Invisible Sun: Empire Games: Book Three
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- Create Date：2021-11-09 08:51:24
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Charles Stross
- ISBN：1447247590
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Summary
The alternate timelines of Charles Stross' Empire Games trilogy have never been so entangled than in Invisible Sun--the techno-thriller follow up to Dark State--as stakes escalate in a conflict that could spell extermination for humanity across all known timelines。
A inter-timline coup d'état gone awry。
A renegade British monarch on the run through the streets of Berlin。
And robotic alien invaders from a distant timeline flood through a wormhole， wreaking havoc in the USA。
Can disgraced worldwalker Rita and her intertemporal extraordaire agent of a mother neutralize the livewire contention between their respective timelines before it's too late？
A inter-timline coup d'état gone awry。
A renegade British monarch on the run through the streets of Berlin。
And robotic alien invaders from a distant timeline flood through a wormhole， wreaking havoc in the USA。
Can disgraced worldwalker Rita and her intertemporal extraordaire agent of a mother neutralize the livewire contention between their respective timelines before it's too late？
Reviews
Matthias
，
Hard to review because so many elements of it （long asides on history economics etc， political sensibilities that are somehow simultaneously civil libertarian and tankie-adjacent， &c。） seem specifically targeted towards my own derangements。 A bit Saves The Cat-y， but whatever; plot is the least interesting aspect of fiction and it’s not like I demand that font choices be original either。
netjeff
，
A solid conclusion to the trilogy。 Lots of loose ends tied up。 Left plenty of room for future stories in same universe。
Bentgaidin
，
'Invisible Sun' is the conclusion to a sprawling spy thriller about interdimensional politics， starting off with a bang （escaped defecting princess， mystery black-hole attackers， and democratic dynasty politics） and only getting wilder from there。 If you like thoughful SF， techno-thrillers about escaping the police state， and multi-generational stories， you really owe it to yourself to go and check these books out。 You can start the story with Empire Games （techno-thriller about an even-more aut 'Invisible Sun' is the conclusion to a sprawling spy thriller about interdimensional politics， starting off with a bang （escaped defecting princess， mystery black-hole attackers， and democratic dynasty politics） and only getting wilder from there。 If you like thoughful SF， techno-thrillers about escaping the police state， and multi-generational stories， you really owe it to yourself to go and check these books out。 You can start the story with Empire Games （techno-thriller about an even-more authoritarian USA confronting interdimensional spies）， or go all the way back to the beginning with The Bloodline Feud （American reporter discovers that she's actually a lost heir of a crime family from another dimension）。 Either way， these aren't books to miss！ 。。。more
Vladimir Ivanov
，
Ну что тут сказать - многолетнее ожидание того стоило！ Стросс не подвел。История про клан торговцев， путешествующих между мирами， добралась наконец до своего гранд-финала， по дороге многократно поменяв жанры – от портальной фентези до шпионского боевика， с промежуточными остановками "политический технотриллер"， "твердая НФ" и "научпоп по политэкономике"。Итак， часть миров мультивселенной лежит в атомных руинах， США в нашем мире стремительно превращаются в диктатуру тотальной слежки и паранойи， заз Ну что тут сказать - многолетнее ожидание того стоило！ Стросс не подвел。История про клан торговцев， путешествующих между мирами， добралась наконец до своего гранд-финала， по дороге многократно поменяв жанры – от портальной фентези до шпионского боевика， с промежуточными остановками "политический технотриллер"， "твердая НФ" и "научпоп по политэкономике"。Итак， часть миров мультивселенной лежит в атомных руинах， США в нашем мире стремительно превращаются в диктатуру тотальной слежки и паранойи， зазеркальное Содружество же выстраивает дикую （но симпатичную！） политическую конструкцию， нечто среднее между ленинским СССР на ядерном ходу и современным Китаем。 Холодная война нешуточно угрожает перейти в горячую。 Мироходцы обеих держав исследуют соседние временные линии как на конвейере， сотнями， и наталкиваются на пугающие открытия。 Герои первых книг сильно постарели， обзавелись детьми， но все еще МОГУТ。Написано чуток сумбурно - видно， что книга писалась много лет， с перерывами， в тяжелых условиях。 Но оторваться невозможно。 Достойнейшее завершение великой книжной серии。9/10P。S。 На Goodreads наткнулся на невероятно умилительный отзыв на Invisible Sun – типа， книга была бы актуальна пять лет назад при Трампе， но в 2021 году страшилки про тиранию полицейского государства бесповоротно устарели， ведь при новом демократическом правительстве США это просто невозможно！！:） 。。。more
Gregg Kellogg
，
The book definitely ties up the knots， and does introduce a new Big Bad （however briefly）， but doesn't really break new ground。 I've enjoyed the series， and this is a worthy send-off。 The book definitely ties up the knots， and does introduce a new Big Bad （however briefly）， but doesn't really break new ground。 I've enjoyed the series， and this is a worthy send-off。 。。。more
Michael Hirsch
，
Finally。 One of these books that had an ending。 The series is fun but most of the books don't actually end with conclusions。 This one finishes it off in a fairly satisfying way。 Finally。 One of these books that had an ending。 The series is fun but most of the books don't actually end with conclusions。 This one finishes it off in a fairly satisfying way。 。。。more
Mark
，
Brilliant， a satisfying conclusion to the trilogy。 Very enjoyable in every sense。
Helen French
，
From what I understand， this book had quite the long journey getting here and that does make it difficult if you read the series as it was released （as I did）。 There is so much going on， so many timelines， that jumping back in after a long absence felt slightly like hard work。 I struggled to pick up the threads again， and that's a shame because Stross has done some interesting storytelling here - exploring parallel worlds and （if you could jump between them）， their affect on everything from poli From what I understand， this book had quite the long journey getting here and that does make it difficult if you read the series as it was released （as I did）。 There is so much going on， so many timelines， that jumping back in after a long absence felt slightly like hard work。 I struggled to pick up the threads again， and that's a shame because Stross has done some interesting storytelling here - exploring parallel worlds and （if you could jump between them）， their affect on everything from politics to economics。So if you're about to start reading book 1， or even if you've just finished reading book 2， I'd suggest binging them together rather than leaving big gaps in-between。 I won't go into the plot （as you may guess by now， it's complicated） but there are some fascinating ideas being explored through the multiple timelines on offer。 The story hurtles from time to time as the plot progresses， only pausing to remind you how one person is related to another。 I sometimes wished it would slow down a bit， and ground me more in each moment， but I guess the story demanded forward motion！3。5 for the book and 4 for the series 。。。more
Matthew Smith
，
I was glued to this book from the opening chapters。 Maybe I was in the right frame of mind or maybe it’s just that good。 I enjoyed the way the story can draw from the 8 books that came before it so that I feel like I really do live in the alternative worlds。 But the plot also twists and turns within this book in its own space。 I pretty much liked all the characters from all the different sides of the conflict and how they kept to their motivations。 I enjoyed all the spy craft and alternative wor I was glued to this book from the opening chapters。 Maybe I was in the right frame of mind or maybe it’s just that good。 I enjoyed the way the story can draw from the 8 books that came before it so that I feel like I really do live in the alternative worlds。 But the plot also twists and turns within this book in its own space。 I pretty much liked all the characters from all the different sides of the conflict and how they kept to their motivations。 I enjoyed all the spy craft and alternative world stuff and politics。 The plotting was a bit hard to follow at times but I could still mostly follow it。 It suffers a bit from over-extended-ending syndrome while all the loose ends of the plot are tidied up - to me this is a sign that there was too much going on and we needed to get some of the story in another book。 I reckon book 10 could have handled a lot of the ancient history lessons and timeline 4 stuff on its own - but then again， that side of the story was pretty weird。 Anyway， none of that mattered to me because I just wanted to hang out with my world-walking gang one more time and see what deep trouble they could get themselves into this time。 I was not disappointed。 。。。more
Cale
，
Stross finishes the Empire Games trilogy （and the Merchant Princes universe， probably） with a complicated knot of espionage， government black ops， and external threats。 It takes a while to get going， and there are so many groups to keep track of that the first half of the book is basically just reintroducing the characters and getting them into position。 But when the first domino falls and the opposing factions start interacting， things get escalated into existential threats。 Knowing this was th Stross finishes the Empire Games trilogy （and the Merchant Princes universe， probably） with a complicated knot of espionage， government black ops， and external threats。 It takes a while to get going， and there are so many groups to keep track of that the first half of the book is basically just reintroducing the characters and getting them into position。 But when the first domino falls and the opposing factions start interacting， things get escalated into existential threats。 Knowing this was the last book in the series meant that all bets are off。There's a number of all-too-realistic moments in the political maneuvering - people taking a set of facts and interpreting them completely wrong; people digging in even when they know they're wrong， and siloed organizations running at odds to each other。 It all builds up to an explosive finale， although it doesn't quite measure up to some of the finales of other books in the series。 Still， it does provide a good sense of closure to this world and its parallels。 I also appreciated that Stross provides details on some of the more esoteric concepts he entered into the series。All told， I'm glad I read this series - Stross' take on parallel worlds is distinctive enough that it brings a lot new ideas to the setting， and very enjoyable action and intrigue。 。。。more
Lewis Zimmerman
，
Stross knows how to write exciting political drama。
Brendan Davis
，
So you've read Dark State （#2）， which was quite good， and you're excited to start the sequel。 Let me save you the time and money。"They all lived happily ever after。" So you've read Dark State （#2）， which was quite good， and you're excited to start the sequel。 Let me save you the time and money。"They all lived happily ever after。" 。。。more
Tom
，
4。5
Mark
，
This book concludes the second "Family Trade" series about timeline-hopping humans; I was very happy it wrapped up the series as the stories are complicated enough to not add the challenge of six books with years between them （which describes the first series。） The complexity is a strength here: Stross flings up a lot of balls in the air but he mostly makes it work。 This is a rare book where the plot is driven by two sides taking the initiative。 There are unrelated intrigues and plots by both a This book concludes the second "Family Trade" series about timeline-hopping humans; I was very happy it wrapped up the series as the stories are complicated enough to not add the challenge of six books with years between them （which describes the first series。） The complexity is a strength here: Stross flings up a lot of balls in the air but he mostly makes it work。 This is a rare book where the plot is driven by two sides taking the initiative。 There are unrelated intrigues and plots by both a slightly darker version of "our" America （one that fell victim to a nuclear attack around 2005） and the other-world's Commonwealth， and the question becomes not which one succeeds but which of the successes have the biggest impact， or the worst blowback。 It's a refreshing--if sometimes exhausting--approach that captures more of the chaos than most thrillers。 。。。more
Annarella
，
It's hard to review and rate this book because you know there's a lot of sorrow and the author had bigger issues than closing the series。In any case he's a master storyteller and delivers a gripping and fascinating story， a good closure of this series。Recommended。Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC， all opinions are mine It's hard to review and rate this book because you know there's a lot of sorrow and the author had bigger issues than closing the series。In any case he's a master storyteller and delivers a gripping and fascinating story， a good closure of this series。Recommended。Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC， all opinions are mine 。。。more
Sebastian
，
The ending of this trilogy was as satisfactory as the ending of the first trilogy was most definitely not， while the general universe-hopping kablooey mayhem has managed to reach an even greater scale。 There are very few （if any） other authors who can pull off this kind of grand-scale geopoliticoeconomiscientific speculation that Stross can do with style。 The only tiny nit I have to pick with this book is that throughout the book he keeps reintroducing and re-explaining characters and events and The ending of this trilogy was as satisfactory as the ending of the first trilogy was most definitely not， while the general universe-hopping kablooey mayhem has managed to reach an even greater scale。 There are very few （if any） other authors who can pull off this kind of grand-scale geopoliticoeconomiscientific speculation that Stross can do with style。 The only tiny nit I have to pick with this book is that throughout the book he keeps reintroducing and re-explaining characters and events and situations and technologies almost as if this is the first time we meet them – somewhat understandable， since much of his audience had to wait quite a while to end the trilogy， but for smart-asses like me who waited to have the full set before starting， a goodly bit of the novel is spent on these redundant reiterations of stuff we already know。 。。。more
Claire
，
According to the afterword this sad ending was dogged with problems and tragedies and it certainly shows。 Basically this is really a 'this is what happened' summary with plot lines and characters ditched in the interests of just wrapping up the whole darn thing。 What a shame。 According to the afterword this sad ending was dogged with problems and tragedies and it certainly shows。 Basically this is really a 'this is what happened' summary with plot lines and characters ditched in the interests of just wrapping up the whole darn thing。 What a shame。 。。。more
Retta
，
not they same old StrossLess comedy but many more anxious moments for the goos guys！ Worth reading but prepare to read to the end。
Ajysignups
，
A thrilling and enjoyable conclusion to my favourite SF series of recent years。 The story rattles along at a pace， with （as always with Stross） ideas being flung out left， right and centre。 Many of the key strands of the earlier books are brought to a satisfying conclusion， and enough is left dangling to make me hope （probably forlornly， given that no more books in this world are planned） for future stories。
Aaron
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 A mostly statisfying ending to the Merchant Prince/Empire Games series。 Stross deftly weaves a thrilling tale of two nuclear super powers waging a cold war through parallel timelines。 The tension ratchets up nicely as shit hits the proverbial fan; as the plans of these nations start to fall apart as each tries to use both clandestine and overt methodology to get leverage on the other。 Not to mention the alien invasion that manages to throw a monkey wrench into the whole affair。 He can easily swi A mostly statisfying ending to the Merchant Prince/Empire Games series。 Stross deftly weaves a thrilling tale of two nuclear super powers waging a cold war through parallel timelines。 The tension ratchets up nicely as shit hits the proverbial fan; as the plans of these nations start to fall apart as each tries to use both clandestine and overt methodology to get leverage on the other。 Not to mention the alien invasion that manages to throw a monkey wrench into the whole affair。 He can easily switch from telling the story from a macro lense， to one that is focused on just one character， and still retain the exceedingly insightful discourse I've come to love from him as a writer。 Well done sir！ I understand if this is the end of this story （what a heartbreaking post script that was to read）， but I do hope you'll consider revisiting the series somewhere down the road。 。。。more
John R Grieve
，
We get the ending we needTechno thriller， space opera， political commentary， family drama are all here as Empire Games races to a conclusion。 Imagine world's where the USA has picked on an enemy that is more than it's own size。 We get the ending we needTechno thriller， space opera， political commentary， family drama are all here as Empire Games races to a conclusion。 Imagine world's where the USA has picked on an enemy that is more than it's own size。 。。。more
Hardijs
，
well 。。。 a good closure for the series that have reached it's own singularity point in the narative。 well 。。。 a good closure for the series that have reached it's own singularity point in the narative。 。。。more
Matthew
，
I've got every sympathy for the rough shit Charlie went through writing this。I enjoyed it immensely and wish it was twice as long。 I've got every sympathy for the rough shit Charlie went through writing this。I enjoyed it immensely and wish it was twice as long。 。。。more
Gennadiy Tsygan
，
Invisible Sun is an easy book to read。 Maybe it wasn't the author's intention， but I never felt a drama and tension to keep me on the edge of my seat。 It had fewer twists than I expected， maybe this is why I never guessed correctly which recurring character would find their end （no spoilers！）。 The book feels tired， especially towards the end。 Stross does an amendable job juggling multiple characters in different timelines， even providing a handy guide。 I listen to audiobooks， and often have trou Invisible Sun is an easy book to read。 Maybe it wasn't the author's intention， but I never felt a drama and tension to keep me on the edge of my seat。 It had fewer twists than I expected， maybe this is why I never guessed correctly which recurring character would find their end （no spoilers！）。 The book feels tired， especially towards the end。 Stross does an amendable job juggling multiple characters in different timelines， even providing a handy guide。 I listen to audiobooks， and often have trouble remembering who is who when people start piling up， it wasn't the case here。 Still， I think Stross is covering one timeline too many and it hurts the flow。 I enjoyed the book， but will never return to it。 。。。more
Laura
，
I really wanted to like these books。 Alternate histories clashing？ Crony capitalism and the security state slamming up against semi-magical feudalism slamming up against a re-run of 1848？ Add to it a space dreadnought？ There's some really interesting stories to be told about these different threads in our story pulled out and rewoven。 Was struck that the climax of this book and the climax of The Labyrinth Index are very similar。 This may be more hopeful as at least the great powers decide to wor I really wanted to like these books。 Alternate histories clashing？ Crony capitalism and the security state slamming up against semi-magical feudalism slamming up against a re-run of 1848？ Add to it a space dreadnought？ There's some really interesting stories to be told about these different threads in our story pulled out and rewoven。 Was struck that the climax of this book and the climax of The Labyrinth Index are very similar。 This may be more hopeful as at least the great powers decide to work together against the things right beyond the firelight as opposed to pick our Lovecraftian Nightmares to sign on with。 The prose is good; the story well plotted; the characters well drawn。 But the deeper engagement with its themes just never gets there。 。。。more
Shaun
，
A good ending for this storyThe previous books in the series set up a dire situation for all involved。 How it plays out makes for compelling reading。
Steve King
，
Worth the wait。。A book I both wanted to savour and to read quickly。 The end of my favourite series of Charles Stross books， and a very satisfying one as well。This is told in scenes following various characters， and as each scene changed， I was cross to have that subplot curtailed。 Then I would get into the next one and have the same experience。 But that is far from a criticism。 Rather it is a sign of how much I was enjoying the journey。This is not the place for a newcomer to the series to start， Worth the wait。。A book I both wanted to savour and to read quickly。 The end of my favourite series of Charles Stross books， and a very satisfying one as well。This is told in scenes following various characters， and as each scene changed， I was cross to have that subplot curtailed。 Then I would get into the next one and have the same experience。 But that is far from a criticism。 Rather it is a sign of how much I was enjoying the journey。This is not the place for a newcomer to the series to start， but if you are a newcomer， get hold of book 1 of the Merchant Princes as soon as you can。 。。。more
James Kemp
，
A very solid end to the trilogy。 I'd have loved more， but I understand why this is unlikely。 A very solid end to the trilogy。 I'd have loved more， but I understand why this is unlikely。 。。。more
Frank Burns
，
Stross sticks the landing here， I feel。 For a series that he started way back in the early 2000s this has been quite the journey。 I am inclined to say this is a strong 4。5。Clearly he wanted to talk about revolutions and the first natural transfer of power。 Throw the external pressures of a meddling alternate dimension USofA and an alien invasion from yet another dimension into the mix and you have quite the pressure cooker。The various plot strands clipped along quite nicely and the resolution fo Stross sticks the landing here， I feel。 For a series that he started way back in the early 2000s this has been quite the journey。 I am inclined to say this is a strong 4。5。Clearly he wanted to talk about revolutions and the first natural transfer of power。 Throw the external pressures of a meddling alternate dimension USofA and an alien invasion from yet another dimension into the mix and you have quite the pressure cooker。The various plot strands clipped along quite nicely and the resolution for these characters felt natural。I have thoroughly enjoyed this series from start to finish， even with saying the series at the start is very different from the end。The whole thing is a definite recommend from me。 。。。more
L
，