The Tropic of Eternity
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- $26.99
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- $26.99
Publisher Description
The sequel to the critically acclaimed and ambitious literary space opera debut The Promise of the Child.
It is the 147th century.
The mighty era of Homo Sapiens is at an end.
In the Westerly Provinces of the Old World, the hunt is on for the young queen Arabis, and the vile creature that holds her captive.
In the brutal hominid Investiture, revolution has come. The warlord Cunctus, having seized the Vulgar worlds, invites every Prism to pick a side.
In the Firmament, once the kingdom of the Immortal Amaranthine, all ships converge on the foundry of Gliese. The grandest battle in the history of mammalian kind has begun.
Perception, ancient machine spirit, must take back its mortal remains in a contest for the Firmament itself.
Ghaldezuel, now the Grand Marshal of Cunctus’ new empire, must travel to the deepest lagoon in the Investiture, a place where monsters dwell.
Captain Maril, lost amongst the Hedron Stars, finds himself caught between colossal powers the likes of which he'd never dreamt.
But for Aaron the Long-Life, he who has waited so very, very long for his revenge, things are only getting started . . .
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Toner's bloated follow-up to The Weight of the World returns readers to the widest reaches of the Amaranthine Firmament, an empire in the 147th century, with the book's massive cast spread out across several plots begun in previous books. In one of the main story lines, the gentle Melius giant Lycaste, first introduced in 2015's The Promise of the Child, works with several allies in an attempt to thwart series villain Aaron the Long-Life's attempts at revenge against the world that wronged him. Another important plot involves the search for the infant queen Arabis after she is abducted, with some chapters focusing on her kidnapper while others focus on her family's quest to find her. Toner helpfully includes lengthy prefatory material, but new readers will still struggle to keep track of the numerous plots, characters, and places, especially as Toner skips around in time and space. Fans of the first two books will find plenty to love in the return to many familiar settings and characters, but those unfamiliar with Toner's labyrinthine approach to storytelling will find this an inhospitable starting point.
