The Collapsing Empire

, #1

eBook, 336 pages

English language

Published March 21, 2017 by Tor Books.

ISBN:
978-0-7653-8889-6
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4 stars (6 reviews)

The first novel of a new space-opera sequence set in an all-new universe by the Hugo Award-winning, New York Times-bestselling author of Redshirts and Old Man's War

Our universe is ruled by physics. Faster than light travel is impossible—until the discovery of The Flow, an extradimensional field available at certain points in space-time, which can take us to other planets around other stars.

Riding The Flow, humanity spreads to innumerable other worlds. Earth is forgotten. A new empire arises, the Interdependency, based on the doctrine that no one human outpost can survive without the others. It’s a hedge against interstellar war—and, for the empire’s rulers, a system of control.

The Flow is eternal—but it’s not static. Just as a river changes course, The Flow changes as well. In rare cases, entire worlds have been cut off from the rest of humanity. When it’s discovered that the entire Flow is moving, …

2 editions

reviewed The Collapsing Empire by John Scalzi (The Interdependency, #1)

One review fits all

3 stars

This is very much just one part of a three-part novel, which I find difficult to review in isolation. Because this site works best when people review the things they read, however, I will be adding the same review to all volumes.

John Scalzi is a nice guy writing nice SF novels.

You could almost leave it at that, really. For the sake of context, I will add a few more details to this assessment. This, like all of his novels I have read, is smoothly plotted and written, entirely unsurprising in its cliffhangers and ultimate resolution, and contains exactly one original idea. This being said, it’s an entertaining read if, at times, a bit too glib to my taste (I don’t think Scalzi has ever seen a witty repartee he didn’t like). If what you want from your SF is what I just described, you could do a lot …

reviewed The Collapsing Empire by John Scalzi (The Interdependency, #1)

Review of 'The Collapsing Empire' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

This was an enjoyable, light read. The premise is very interesting and the humor and story telling are great. The characters are a bit bland, but engaging in their own right- you'll certainly be cheering for the good guys. Overall, this was pretty good book and I would recommend it for people looking for a quick read and lighthearted sci-fi fun. Bear in mind, that this appears to be the first of a series: the stage is set for subsequent books, which I hope Scalzi writes to fully explore the universe he has created!

For my full review, check out my blog: strakul.blogspot.com/2017/05/book-review-collapsing-empire-by-john.html

Subjects

  • space opera