Customer Reviews
A fantastic revelation... - By: D. S. McCormack, 13 May 2008 
This novel is set in a different universe to many of the other novels by Alastair Reynolds making it a refreshing change & possibly preventing the 'Revelation Space' universe from getting stale - not that I thought it was having just finished reading 'The Prefect' which is also fantastic.
In a way it is controversial for the novel to deviate from his other writings although I believe he touched on a similar style towards the end of 'Galactic North'.
Expanding on some of the more complex ideas could have doubled this novel in size unnecessarily, the dots can be joined by an open minded reader which helps to keep up the tempo.
Imaginative & intriguing. The characters are powerful. I am looking forward to further books by Alastair Reynolds!
great book - more fantasy than hard science based speculative fiction - By: Dr. Harpal Singh Uppal, 07 May 2008 I for one welcome "house of suns". Reynolds has wisely decided to develop as an author & try new genre's with different structure.
Whilst I have loved the first 4 revelation space novels, it can easily lull an author in reproducing the same novel repeatedly with name & place changes only.
In the prefect (essentiallly a detective story) & in house of suns (essentiallly a fantasy novel wrapped up in a SF shell) reynolds has been brave enough to try something new. With several years of experience in writing & with such obvious talent it is refreshing to see a change in his approach.
i particularly liked the symmetry created in changing the viewpoint of the novel every chapter. In some ways it reminds me of Iain Banks best works such as "use of weapons" (only not as good i'm afraid! - but then again what is!)
More rip roaring invention from Reynolds - By: P. G. Harris, 05 May 2008 
Campion & Purslane are clones who have been travelling the galaxy for millenia. En route to a periodic reunion of their clone family they learn of an ambush which has devastated their numbers. This is the basis of a wildly twisting plot which culminates in a breakneck centuries long intergalactic chase.
This book is both familiar & a new development. It takes familiar elements in Reynolds work of huge near light speed starships, weapons of unimaginable power, suspended animation, intergalactic chases (a la Galactic North), adds in a twist of something that feels like Iain Banks, but then sets this in a different universe to that of Revelation Space, & builds the story around something as tiny as a love affair.
The most impressive thing about this novel is that Reynolds has created another self consistent yet wildly imaginative universe & based a well constructed story within it.
The book isn't perfect, it drags a little in the middle & maybe Reynolds overreaches himself in one or two inconvincing elements (the curators of the Vigilance ?), but those are minor quibbles, & I have to say highly recommended.
Much of the same from Reynolds, a good addition to any library - By: F. E. Mckinney, 29 Apr 2008 I eagerly purchased this book from Amazon the week it was released, & was not able to put this book down until today, when it was complete. I have been a fan of Reynolds for some time, & although this story was not set in the Revelation Space 'universe', it still contains enough mystery, characters & drama to keep a sci-fi fan enthrallled until its climax.
Readers unfamiliar to Reynolds, or those who are impatient, may find the book slow to get going, only picking up around the middle of the book; however, those who have read his works previously should enjoy the delicate interplay of characters, the finely detailed background & even the flashback scenes. Give this book some time & you will be repaid in full.
Readers who are unimpressed with characters who are millions of years old, or yawn at unimaginable crimes & weapons, might find story tedious, but personallly I found the characters quite different to Reynold's past characters, enough that when the action seemed to dip or the mysteries forgotten I was entirely wrapped up in the characters dealing with each other. It is possible, however, to get lost in the large number of very very large numbers, but focus on the characters & mysteries at hand & you'll soon get sucked back into the story.
All this said, I found the ending & the final plot reveals not as great as those in the Revelation Space novels, possibly because there are several books in that series & the plot hooks stretch back to previous books, possibly because I was distracted enough to consider what might be coming next. This book is still VERY GOOD, just not as GREAT as the Revelation Space novels. I would rate Pushing Ice, another of Reynold's one-shot stories, a bit better than this novel, but this is still a wonderful read, difficult to put down, & the cause of a few late nights :) If there were a 4.5 rating, I would definitely give it that!
If you are brand new to Alistair Reynolds, I wouldn't recommend this book, instead you should try 'Pushing Ice', a full-length novel, or 'Diamond Dogs, Turquoise Nights', two novellas collected in one volume. These will give you a fantastic introduction to the hard science stylings of Reynolds, then start with the first book in the Revelation Space series.
A matter of taste. - By: David G. Sheehan, 29 Apr 2008 Just want to write a short review for those who have become fans of Reynold's sublime Space Operas----This is a new direction from most of his novels. Judging by the other reviews this change in tack (it's not realy THAT spectacular a change) is not to the taste of some-but very much to the tase of others. I add my voice to those who think "House of Suns" it is one of his best. The plotting is magnificently inventive (no change there!)Personallly I found it almost impossible to put down & I like that in a book!The protagonists are fascinating & the writing at times surpasses that of his earlier work. If you want to read the cream of contemporary Sci-Fi--this is for you.
