Echo of Worlds

By: M. R. Carey

Narrated by: Dami Olukoya

Length: 16 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's summary

From the author of the bestselling The Girl With All the Gifts comes the thrilling conclusion to the spectacular Pandominion duology, an exhilarating science fiction story perfect for fans of The Space Between Worlds, The Long Earth and Children of Time.

Two mighty empires are at war—and both will lose, with thousands of planets falling to the extinction event called the Scour. At least that's what the artificial intelligence known as Rupshe believes.

But somewhere in the multiverse there exists a force—the Mother Mass—that could end the war in an instant, and Rupshe has assembled a team to find it. Essien Nkanika, a soldier trying desperately to atone for past sins; the cat-woman Moon, a conscienceless killer; the digitally recorded mind of physicist Hadiz Tambuwal; Paz, an idealistic child and the renegade robot spy Dulcimer Coronal.

Their mission will take them from the hellish prison world of Tsakom to the poisoned remains of a post-apocalyptic Earth, and finally bring them face to face with the Mother Mass itself. But can they persuade it to end eons of neutrality and help them? And is it too late to make a difference?

Because the Pandominion's doomsday machines are about to be unleashed—and not even their builders know how to control them.

©2024 M. R. Carey (P)2024 Orbit

Stunning world building

Great follow-up to book 1. Very intricate but easy to follow, M.R. Carey is a genius at world and character building. Dami Olukoya is a fabulous narrator, easily differentiating between character and accents. I so thoroughly enjoyed Book 1, and Book 2 did not disappoint. Given the advent of AI in our current world, and our constant penchant for war mongering, it is a fascinating story on many levels. I would give it 8 stars I could. Get it, you won’t be disappointed.

A full and complete story

Even though this is book two of what is obviously going to be a huge series I did appreciate that this book has a satisfying ending. The primary story is complete and they wrap up all lose ends from book one

Absolutely fresh take on AI, interplanetary travel and humanity.

Surprises, twists, new views on everything we take for granted in sci-fi and in real life. Fast-Paced story but still plenty of depth and character building. Narration is excellent!

Entertaining but a little overwritten

I really enjoyed this one. It was a solid sequel. Not as good as the first one but worth a listen.

The characters were great and the story was interesting. The pacing was a little off and honestly it could have been a little shorter and gave the reader the same effect.

A bit of deus (or machina) ex machina

A very apt and satisfying conclusion to an enjoyable romp into the workd(s) set forth in Infinity Gate. If you enjoyed the first, you’ll most certainly enjoy this one ^_^. Granted, like the first, it’s not exactly a deep philosophical treatise, but it is most definitely an enjoyable listen, and a nice resolution. As with any time massively capable AI gets [and/or organic capabilities get] involved, some of the bows tied are *awfully* convenient. But I think it doesn’t detract from the VERY enjoyable story. If you found fun in the first, you’ll find lots to enjoy in this sequel. The narration was EXPERTLY done. I love a good narrator and this one did a great job! I was a little annoyed by a particular accent, but nobody is perfect and it’s easy to overlook. Of course, since my initial introduction with The Girl With All the Gifts, I found M R Carey’s writing style to be truly impressively engaging and fitting for the tone struck in the tale.

Excellent finish to the story

Mike Carey is one of my favorite authors and has been for years (since writing the Lucifer series). I would’ve read this anyways, but I was eager to after finishing the first book in the set. And this sequel/ending does not disappoint. He not only manages to bring a satisfying ending to the plot; he also manages to make a villain you love to hate (even if they aren’t the real enemy), and create some memorable, relatable, complex and sometimes hatable characters.

The narrator also again does a fantastic job. It almost feels like a full cast production, with each character having a distinct voice. The narrator made me extremely happy to have listened to the audio book instead of reading this in print.

Another wonderful book by this author!

I absolutely love this series. The world building is complex but comprehensible, the characters well drawn individuals, And the story was edge-of-my-seat compelling. There is nothing formula or everyday about this book. I was sorry to see the end because I didn't want to leave these characters behind. The narration was wonderful as well! I really felt I was hearing the characters voices. Highly recommended!

Narrator!

Fun story with important thinking relevant to our world—xenophobia, friendship, neurodivergence, selfhood, compassion, AI, and so much more. I love the authors breadth and depth of vocabulary and their writing style. And I love the narrator’s work in both books. Dami Olukoya is truly an exceptional voice actor Thank you!

The plot thickened and got better

The familiar characters are back and don’t disappoint. Their developmental arch was quite entertaining! I love the end.

Original concept/original take on the multiverse

Love it. Well written book, exciting plot, interesting characters. Overall great book. Enjoy Moon’s character the most.