The Abyss Beyond Dreams

I do not disagree entirely with the negative reviews on here, and thus why it loses two stars. However these reviews seem to ignore what makes Hamilton enjoyable, even if it can be can an annoying slog at time - that is....he eventually gets around to finishing up all those lose ends, all the odd stories, characters that seem to vanish - it all just ends up tying up, eventually. And, it ends up doing so in an interesting way that in the end develops a good overall, and occasionally a bit complex, story. But it takes a long long verbose time to do it. This is fine if you're used to longer than average books, but if 800 pages makes you hesitate, than you really shouldn't be reading Hamilton, as the patience required won't come with a reward that'll leave you satisfied. But if you're used to 800+ page books, the story ends up being quite enjoyable. And, of course, I have to read the sequel, the decent story needs its ending

Executive Summary: This one started slow but ended strong and them just kind of stops. It really feels more like half of a book than the first in a Duology.Audiobook: John Lee does his usual excellent job. For me he's a bit synonymous with Sci-Fi, and certainly with the Commonwealth. He doesn't really do a lot of voices, but his main reading voice gives the story a sort of gravitas that makes these always in audio.Full ReviewI really liked the first dulogy of the commonwealth. There were some lulls, and [b:Pandora's Star 45252 Pandora's Star Peter F. Hamilton https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1440699949s/45252.jpg 987015] kind of abruptly ends, but it was really enjoyable. The void trilogy on the other hand wasn't quite as good. This book was probably closer to the Void trilogy for me than the original duology.I'd probably say it took me nearly a third of the book before I warmed up to it. I was confused and at times bored for the early going. I didn't connect to any of the characters or what was happening to them.Once Nigel Sheldon finally shows up, things start to pick up. However, I'd say this book is maybe less about Nigel than the blurb would have you believe. It's primarily focused on two characters. The first is a soldier named Sylvasta who is dedicated to eradicating an invading alien race called the fallers.The other young woman named Cassandra, who finds herself suddenly swept up into the world of the Commonwealth. I found Cassandra's story far more interesting (at least after some of the early parts where it didn't feel like she had much agency in her own story).Sylvasta's story however was interesting at times and slow at others. I never really connected to him that much.Much like [b:Pandora's Star 45252 Pandora's Star Peter F. Hamilton https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1440699949s/45252.jpg 987015] just as things are starting to get good, they stop. Thankfully I sat on this one for a few years so [b:Night Without Stars 31282861 Night Without Stars (Commonwealth Chronicle of the Fallers, #2) Peter F. Hamilton https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1469707991s/31282861.jpg 44722327] is already waiting for me to pick it up.

reviews.metaphorosis.com

3 stars

At the request of the alien Raiel, human genius Nigel Sheldon enters the Void - a strange section of the universe where normal laws do not apply. Within the void, on the planet Bienvenido, a determined young man fights to protect his world from the dangerous Fallers.

Authors often feel compelled to tell the same story again and again. Sometimes literally the same story, from a different viewpoint (as in Orson Scott Card's Ender's Shadow). More often, it's the same plot dressed up with different characters (as in L.E. Modesitt's Recluce series, or almost anything by K.J. Parker). I don't necessarily object to that approach - I keep buying Parker's stories as they appear, and I like them all; I bought the entire Recluce series in e-form when it was on sale recently.

If you're going to tell the same story, though, you have to somehow make it new. Peter Hamilton treads pretty close to the edge in this book. If you read his Void trilogy, you'll recall Edeard, the young man from the country who gathers power to fight against injustice in the big city. In Abyss, we have Slvasta, a young man from the country who gathers power to fight against injustice in the big city.

It's impossible to believe that Hamilton didn't recognize the similarities; Edeard is specifically referred to here - Nigel has experienced all of the dreams about him. Yet Hamilton offers no real comment, no nod to the fact that he's covered this ground before. To be fair, the details have changed - Edeard gathered telekinetic power, while Slvasta aims for political power - and the hidden powers are quite different. But the foreground characters and the society are very similar. For much of the book, I wondered what Hamilton was trying to show us, other than that power corrupts.

Similarity aside, the book is entertaining and well written. It focuses mostly on the Void (the strength of the Void trilogy), and far less on the Commonwealth (the Void trilogy's weakness). The story is interesting, the characters appealing. The philosophy is pretty straightforward (much as in Modesitt's Recluce books, good and bad are clearcut), which is attractive on a small scale, but works less well as the book goes on. Hamilton introduces some difficult moral decisions, but then decides to pass them by rather than actually examining them.

Hamilton seems to assume (probably correctly) that most people will have already read the Void series - he provides a the key background filler, but when his characters enter the Void, they figure out its properties with remarkable speed. Some other insta-knowledge is equally off-putting, but is clarified later in the book. Hamilton does get carried away with some minor jokes that feel out of place (“comrade”, “sheriff procedurals”). Some of the pseudo-science could do with a little more handwaving (enzyme-bonded concrete made out of ... pretty much anything? what is that?). There are one or two strange cultural errors (tacos as a no-crumb space food? maybe he means burritos). Some key decisions in the book (e.g., a trip by Slvasta) seem highly unlikely, and weaken the story. I give Hamilton credit for trying to introduce some racial variety, but it doesn't quite work out. For one thing, skin color is never noted unless it's black. For another, the planet was populated by a very small group; after many generations, the population is likely fairly homogenous.

All in all, a decent start to a new duology. Despite the disappointing conclusion of the Void trilogy, Hamilton has maintained enough interest in the Void that I could see reading the second book of this set - in part because it promises to escape the “Edeard Take Two” structure of this book. If you haven't read any Commonwealth or Void stories before, you'll be fine with this and should enjoy it. If you've read the Void trilogy and want more of the (very much) same, this is it. If you were only mildly interested in the Void, or if you're looking for something startling or original, look elsewhere.

NB: Received free copy from Net Galley.