Children of Time

Adrian Tchaikovsky's Children of Time is one of the best science fiction stories I have read recently, and perhaps ever.
The author interweaves the story of a colony of (very relatable) spiders on a distant planet, unintentionally uplifted and augmented by an ancient human terraforming project, with the needs of a generational ship full of humans who must find a planet to live on.
Everything happens over hundreds of years, but the narrative is very fluid and shows a great continuity, complicit with the fact that the humans on the ship benefit from hibernation technology that lets them experience only the key events of their struggle to find a new home, and sleep during downtime.
Chapters about humans and spiders alternate, often ending with important milestones or events. This makes the book a real page-turner, keeping the reader on the edge of their seat to see what other unexpected things will happen next, no matter which of the two narratives the reader enjoys more.
The most fascinating aspect of the book for me is how Tchaikovsky wisely uses his background in zoology to describe a fairly plausible evolution of the arachnids, including aspects such as religion, gender roles, social norms, and technology. There is always a reason why things evolve the way they do, and that reason follows solid rules of nature and science.
This is very intelligent science fiction, and the way the author describes the evolution of the spiders reminded me a bit of how Andy Weir described the nature and physiology of the aliens in “Project Hail Mary”.
I was a bit on the fence when the story reached a point where a conflict between the two species arose. After all I had read, it was impossible to choose a side, as I felt sympathy for both groups of protagonists, although the humans are a constant carousel of violence for centuries. The ending is surprising.
It's a 5/5 for me, and I recommend the novel to anyone interested in intelligent science fiction.