The Terraformers

By: Annalee Newitz

Narrated by: Emily Lawrence

This program includes original sound design.

From science fiction visionary Annalee Newitz comes The Terraformers, a sweeping, uplifting, and illuminating exploration of the future.

Destry's life is dedicated to terraforming Sask-E. As part of the Environmental Rescue Team, she cares for the planet and its burgeoning eco-systems as her parents and their parents did before her.

But the bright, clean future they're building comes under threat when Destry discovers a city full of people that shouldn’t exist, hidden inside a massive volcano.

As she uncovers more about their past, Destry begins to question the mission she's devoted her life to, and must make a choice that will reverberate through Sask-E's future for generations to come.

A science fiction epic for our times and a love letter to our future, The Terraformers will take you on a journey spanning thousands of years and exploring the triumphs, strife, and hope that find us wherever we make our home.

"Brilliantly thoughtful, prescient, and gripping.”--Martha Wells, The Murderbot Diaries

Also by Annalee Newitz
Autonomous
The Future of Another Timeline

A Macmillan Audio production from Tor Books.

Critic reviews

<p>"<i>The Terraformers</i> is so engaging, you could almost miss the pyrotechnic world-building and bone-deep intelligence. Newitz continues doing some of the best work in the field."—James S. A. Corey, author of the Expanse series<br><br>"Fascinating and readable in equal measure, <i>The Terraformers</i> will remake your mind like its cast remakes an entire planet."—John Scalzi, author of <i>The Collapsing Empire</i><br><br>"Newitz performs a staggering feat of revolutionary imagination in this hopeful space-opera. . . . With the ethos of Becky Chambers and the gonzo imagination of Samuel R. Delany, plus a strong scientific basis in ecology and urban planning, this feels like a new frontier in science fiction."—Publishers Weekly, STARRED review<br><br>“Newitz always sees to the heart of complex systems and breaks them down with poetic ferocity.”—N. K. Jemisin, author of the Broken Earth trilogy and <i>The City We Became<br><br></i>"Brilliantly thoughtful, prescient, and gripping.”—Martha Wells, author of The Murderbot Diaries<br><br>"An incredibly emotional and action-packed novel deftly taking on personhood, corporate ownership, and terraforming.”—Library Journal, STARRED review<br><br>“A complete refurbishment of the great galactic story of terraformers. The old pleasures of the planetary romance are reanimated in kaleidoscopic fashion. Startling fun!”—Kim Stanley Robinson, author of <i>The Ministry for the Future<br><br></i>“Annalee Newitz’s ability to combine the wild west and the final frontier with plate tectonics and post humanism while spinning an epic tale that never loses sight of its characters is nothing short of magical. After reading <i>The Terraformers</i> you will want to live in Annalee Newitz’s future.”—Javier Grillo-Marxuach, creator of <i>The Middleman</i> and producer on <i>Lost</i> and <i>The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance<br></i><br>"Newitz’s latest is far-reaching and ambitious but also surprisingly cozy and warm. . . . Newitz has a true gift for exploring the tweaks, movements, and decisions that keep history moving forward centuries ahead, and for digging into weighty issues while maintaining light humor, a delightful queer sensibility, and pure moments of joy."—Booklist, STARRED review</p>

A solid 3/5. 1st third good the rest boring

The premise of the book is great, the world building and characters are interesting and plausible within the parameters of the story, the socioeconomic and political commentary is good. The book gets boring after the first third. It should have ended with Destry's story. It was really hard to finish after that. Also, the ending is anti climactic and reads as lazy writing. Finally, I am not interested in interspecies sex scenes. If I was I would read alien porn or similar.

Uneven and sort of preachy

The story seeks to have a grand sweep, covering three different eras separated by hundreds or thousands of years with three different sets of characters. I found the three parts of the story uneven. I enjoyed the third the most, which is why I finished the book.

The story and setting portray a world of galaxy-spanning corporations vying with eco-communes governed by direct democracy, and it presents the reader with a pretty good idea which one of those is better. But the story fails to grapple with its own morality. Massive crimes - like slavery, deliberate mental handicapping by genetic engineering, and two characters threatening to cause a disaster that could slaughter millions - pass by in a few pages each. I found that aspect jarring and the rest unnecessarily preachy.

Original

I hated the sound effects. It reminded me of a Saturday morning cartoon. I didn't like it.

Not a fan of this book

Not a fan of this book and do not recommend to others. Three more words.

It started out strong

I liked the idea of the world. I liked the timeline of the world. The politics were believable.

I didn’t think the characters were fleshed out enough. It felt like the author wanted to add a lot of concepts. It also feels like it has been sent through AI, except for the vocabulary.