Thank you to NetGalley and to Saga Press for this ARC.

I’d never read anything by Benford before, so I didn’t know what to expect. Because of the length of the book, I had a look at spoilerish reviews about halfway through, and what reviewers said a lot was “hard sci-fi”, which this definitely was.

But, bewildering. Because there are 6 stories in here, and you get a sense of time passing without an actual idea of where you are in time at each point (except, somewhere in the almost unimaginable future).

Sexism:

Oh, a strong hint about that future is that male and female relationship roles are apparently reversed (this I imagine by trying to get into the author’s mind, not because I myself believe in roles), with the main protagonist — a woman — using men for sex (and, memorably, forgetting one lovely man’s name after a lengthy interaction), and men all needy and wanting commitment. (!)

Oh, but then there’s (also bewildering) a foray into this woman’s hormonal “stuff” — how she controls her period using medication, an episode of PMS, how she must think about when she wants kids but career first! and so on. (The F-F friendship that’s used as a frame for this is decidedly odd.) I found myself squinting and frowning a lot, trying to imagine what this author thinks women are like. But then, it’s sci-fi, right?

Her male partners are also so bafflingly one-dimensional (except for the one whose name she forgets).

So, sexism! A kind of clever reverse sexism, but sexism, nonetheless.

Characters:

And then, the characters! Incredibly unlikeable, most of them; and especially main one. The (spoiler) alien is at least interesting, and memorable — but, turns out, that one was inspired by Pohl, who created a whole world of them (Ythri), so, 😕

As mentioned above, the main protagonist’s POV is supposed to be a woman’s, but she feels badly characterised.

Concepts:

Very interesting concepts, if you can catch up. The author often introduces a new scene, concepts and characters with no background (spoiler, e.g. the Mat, which you have to pause your imagination for until you get an unclear description later in the chapter. But why Mat? Because it’s like a mat?).

Lots of catch-up in this book, and sometimes you never really do. I don’t mind hard sci-fi, which is usually necessarily high-concept, so this alone didn’t put me off; but it may others.

In summary:

I read most books to the end to try and get into what the author was trying to do. With this one, though, I tweeted about my bafflement because I really couldn’t get my head around most of it. In retrospect, it’s possible that the author tried to do too much in one book. Also came away thinking either the author doesn’t like people, and/or tried too hard to create a strong female protagonist by making her into a horrible man (🙃🥲)

It was interesting, though, for the concepts. For that reason:

Rated: 6/10, but unless you’re into hard SF, may not appeal.

Edit: I forgot to mention the treatment of non-gendered (?) people in this book, which is atrocious. (It??)

A Sci-Fi novel that has this caliber is sure gonna make readers imagine things they never
thought they would have. I love those kinds of stories. They are one of the best kinds for taking
you on a journey beyond what has been told from the book. but somehow this story had given
me the thought of uncertainty.

This is still an argument whether we are alone or not in this vast galaxy we live in because there
is still not enough evidence to conclude that we have neighbors on other planets. In the future,
this argument has ended for we have received a lot of data from probes that have been sent to
places we could not. In this story we had built a library on the moon, A SETI library to store all
the data we had received and to decipher it for us to understand. Ruth was just a beginner
librarian but she already had open some possibilities too complex for others to understand.

With all those information and fantasies this book is definitely an interesting one. one major
setback for me is about a character discovers something that a team had failed to do for years. I
just don`t condone those. Some people had worked and sacrificed a lot to discover something
but fail to do so. Knowing others have progressed in their life`s work is really painful. That is just
the thing that bothers me hehe. Other than that it was a great adventure and definitely
recommendable.

According to the author's afterword, Shadows of Eternity grew out of the idea of not writing the standard SETI story of the first message received, but fast-forwarding hundreds of years to when many messages have been detected and their study is an academic discipline all its own (which is a pretty great idea). As such, the book is centered around the SETI Library, an archive of such messages on the Moon, and one particular new librarian, Rachel Cohen. Frankly, the book feels like it wants to be a short story collection rather than a novel; there are, I'd say, 6 distinct plot sections, each of which could stand alone with a different POV character:

1) Some kind of interstellar cloud of danger is impinging on the solar system, and Rachel must try to find out some information from the archive that can help humanity survive it
2) Rachel is set the task of deciphering another difficult AI message, and learns to express math as an alien symphony
3) A ship full of sentient bird-like aliens (called the Ythri, inspired by the work of Benford's friend and contemporary Poul Anderson) arrives in the solar system via wormhole and demands Rachel as the liaison for making first contact (which consists of her basically doing a bunch of extreme sports with the leader of the Ythri, named Fraq) due to her role in resolving the threat in Part 1
4) Fraq and Rachel (and others) go to Mars to communicate with the Marsmat, a semi-sentient anaerobic organism living underground there, about a previous visit by the Ythri something like a million years ago
5) Rachel accompanies an expedition to retrieve the Mouth of the wormhole that Fraq's ship came in through, which spun away as they exited it and ended up trapped in a magnetic arch very near the surface of the sun
6) Seven years later, now Rachel is a full-time co-pilot of the ship from Part 5, and takes part in the first human transit of the wormhole

Some of these bits are super interesting, especially the Marsmat section. But the pacing is a little weird (the first two sections are MUCH shorter than the greater Ythri plotline, and have virtually nothing to do with anything that happens later), and there's no real credible reason why Rachel should be central to all of these. She starts out as a librarian of no particular prowess or experience, and Part 1 is solved by no real action of her own -- the AI she's talking to kind of just thinks she's hot and basically rapes her so it can experience her sensorium when she has an orgasm, and then tells her how to save the solar system (because its prime directive is its own preservation and propagation, and if the solar system gets fried so does it). Which is more than a little uncomfortable as a reader. She has a more active role as a librarian in Part 2, but all the subsequent parts are so far afield from her training and specialization it doesn't really make sense to have her as the unitary POV carrying through each. It saves Benford from having to introduce and characterize a new protagonist for each section, but it's not like Rachel is a well-fleshed-out character in the first place; the only real consistent character trait that sticks out is that she's kinda horny and keeps sexualizing and hooking up with men(view spoiler). Not a strong enough character to be worth the suspension of disbelief that she would be part of all these subplots.

This is my first Benford, but it seems to me that people read Benford for the hard-SF technical detail and cool science, so the above complaints probably aren't that big a problem -- and probably are just a consequence of him having too many interesting ideas, that range too widely, for one plot through-line to encompass them coherently. If you're here for the hard-SF of it all, you won't be disappointed; it would just be nice if the other aspects of the book were a little stronger.

This took me a little while to get into but once I did I really enjoyed the story. Gregory Benford has a beautiful way of making a world. His descriptions are vivid and makes me feel like I was there. This was an enjoyable story for any Sci-Fi fan. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really REALLY wanted to like this book. I was hopeful that it would become a favorite based on the premise because I'm a sucker for books about books.

I gave up and shelved this as a DNF. Perhaps it picks up later so I gave it two stars because with better editing, I'm sure the author could have developed more dimensional characters, the story line dragged along at a slow pace, and the writing was dry.

I have received a digital advance review copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion. Thank you!

1 star - This could have been so good ...

DNF at 51 %

Okay, so I have many feelings and this will be a bit ranty, but bear with me.

When I first heard about the premise I thought this book would be a total winner. A SETI-Library on the moon? Deciphering and translating alien messages? What could possibly go wrong?

Well, this is an excellent example for how to ruin a good idea.

Let's start with the good stuff: this book is chock full of great ideas. The whole setup with the SETI library on the moon is fantastic. We are a couple of hundred years in the future and humanity has received plenty of messages through the SETI program. So many and complex messages actually, that the library that has been installed to understand them is now a very prestigious organization and only the best get accepted to work there.
The received data streams have in some cases contained even whole AIs, called Minds, that now live on the servers of the library. Librarians can communicate with them via so-called pods, basically an interface that connects to the whole sensory range.

I actually really liked how the translation process is described as being very mathematical and complex - and understanding the alien thought processes is not possible by using mere words. It is quite mind-bending, actually, and this aspect was captured well.

But now here's the less good stuff.

So, this one's hopelessly old-fashioned in the worst way regarding gender roles and the treatment of sexuality.

Want some examples? Early on, Rachel, the protagonist, is being groped and kissed (against her will) by another woman and only reacts with being kind of embarrassed. Not a single person surrounding this scene (and there are many!) feels like this is a violation and the whole incident is just being shrugged off.
Then there's the comments about how women are safe with a certain group of people because they have been removed of their sexuality - because of course we all know that men are just hypersexual brutes who cannot help themselves but to attack women who cross their path.
Every single stupid stereotype about men and women you have ever heard of is scattered throughout the story. Men are aggressive and territorial. Women are intuitive. PMSing women are moody.

All of the above is dumb, but I could maybe have lived with it if I really tried. But there is more and it is NOT COOL.

See, there is a whole sub-plot about one of the AIs Rachel interacts with wanting to have sex with her. She doesn't want to and tells the AI so. She also tells her supervisor - and guess how they react: they order her to do it anyway, because they hope to get some very important information from this AI. Rachel continues interacting with that AI and, sure enough, it enters her mind against her will and has sex with her. Not sure how to call this anything but rape. But worst of all: Rachel is mostly a little angry at herself because she kind of enjoyed it and otherwise just shrugs it off. Her supervisor actually even tells her that they don't see her issue, because she seemed to be enjoying herself. Awesome. And that's it, Rachel reacts by banging some dude (yes, really) and the story just moves on.

Later in the plot some aliens who have wings and can fly enter the stage. And, would't we have guessed it, again Rachel is being encouraged to "get to know the leader better" by her supervisor (yes, it is very much implied that her having sex with him would be appreciated). Her reaction: "Umm, sure, that smart bird (her words, not mine - and really offensive on its own) is actually kinda a hot dude..."

I CANNOT.

I have this feeling that the author doesn't really GET people. All of the characters are incredibly two-dimensional, some you could only call one-dimensional really. I do not care about any of them, there is no growth, no relatable feelings. The dialogue is ridiculous and most of the time I have no idea waht everybody is supposed to be insinuating. And seriously, why did Benford chose a female main character? He clearly cannot relate to her at all, so I cannot help but think this is just a bit of tokenism, because femist Sci-Fi is on the rise. Well, this is NOT how you do feminist Sci-Fi!

Also, the prose is really stuffy, convoluted and not terribly accessible. I guess it's supposed to be literary and metaphorical but to me it just feels very self-congratulatory.

I'm so dissappointed and did not finish this one. I cannot remember the last time I did that, actually. I guess there's an audience for this book out there, but it definietely was not for me.

I received a digital advanced reading copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I really wanted to like it. The cover caught my attention and then I read the description. A SETI library on the moon, messages from aliens, and artificial intelligences?! Count me in! Unfortunately, I was greatly disappointed, frustrated, and it left a bad taste in my mouth.

POSITIVES
The overall plot and various details were fascinating. Humans colonizing the moon and Mars, how they communicate with alien artificial intelligences and study messages from undiscovered alien societies, contact with intelligent aliens, intelligent planets, wormholes, etc. These things alone are what kept me reading.

However, the negatives almost made me quit halfway and, honestly, I probably should have.

NEGATIVES
[Trigger Warning: The following section contains references to events that may be traumatic to some readers.]

Small Issues
The overall pacing was slow and the timeline was confusing. I had no sense of how much time was passing within and between chapters. Subplots were never resolved and some characters were just never mentioned again. It actually felt like the second half was a new plot and should’ve been a separate book. The editing needs some work as well. Words were often misspelled and the same sentence, paragraph, and even an entire section popped up twice as if the author had decided to move it and forgot to delete it’s original.

Writing Style
This is a hard science novel, which is completely fine. I can handle some hard science but the writing style was straight like reading a textbook. I’m sure there are numerous, amazing ideas and theories but they were written in a way that was difficult to understand. Environments were overly described and I often zoned out reading them. Overall, it felt pompous and pretentious. This writing style also made it extremely difficult to connect with the characters, especially the protagonist, Rachel. We were often told what she was seeing, doing, and feeling, but never felt as if we were experiencing it with her.

[Trigger Warning]

Sexism
Surprisingly, most of the sexism was directed towards men in this book. Men were often implied to be aggressive and unsafe for women. Women make plans for how to deal with men in bars and there’s a type of human genetically created to be sexless, being described as safe for women to be around them. Related side note, the genetically altered people are said to generally prefer they/them pronouns but Rachel chooses not to respect that, referring to her specific higher ups as men due to their masculine appearance. Somewhat rude and bigoted.

Sexual Assault and Sexuality
This is my biggest problem with this novel. Whether or not it’s just an issue of a man trying to write from a woman’s perspective, there are things that happen in this book that are just unacceptable. Red flags went up when Rachel was kissed and groped against her will by a stranger and no one, not even herself, said or did anything about it, acting as if it was fine and normal and just a little embarrassing.

Blaring alarms went off not much later. While communicating with an alien AI using a full sensory
“pod,” it demands sex in return for solar system saving information. Rachel refuses, her commanding officer tells her to do it anyway, she still refuses, tries to get the info again, and the AI basically rapes her. Her higher ups deny knowing this was going to happen and when she confronts the AI later, it tells her it was acceptable because she wanted it. Then Rachel feels guilty because she thinks she actually enjoyed it. There were no consequences or punishments. Besides getting the information they needed, the only other result was Earth media found out she was the first to have sex with an alien AI, leaving out it was technically rape. In the end, she doesn’t even seem the least bit upset claiming this like it’s some kind of accomplishment.

I believe in women having sexual freedom but after this disgusting, pointless rape subplot, the way Rachel’s sexuality was written just made me uncomfortable. Rachel goes out looking for men to sleep with regularly, sleeps with a coworker, finds a future coworker attractive and she becomes “moist” while looking at him. She even fantasizes about sleeping with a bird-like alien to then become his lover in the end. Were any of these details really needed to build her character and drive this story? No.

Conclusion
All that said, I really do believe the bones of a really amazing story with amazing characters is here. It’s just buried under subplots and details that are uncomfortable and not needed. Needless to say, I do not recommend this book and I hope the author might consider making a number of edits before it's officially released.

Very interesting, lots to think about, though I feel like the sex-with-aliens aspect was unnecessary and detracted somewhat. This story follows a librarian on the moon (what's not to love about that?) as she first encounters alien artificial intelligence programs, and then actual aliens. She solves some mysteries that have stymied all the other librarians, saves humankind, has some insights that nobody else has, and goes along with some very daredevil thrill-seeking. Oh, and some hotshot space piloting. There is lots of science here, some supposition about wormholes, a look at what a colony on the moon and Mars might look like, and a somewhat plausible first contact scenario. Also some interesting side tidbits, like how Ashkenazi Jews have a higher IQ on average than the general population? Hadn't come across that one. The relationships are all a bit flat, but the story covers several decades and you do get to see personal growth in the main character. She also eats a lot of bugs.

What the other reviewers may have missed is that this book is really a Young Adult (YA) title. It isn't advertised as such, but you don't have to read very far in to see that it is. It does an adequate job for what it is - not action-packed or full of deep thoughts, but a decent read for the target audience.

I have received a digital advance review copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book is amazing!!

I've never read any of books by Gregory Benford, but I did hear good things about his writing. And after reading this book I'm pretty sure I'm gonna be reading more of this works.

When I read the description of this book I just couldn't wait to read it. And I surprised myself by finishing this book in one day. I just couldn't put it down. It had everything I love about science fiction and the plot was amazing. Every chapter had new revelations that just made me want to keep reading to see what happens next.

If you love space travel then you should definitely give this book a try.

Thank you NetGalley for sending me this ARC.
I liked the the idea of a library on moon and all the alien messages to be deciphered.. It promised a great sci-fi adventure to be honest and I expected a lot.. It didn't meet that expectations unfortunately. I liked the details and all that scientific stuff, the alien worlds.... but I personally couldn't like the characters. I couldn't connect with any of them. and the stereotyping... it's all throughout the book. and really off-putting for me.

I'll confess, I haven't read much Greg Benford in years, but I had fond memories of older books I'd read, so why not! Starts off interestingly but reads like a Y/A book at first, trying so hard to establish the seriousness of the main character over her peers. After that some interest still prevails again hampered by stodgy plot points. I tried to like the story by just didn't find it as enjoyable as it promised to be. Other people will no doubt enjoy it.

I would like to thank both Gregory Benford and Saga Press for graciously providing an electronic review copy of this book.

In a word, "Shadows of Eternity" is fantastic! This is the kind of science fiction tale that I live to read. The story starts as the main character, Rachel Cohen is interviewing for a job on the Moon. Imagine receiving free transportation to the moon for a job interview! The story quickly accelerates from there as we learn about the SETI library (on the moon) and the exciting potential of decoding messages from alien civilizations. Every chapter brings new discoveries, risks, and challenges as Rachel finds herself doing some serious travel and job changes that take her beyond the moon and repeatedly into delightful territory for hard core scifi fans.

Reading this book, I have realized that I need to read a lot more by Gregory Benford. I recommend this to anyone who likes hard core scifi with a focus on SETI, astrobiology, space travel, physics, as well as visiting and living on the moon and other places in the solar system, etc.

I was intrigued by the description of this book and I really wanted to like it. It was interesting and enjoyable for the first part of the book but as it went on It just didn’t keep me engaged. There were definitely some really good parts to it but it simply missed the mark for me.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book to read and review.

The story starts out great, it has a good plot, strong main character and I was really enjoying reading it. However, I feel the book could have been written differently. Like I said earlier, the story was great but then it falls a little. I did enjoy the book but again I think it could've been written a little different.

Thank you NetGalley for sending me this ARC.

I requested this one because it might be a 2021 title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book is not my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one rather than push myself to finish it only to give it a poor review.

3.5

This sure feels like hard SF!

My first Benford.

There's a lot of really cool ideas in this. I liked the concept of a world where extra-terrestial messages are so common that there's an entire library with the sole purpose of studying and exploring those messages. It's a neat idea explored competently here with some bonus AI stuff.

The concept of first contact is explored in this, in multiple ways. Different kinds of alien life and the way they may differ from humans on Earth. More than that, it also explores the Great Filter and the survival of species over vast amounts of time.

It has the usual caveats of hard SF, I suppose... Don't expect too much from the characters or some aspects of the story, but if you just want some solid hard SF adventure, you'll most likely get that!

From the jacket copy I expected a book with linguistics, politics, and dirty tricks. What I got was politics, dirty tricks, and super science. Based on Dr. Benford's previous books that is what I SHOULD have expected. Once I made the mental twist to what the book was rather than what I thought it was going to be I really liked it.

So, usually I like books like this. Space amazes me and living on the Moon would be awesome in it sent, but that did happen with this book. I only got so far in the book, and I had to quit. The speaker of this book is, well, boring. She repeats herself about the moon and what it is being a librarian on the Moon.

I am sure this would be great if it was written in a different way. This book was just not for me.

*Shadows of Eternity* started off as a thrillingly elaborate read, roping me in with a richly-woven extra-terrestrial tapestry of riveting translation tech and an eclectic, topsy-turvy environment, and while I wish I hadn't been thrown off by the equivocal representation and I might eventually revisit it, what I did read ultimately didn't sit right with me and I would withdraw from rating it, alas.

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for kindly passing along this ARC!