up versions of Fred Saberhagen's Berserkers or the Doomsday Machine from the Star Trek TOS episode of the same name.

The story starts promisingly enough with an unexpected visitor to a colony in hiding from the Inhibitor machines and a tense negotiation for one of the colonists to take a trip to find a …

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Subjects

  • English literature