New Releases by Adrian Tchaikovsky

From the Arthur C. Clarke Award-winning Adrian Tchaikovsky, The Doors of Eden is an extraordinary feat of the imagination and a page-turning adventure about parallel universes and the monsters that they hide. They thought we were safe. They were wrong. Four years ago, two girls went looking for monsters on Bodmin Moor. Only one came back. Lee thought she''d lost Mal, but now she''s miraculously returned. But what happened that day on the moors? And where has she been all this time? Mal''s reappearance hasn''t gone unnoticed by MI5 officers either, and Lee isn''t the only one with questions. Julian Sabreur is investigating an attack on top physicist Kay Amal Khan. This leads Julian to clash with agents of an unknown power - and they may or may not be human. His only clue is grainy footage, showing a woman who supposedly died on Bodmin Moor. Dr Khan''s research was theoretical; then she found cracks between our world and parallel Earths. Now these cracks are widening, revealing extraordinary creatures. And as the doors crash open, anything could come through. "Tchaikovsky weaves a masterful tale... a suspenseful joyride through the multiverse." (Booklist)

Vor vielen Jahrtausenden ist die Menschheit in die Tiefen des Alls aufgebrochen, um neue Welten zu besiedeln. Als die ersten Terraformer bei dem Planeten Nod eintreffen, müssen sie feststellen, dass der Planet nicht so leblos ist, wie sie dachten. Inmitten der Lebensformen auf Nod finden sie aber noch etwas ganz anderes, viel Älteres – und es hat seit Äonen auf neue Wirtskörper gewartet ...

Osobitá apokalyptická sci-fi britského autora, v níž se pozemská civilizace blíží k zániku, a objevují se noví dědicové planety. Slunce pomalu vyhasíná a planeta Země už dávno není modrá. Zůstalo jen jediné město, a v něm přežívá poslední lidská komunita. Lidé v ní žijí s vědomím neodvratně se blížícího konce. Ve stínu Zbraně. V touze po nesmrtelnosti provádějí genetické transformace nebo se pokoušejí uchovat zapomenuté umění číst a psát a zanechat zprávu o věku lidí. Za hranicemi města leží buď toxická masa oceánu, nebo divoká temná džungle obývaná příšerami a mutanty. Jedinou cestou je řeka a na ní leží Ostrov, vězeňská kolonie. Sem jsou posíláni nepohodlní a rebelové. V transportu odsouzenců je i Stefan Advani, učenec, vězeň, psanec a hráč šachu, jeden z těch, kteří se snaží rozbít mříže klece duší. Nakladatelská anotace. Kráceno.

A prequel to the magical novella Made Things, Adrian Tchaikovsky''s "Precious Little Things" is a Tor.com Original short story offering a new perspective while set in the same action-packed gaslamp world. At the Publisher''s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

»Mein Name ist Rex. Ich bin ein guter Hund.« Und das ist auch alles, was Rex, eine sogenannte technisch optimierte Bioform, in seinem Leben möchte – ein guter Hund sein und seinem Herrn gehorchen. Gemeinsam mit seinem Rudel kämpft Rex in einem seit Jahrzehnten andauernden Krieg, und wenn sein Herr sagt »Töte!«, dann tötet Rex. Wieder und wieder. Als sein Herr eines Tages vors Kriegsgericht gestellt wird, kommen Rex jedoch Zweifel. Was soll er tun, wenn er keinen Herrn mehr hat, der ihm befiehlt? War es möglicherweise falsch, blind zu gehorchen? Und haben er und die anderen Bioformen überhaupt ein Anrecht auf Freiheit und ein eigenes Leben?

''Asimov or Clarke might have written this'' – Stephen Baxter, co-author of The Long Earth A scout ship discovers a human outpost lying derelict in space – and a planet better left unexplored. Set in the same universe as Children of Time, this is a thrilling narrative from the award-winning Adrian Tchaikovsky. It has been waiting through the ages. Now it''s time . . . Thousands of years ago, Earth’s terraforming program took to the stars. On the world they called Nod, scientists discovered alien life – but it was their mission to overwrite it with the memory of Earth. Then humanity’s great empire fell, and the program’s decisions were lost to time. Aeons later, humanity and its new spider allies detected fragmentary radio signals between the stars. They dispatched an exploration vessel, hoping to find cousins from old Earth. But those ancient terraformers awoke something on Nod. Something better left undisturbed. And it has been waiting for them. ''Books like this are why we read science fiction'' - Ian McDonald, author of the Luna series Children of Ruin follows Adrian Tchaikovsky''s extraordinary Children of Time, winner of the Arthur C. Clarke award. It is set in the same universe, with new characters and an original narrative.

Ten years ago, the Kinslayer returned from the darkness. His brutal Yorughan armies issued from the pits of the earth, crushing all resistance, leaving burnt earth and corruption behind. Thrones toppled and cities fell. And then he died. Celestaine-one of the heroes that destroyed him-has tasked herself with correcting the worst excesses of the Kinslayer''s brief reign, bringing light back to a broken world. With two Yorughan companions, she faces fanatics, war criminals and the Kinslayer''s former minions, as the fragile alliances of the War break down into feuding and greed. The Kinslayer may be gone, but he cast a long shadow: one from which she may never truly escape.

Bestselling British master of science fiction Adrian Tchaikovsky brings readers a new, mind-expanding science fantasia in The Expert System''s Brother After an unfortunate accident, Handry is forced to wander a world he doesn’t understand, searching for meaning. He soon discovers that the life he thought he knew is far stranger than he could even possibly imagine. Can an unlikely saviour provide the answers to the questions he barely comprehends? At the Publisher''s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

A narrative reminiscent of Phileas Fogg meets Professor Challenger, featuring the exploits of scientist-cum-adventurer Doctor Ludweg Phinagler, as recorded by his (semi-)faithful assistant, Fosse. A maverick academic, Phinagler, mounts a series of expeditions, confronting ancient mysteries and deadly dangers.

Second volume in the Tales of the Apt series: short story collections set in the same world as the author''s best selling ten book series Shadows of the Apt

An exhilarating fantasy quest from Adrian Tchaikovsky, the author of Service Model and the Shadows of the Apt series. The path to victory will only be seen through a spider''s eyes. The Church of Armes of the Light has battled the forces of Darkness for as long as anyone can remember. The great prophecy has foretold that a band of misfits, led by a high priestess will defeat the Dark Lord Darvezian, armed with their wits, the blessing of the Light and an artifact stolen from the merciless Spider Queen. Their journey will be long, hard and fraught with danger. Allies will become enemies; enemies will become allies. And the Dark Lord will be waiting, always waiting... At the Publisher''s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Tales of the Apt is a companion series to the best-selling decalogy Shadows of the Apt, gathering together short stories from disparate places and supplementing them with a wealth of new tales written especially for the series. Together, they combine to provide a different perspective, an alternative history that parallels and unfolds alongside the familiar one, filling in the gaps and revealing intriguing backstories for many established characters. A must read for any fan of the Shadows of the Apt books, where epic fantasy meets steampunk and so much more. Contents: Introduction by the Author Introduction by the Publisher To Own the Sky Ironclads Spoils of War Camouflage The Shadows of Their Lamps The Dreams of Avaris The Prince Shadow Hunters Sword and Circle Idle Hands An Old Man in a Harsh Season Brass Mantis About the Author

Humanity is overrated. The tenth anniversary edition of Adrian Tchaikovsky’s critically acclaimed Children of Time – an epic story of humanity’s battle for survival on a terraformed planet. Winner of the 30th anniversary Arthur C. Clarke Award for Best Novel. Contains the short story ‘Bearable’ exclusive to this edition. Who will inherit this new Earth? The last remnants of the human race left a dying Earth, desperate to find a new home among the stars. Following in the footsteps of their ancestors, they discover the greatest treasure of the past age – a world terraformed and prepared for human life. But all is not right in this new Eden. In the long years since the planet was abandoned, the work of its architects has borne disastrous fruit. The planet is not waiting for them, pristine and unoccupied. New masters have turned it from a refuge into mankind’s worst nightmare. Now two civilizations are on a collision course, both testing the boundaries of what they will do to survive. As the fate of humanity hangs in the balance, who are the true heirs of this new Earth? Continue the journey with Children of Ruin, Children of Memory and Children of Strife. * * * Praise for Adrian Tchaikovsky ‘Children of Time is a joy from start to finish. Entertaining, smart, surprising and unexpectedly human’ - Patrick Ness, author of A Monster Calls. ‘No one has an an imagination like Adrian Tchaikovsky’ – Jim Al-Khalili, presenter of BBC Radio 4''s The Life Scientific ‘Tchaikovsky is the break-out star of contemporary British SF’ – The Guardian Children of Time won the Arthur C. Clarke Award for Best Science Fiction Novel w/c 24 August 2016

WINNER OF THE 2016 ARTHUR C. CLARKE AWARD A race for survival among the stars ... Humanity''s last survivors escaped earth''s ruins to find a new home. But when they find it, can their desperation overcome its dangers? WHO WILL INHERIT THIS NEW EARTH? The last remnants of the human race left a dying Earth, desperate to find a new home among the stars. Following in the footsteps of their ancestors, they discover the greatest treasure of the past age - a world terraformed and prepared for human life. But all is not right in this new Eden. In the long years since the planet was abandoned, the work of its architects has borne disastrous fruit. The planet is not waiting for them, pristine and unoccupied. New masters have turned it from a refuge into mankind''s worst nightmare. Now two civilizations are on a collision course, both testing the boundaries of what they will do to survive. As the fate of humanity hangs in the balance, who are the true heirs of this new Earth? PRAISE FOR CHILDREN OF TIME "A refreshingly new take on post-dystopia civilizations, with the smartest evolutionary worldbuilding you''ll ever read" Peter F. Hamilton "This is superior stuff, tackling big themes - gods, messiahs, artificial intelligence, alienness - with brio" Financial Times "Like a Stephen Baxter novel with an epic sweep of history ... added to a broad cast of a Peter Hamilton Space Opera and the narrative drive of, say, a David Brin or a Greg Bear old style SF novel, Children of Time soon got me hooked." SFF World "Children of Time has that essence of the classic science fiction novels, that sense of wonder and unfettered imagination but combined with this is the charm of a writer who really knows how to entertain ... Essential science fiction, a book not to be missed." SF Book

A year ago, civilisation died, drowning and choking on its own blood in the brutal scourge of the Cull. Eking out a living on the newly primitive land, British-born biochemist Katy Lewkowitz finds a new life as a doctor among the small communities springing up in Eastern Germany... until a terrible new cult, calling itself the ''New Teutonic Order,'' begins purging all ''undesirables.'' Katy and her friend and old tutor Dr. Emil Weber, fleeing the depredations of the fanatical Order, escape into Poland, eventually taking refuge among the strangely anachronistic survivors at the monastery of Jasna G½ra. A battle of faith ensues, that could decide the future of humankind...

War Master’s Gate is the ninth book in the critically acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky. A city makes its last stand . . . The Empire’s mighty imperial armies are marching on Collegium once more. They’ve learnt from past failures and this time their Empress will brook no weakness. Stenwold Maker’s aviators still dominate the skies, but their rule will soon be over. For the Empire has developed a terrifying aerial weapon to level the battlefield. Yet victory may be decided elsewhere. In an ancient forest, where Mantis clans pursue their own civil war, Empress Seda is seeking a lost power from the old world. Cheerwell Maker knows she must stop her rival at any cost, but their conflict could awaken something far deadlier. Something that would make even their clash of nations pale into insignificance. War Master’s Gate is followed by the tenth and final book in the Shadows of the Apt series, Seal of the Worm.

The Air War is the eighth book in the critically acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky. An empress demands her birthright . . . All is in turmoil as the world moves towards war. In Solarno, spies eye one another and ready their knives – while the people of Myna watch troops gather at its borders. Emotions run high as old fears reawaken. And in Collegium students argue politics, too late to turn the tide. At the heart of the Empire, new pilots complete their secretive training, generals are recalled to service and armies are readied to march. Their Empress, heir to two worlds, intends to claim her birthright. For nothing – either within the Empire or beyond it – will stand in her way. The Air War is followed by the ninth book in the Shadows of the Apt series, War Master’s Gate.

The vampiric sorcerer Uctebri has at last got his hands on the Shadow Box and can finally begin his dark ritual—a ritual that the Wasp-kinden Emperor believes will grant him immortality—but Uctebri has his own plans for both the Emperor and the Empire. The massed Wasp armies are on the march, and the spymaster Stenwold must see which of his allies will stand now that the war has finally arrived. This time the Empire will not stop until a black and gold flag waves over Stenwold’s own home city of Collegium. Tisamon the Weaponsmaster is faced with a terrible choice: a path that could lead him to abandon his friends and his daughter, to face degradation and loss, that might possibly bring him before the Wasp Emperor with a blade in his hand—but is he being driven by Mantis-kinden honor, or manipulated by something more sinister? From the Trade Paperback edition.

Driven by the ghosts of the Darakyon, Achaeos has tracked the stolen Shadow Box to the marsh-town of Jerez, but he has only days before the magical box is lost to him forever. Meanwhile, the forces of the Empire are mustering over winter for their great offensive, gathering their soldiers and perfecting their new weapons. Stenwold and his followers have only a short time to gather what allies they can before the Wasp armies march again, conquering everything in their path. If they cannot throw back the Wasps this spring then the imperial black-and-gold flag will fly over every city in the Lowlands before the year''s end. In Jerez begins a fierce struggle over the Shadow Box, as lake creatures, secret police and renegade magicians compete to take possession. If it falls into the hands of the Wasp Emperor, however, then no amount of fighting will suffice to save the world from his relentless ambition.