Redemption Ark

I've gotten the three books in this series as well as Chasm City, a stand alone novel in the same universe. When reading these reviews, I notice many negative comments, and I actually, at one point, probably written the same.
However, after quitting the first book, and focusing on books by other "british space opera" writers such as Peter Hamilton and Richard K. Morgan, I went back to give it another try.
I think what makes these books great is probably the same thing that turns some listeners off. The mythology of the universe is so deep, that until you are familiar with it, it is overwhelming with the references to the different factions, planets, aliens, etc.
But once that familiarity is gained, the stories are so rich, that I am disappointed that I have finished.
And as far as the narrator goes, it seems as though people either love or hate John Lee. But he is incredibly talented with a unique style and once you get use to him, his narration is addicting.

I tried reading "Revelation Space" over a year or two ago and put it down quickly. Very "dense" stuff.", I thought. "Too
complicated". I then I picked up "Absolution Gap" in print. I knew by then it was the last in the series but so what? After the first chapter, I couldn't put it down. So, I got the others on
Audible. Each one in the series can easily stand by itself but its a great series. All are beautifully written.
They are tightly plotted, highly and originally imagined with empathic characters who play their parts honestly, without any contrived motives.
Each book is an equal of the others, which, for a
series, shows, I think, an author who truly cares
about his audience. I have been an avid SF reader
for nearly 60 years. In my opinion, this series
is a masterwork. It is to hard SF what "Lord of
The Rings" is to fantasy. In my opinion, the author is in the first rank of the very best of all English language novelists, based on this series.

I really enjoy this author. I find his books to be a bit of a work to get into but then the story really takes off and you never want it to end. I highly reccommend.

Reynolds is a good writer and Lee is a good narrator. The story and content is well above average. The curious thing is that the author presents some of the most radical concepts and themes almost as mundane life in the 28th Century descriptions.

I am listening to this book every chance I get. It's complicated, sometimes confusing, but always interesting. Characters that appeared in the first book of the trilogy, suddenly appear in this book, pulling the story together and allowing the author to take the story in all kinds of directions. The narrator, John Lee, is one of my favorites. He did some of Daniel Silva's earlier books. I really hope audible gets the third book in the series, Absolution Gap. I can hardly wait to hear it.

I thought this book was pretty awesome... I especially liked the way the writer invents the technology of the time, and even describes how it works! I mean, you know it's SF way beyond our capabilities, but the way it's introduced into the story makes the reader believe that it's completely feasible for the era and not just a mind prop.

Someone needs to tell the author and editor that after you spend 1/2 the book going all over the galaxy you can't spend the next 1/2 the book just sitting inside a ship doing procedural stuff! First 1/2 was interesting, second 1/2 was very boring.
Characters were very 1 dimensional and the way they handled situations was very naive given the level of technology they are supposed to have.
I wouldn't recommend this book.

I really liked Revelation Space, Chasm City, and even The Prefect. This is a small step backwards. I still think his best work is Pushing Ice, or House of Suns.

Continuing the saga started in previous books. Everything ties together.

Still like space operas. Book didn't disappoint

Very heavily accented.

Should have main characters smoking!

Alastair Reynolds writes a great tale. He's a former physicist and tries hard to keep his yarn consistent with the universe we inhabit... except in one thing. For some reason, he thinks the flow of time increases in a gravitational well... of course it does exactly the opposite (time slows.) It's a weird error and not even necessary as a plot device - so maybe it's better he sticks to writing. :)

JL's performance is excellent - far better than it was in Revelation Space