To be forthright: Adrian Tchaikovsky is a tremendous science fiction writer. And in “Lords of Uncreation” he has pulled off another unique creative world and presented a captivating story line. If you love sci-fi just purchase this book and enjoy entering a new universe.

I found the final part in this trilogy very repetitive and too full of exposition and 'info dumps'. It was a real slog for me to finish it, which was very disappointing as I enjoyed the other two books immensely.

I enjoyed this conclusion to Tchaikovsky's Final Architecture trilogy. There are some well written characters. He does a great job of making the characters interesting enough to keep you engaged. I found the story propulsive though a bit repetitive at times with the technology. Though I won't often recommend this specific book, I will steer students towards the trilogy as a well-written science fiction work worthy of their time.

This was a truly satisfying conclusion to a great trilogy. Tchaikovsky did a great job of balancing a character driven story, with high-concept Sci-Fi themes, which often in my experience you get one or the other but not both. This trilogy belongs at the top of the list alongside the modern greats like The Expanse, Murderbot and the Wayfarers.

I was so excited when I saw this title available on netgalley that I immediately had to request it. Ever since I read the first book in this series, Adrian Tchaikovsky has become one of my all-time favorite authors, and an automatic buy for me. This book did not disappoint. I won't give plot details to avoid spoilers for any future readers (hey ! Buy this book ! It's amazing!) , but I will say that Tchaikovsky once again establishes himself as a master of the modern space opera, and an exceptional writer overall.
10 out of ten, would recommend. Already ordered a paper copy for myself.

This was a satisying conclusion to this trillogy, even though I never LOVED it. Yet again, the Moby Dick references are my favorite part of this series. I enjoy Adrian Tchaikovsky's writing and do continue to read the books he releases in this world, but I'm possitive his writing is not for me. I enjoy the world building and the characters (for the most part) but everything else just seems to fall flat for me. I don't really feel attached to any of the characters and any hardships they face just kind of go over my head in a way. But with that being said, this was a great concluding novel and it definitely sets it up for more books in the world. Overall, this book was just ok with me and I don't think I'll ever find a Tchaikovsky book that I wholeheartedly love.

I've done it again. I've picked up the third book in a trilogy without having read the previous books in the series. Sometimes it doesn't matter too much but in this case I think it was probably vital to have the background of the previous books.
Not only am I coming in at the end of a trilogy, I've never read anything by Adrian Tchaikovsky before, but I'd been wanting to something of his and this came up.

Decades ago the earth was destroyed in a war with a race referred to as The Architects. In order to avoid the annihilation of all human-kind, a group of elite, enhanced humans were created to be the heroes in humanity's war.

One such created hero is Idris Telemmier. He could probably have statues made of him for his work but instead he finds himself on a salvage ship with an oddball crew. Even so, Idris has come upon a massive secret which could bring about the downfall of the otherwise seemingly invincible Architects. But when word gets out that he has this knowledge there are forces, some from within, that want this knowledge for themselves. Idris has to juggle the possible fate of humanity with what is morally 'right' and 'wrong.'

I felt lost through much of the book. The relationships between the people, specifically those aboard the ship with Idris, was very clearly a close-knit relationship, given their familiarity with one another, but I felt like the new kid in school watching all the cliques but not fitting in with any of them. It looked like a lot of fun but I wasn't allowed to be a part of it.

The first 2/3rds of the book was mostly interactions among the friends and cohorts which did help a little with getting to know people, but it still felt like this was more a reunion for those who knew and loved these characters.

The action of the book picks up in the last third of the novel and it was definitely exciting. This was everything you would expect in a 200 page space opera - action, high stakes (the fate of all humanity!), gods brought down to size by the best humanity has to offer. It's just too bad there's 400 pages before we get to the grit of the story.

I truly believe that my concerns with the book stem from the fact that this is the end of a story and not a stand-alone novel. But since this was the book I was provided to read and review, I can only do so as a stand-alone.

Looking for a good book? Lords of Uncreation by Adrian Tchaikovsky is the final book in an epic space opera, but unless you've read the previous two books you might feel left out.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

This is the last book in "The Final Architecture" series. LORDS OF UNCREATION tends to drag a bit at first, but it does a pretty good job of wrapping up into a satisfying ending of the series. It's not nearly as good of a book as either of the two books that came before it, so I'd only recommend it if you read and enjoyed SHARDS OF EARTH and EYES OF THE VOID and want to know how it all ends.

Published by Orbit on May 2, 2023

Lords of Uncreation brings The Final Architecture trilogy to a fitting end. It just takes an awfully long time to get there.

In Shards of Earth and Eyes of the Void, readers met the Architects, aliens who (perhaps for aesthetic reasons) reshaped planets, rendering them uninhabitable. Earth was one of their victims. Many humans died but many others scattered to the stars, using throughways that pass through “unspace” to shortcut travel times. Those humans formed colonies that are governed by the Hugh.

Outside the throughways, travel in unspace is precarious. Apart from navigational difficulties, unspace causes a sense of dread, a certainty that a monster is preparing to turn the traveler into a snack. Surviving a journey through unspace usually means going to sleep, but certain navigators called “ints” have had their brains rewired so they can stay awake in unspace without going mad.

The first two novels developed the plucky crew of the Vulture God, a ship that eventually takes on the task of saving humanity from the Architects and their evil masters. The crew interacts with a sect of human female warriors (the Partheni) who initially organized to protect humans, although a faction in the third novel wants nothing to do with other humans. The crew also deals with a spy from Hugh who returns in the final novel. Whether he will help them or kill them is a question about which the spy is of two minds.

Aliens who are also threatened by the Architects include insects that operate machines through collective effort, a race of shipbound aliens who avoid the risk of planetary destruction by living in space, traders that look like crabs, and a few species collectively known as the Hegemony who serve the Essiel, an alien race that likes to be worshipped.

The primary mysteries developed in the first two novels are (1) why are the Architects destroying worlds, (2) who do the Architects serve, (3) why are Architects unwilling to harm artifacts created by the Originators, (4) who were the Originators and what happened to them, (5) what is the scary presence that everyone senses in unspace, and (6) what lives at the core of unspace? Lords of Uncreation eventually answers those questions. The answers make sense within the context of the impressive worldbuilding (or universe building) that Adrian Tchaikovsky undertook.

The trilogy is a strong contribution to the subgenre of far future space opera involving humans (with some alien help, in this case) overcoming an alien menace. The future is created in so much detail that the background is at least as absorbing as the plot. Conflicts between factions of the human race and occasionally between humans and aliens all follow their own logic, the kind of logic that is recognizable throughout human history. The story is, in a word, smart.

In the grand space opera tradition, characters engage in acts of heroism, sometimes valiantly (including a Partheni who joins the Vulture God’s crew), sometimes reluctantly (including the int who is often part of the Vulture God’s crew and who holds the key to solving the mysteries described above). Even characters who are very different from 21st century humans are relatable in their emotions and desires. Characters evolve over the series; the spy, for example, turns into a better guy than his nature initially seems to permit.

The mysteries are answered with a creative (albeit incomplete) reinterpretation of what the universe is and, to some extent, how it was created and shaped. Suffice it to say that humans and aliens think too much and that all that thinking is troublesome to the shapers of the universe. There is a man-behind-the-curtain component to the mystery that will be satisfying to readers who agree that might doesn’t make right, particularly when the might is wielded by the weak to create the illusion of strength.

My knock on the last novel in this trilogy is its unnecessary length. Modern sf writers seem to feel the need to cram six or seven novels into three fat books. The worldbuilding and action in the first two novels is sufficiently interesting to overcome their length. This one seems wordy for no purpose other than to grow the word count. The first half not only struck me as padded but rushed. Tchaikovsky can be a skilled wordsmith, but the early prose in Lords of Creation is sometimes awkward or clichéd. Fortunately, his prose in the last 200 pages is sharper and the story comes to a satisfying finish that makes it worth wading through the unnecessary verbiage.

RECOMMENDED

A spectacular end to this series. The series is so full of a multitude of species and characters that are easy to connect with and follow. I really loved the way that the author wrapped everything up and the justice that he did to the storyline. If there's one thing that Tchaikovsky knows how to do it's a solid finish. He really sticks the landing here

An amazing end to fantastic trilogy. This novel bring the Final Architecture series to it finale. It continues with characters that have been developed over the past two novels and adds more depth to them. The prose is riveting and keep the reader engaged throughout the book. Much like the first two novels, this was hard to put down, and the closer I got to the end the more I did not want it to finish. Getting to know the characters and universe of the series has been a real treat, and I did not want it to end.

This is hard sci-fi at its finest!

I'll address the question most everyone will want answered right up front. Does this book stick the landing? Yes, more or less. It finally provided concrete answers to some really big questions, and I found them satisfying and thought-provoking. The motley crew of characters was back, and I still loved them all so much. They each had endings that perfectly served their arcs and personalities. Unfortunately, though, the approach to the landing had a bit of turbulence and was super rough in places.

Before we get to my quibbles, I want to gush about the things I really loved. I cannot say enough positive things about the world-building in this book and entire series. All of the different species were so much fun to explore, and the history of this universe and all its conflicts was almost mind-blowing in scope. Before reading this series, I would have never believed that a civilization of god-like sentient clams could be captivating characters in a story, but here we are. This book added even more depth to their culture and customs, and I absolutely loved it. They are probably the highlight of the entire series for me, which is saying a lot because there is a ton of cool stuff here. I would love to get more books about their civilization.

The characters were both a plus and minus for me in this one. I love each of them so much, and this book highlighted Olli in particular, which was a lot of fun. She was her usual crass self, and I enjoyed all of her interactions with the clam overlords. The ending of her story was actually really perfect for her, but I'm not going to spoil it here. I still liked all of the other characters and where they ended up, as well, but they all seemed somewhat static. I don't think there was a ton of character growth, and I'm fairly certain the extremely high number of POVs played a role. There were so many plates spinning in the air that the characters felt like chess pieces in the plot rather than the people I fell in love with in the first book. It also didn't help that two throwaway antagonists got so much POV real estate in the first half of the book. I didn't like them, and their perspectives felt like a rehash of the conflict from the second book.

This leads into the major problem I had with this book. The first half was a chore to finish. It had tons of awesome stuff in it, but it felt a bit like pointless fluff. It added very little to the overall story, and at the middle, the situation the characters found themselves in was very similar to how things were at the beginning of the book. I liked the exploration of the infighting between the factions of humans in the second book, but here it just seemed repetitive. The second half of the book, though, gave me exactly what I wanted from this finale. The exploration of unspace and the fight with the Architects and their masters was truly epic. The revelations made perfect sense, and the resolution was honestly genius and surprisingly simple. I loved how each character played a significant part in the final conflict that played to their individual strengths. It took me weeks to get through the first half of the book, but I flew through the second half in a couple of days because I could not put it down.

The revelations about unspace were a highlight of the book for me. The intense exploration of this realm led to some breathtaking imagery and the tackling of incredibly powerful themes. I particularly liked how the author explored how people in power often use fear to keep their place at the center of things. Despite really liking the answers about unspace, I didn't exactly love how they were revealed. Idris just kept getting random revelations without any real explanation of how he figured things out. The logic and science of it all felt super fuzzy even when the final answers made sense. I wish the author had spent a bit more time explaining how Idris did the things he did and less time on the infighting in the first half of the book.

Despite my grumblings, this book, and the series as a whole, was a solid space opera with a lot to love. If you enjoy sweeping science fiction with a variety of species, locales, infighting factions, and universe-level mysteries, this is a must read series. My complaints pale in comparison to the things I loved, and I definitely recommend this book and will be on the lookout for new work from this author. Therefore, I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars.

I have to admit that I was not sure how Tchaikovsky would end this epic. So many books seem to end with a whimper and not a bang. However, I can honestly say that this is one of the best endings to a series that I have ever read. It ends with a slam bang, insanity that matches well with the rest of the series. The story is demanding enough that you have to pay attention and entertaining enough that you're willing to make the effort. Lots of authors are skilled at creating interesting and believable alien life forms. But Tchaikovsky goes well beyond that. In addition to creating characters with real, distinct, and compelling personalities, Tchaikovsky is willing to embrace the challenge of taking the reader inside wonderful, ineffable, and fundamentally unknowable entities, and that's what you get here. The entire series builds up to a reveal of who or what it is that commands the Architects, (as well as the "why"), and we actually get an answer that makes sense and opens our minds. First rate stuff.

The last of the trilogy finds our beloved crew once again reluctantly responsible for saving the universe. It was a fun rip-roaring read and a last chance to spend time with some beloved characters. Wrapped up nicely and I hope that we can one day return to this universe to check in on them.
My only nitpick would be I felt like the author spent a little too much time "describing the indescribable" of unspace. As events unfolded in there, it seemed to go in circles a little.

Third in this trilogy about post-Earth humanity constantly on the run from the Architects, who turn inhabited worlds into art. The scrappy little spaceship that’s accidentally been at the center of huge political conflicts stays that way, and also plunges into unreal space to see if the fight can be taken to the Architects—which most people are willing to kill off even knowing that Architects are actually the slaves of some other entities. There’s plenty of adventure and compromise to go around.

Thank you to the publisher, Orbit Books, and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Idris has found the weak point of the Architects, something that could change the course of the war if they can find a way to use this. But Idris’ discovery and the now critical importance of the facility on the Eye has drawn attention from various factions who all seek to control it to further their own agendas. With infighting erupting between the leading powers in the galaxy, things are about to descend into a war in a time when they need to be united more than ever. Idris himself is not fully convinced that this is the way to go – he is confident that the Architects are only the tools of a greater power that controls them. The masters are the true threat, and are now aware of humanity and that they are moving against them. As this unlikely crew embarks upon a deadly mission to descend deep into unspace, this is the foe they will have to face.

I was initially introduced to this series two years ago through a blog tour. I’d never heard of it or the author before, but the premise sounded interesting and I was in the mood to read sci-fi, so I figured why not? I definitely did not expect to like it as much as I did, much less enough to request arcs for the sequels as soon as they were available. Needless to say, Lords of Uncreation was among my most highly anticipated finales this year and my expectations were through the roof. I really appreciated that the author included ‘The Story So Far’ at the beginning. I remembered most of the details but it’s always helpful to have a more detailed refresher at hand of not only the plot but also the characters, factions, ships and concepts which allowed to me to slip straight back into this world with no confusion. The cover art is gorgeous and as with the two before, I think it reflects the plot quite well.

So…this review was supposed to go live nearly two weeks ago. Except it look way longer than I expected to read it, left quite a massive book hangover in its wake (the good kind, but still makes it impossible to do anything reading or reviewing related), not to mention it took several days to actually process the events of this book enough to come up with something coherent.

Despite the arguably existential threat facing all the species there are out in space, some human factions still want to take control and go on incredibly petty power trips that were just ridiculous given the critical nature of the situation. I found the whole plotline with the hostile takeover of Estoc by the Magdans so infuriating – but also just what I’d come to expect of them. The Parthenon’s stance on it was more surprising but interesting all the same.

That aside, I was surprised to find more world building even at this late stage in the series as the characters visited new worlds, introducing new players into the plot and a lot of space navigation concepts. There was no lack of space battles of course, and I don’t have the words to describe how perfect and immersive these scenes were. They were often described through the eyes of various characters at different locations in the battle and in such detail that it felt like I was right alongside them watching the action unfold into a truly wild ride.

There were several unexpected moments of humor – I didn’t expect to find any cheerful moments while reading this book and certainly not any funny enough that I needed to take a break to have a good giggle, but there it was, and it made this reading experience all the better for it too.

This book was over 600 pages again as I expected, given the first two books and once more, it was the kind of story that you need to slow down your reading pace to appreciate. There’s also the fact that if you try to speed up, you’ll probably miss some crucial plot point because there was just so much going on at any given time. Multiple parallel plotlines that all affect each other, shifting alliances, political turmoil and infighting – there wasn’t a single moment to be bored despite the slower pacing. Even so, I did feel that this book was moving a little faster than the previous two.

My one complaint about Eyes of the Void was that the hand controlling the Architects and hence the real enemy was not revealed. And even in this book, it wasn’t until I think past the 50% mark that it was made clear. In hindsight, it wasn’t all that surprising once it was laid out, but the focus for the first half of the book was completely on the takeover of Estoc – which once things started moving, was resolved in the span of a couple of chapters (albeit spectacularly so). And then the focus sharply turned back to the real situation at hand. I’m not the biggest fan of the way this book was structured in this aspect but it made for entertaining reading so no major complaints.

I’ve been a big fan of the way the characters in this series have been written, especially the core cast, the crew of the Vulture God, who basically set everything in motion. They’ve picked up several friends, enemies, and allies – some very unexpected – along the way, which resulted in quite a few POVs in this finale even though Idris, Solace, Kit, Kris and Olli remain center stage. I give this an A+ for character development and much as I mentioned in my reviews of the previous two books, the balance between plot and character was perfect once again. Each of them was so familiar by this point and I for one was quite attached to them which meant that I spent the entire time on the edge of my seat hoping they’d get out of the perilous situation they’d managed to work themselves into, which was more or less the entire book, one after the other.

There were no lack of challenges for the characters to face in this book, but what I loved was how all these relatively normal people, human and otherwise, many seen as misfits, loners, and even gangsters, came together in a manner to fight the threat in their own ways.

I don’t know if it’s just me, but the way things ended made the story feel a little incomplete. Then again, so much was going on in those final chapters that I wouldn’t be surprised if I’d missed something in there despite reading them twice. Idris’ storyline didn’t end the way I’d been hoping it would, but it was, I think a very fitting ending for his arc and some part of me was expecting it to be along those lines. There were some unanswered questions once everything was said and done but this book did tie up the major loose ends. I do wish the conclusion had been clearer though as I felt like I had to infer a lot.

Lords of Uncreation was a phenomenal conclusion to this space opera and it had just as epic a feel as I hoped it would. I only occasionally pick up science fiction novels and was surprised at how easily this drew me in right from the beginning in Shards of Earth. I thoroughly enjoyed this series and I’m already trying to figure out when I can read the other books by this author. Finishing this book and series has definitely put me in the reading mood for this genre so hopefully it’ll be soon! I would highly recommend this series to all science fiction fans and anyone interested in the genre!

This is a difficult review for me to write. Now, I did give the book 5 stars, and Tchaikovsky earned every one of those stars, so let me be clear about that.

But…this book took me a month to read. The first third of the book took up three weeks of that time. And the reason is that it was depressing me horribly & I had to keep putting it down. If you are someone who has high empathy levels then it can be difficult to read about bad things happening to good people. The first third of this book is just the bad guys getting major wins. Just like in the other books this is told from multiple POV‘s, and a new one here is one of those Uskaro bastards. I don’t want to read from that asshole’s point of view! But the good guys start coming back, so it’s not all doom and gloom.
Unlike most other reviews I’ve seen, I did not like the ending. I’m trying to not give it away…but the final outcome for one of the characters was just so wrong in my mind and I cried reading it.

So, yeah. I guess this review is proof that I don’t necessarily have to enjoy my reading experience to give a book the appreciation I think it deserves. But unlike the majority of this author’s work I will not ever re-read this book. I just can’t.

Thank you to NetGalley & Orbit Books for this advance reader copy. All opinions are my own.

“I have no objection to saving the species,” he told nothing and no one, as he hung in the void. “I have an objection to exterminating another species to do it.”
———
The final book in a trilogy has one job — stick the landing. And with this one I needn’t have worried — it’s Tchaikovsky, after all. My fangirl status is justified.

Adrian Tchaikovsky just never disappoints. The Final Architecture series is a classic space opera with ridiculously fast space travel, all sorts of aliens, spaceships, space arcs and space colonies, and - of course - a ragtag crew of misfits. Plus a serious threat not just to humanity, but all the sentient life in this Universe, where there just may be something sinister hiding at the center, deep under the thin skin of what we perceive as “real”.

It’s a story of “sheer human bloody-mindedness against the universe”. And I loved it.

Adrian Tchaikovsky has clearly become one of my favorite science fiction writers. Somehow he easily keeps the classic genre feel without it feeling stale. And he follows on character arcs satisfactorily, with the resolutions actually feeling earned.

Tchaikovsky manages to have the incredible task of saving the universe as you know it by more or less regular persons (some human, some not — and even the Unspeakable Aklu, the Razor and the Hook) seem not as ridiculous as it should be, and that’s quite a feat to accomplish. The matters of existential threat and plain human petty power trips are nicely balanced, as are space battles and genuine human (and nonhuman) moments. And he concludes all the storylines in a way that I didn’t quite anticipate, and it works quite well — since at its heart it’s not a story about winning or losing, but about the power of understanding and empathy and bonds between us.

And humor. I appreciate a bit of humor even in serious stuff, and Tchaikovsky so perfect for that (I swear, we share the exact same sense of humor and it’s perfect for me). As usual, Olli does a bit of comic relief while still having a compelling storyline with a very suitable end to it, and her character arc, other than Idris’, was perhaps the most satisfying.

It’s a very satisfying conclusion of a fun, interesting story. 4.5 stars, happily rounding up.
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Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit Books for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I requested a digital copy in order to sample the prose on my phone (since I don't have a eReader) before requesting a physical copy for review. My review will be based on the physical ARC I read (if I qualify)

I gladly accepted the opportunity to read Lords of Uncreation as an ARC! It's a phenomenal ending to a great trilogy.

I have been a fan of Tchaikovsky for years. His stories feature incredibly innovative settings, characters and narratives and it is easy to get lost in the worlds that he builds. No one in the genre builds unique, detailed and bizarre worlds like Adrian Tchaikovsky. I developed a particular affinity for the Final Architecture series; this series, set among the stars, has a mind-blowing cast of alien species, political intrigue, and scientific advances. While this series has been described as a "space opera", it needs to be recognized as THE space opera of our time.

In Lords of Uncreation, the final novel in the Final Architecture trilogy, Tchaikovsky sets to pull together all of the narrative strings into a neat bundle. I enjoyed the split narrative which told the story from a variety of perspectives, though it would have been nice to see the world through the eyes/limbs/mucus membranes of some of the more exotic species like the Essiel. Although, maybe they work best as truly alien beings because we CAN'T comprehend how they perceive the world. Some individuals, who previously enjoyed more of a supporting role, have a much larger narrative role. It is a bittersweet compromise as familiar characters like Solace give space to characters like Olli. Our familiar characters ARE present, it's just that some previous supporting cast are given a much larger role.

I cannot overstate how rich the universe of Final Architecture is. The level of detail was almost too much to fully take in and I know I could read again (and again) and come away with things I missed the first time. In Lords of Uncreation, there is not a tremendous amount of explanation or new character development; you HAVE to enter this book having read the others in the series. If you don't, there is much of the narrative (including the motivation of characters) that just simply will not make sense. This is not a standalone novel by any means.

The story maintains a high level of drama, action and humour that readers have come to expect, complete with a thorough dive into futuristic technology and ethical/philosophical quandaries. The story did bog down a bit in the second half, with a repetitive jaunt through space/unreal. I was skeptical that Tchaikovsky would be able to succinctly wrap up the trilogy in one book; while it wasn't how I envisioned things coming together, it did make sense in the end.

If you've been a fan of the Final Architecture series, the question should not be IF you are going to read Lords of Uncreation; the question is WHEN are you going to read it? If you haven't read the first two books, please start with Shards of Earth and Eyes of the Void before you tackle this one. You'll be glad that you did.