A science fiction masterpiece. Out of everything I've read, Shadows Upon Time is the greatest concluding science fiction novel to date.

Christoper Ruoccio's magnum opus, a genre defining conclusion that delivers on every promise, weaving plot lines across the series into a cohesive whole, leaving enough room for the possbility of more Sun Eater future. Never betraying what was foretold by the narrator Hadrian, while creating just enough room for debate and discussion for years to come.

The full review is spoiler free for the book, but not the series and can be found at https://bromantasy.com/reviews/shadows-upon-time/

Wow!

I finished this last night and I am still processing this incredible final volume in one of the best series I've ever read.

There are major surprises within this book and the ending is perfect. Hats off to the author since ending this series was very tricky.

I am typically not a re-reader, but for this series I will be starting it over again soon.

Thanks to the publisher for the e-arc and I can't wait for Ruocchio's next series.

Forget the winter that may or may not be coming because Hadrian Marlowe is here! For those who have been enjoying the Sun Eater series from the beginning as well as those who joined the party late (like me), Christopher Ruocchio has saved the best for last and not only dedicated the book to the readers but gifted us this spectacular conclusion to an already epic series. For those fantasy and space opera fans, and some who like character-driven adventures but balk at "space opera", who have not read the accounts of the Sun Eater, its not too late to read a series that tells you the ending in the first book but keeps you hooked through six more, delivers on all its promises, and makes the journey into a real page turner. I could continue in a lengthy essay on the topic of how incredible the final volume of the Sun Eater series was, but I think, dear reader, that your time is best served just reading the book and arriving at that conclusion yourself.
I received access to this eARC thru NetGalley (for which I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher, DAW) for an honest review. The opinion expressed here is my own.

1. How does Ruocchio find the time to write such amazing characters, worlds, and plot twists.
2. I cannot believe that this series is over.

I am in awe. I am in pain. I’m happy. But I’m also crying at times. I felt every single emotion possible while reading this book.

As a reader going into this story knowing how it was going to end I came out not only shocked but pleasantly surprised.

There are two things that I always look for in the Sun Eater series: great action and well-crafted characters and both are on full display here.

Christopher Ruocchio is a master at his craft and has cemented himself as a must-buy author for me.

So in the end, did this story hurt? Yes. Was this story worth it? Also yes.

5/5 stars

Now THAT is how you conclude an epic space opera.

Bravo, Chris. Bravo.

From start to finish, it felt like a kettle on the stove had reached its boiling pressure and was whistling, yet no one got up to relieve it. It remained forever screaming in urgency.

I’m left sitting here in utter awe, sorely attempting to process everything.

The opening? Incredible storytelling.
The middle? Heart pounding.
The ending? Epic.

I impatiently await the rest of you to pick this one up. For not being able to say anything more about it feels its own form of torment.

But alas, this must be.

Thank you Chris, for sharing your incredible imagination and storytelling with us. What a gift.
Thank you to Daw for the advanced copy.

Shadows Upon Time absolutely delivered as the conclusion to Sun Eater. It puts on display all the best aspects of the series, immersive world building and atmosphere, thrilling space battles and my personal favourite part of the series, the political scheming and courtroom drama. Christopher delves a lot into religion and Christianity in this book so that will push some people away from the series and the book does have a long page count, but is well worth it, fans of the previous book like myself will absolutely love Shadows Upon Time and getting a beautiful, sad and fitting ending to Hadrian Marlowes journey, you will be left with some questions but I think you’ll be quite satisfied with where the series leaves off.

I’m so incredibly happy with how Ruocchio ended this series. The ending was perfect. I just KNEW he was going to stick the landing.

Now we are all aware by now that the Sun Eater books have some parts that feel like they drag a little bit, and this one in particular dragged for me a tad bit in the beginning and somewhere in the middle - but not to the extent of his previous books. These parts were interesting and added to the story overall, but I feel like it could’ve been a tad bit shorter?

But apart from that? This book was a RIDE. It fully leans into some things from Disquiet Gods, so if you enjoyed that book (which I did), you’re going to LOVE the final book.

I’m honestly crippled with sadness, so I’m unable to write a fully fleshed out (and honestly, cohesive🤣) review that this time. But once I get out of this void, I’ll come back to write a better review.

5 stars, and I’m cheap with my 5 stars😅

I need to gather my thoughts and come back to review this properly, but this is such a satisfying conclusion to the series. I’ve sat in a state of grief once I finished this book!!

Best book I read that was released this year, no question!

It has taken me 7 days after completing this book to get myself to write a review and I’m still not sure exactly how to express what this story means to me. This was such an epic conclusion to this series. Every struggle Hadrian went through, every battle, every heartbreak, every loss, has brought him to be the man he needed to be in Shadows Upon Time.

Up until this book, Sun Eater has been one character centric but in this final book I felt deeply about so many other characters as well. This book wasn’t just about Hadrian’s bravery, but humanity’s effort to make the hard choices to survive and to destroy evil.

The first 20% dragged for me a little bit, but once it took off, I truly could not put it down. I laughed, I cried, I gasped, and now I miss Hadrian like I would a brother.

Some of my other favorite characters ended up being the Emperor William and Ramanthanu. Those two completely stole my heart.

The ending was not at ALL what I expected. And at first I was upset because I needed more. But then the more I sat on it I realized this was truly the perfect and only ending for this story that could do Hadrian justice.

This entire series is an absolute talent. From the beautiful prose to the sci fi elements to the lore to the world building to the drama to the absolute epic battles scenes, heartbreaking moments, and insane conclusions to each book.

Sigh. I’ll never get over this.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/8004486242

‘There are endings, Reader, and this is one.’

There are no major spoilers in this review. Shadows Upon Time is the culmination of my favourite Sci-fi series to date, and what a journey it has been, all the way from The Pits of Emesh to Goddodin’s Sun. We all knew how the series would end, to a certain extent, but Ruocchio still managed to write it in a way that was racked with suspense and anxiety.

Everything I liked (and disliked) about The Sun Eater was ramped up tenfold in this final instalment. The character work saw major improvements compared to previous novels, with me feeling much more intensely towards each character. One has become an all time favourite for me, with another becoming one of my most hated in fiction. The worldbuilding was ABSOLUTELY (get it?) incredible in scope, and there were points in this book in which I had almost no clue what was going on. Ruochhio repeatedly tore my heart out and put it back in place like nothing even happened. The writing was truly some of the best I’ve ever read. Books that exceed 1k pages are often convoluted, and while I’m not one to shirk at a few unnecessary scenes, I felt that not a single word was wasted in Shadows Upon Time. Every chapter felt meaningful, with each of them leaving me with a feeling of dread at the end. Ruocchio’s lyrical prose and philosophical ramblings reached their ABSOLUTE (get it again?) peak with this book, I’m in total awe at this man’s way with words. From the first page to the last, the plot was mind-boggling: filled with twists and turns. Despite having a general idea how the series would end from the very beginning of it, the ending still left me in a state of shock. The conclusion was perfect to me, and the closest I’ve been to crying to a book in a very long while.

Now, let’s talk about what I didn’t like. There are some troublesome themes involved in this novel that I did not appreciate. I don’t think authors should insert their religious beliefs into their works, at least not without a degree of subtlety. I knew it would be coming, based on the latter half of Disquiet Gods, and I was forewarned about its prevalence in Shadows Upon Time. But even though I was expecting it, I still found it eye-roll worthy at the best of times, and totally immersion breaking at the worst. I had to tell myself it was just worldbuilding, which helped somewhat, but even so I found myself peeved by it. In retrospect, Ruocchio’s beliefs have been very much present throughout the entire series. I just wish that they were treated with the same subtlety in the final two instalments as they were prior. I will say however that my enjoyment has not been greatly affected by this. The Sun Eater is still PEAK, and I believe it will remain the greatest Sci-fi epic I’ve ever read until my last day.

All in all, this was an amazing novel and I feel beyond privileged to be among the first to read it. The sun has been eaten, and I for one, am happy with the taste. Thankyou so much to DAW Books and NetGalley for the eARC :)

‘There are no endings, Reader, not in truth’

I’ve been a fan of this series for the last seven or eight years, and I’m so glad it’s finally getting the recognition it deserves, just in time for it to end. And what an ending! Shadows Upon Time brings everything I loved together from the last six books to make a conclusion that's tragic, hopeful, and satisfying. It's grand, epic, but also deeply personal. Ruocchio eschews shocking deaths in favor of an ending that's even more devastating. My only regret in reading this book is that the series is over. I'm not usually this gushing in my praise for a book, but this was a great conclusion to one of my favorite sci-fi series of all time.

It feels rare for an epic series with hundreds of pages and multiple volumes, to actually get an ending, much less the ending that the readers deserve. I've loved this series and Hadrian ever since I read the first page of his story. To have gotten here to the end is a monument. And let me tell you, this did not disappoint. Whatever draws you to these books, the characters, the politics, the epic space battle with aliens, the philosophy, or the expert tension that Ruocchio writes, this book has it. I cannot wait for you to get to read it. I hope you love it as much as I do.

Our story has come to an end with Hadrian and I am devastated to say the least. This was a masterpiece that I’m not sure I will get over. It was a conclusion written how I couldn’t even imagine it going. I continue to be amazed by Christopher Ruocchios writing and the skill that he has developed from book one and I thought it was amazing in book one. One of the best writers I’ve had the privilege of reading from. To be in Hadrians head for seven books and not get tired of him is a skill.

We knew how part of this story was going to end from book one but the journey to get there in this book was an emotional one that i wasn’t prepared for. Even though we have known how this story mostly ends the anxiousness that he created in me to get us there had me on the edge of my seat even when he spoiled the plot for us(how dare you Hadrian). One thing that Ruocchio has continuously got better at is his side characters and that really showed in this book. It’s been one of my complaints throughout the series that they haven’t been fully fleshed out. The characters that we love, a character that I think is my most hated character in all of fiction right now, and the friendships and relationships that were developed.

This world is so epic in scope from the beginning of this series and gets progressively more epic in the final installment. It’s trippy, weird, and mind boggling at times.

The ending was one of the most satisfying conclusions I have read and I believe even if you didn’t fully enjoy the journey in the book you will be okay with the ending.

If you’ve been a reader who has not enjoyed the Quite and Watchers I’m afraid you will most likely be disappointed as it ramps up in shadows upon time. I hope it doesn’t deter you from enjoying it to the best of your abilities but I will understand. I think it’s important to go in with the right expectations for this part though. At points I was even pulled out of the story because of it especially as it’s a topic that many people have discussed so it’s on my mind.

I’m excited, nervous, and even jealous now for everyone else to read Hadrians departure and the sun to be eaten. I’m gunna go cry again now.

What a phenomenal ending to a phenomenal series. Christopher Ruocchio took us beyond space, time, and reality itself to deliver us to the end of Hadrian’s story. I am devastated my favorite series over. This is a culmination of all the previous 6 books, and it truly is Ruocchio’s Magnum Opus. It’s beautiful, brilliant, tragic, inspiring, spiritual, and philosophical. This book broke my rating scale, and I will be shocked if I ever read a book that tops this one.

Shadows Upon Time absolutely delivers as the finale to the Sun Eater series. It’s massive in scope, deeply emotional, and somehow still personal after everything Hadrian’s been through. You can really feel that this is the ending Ruocchio’s been building toward from the start.

It’s got everything you’d expect. From massive battles, ancient powers, and that signature mix of philosophy and heartbreak but what stands out most is how grounded it feels. Is it big and cosmic, yes, but it's still all about one man trying to make sense of what it means to be human.

The writing is gorgeous, the pacing tight, and the payoff feels earned. It’s the kind of ending that stays with you long after you finish.

If you’ve come this far with Hadrian, this finale makes every page worth it.

Without a shadow of a doubt, for me personally this is the best book of the year. I consider Sun Eater series the best modern space opera, and it’s been given an absolutely phenomenal conclusion. Epic in scope, full of grandiose events, deeply emotional and dramatic, with a beautifully crafted though sad ending.

Those who’ve read Ruocchio before know his books are filled with references to Greek and Roman culture and history, and Shadows Upon Time feels like a true antique epic set in space. A brilliant achievement.

Shadows Upon Time was everything I could have hoped for. I finished it feeling positively overwhelmed, trying to process what Christopher Ruocchio created. This is a finale that satisfyingly closes a series. It answers so many of the questions that have lingered for years and then reveals even more than I thought was waiting to be uncovered.

Yes, it is longer than the last book. And thank the Quiet for that, because the length is exactly what allows this story to land with so much power. Every page is necessary. Every moment builds toward a conclusion that feels complete, earned, and deeply satisfying.

I will admit something. When I first started the Sun Eater series, I was not convinced. Empire of Silence had its strengths, but Hadrian was whining a little too much for my liking, and I truly wondered whether I should continue. But just as countless readers told me, the story pulls you in. It grows. It widens. And Hadrian becomes a narrator worth following through anything. Each book improves on the last, and the progression peaks here in a way that feels almost unreal.

The opening of Shadows Upon Time is simply gripping. Nothing plays out how you expect. Not one thing. And somehow everything makes perfect sense, the plotting is perfect.

This is a powerful and fulfilling conclusion to Hadrian’s saga, even when it hurts, and it is exactly the ending the series deserved.

Thank you to Christpher Ruocchio for a masterful conclusion! Thank you to DAW & Netgalley for allowing me on this last adventure!

My Short Review of Shadows Upon Time (Sun Eater #7)

no spoilers

Shadows Upon Time is, for me, a monumental, heartbreaking, and absolutely fitting conclusion to the Sun Eater saga. As someone who has followed Hadrian’s journey from the beginning, this final installment felt like the culmination of everything I’ve loved about the series: the vast, awe-inspiring worldbuilding, the sharpened and deeply emotional character work, and a story that blends cosmic scale with intimate human struggle.

The book starts slowly, but once the story fully takes off, I found myself completely absorbed. The tension, the twists, and the philosophical depth all reach their highest point here. Ruocchio’s prose is at its best—lyrical, precise, and sometimes almost mythic. Chapter after chapter left me breathless, anxious, or simply stunned.

And the ending… it surprised me, broke me, and ultimately felt like the only ending that could truly honor Hadrian Marlowe’s journey. When I turned the final page, I felt that rare, heavy sense of having said goodbye to someone who mattered.

Conclusion:
For me, Shadows Upon Time is a grand, emotional, and beautifully executed finale that cements the Sun Eater series as one of the strongest sci-fi epics I’ve ever read.

“There are no endings, Reader, not in truth.”

6/5 Stars | Memoirs of a (Reformed) Space Himbo: Volume VII 🚀📖💫

What I liked: What. A. Way. To. End. A. Series. I cannot believe I’m saying this about a saga starring Hadrian “Space Himbo” Marlowe himself, but I loved — LOVED — this ending. The growth? Immaculate. The emotional payoff? Devastatingly delicious. Every loop closed, every thread woven back in, every question either answered or consciously marked as mystery — it’s the kind of structural brilliance that makes you sit back and whisper, “how… how did a human brain do this OR WAS CR A DAIMON ALL ALONG?” I’ve spent months with these characters, watching this story stretch across galaxies and lifetimes, and saying goodbye is so much more bittersweet than I would have expected. I didn’t love the series when I started in May — wild, I know — but somewhere along the way it got its claws in me, and now I’m a lifelong Sun Eater stan. I will absolutely be rereading these one day, just to marvel at how tightly plotted and beautifully interconnected the whole saga is. For now, I will be staring at a wall for 3–5 business days. Please respect my privacy during this difficult time tysm.

What I didn’t like: Not a “didn’t like,” per se, but the book does turn the volume to eleven on themes of “government bad,” religious insistence, and predestination. These have previously been present in the series, but here they are LOUD. If I were going to remove a star, it would be for the overt repetition of those messages — but also? This is a six-star book in my heart. IDC IDC IDC.

Thank you to NetGalley and DAW Books for the e-ARC!