Book Review: Shadows Upon Time (Sun Eater 7) by Christopher Ruocchio

4.5/5 stars. The final book in the Sun Eater series. Probably my most anticipated new release this year and the ending to a series that has been action-packed, filled with wonder and awe, sad in the losses of its characters, and bordering on horrific at times through the vile alien creatures that were the Cielcin and The Watchers. This series has had its high moments and its low moments, both in the telling of the story and the story itself, but it has become one of my favorite science fiction / space opera series of all time - right up there with Hyperion, Dune, and Star Wars. My experience with modern science fiction is certainly not exhaustive, but I believe I will be hard pressed to find a more enjoyable story than this expansive tale of Hadrian Anaxander Marlowe.

Let my review, except for the spoilers below, simply stand as a review of the entire series and a recommendation that everyone should read it. Ruocchio has created a universe that is loosely based on science and that uses scientific advancements to travel through space, and in Marlowe’s case, through time. However, there are definite magical elements to some of the story, especially in Marlowe’s case and his connection to The Quiet/The Absolute. 

I also want to recommend the audiobooks, even though it did take me a little while to get used to the narrator’s accent and British pronunciation of some words (American that I am). His voice grows on the listener, and I believe he does an admirable job with all of the unique voices in this series. Definitely recommended!

My FINAL ranking of the series:

  1. Kingdoms of Death
  2. Shadows Upon Time
  3. The Howling Dark
  4. Disquiet Gods
  5. Demon In White
  6. Ashes of Man
  7. Empire of Silence



SPOILERS / CRITICISMS BELOW!! (You have been warned.)

This final book is everything that I had hoped for and more, yet less. There are still so many unanswered questions about the afterlife of Hadrian and how he reconnects to The Absolute in the end, but more than that, I still struggle with the way the author writes an alternate story of religion and Christianity while completely leaving out the history, and the person of Jesus, from the story. The author is able to recall stories of Arthur / Cid Arthur, Alexander the Great, the Greeks and Romans, Ahura Mazda, and to quote writings from Ancient and Medieval philosophers, but never once mentions Jesus or the word Christianity, although he does make side references to it through The Adorators and the Cid Arthurians. I find it hard to imagine a human history where either Christianity, Judaism (which he does mention), or Islam is completely forgotten. Especially, when there is still so much knowledge of the Ancient Greeks and Romans that seem to drive the Scholiasts in their beliefs and practices.



PROSE - 5

STORY - 4

CHARACTERS - 5

ENTERTAINMENT - 5

AUDIOBOOK - 4

4.5/5 OVERALL


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