Fantasy

The Scarab Path

The Scarab Path

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  • Create Date：2021-10-22 08:51:14
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Adrian Tchaikovsky
  • ISBN：1529050340
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Summary

The Scarab Path is an astonishingly immersive fantasy， fifth in the Shadows of the Apt series by Arthur C。 Clarke award-winner， Adrian Tchaikovsky。

Ancient powers are waking 。 。 。

The war with the Wasp Empire has ended in a bitter stalemate， and Collegium has nothing to show for it but wounded veterans。 Cheerwell Maker finds herself crippled in ways no doctor can mend， haunted by ghosts of the past that she cannot appease。

The Empress Seda is regaining control over those imperial cities that refused to bow the knee to her， but she draws her power from something more sinister than mere armies and war machines。

Only her consort， the former spymaster Thalric， knows the truth， and now the assassins are coming and he finds his life and his loyalties under threat once again。 Then out beyond the desert of the Nem， the ancient city of Khanaphes awaits them both， with a terrible secret entombed beneath its stones。

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Reviews

Michael David Cobb ，

Another exciting adventure for the kinden of the lowlands in the aftermath of the fall of the Wasp emperor and the rise of the new empress。 Thalric survives yet again and tries to make sense of his loyalties and is greatly tested。 Cheerwell is the center of this tale as she is sent to be an ambassador to the ancient beautiful city of Khanaphes， but she is faced with the fact that she is losing her apt skills and may be losing her mind。 She is haunted by the ghost of Acheos， or is she in contact Another exciting adventure for the kinden of the lowlands in the aftermath of the fall of the Wasp emperor and the rise of the new empress。 Thalric survives yet again and tries to make sense of his loyalties and is greatly tested。 Cheerwell is the center of this tale as she is sent to be an ambassador to the ancient beautiful city of Khanaphes， but she is faced with the fact that she is losing her apt skills and may be losing her mind。 She is haunted by the ghost of Acheos， or is she in contact with the magic of the inapt world？ The mysterious disappearance of a scholar of Collegium sets her and other scholars to Khanaphes under the distrustful guard of two sullen ant-kinden of Vek。 Events conspire to bring this first contact into chaos。 Mysterious agendas emerge。 Will the peace hold？ 。。。more

Phil ，

In volume four of this epic fantasy， the war between the lowlands and the wasp empire came to a crashing end， leaving the wasps to lick their wounds and consolidate the empire after numerous rebellions from within， and defeat in the lowlands。 It seems the first part of the sage is over， so what will Mr。 T do now？ What can come next to capture our attention as readers？ Well， he takes us to other parts of the fantastic world he created for new adventures of course！While many of the main characters In volume four of this epic fantasy， the war between the lowlands and the wasp empire came to a crashing end， leaving the wasps to lick their wounds and consolidate the empire after numerous rebellions from within， and defeat in the lowlands。 It seems the first part of the sage is over， so what will Mr。 T do now？ What can come next to capture our attention as readers？ Well， he takes us to other parts of the fantastic world he created for new adventures of course！While many of the main characters in the first part of the saga are now dead， several remain， including Che， Stenwold's niece， and of course Stenwold himself， now 'master of war' of the lowlands。 Stenwold knows the war with the wasp empire is not over， and， like before the war， still is set upon building a long lasting lowland alliance for when the wasps return。 Che is wounded however; her mind-connection with her moth kinden beau when he died has somehow deprived her of her Apt， e。g。， her ability to understand/utilize technology。 Depressed and lonely， she sulks around town until Sten comes up with something for her to do。In the last few volumes， Mr。 T has taken us to the spider lands; rather than the end of the world， it turns out there are lands to the west of the spider lands， including an ancient city that has stood for 1000s of years。 Sten decides to send an ambassador there and concludes Che is just the person for the job。 Hence， she， along with a few scholars and some ant-kinden 'frenemies' head out on the long journey。 Meanwhile， Thalric， the arch wasp spymaster has ended up as the regent for the new wasp queen， but he is not very happy about this （and it is a pretty nasty job）。 When the wasp empire learns that the lowlands are sending a mission to the distant city of Knanaphes， they decide to send a mission as well， and tag Thalric for the job to lead it。 It seems the long and complicated history between Che and Thalric is not over yet！Another super installment in the series。 This one is a doorstop make no mistake， but Mr T takes us on another thrilling adventure。 What is the mystery surrounding Knanaphes？ Who are the 'Masters' the city's leaders serve and to what ends？ We also have Totho showing up; after his escape from the wasps， he now manufactures arms and such deep in the spiderlands， and himself is at Knanaphes when everyone gets there。 Perhaps a bit to convenient to have so many old characters ending up someplace so remote， but so be it。 Che is a plucky heroine; Thalric a complicated frenemy to be sure， and Totho？ He is still besotted by Che， but events place him in a very awkward spot。 Lots of fun， and Mr T employs some literary tricks here that are also found in his later science fiction works （such as The Doors of Eden）。 The series is still going strong and I am looking forward to the rest！ I am surprised this series is not more widely read， but Mr T does have a strong following。 I believe Tor is reissuing this series soon （2022） as Tchaikovsky has vaulted his literary standing with his later science fiction works （which are super）。 4 strong kinden stars！！ 。。。more

Aaron ，

Ok wow， that was awesome。 I think it really benefited from the tighter focus （4 POV and 1 location） and I am glad we finally get to see more of the mystical side of the world。 The world building is again top notch and such a unique setting。 Looking forward to book 6。

Scott Hitchcock ，

tBook:1 4。5Book 2: 4。5Book 3: 4Book 4: 4。5Book 5: 4。25Really slow started after a lot of things got buttoned up at the end of the last book。 Nice recovery and motion towards the next one。

Gabi ，

A book with the main focus on Cheerwell Maker - what is there not to love？ :D Seriously - I may be a tiny bit biased， but Che is one of my favourite Fantasy characters ever。 Her character developement through the series so far has been very well done。 She is relatable， authentic， shy， vulnerable and strong， and all of that without the need to fall back to the trope of badass characters in writing her。 Witnessing her stumble through all kind of peril with her believe in the righteousness of peopl A book with the main focus on Cheerwell Maker - what is there not to love？ :D Seriously - I may be a tiny bit biased， but Che is one of my favourite Fantasy characters ever。 Her character developement through the series so far has been very well done。 She is relatable， authentic， shy， vulnerable and strong， and all of that without the need to fall back to the trope of badass characters in writing her。 Witnessing her stumble through all kind of peril with her believe in the righteousness of people and now carrying her own PTSD from the war was a constant joy and thrill for me。 Hers are the kind of adventures that I don't want to end。 After the end of the arc of the first 4 volumes which emphasised on the apt part of this fascinating world of the kinden now the inapt slowly make their way into the foreground of the storytelling。 There still is a lot of fighting and strategical moments in the book， but the magic that was only hinted at in the first arc plays a much larger role now。 I approve of this combination， it gives the world deeper layers and myself some longed for diversion from constant battling （which I'm not soooo fond of， tbh）The main plot here is a kind of standalone， the next book starts with a new adventure。 。。。more

Ginni Ghaziri ，

This is a twelve book series and each book is superb。 A brilliant writer。 Intelligent and humorous and I'm on book 7 right now。 Can't put them down。 This is a twelve book series and each book is superb。 A brilliant writer。 Intelligent and humorous and I'm on book 7 right now。 Can't put them down。 。。。more

Nicholas Smith ，

Best in the series。 Slow building， very detailed book I think the meat of it takes place over 5 days。 I finally felt like Che got a storyline as well and one that was legitimately completely different than anyone。Very enjoyable。

matthew ，

this might be my favourite of the series so far？

Emiliya Bozhilova ，

Понякога дори и боговете трябва да си заработят славата。。。 Какво би се случило， ако Древен Египет （т。е。 градът-държава Канафис） влезе в досег с Третия Райх （незабравимата империя на Осородните）， наоколо вилнеят бедуини （т。е。 скорпионородни）， и някой вземе， че накрая осъзнае индустриалните ползи на суровия петрол？ Междувременно в декор， типичен за филмите с Индиана Джоунс， се вият безкрайни лабиринти и капани в потайни гробници на мъртви богове。 В тази част Чайковски си поставя за задача да зарад Понякога дори и боговете трябва да си заработят славата。。。 Какво би се случило， ако Древен Египет （т。е。 градът-държава Канафис） влезе в досег с Третия Райх （незабравимата империя на Осородните）， наоколо вилнеят бедуини （т。е。 скорпионородни）， и някой вземе， че накрая осъзнае индустриалните ползи на суровия петрол？ Междувременно в декор， типичен за филмите с Индиана Джоунс， се вият безкрайни лабиринти и капани в потайни гробници на мъртви богове。 В тази част Чайковски си поставя за задача да зарадва по-сериозно романтиците от двата пола （аз съм много доволна！）， като за любителите на футбола и ролевите игри са предвидени достатъчно живописни битки и съпровождащите ги интриги （някои от които минах на вентилатор）。 И тъй като чичо Ейдриън не е млада YA “фентъзи” писателка - слава на Господарите на Канафис！ - няма никакви политкоректнички розови алфа герои。 Не， това са си старите колоритни грешници от предните части， допълнени с малко нови свежи лица。 Светът на Канафис и пустинята на Ним са изградени със замах и сочни， но свързани детайли。Тук отново， уви， има едни 200 страници излишни， което е типично за средата на тези безкрайни фентъзи поредици， но понеже Чайковски е печен， отново не тежат много。 Част от старите герои нарочно са резервирани за отделна следваща книга， което е малко дразнещо и в стил “и-нека-няма-край” дЕдо Мартин。 Не ми хареса и как изпрости накрая образа на Тото （надявам се в бъдеще пак да си го направи като преди）， но пък писмото на майор Талрик до генерал Бруган компенсира абсолютно всичко като връх в комедийната епистоларна проза！Отлично забавление с капка ирония， както винаги с този полски англичанин， фен на насекомите и буболечките。 （Дали има поне една негова книга без паяци？！）***➡️ Цитати: 🦂 “all insanities have their own internal logic”🪲 “she lived her life without any luxuries， including manners”🦋 “Pretend hard enough and it builds a shell of reality， as difficult to scrub off as barnacles from a boat。”🐝 “I know it’s the fashion to call people like these savages， but with these people it’s true。 It’s not that they’re stupid， it’s just … they have no rules。”🦂 “manufacture a common enemy and the world falls into your lap。”🐝 “He found that he was frightened by the man he had once been。 If I met him， that burning idealist， I would kill him if I could。 Far too dangerous to let him live。”🐌 “belief is easy in the dark” 。。。more

Lydia ，

Thalric and Che = power couple！！！！！！Also， redemption arc for Totho continues。。。 he’s improving。。。

Koit ，

While the end of the previous book also made it sound like the series was about over， this one nicely expands the world in an unexpected direction。 Khanaphes is the new destination， a city modelled on Ancient Egypt which in itself is a rarity in fantasy—and therefore a pleasure to read。The characters primarily featuring in this—Che and Thalric—have also become my favourite ones over time。 Thalric clearly deserves it for his wit and introspection though in this book he’s nearly walking around bli While the end of the previous book also made it sound like the series was about over， this one nicely expands the world in an unexpected direction。 Khanaphes is the new destination， a city modelled on Ancient Egypt which in itself is a rarity in fantasy—and therefore a pleasure to read。The characters primarily featuring in this—Che and Thalric—have also become my favourite ones over time。 Thalric clearly deserves it for his wit and introspection though in this book he’s nearly walking around blind。 Meanwhile， Che is too often mired in her own dreams。 Indeed， the entire Khanaphes expedition is built on her wishes to find out more about herself—which of course is not a bad goal—and she does learn。Khanaphes， a style of construction and location， the way they’re steeped in tradition， all reeks of Egypt。 The Jamail—their Nile—also has an interesting history that the reader is introduced to in turn。 In some ways， this book also touches on geoengineering and environmental troubles: after all， Khanaphes is only a small lush remnant of a once-prosperous domain。A surprisingly strong instalment overall， given I didn’t originally expect much from this book。 This review was originally posted on my blog。 。。。more

Jourdan ，

This book presented such strong themes， and I loved every second of them。 I loved the focus on Cheerwell， and enjoyed the development of the multitude of characters that graced our pages。 The only thing I felt was lacking was the pace。 Throughout the beginning of the book it felt stilted if anything， however if that was to introduce a 'cold war' aspect to the war between the Wasp empire， and the world at large I can understand。 I can't wait to begin the next chapter in the series， and continue m This book presented such strong themes， and I loved every second of them。 I loved the focus on Cheerwell， and enjoyed the development of the multitude of characters that graced our pages。 The only thing I felt was lacking was the pace。 Throughout the beginning of the book it felt stilted if anything， however if that was to introduce a 'cold war' aspect to the war between the Wasp empire， and the world at large I can understand。 I can't wait to begin the next chapter in the series， and continue my time within the Shadows of the Apt 。。。more

Cat Bezubiak ，

I have enjoyed every book in this series far， but this one honestly felt like it was longer than was necessary and could have benefited from some harsher editing techniques。 That said， it was a fascinating book in this series that expanded the mythology of this world significantly。 Che's character started to annoy me a little bit。 I didn't feel like she developed enough through this instalment， but given how long the series is I'm not holding that to hard against the book。 Overall， despite the l I have enjoyed every book in this series far， but this one honestly felt like it was longer than was necessary and could have benefited from some harsher editing techniques。 That said， it was a fascinating book in this series that expanded the mythology of this world significantly。 Che's character started to annoy me a little bit。 I didn't feel like she developed enough through this instalment， but given how long the series is I'm not holding that to hard against the book。 Overall， despite the length I did enjoy it。 Not sure it's a repeat read though。 。。。more

Nia Sinjorina ，

More enjoyable & gripping adventures in the Shadows of the Apt world。 This book follows on from my feelings about the previous outing， that it was an ending， by which I mean that this novel feels almost like a standalone， or perhaps a pause。 Whether it is or not， I will discover as I move through the series。Everything is here that makes the series such a delight: excellent three dimensional characters with believable motivations， conflicts， and quirks; plots that twist， turn， and bounce along at More enjoyable & gripping adventures in the Shadows of the Apt world。 This book follows on from my feelings about the previous outing， that it was an ending， by which I mean that this novel feels almost like a standalone， or perhaps a pause。 Whether it is or not， I will discover as I move through the series。Everything is here that makes the series such a delight: excellent three dimensional characters with believable motivations， conflicts， and quirks; plots that twist， turn， and bounce along at a good pace; a consistent and well developing culture， history， and universe。There is no filler with the author's work。 Even here， in a full-on siege with multiple engagements， each piece of writing is part of a well crafted whole that develops characters， strategy， and plot。My only pause for consideration was a perceived an inconsistency between a city's population painted initially as docile that quickly develop into dedicated， passionate， skillful soldiers pitting their martial skill sets against an indomitable & cruel enemy。 There is a strategic reason for this but it gave me pause for thought。Onto book 6。Fleecy Moss， author of the Folio 55 SciFi fantasy series （writing as Nia Sinjorina）， End of a Girl， Undon ， and 4659 now available on Amazon。 。。。more

Paschalis ，

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Will R ，

At last， some answers。 That's the feeling that strikes me upon finishing this book， even though I never felt like I was without answers until finishing it。 The little hints at the deeper origins of the insect-kinden were surprising， as I thought Tchaikovsky was content with playing his universe relatively straight - the Ancient Mediterranean meets Steampunk aesthetic surely couldn't cope with， couldn't even need further exposition。 But it becomes all the richer for it。 We travel to the distant c At last， some answers。 That's the feeling that strikes me upon finishing this book， even though I never felt like I was without answers until finishing it。 The little hints at the deeper origins of the insect-kinden were surprising， as I thought Tchaikovsky was content with playing his universe relatively straight - the Ancient Mediterranean meets Steampunk aesthetic surely couldn't cope with， couldn't even need further exposition。 But it becomes all the richer for it。 We travel to the distant city of Khanaphes， an Egyptian-analogue whose lauded Masters haven't been seen in centuries; but still rule their people， demanding a near-religious-like fervor。 A delegation from Collegium embarks， led by our favourite beetle Cheerwell， and who does she meet but Thalric？ There's some brilliant character development here for Che， Thalric， and some old favourites。 The middle of the book dig drag slightly， but the cracker of an ending outweighs it。 Like the ancient stones of Khanaphes themselves， each word adds weight and meaning。 Some stellar fantasy work here。 。。。more

Joshua ，

Epic series！ Would highly recommend

Sean Bester ，

I was growing tired of this series after two duds in a row。 Looking back， neither left much of an impression on me。 I was really worried that this fifth novel would be the one to make me quit。Thankfully， this is as good as the second one。 Maybe even better？ I was gripped pretty much from beginning to end。 That's saying a lot， considering it centers on Cheerwell （by far the most annoying character in this universe）， Thalric （the dude is straight up EVIL， but everyone seems to have forgotten that） I was growing tired of this series after two duds in a row。 Looking back， neither left much of an impression on me。 I was really worried that this fifth novel would be the one to make me quit。Thankfully， this is as good as the second one。 Maybe even better？ I was gripped pretty much from beginning to end。 That's saying a lot， considering it centers on Cheerwell （by far the most annoying character in this universe）， Thalric （the dude is straight up EVIL， but everyone seems to have forgotten that）， and Totho （poor， poor， lovesick Totho）。 The writing is much tighter for being focused on a smaller cast of characters， however， and I believe that is why this entry succeeds where the previous two haven't。 There are also less throwaway characters。 You know， the ones Tchaikovsky likes to introduce us to for a few short pages and then killing them off right away？ He at least keeps the major ones around to the bitter end this time。I like to complain about the editing for this series。 It's still got some issues， but this one was much better over all。It's hard to exactly pinpoint how the story managed to draw me in so much easier this time around， as it's all kinds of F'd up， and the leads are eyeroll inducing all throughout。 And for an entry with not a lot of the line for the empire or Collegium， you'd think you just plain wouldn't care how it all wraps up。 I did though， and I consistently kept wanting to come back to it to find out more。 I think it's just very tightly and intimately told - something I hope the final five are able to continue doing。Can't wait to begin the next one！ 。。。more

Just_ann_now ，

What a wild ride。 I love this series so damn much。

Brian ，

Addicting series

Nina Usherwood ，

My favourite of the series so far

Stephen Patrick ，

Continues a powerful & imaginative series。 A skilled & insightful writer。

Solseit ，

My favorite book of the series just yet。 This was an Indian Jones movie meets 300。 Loved it！

Edward ，

I liked the book， but I’ve started finding che a bit boring。

Metodi Markov ，

Историята на Равнините продължава， подписаното набързо примирие с Империята на осородните е само прелюдия към нови и вълнуващи приключения。Мравкородни делегации са на посещение в Колегиум， в опит на Стенуолд Трудан да превъзмогне отколешната вражда между двата мравешки града - Век и Сарн。Той получава предложение от колега политик， да се изпрати посланическа мисия до загадъчен град на бръмбарородни - Канафес， разположен далеч от познатия ни до момента свят。 Междувременно Че е изгубила своето умен Историята на Равнините продължава， подписаното набързо примирие с Империята на осородните е само прелюдия към нови и вълнуващи приключения。Мравкородни делегации са на посещение в Колегиум， в опит на Стенуолд Трудан да превъзмогне отколешната вражда между двата мравешки града - Век и Сарн。Той получава предложение от колега политик， да се изпрати посланическа мисия до загадъчен град на бръмбарородни - Канафес， разположен далеч от познатия ни до момента свят。 Междувременно Че е изгубила своето умение и се съгласява да стане посланник там， в опит да научи， какво бъдеще я очаква без дарба， в един свят доминиран от Умелите。В раздираната от междуособици Империя в черно и златно， Талрик се е издигнал до принц-консорт на императрица Седа， но някак не е щастлив от развръзката。 Отделно， наемни убийци го преследват където и да отиде， но той си е жилав копелдак。 :）Междувременно дивите скорпионородни племена от пустинята Нем получават имперска подкрепа， инженери и модерни оръжия， за да унищожат Канафес и населението му - отдавнашни техни врагове。Смъртоносният гамбит започва отново， ще се срещнем със стари и нови познайници и ще станем свидетели на епични събития。 Полетът на фантазията на Ейдрин Чайковски е все по-оригинален и непредвидим！Звезда по-малко， заради част от дебилните изпълнения на Че Трудан。。。 。。。more

Nighteye ，

good and fashinating and an extention of the world we know so far， feels like its own separate quest when the first bookes before is one chapter of the history。

Alejandro Maríñez ，

I liked this book， but I keep expecting Tchaikovsky to throw some light upon the origins of the Apt。

LJ Waguespack ，

Shadows of the Apt， continues to amaze me。 A sweeping epic of a story with many， many twists and links， done as well as i have ever read。 Onto book 6！

Joy ，

This was a nice diversion from the clash of nations theme of the first four books。 The Magic of this world is better explained than in any of the other books。 That those that use Magic are unable to even comprehend technology is an interesting philosophical twist。 The ability is dying out and a liability; while the ability to build machines has become necessary， but what is lost to this progress？ Apparently the people of this world are unable to do both。The battle scenes continue to be tense。 Th This was a nice diversion from the clash of nations theme of the first four books。 The Magic of this world is better explained than in any of the other books。 That those that use Magic are unable to even comprehend technology is an interesting philosophical twist。 The ability is dying out and a liability; while the ability to build machines has become necessary， but what is lost to this progress？ Apparently the people of this world are unable to do both。The battle scenes continue to be tense。 The author spares only a few good characters and you never know who might die。 There is also a new racial type with a new insect totem introduced in a bit of surprise twist。I definitely not bored with this book series。 Great world building and smoothly written。 。。。more

Joanna ，

BORING。 I can't understand why there were 500 pages of this。 Easily done in less than half that。 Let me save you that time （view spoiler）[Che continues to be a bit of an idiot （but lovable！）， Che and Thalric finally get together， Tisamon reappears as a vengeful ghost infused with the Darakyon， some Scorpion-kinden can use tech， the Masters of Khanaphes are immortal Slug-kinden， Empress Seda is quite probably a blood-drinking monster （hide spoiler）]。 A long slog for not much。 Skippable IMO。 BORING。 I can't understand why there were 500 pages of this。 Easily done in less than half that。 Let me save you that time （view spoiler）[Che continues to be a bit of an idiot （but lovable！）， Che and Thalric finally get together， Tisamon reappears as a vengeful ghost infused with the Darakyon， some Scorpion-kinden can use tech， the Masters of Khanaphes are immortal Slug-kinden， Empress Seda is quite probably a blood-drinking monster （hide spoiler）]。 A long slog for not much。 Skippable IMO。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Scarab Path

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Scarab Path&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Scarab Path&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0