‘Asimov or Clarke might have written this’ – Stephen Baxter, co-author of The Long Earth

A scout ship discovers a human outpost lying derelict in space – and a planet better left unexplored. Set in the same universe as Children of Time, this is a thrilling narrative from the award-winning Adrian Tchaikovsky.

Thousands of years ago, Earth’s terraforming program took to the stars. On the world they called Nod, scientists discovered alien life – but it was their mission to overwrite it with the memory of Earth. Then humanity’s great empire fell, and the program’s decisions were lost to time. Aeons later, humanity and its new spider allies detected fragmentary radio signals between the stars. They dispatched an exploration vessel, hoping to find cousins from old Earth.

But those ancient terraformers awoke something on Nod. Something better left undisturbed.

And it has been waiting for them.

‘Books like this are why we read science fiction’ – Ian McDonald, author of the Luna series

Children of Ruin follows Adrian Tchaikovsky's extraordinary Children of Time, winner of the Arthur C. Clarke award. It is set in the same universe, with new characters and an original narrative. Continue the journey with Children of Memory.

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Praise for the series:

‘Entertaining, smart, surprising and unexpectedly human’ – Patrick Ness, author of A Monster Calls

‘Brilliant science fiction and far-out world-building’ – James McAvoy

‘A fabulous sense of scale that only someone as talented as Adrian Tchaikovsky can pull off’ – Peter F. Hamilton, author of Exodus: The Archimedes Engine

_{^{Children of Time won the Arthur C. Clarke Award for Best Science Fiction Novel w/c 24 August 2016}}

All underpinned by great ideas. And it is crisply modern - but with the sensibility of classic science fiction. Asimov or Clarke might have written this -- Stephen Baxter, author of Proxima
You know you’re in for a ride. . . This book thoroughly engaged me. Children of Ruin is a humdinger of a book I enjoyed immensely -- Neal Asher, author of the Polity series
Magnificent. This is the big stuff – the really big stuff. Rich in wisdom and Humanity (note the 'H'), with a Stapledonian sweep and grandeur . . . Books like this are why we read science-fiction -- Ian McDonald, author of Desolation Road
Breathtaking scope and vision. Adrian Tchaikovsky is one of our finest writers -- Gareth Powell, author of Stars and Bones
Wonderful – big, thinky SF that feels classic without being mired in the past, absolutely crammed with fun ideas . . . Anyone who likes sweeping, evolutionary-scale stories will love this -- Django Wexler, author of How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying
I couldn’t put it down. There is an effortless quality to Adrian’s writing and you’ve clearly got another winner on your hands -- James Oswald, author of the Inspector McLean series
A refreshing new take on post-dystopia civilizations, with the smartest evolutionary world-building you’ll ever read -- Peter F. Hamilton, author of Exodus: The Archimedes Engine, on Children of Time
Brilliant science fiction and far-out world-building -- James McAvoy on Children of Time
Children of Time is a joy from start to finish. Entertaining, smart, surprising and unexpectedly human -- Patrick Ness, author of A Monster Calls and the Chaos Walking series, on Children of Time
This is superior stuff, tackling big themes – gods, messiahs, artificial intelligence, alienness – with brio -- Financial Times on Children of Time
The novel’s clever interrogation of the usual narrative of planetary conquest, and its thoughtful depiction of two alien civilisations attempting to understand each other, is an exemplar of classic widescreen science fiction -- New Scientist on Children of Time
Essential science fiction, a book not to be missed -- SFBook on Children of Time
An entertaining and thought-provoking novel of post humanity, survival and legacy . . . Children of Time is an enormously interesting and well drawn SF novel -- SFSignal on Children of Time
I cannot recommend it enough. It's a helluva first contact story, and that's only like its 5th most interesting feature! -- Ezra Klein, New York Times columnist on Children of Time
One of the most interesting and accomplished writers in speculative fiction -- Christopher Paolini, author of To Sleep in a Sea of Stars

Adrian Tchaikovsky was born in Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire, has practised law and now writes full time. He's also studied stage-fighting, perpetrated amateur dramatics and has a keen interest in entomology and table-top games.

Adrian is the author of the critically acclaimed Shadows of the Apt series, the Echoes of the Fall series and other novels, novellas and short stories. Children of Time won the prestigious Arthur C. Clarke Award, and Children of Ruin and Shards of Earth both won the British Science Fiction Award for Best Novel. The Tiger and the Wolf won the British Fantasy Award for Best Fantasy Novel, while And Put Away Childish Things won the BSFA Award for Best Shorter Fiction.