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A review by laurareads87
Infinity Gate by M.R. Carey
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
This is my first book by M.R. Carey, though I've seen the excellent film "The Girl With All The Gifts" based on his novel and screenplay. I'll happily be reading more.
Infinity Gate is the first book in a series focused on multiverse travel. In this set of universes, the Pandominion, an alliance of many relatively similar Earths maintained by a violent cyborg army, polices its borders and monitors for incursions (instances when someone from a non-Pandominion world discovers "stepping" - moving between universes - and arrives in a Pandominion world). We learn relatively early on that another alliance, which the Pandominion has termed the 'Ansurrection,' also exists: this is comprised of worlds which seem to be populated exclusively by very advanced mechanical AIs. The Pandominion army, the Cielo, considers non-Pandominion worlds to be blatantly inferior, and does not value the lives of those who live there. The plotline of this first installment of the series establishes this context, and follows several protagonists -- a scientist from a non-Pandominion world collapsing due to human-caused climate disaster who discovers step technology, a young man from another non-Pandominion world that she meets, a Pandominion bureaucrat, and a teenager who finds herself at the center of the Ansurrection/Pandominion conflict.
I liked a lot about this. The plotlines came together in a satisfying way while leaving a ton of room for the sequels, the author tackles a lot of challenging themes well, and the pacing is consistent and engaging. I love that the setting for the story is Lagos (multiple iterations of Lagos across multiple universes). The cast of characters is extraordinarily diverse, spanning a range of ages, genders, ethnicities, and backgrounds, and the representation feels consistently thoughtful and nuanced. If I had a criticism, I'd only say that I found some of the point-of-view characters more engaging than others - I really wanted more of Hadiz Tambuwal, and felt like the last section with Paz went on a bit too long for me. I'll absolutely pick up the sequel.
Content warnings: death, murder, violence, gun violence, slavery, torture, blood, injury detail, medical content, medical trauma, xenophobia, forcible confinement
Thank you to NetGalley & Orbit Books for providing me an ARC for review.
Infinity Gate is the first book in a series focused on multiverse travel. In this set of universes, the Pandominion, an alliance of many relatively similar Earths maintained by a violent cyborg army, polices its borders and monitors for incursions (instances when someone from a non-Pandominion world discovers "stepping" - moving between universes - and arrives in a Pandominion world). We learn relatively early on that another alliance, which the Pandominion has termed the 'Ansurrection,' also exists: this is comprised of worlds which seem to be populated exclusively by very advanced mechanical AIs. The Pandominion army, the Cielo, considers non-Pandominion worlds to be blatantly inferior, and does not value the lives of those who live there. The plotline of this first installment of the series establishes this context, and follows several protagonists -- a scientist from a non-Pandominion world collapsing due to human-caused climate disaster who discovers step technology, a young man from another non-Pandominion world that she meets, a Pandominion bureaucrat, and a teenager who finds herself at the center of the Ansurrection/Pandominion conflict.
I liked a lot about this. The plotlines came together in a satisfying way while leaving a ton of room for the sequels, the author tackles a lot of challenging themes well, and the pacing is consistent and engaging. I love that the setting for the story is Lagos (multiple iterations of Lagos across multiple universes). The cast of characters is extraordinarily diverse, spanning a range of ages, genders, ethnicities, and backgrounds, and the representation feels consistently thoughtful and nuanced. If I had a criticism, I'd only say that I found some of the point-of-view characters more engaging than others - I really wanted more of Hadiz Tambuwal, and felt like the last section with Paz went on a bit too long for me. I'll absolutely pick up the sequel.
Content warnings: death, murder, violence, gun violence, slavery, torture, blood, injury detail, medical content, medical trauma, xenophobia, forcible confinement
Thank you to NetGalley & Orbit Books for providing me an ARC for review.