Far from the Light of Heaven

By: Tade Thompson

Narrated by: Clifford Samuel

Length: 9 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

“Simultaneously brutally grounded and wildly imaginative.” (Adrian Tchaikovsky, Arthur C. Clarke Award winner)

A tense and thrilling vision of humanity’s future in the chilling emptiness of space from rising giant in science fiction, Arthur C. Clarke Award winner Tade Thompson

The colony ship Ragtime docks in the Lagos system, having traveled light-years to bring one thousand sleeping souls to a new home among the stars. But when first mate Michelle Campion rouses, she discovers some of the sleepers will never wake.

Answering Campion’s distress call, investigator Rasheed Fin is tasked with finding out who is responsible for these deaths. Soon a sinister mystery unfolds aboard the gigantic vessel, one that will have repercussions for the entire system - from the scheming politicians of Lagos station, to the colony planet Bloodroot, to other far-flung systems, and indeed to Earth itself.

Praise for Far from the Light of Heaven

"Gripping and skillfully told, with an economy and freshness of approach that is all Tade Thompson''s own. The setting is interstellar, but it feels as real, immediate, and lethal as today's headlines." (Alastair Reynolds)

"A gripping space opera with characters fighting for their lives aboard a dying starship. I enjoyed it so much and can't wait to see what he does next." (Martha Wells, New York Times best-selling author)

For more from Tade Thompson, check out:

The Wormwood Trilogy

• Rosewater
• Rosewater: Insurrection
• Rosewater: Redemption

©2021 Tade Thompson (P)2021 Orbit

Critic reviews

"Inventive. Thompson’s appealing take on long-distance space travel, subversion of typical AI tropes, tender characterization, and cleverly constructed suspense makes this worthwhile fare. Readers looking for a smart sci-fi mystery should snap this up." (Publishers Weekly)

Nuanced story and ethnically relevant voice acting

I've wanted to read a Tade Thompson for some time now and am so gratified to have started with Far from the Light of Heaven. Appropriate AfroBritish voice and inflections lend verisimilitude to the heartbreaking and often off putting or even shocking revelations and developments of this SF serial murder mystery. It's a stunning work, engrossing and nuanced.

Better to Read The Physical Book Than to Listen

The story is interesting but the narration ruins it with slow, slogging pacing, weird pauses where there should be none and an unrealistic, monotonal conversational style between characters. People simply don't speak that way in real life.
I could only get a third of the way through before giving up with frustration and returning.
Disappointing because I like Tade Thompson.
You're better off reading a physical copy.

Tade takes locked room mystery into space!

This is not your average jaunt Into space opera, neither is it anything close to a typical locked room murder mystery. It most definitely IS a great story that combines the two in a most audacious way.

Story was OK, but narrator was poorly directed

I struggled to finish. The narrator spoke in the same voice for all characters.

not your usual future space story

Another exploration of space in speculative fiction that doesn't gloss or glamorize space faring.

It is a murder mystery at heart. Some commentary on the toxic nature of living in an amoral transaction-based society & consequences thereof.

Ghosts, regrets, problem solving under duress No moralizing soap box in this book, just hard decisions to make with overlapping crisis & interesting blend of personalities of the characters.

Like most tech, it's great when it works as expected but demonic when when it doesn't.

Narration is excellent. There's some really harrowing parts (again, space is trying to kill you at every turn) where I may have had to step back & yet lured on by the hypnotic deep bass & surreal calmness of his voice.

Another Mind-blowing Work of Speculative Fiction

Since the Rosewater trilogy, I have been eager for more of Thompson's thoughtful, wide-ranging novels. Though the pacing plodded in a few places, I appreciated how this wild reality could be the logical extrapolation of our own. From the discipline of professionals to the shockingly negligent crimes of the extremely wealthy, the plot emerged inevitably from the characters, each of whom pulled at my heart. In fact, I cried more than once. A beautiful novel!

A bit cumbersome

The story was generally fine. There was something either about to way it was written or the way that it was read that made for an odd delivery throughout the entire books.

If you like complex murder/mystery

See review title lol. A good listen of so. 6 more words just for you😉

Disjointed

I love Tade Thompson's work normally. Really enjoyed the wormwood trilogy but perhaps this wasn't the best book for audio. The story rythym was weird. Very staccato and it seemed like maybe the storyline wasn't fully fleshed out. Still enjoyed it but wasn't on par with what I expected from his work

Intriguing story, monotone narration

Story appears to be an interesting “locked room” style murder mystery on a space ship.. however narration is flat, monotone, and uninteresting. Characters are not given distinct voices so sometimes they can only be told apart due to context.

Gave up after two hours, despite wanting to know more about what is going on!

I’ll probably buy the print or kindle version. Recommend others do as well.