Author: 5t4n5
Beyond the Aquila Rift — Alastair Reynolds
Revelation Space
Great Wall of Mars – 2000
Diamond Dogs – 2001
Weather – 2006
The Last Log of the Lachrimosa – 2014
Merlin Series
Minla’s Flowers – 2007
Standalones
Beyond the Aquila Rift – 2005
Zima Blue – 2005
Thousandth Night – 2005
The Sledge-Maker’s Daughter – 2007
Fury – 2008
The Star Surgeon’s Apprentice – 2008
Troika – 2010
Sleepover – 2010
The Old Man and the Martian Sea – 2011
Vainglory – 2012
Trauma Pod – 2012
The Water Thief – 2012
In Babelsberg – 2014
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Dilation Sleep — Alastair Reynolds
So we continue with the same theme from Monkey Suit, in that we’re on an lighthugger running away from Yellowstone and the Melding Plague.
This enjoyable little short introduces us to the real science of time dilation, wherein the nearer one gets to the speed of light, the faster time passes in the outside universe in relation to those on the space ship.
And if we take this idea and put those on the space ship in reefer-sleep, where their bodies and brains are taken down into hibernation state — so hardly ageing at all — and then send them close to light speed for a few years, decades can pass in the outside universe while these people age a few weeks or months: thus being known as dilation sleep.
Then if we look at the situation that is occurring on Yellowstone and consider that rich refugees can afford to pay Ultras to go on a trip around the galaxy in dilation sleep for a few years while hopefully everything back home gets sorted out, and that is where we are in this book.
Except that one of the crew has been awakened by the ship because something has gone wrong and needs fixing.
Good stuff.
Available in the collection, Galactic North.
And the next book in the Revelation Space series is Chasm City, which most definitely isn’t a short: more like a whole trilogy under one cover.
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Hold Up the Sky — Cixin Liu
Monkey Suit — Alastair Reynolds
The Ultras are running away from Yellowstone and the Glitter Band after a virus, The Melding Plague, has destroyed everything by attacking all nano-machinery and implants. In this story we join a ship of Ultras and their hull-monkeys who are having some issues.
A short little story, but plenty good enough, giving us a bit more insight into the lives of the Ultras on their light-hugging ships.
Available in the collection, Deep Navigation.
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Diamond Dogs — Alastair Reynolds
This is brilliant, yet so gruesome and twisted, you just have no idea how it’s going to end until you get to the end.
One imagines that Alastair really enjoyed watching The Cube and decided to shoe horn something similar — but alien and way more fucked up — into the Revelation Space Universe. And what a great job he did of it too.
This book is available in the collections, Diamond Dogs, Turquoise Days and Beyond the Aquila Rift.
Enjoy! 
Next in line is Monkey Suit.
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Diamond Dogs, Turquoise Days — Alastair Reynolds
This is actually two separate stories and in the timeline between Diamond Dogs and Turquoise Days are Monkey Suit, Dilation Sleep, Chasm City and The Last Log of the Lachrimosa.
So don’t go ruining things and forgetting to stop and read those stories inbetween the middle of this book.
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Elysium Fire — Alastair Reynolds
What’s odd about this book is that it starts with an explanation of Yellowstone and the Glitter Band which would have been much better placed before Aurora Rising — which the lack thereof was my one and only absolute criticism of that book. It’s a bit late to put the info dump that one needs in the first Prefect Dreyfus book at the front of the second Prefect Dreyfus book. 
Anyway, that aside, this is a superb book that totally builds on Aurora Rising, with all our favourite characters, good and bad, and some new ones too. And it’s huge too, so huge but so unputdownable that i kept skipping my evening meditation session to keep reading this for a while longer and then staying awake a little past sleepy time too.
Excellently written, excellent characters, just excellent all round.
And up next it’s Machine Vendetta.
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The Mermaid of Black Conch — Monique Roffey
Open and Shut — Alastair Reynolds
A quick little short, bridging the gap between Aurora Rising and Elysium Fire.
Dreyfus is called in by Jane concerning some recent behaviour. Although this doesn’t seem to have anything to do with the main story, it’s good in that it gives us a bit more depth to both Dreyfus and Jane, and also their relationship.
Best of all it’s free (click on the rusty book cover) and it’s also a nice little relaxing break before you go deep diving into the next huge novel in the series, Elysium Fire.