Over forty thousand years in the future, humanity is established in the distant Centauri Cluster, colonising it with arkships leaving Earth. The early arrivals evolved into posthuman races collectively known as Celestials. Later arrivals, still baseline humans, are now second class citizens in the Celestial dominions. Finn, a Uranic human, meaning he is a human with some ability to directly interface with Celestial system, is the scion of a wealthy family of administrators on the planet Anoosha. Surviving an assassination attempt, he is rescued by two recent arkship arrivals, and sees in them his future independence. Meanwhile, the Celestial noble families play “great games” of power and influence over centuries and millennia. They value stability of dominion, with upstart humans wanting more independence being a major concern.
Even for a Peter F. Hamilton novel, this one has almost overwhelming scope and complexity. Multiple interweaving storylines spanning decades weave a gorgeous tapestry of future society. However, it is sometimes difficult to know who to root for. Finn is the obvious protagonist, and he definitely grows as the story progresses, but there are so many plots and storylines to keep track of that he is often overshadowed by other events, or unmentioned for several chapters. That being said, Mr. Hamilton’s smooth prose and masterful plotting keep the story going.
