The Expert System's Champion
- Downloads：7731
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-04-13 13:51:25
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Adrian Tchaikovsky
- ISBN：1250766397
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
In Adrian Tchaikovsky's The Expert System's Champion， sometimes the ones you hate are the only ones that can save you。
It's been ten years since Handry was wrenched away from his family and friends， forced to wander a world he no longer understood。 But with the help of the Ancients， he has cobbled together a life， of sorts， for himself and his fellow outcasts。
Wandering from village to village， welcoming the folk that the townships abandon， fighting the monsters the villagers cannot--or dare not--his ever-growing band of misfits has become the stuff of legend， a story told by parents to keep unruly children in line。
But there is something new and dangerous in the world， and the beasts of the land are acting against their nature， destroying the towns they once left in peace。
And for the first time in memory， the Ancients have no wisdom to offer。。。
It's been ten years since Handry was wrenched away from his family and friends， forced to wander a world he no longer understood。 But with the help of the Ancients， he has cobbled together a life， of sorts， for himself and his fellow outcasts。
Wandering from village to village， welcoming the folk that the townships abandon， fighting the monsters the villagers cannot--or dare not--his ever-growing band of misfits has become the stuff of legend， a story told by parents to keep unruly children in line。
But there is something new and dangerous in the world， and the beasts of the land are acting against their nature， destroying the towns they once left in peace。
And for the first time in memory， the Ancients have no wisdom to offer。。。
Reviews
Mat
，
If there was a program where I could just pay a subscription and get all of A’s latest books， I’d just sign up。 Very much enjoyed this， as I have just about everything of his I’ve ever read。 Inventive， engaging， fun to read and ponder。
Andy Zeigert
，
Hard sci-fi with a pinch of body horror。
K。J。 Charles
，
Excellent follow up to the original novella， expanding the world。 A lot of thought provoking stuff about culture and colonialism and how we make societies packed into a pretty small space and still makes room for some excellent monster fighting。
Richard Gombert
，
A good sequelI really enjoyed the expert systems brother。It was great to go back to that world。A very enjoyable read。
Emma Webb
，
FineIt was fine。 Characters are fine， the world is fine。。。 just nothing special for me。 Quick and easy read。 Overall concepts are good。 Just is a little "meh" and didn't suck me jn。 FineIt was fine。 Characters are fine， the world is fine。。。 just nothing special for me。 Quick and easy read。 Overall concepts are good。 Just is a little "meh" and didn't suck me jn。 。。。more
Fernando Goulart
，
Great sequel！ Handry and his sister Melory returns ten years after the events depicted on the first book， to discover new strange alien species， and a great mystery behind them。 I love this novella format， the story moves foward at a great pace， with no room for pointless fillers。 The book has a satisfying conclusion， and I feel you could read it as a standalone novel， though you will defintely enjoy it more knowing the background and evolution of the main characters。 Can’t wait to see what the Great sequel！ Handry and his sister Melory returns ten years after the events depicted on the first book， to discover new strange alien species， and a great mystery behind them。 I love this novella format， the story moves foward at a great pace， with no room for pointless fillers。 The book has a satisfying conclusion， and I feel you could read it as a standalone novel， though you will defintely enjoy it more knowing the background and evolution of the main characters。 Can’t wait to see what the author brings on the next books！ 。。。more
Thomas
，
Tchaikovsky， Adrian。 The Expert System’s Champion。 Expert System No。 2。 Tor， 2021。Adrian Tchaikovsky is beginning to remind me of Octavia Butler in the way he creates alien ecosystems that may give even the least squeamish reader an uncomfortable moment。 In this second Expert System novella， he creates some creatures that are weird even for a planet on which human beings are allergic to almost everything and are stung by wasps with nanotechnology that is not always as helpful as it was designed Tchaikovsky， Adrian。 The Expert System’s Champion。 Expert System No。 2。 Tor， 2021。Adrian Tchaikovsky is beginning to remind me of Octavia Butler in the way he creates alien ecosystems that may give even the least squeamish reader an uncomfortable moment。 In this second Expert System novella， he creates some creatures that are weird even for a planet on which human beings are allergic to almost everything and are stung by wasps with nanotechnology that is not always as helpful as it was designed to be。 The native faunae have their own surprises that help explain some of what happened to some of the original colonists。 Competent and original scifi。 。。。more
Emiliya Bozhilova
，
Биохимията и неврологията на този извънземен свят стават все по-странни， но обмислено поднесени от Чайковски。 Светостроенето му се удава， кипи от свежи идеи。 Тази повест се усеща като част от ненаписана още поредица， но е достатъчно самостоятелна。 Дано напише още книги за Ордена на Каин。3，5 звезди
Loren
，
Excellent aliens
Groucho42
，
Years after the first， Handry's wandering between villages with a group of others who are also Severed。 Bad things start to happens， but who cares？ The first book was mediocre and this one makes it look great。 Too many ideas are jumbled together without thought and too many cardboard characters and situations just can't make it interesting。 Of course， the "interludes" that go back to the early days of the colony don't help either。 Years after the first， Handry's wandering between villages with a group of others who are also Severed。 Bad things start to happens， but who cares？ The first book was mediocre and this one makes it look great。 Too many ideas are jumbled together without thought and too many cardboard characters and situations just can't make it interesting。 Of course， the "interludes" that go back to the early days of the colony don't help either。 。。。more
nero
，
This story is so unlike anything else I've ever read that I just can't help but feel utterly amazed by it。 I didn't realize where things were going until probably 70% into the book， and even then， I was still。。。 surprised and fascinated。 This story is so unlike anything else I've ever read that I just can't help but feel utterly amazed by it。 I didn't realize where things were going until probably 70% into the book， and even then， I was still。。。 surprised and fascinated。 。。。more
Runalong
，
Another intriguing instalment in a planet with a very unusual and artificial ecosystem - has the best and also most ewww for yet！！Full review - https://www。runalongtheshelves。net/bl。。。 Another intriguing instalment in a planet with a very unusual and artificial ecosystem - has the best and also most ewww for yet！！Full review - https://www。runalongtheshelves。net/bl。。。 。。。more
Justine
，
I reminded myself that we were the lords of the unnatural。 We had made ourselves the ambassadors between the people of the villages and that other unseen world the ancestors had come from。 The world these stone-men had come from， too。 There could be no other way of it。 We were cousins beneath the skin， under the shell。
Lata
，
Taking place ten years after the end of The Expert System's Brother， Handry is now head of his group of Severed， now known as the Order of Cain。 There have been some radical changes in the world of villages。 The Order's members now travel between the villages， taking on people who have been Severed， fighting beasts， and delivering messages between villages。 Handry and his band are gradually knitting the villages together。 It's a brilliant development， with Mellory continuing to interface with th Taking place ten years after the end of The Expert System's Brother， Handry is now head of his group of Severed， now known as the Order of Cain。 There have been some radical changes in the world of villages。 The Order's members now travel between the villages， taking on people who have been Severed， fighting beasts， and delivering messages between villages。 Handry and his band are gradually knitting the villages together。 It's a brilliant development， with Mellory continuing to interface with the House of the Ancestors， and helping with the transmission of information and， more importantly， ideas。 The Order and villagers have developed a much more productive relationship， consequently， where， even though the band of Severed are still seen as alien， they're not quite as feared as before， and there are rituals in place now to deal with each other。A lone village seeks to destabilize this stability。 Handry， Mellory and the Order encounter Amorket， a Champion from this village。 Amorket is an interesting and frightening fusion of beings， and is intent on fighting the Order， even while she seems ambivalent about her duty。 There is also word of someone destroying a village， and so Handry and company， including Amorket， discover a grave threat to all the villages。 Tchaikovsky also introduces us to the original colonists， and the terrible time they had settling this planet where everything is inimical to them。 What happens here actually echoes into Handry's time。This book was better than book 1， particularly in how Tchaikovsky built on what he'd established。 Here， we're seeing how the world has changed as the Order's influences play out over years。 I love that Mellory， though still a villager， is an integral part of Handry's group and how the brother-sister team work together to expand the others' lives and opportunities。The threat in this story is both terrifying and horrifying， and we see how the original colonists' fate played out。 Though there was a resolution at the end of this novella， I feel like we're not done with the frightening beings。 I also really hope we see a book 3， as I think there's potential for more stories in this world。 。。。more
Andy
，
A good short read from Tchaikovsky exploring the world of the Expert System a little more。 There's certainly plenty left here if he wants to revisit it once again。 A good short read from Tchaikovsky exploring the world of the Expert System a little more。 There's certainly plenty left here if he wants to revisit it once again。 。。。more
Susan
，
Quick read on vacation。 I liked the first novella better; the characters were more engaging and better developed。 Still， a really unusual set of aliens and interactions， and good writing。
Lucinda
，
very good
Andre Chiasson
，
A good story。 A follow up to the Expert Systems Brother。 Short but involved。 Interesting philosophical ideas about alien encounters。 Trust， understanding， difference。 Well done。
Colin Forbes
，
I see from my review of the first novella， that I was a little unsatisfied at the end， believing that there was much more story to tell and that things were rather unresolved。 （At the time， I had no inkling that there would ever be a part two 。。。） Well， here is that continuation。Does an excellent job of expanding the lore of this human colony on a biologically inhospitable world， with a few 'interludes' thrown in that look back at the early days of the mission on the planet。 （。。。 and feed into t I see from my review of the first novella， that I was a little unsatisfied at the end， believing that there was much more story to tell and that things were rather unresolved。 （At the time， I had no inkling that there would ever be a part two 。。。） Well， here is that continuation。Does an excellent job of expanding the lore of this human colony on a biologically inhospitable world， with a few 'interludes' thrown in that look back at the early days of the mission on the planet。 （。。。 and feed into the 'current' events in a fairly shocking and dramatic way。）A wealth of invention on display。 Goes big on alien biologies， in that way that Adrian Tchaikovsky is so skilled at。 Still don't know if this is the end of the story， but would be satisfied （this time round） if it ended at this point。 。。。more
Jos Verlinde
，
interesting， but quite short and not up to the expectations i had based on 'Expert System' interesting， but quite short and not up to the expectations i had based on 'Expert System' 。。。more
Cory
，
The "big" novella length does the story some harm， but the worldbuilding remains incredibly interesting。 The "big" novella length does the story some harm， but the worldbuilding remains incredibly interesting。 。。。more
Mark Gongloff
，
An interesting continuation of the Expert System story。 AT is as inventive as ever; the guy who gave us spacefaring spiders gives us snails that 。。。 well I won’t spoil it。 It’s fascinating but feels a little messier than the first book， and less emotionally compelling。 It’s maybe trying to do too much in such a small space。 It’s also a tonal departure from some of his other work， veering even more into body horror than the first book。 Still， it’s a worthwhile exploration of some weird concepts。
Kristine
，
Very cool。 Even having no idea what I was getting into。 Even though it is slim。 These characters are going to stick with me。 That takes talent。 Going to get book #1 now。。。。
Lindsay
，
Many years after the events of the previous book， the Severed are now referred to as the Order of Cain by themselves and the Bandage-Men by the villagers。 They have carved out a place for themselves in the human exoplanet colony free of the biological imperative of the village trees， wasps and ghosts that control the humans of the villages。 It's a difficult existence， as the world is poison to them， but they can do things no one else can do。Word comes to Handry， now leader of the Order， of both Many years after the events of the previous book， the Severed are now referred to as the Order of Cain by themselves and the Bandage-Men by the villagers。 They have carved out a place for themselves in the human exoplanet colony free of the biological imperative of the village trees， wasps and ghosts that control the humans of the villages。 It's a difficult existence， as the world is poison to them， but they can do things no one else can do。Word comes to Handry， now leader of the Order， of both a very different sort of expert system that's come out of a hostile village， and news of a remote village that has been destroyed mysteriously。 When Handry investigates the destroyed village with one of the new expert systems in tow （a Champion， a new designation）， he encounters a surprising native intelligence as well as a threat seeded from the earliest days of the colony。I liked this one much more than the previous book， although the previous book was very much needed as world-building setup for this one。 There's clearly much more to be told in Handry's story as well。 Handry and Melory continue to be great， but the Champion of the title is Amorket， and also a terrific character in the way she struggles against her own programming as well as dealing with Handry and the Order。 She's so brave， even when she should despair of the way her ghost and wasps are using her。 。。。more
S。J。 Higbee
，
I struggled with this one initially， which was something of a disappointment – and not a usual experience with Tchaikovsky’s writing。 There is a Prologue that goes on for 9% of the book that doesn’t include the main protagonist， Handry， who I really emotionally identified with in The Expert System’s Brother。 I would have preferred more of a bonding event with Handry at the start of this adventure， because while I enjoyed the story and found the plight of the early colonists engrossing – I didn’t I struggled with this one initially， which was something of a disappointment – and not a usual experience with Tchaikovsky’s writing。 There is a Prologue that goes on for 9% of the book that doesn’t include the main protagonist， Handry， who I really emotionally identified with in The Expert System’s Brother。 I would have preferred more of a bonding event with Handry at the start of this adventure， because while I enjoyed the story and found the plight of the early colonists engrossing – I didn’t particularly care about any of the characters， throughout， this time around。That said， this is still worth reading。 Nobody does colonisation quite like Tchaikovsky and the sheer inventive cleverness of the story and the consequent oddity of the inhabitants had me turning to pages to discover what would happen next。 Though I’m profoundly grateful I don’t live within an ecosystem that fundamentally is toxic to my body， given the ultimate adaptation that was made to provide humanity with the ability to survive the place。 Wasps and snails are involved， for starters… And if Tchaikovsky produces another book set within this remarkable world， I’ll be getting hold of it。 Even if this one didn’t emotionally chime with me as much as the previous book – it is still a thought-provoking， enjoyable read。8/10 。。。more
Eric
，
A follow up full of surprises in this world of exobiology， beyond “expert systems”。
Benjamin Irving
，
Got a little too far into the weird alien biology for my taste。
Hugo Saravia
，
Great sci-fi！Another great work of fiction by an author that I have placed among my favorites。 Although I very much enjoyed this sequel to the expert system's brother not without raising some issues in the back of my mind， firstly I think that most scientist are peaceful; therefore， I find the violent disposition of some characters who also happen to be scientists very disappointing but I will not deduct from my rating because under stressful circumstances such as the members of the second wave Great sci-fi！Another great work of fiction by an author that I have placed among my favorites。 Although I very much enjoyed this sequel to the expert system's brother not without raising some issues in the back of my mind， firstly I think that most scientist are peaceful; therefore， I find the violent disposition of some characters who also happen to be scientists very disappointing but I will not deduct from my rating because under stressful circumstances such as the members of the second wave of colonisation happens to be under is somewhat understandable。 。。。more
Rob Caswell
，
I didn't say too much in talking about book 1 of this series， but that wasn't for want of being quite impressed。 I liked everything about it， INCLUDING the shorter novel length which felt a bit like the golden age of Del Rey in the 80's when every release didn't have to have the potential to be a monster-sized best seller。 The size was refreshing and I didn't come away feeling like I was somehow shorted on the entertainment experience。 I'd love to see this shorter form as a trend！The first book I didn't say too much in talking about book 1 of this series， but that wasn't for want of being quite impressed。 I liked everything about it， INCLUDING the shorter novel length which felt a bit like the golden age of Del Rey in the 80's when every release didn't have to have the potential to be a monster-sized best seller。 The size was refreshing and I didn't come away feeling like I was somehow shorted on the entertainment experience。 I'd love to see this shorter form as a trend！The first book slowly explores/reveals the premise of this world， unwrapping layer after layer until you understand the nature of what lies beneath。 While it often reads like a fantasy work， there's clear a solid SF foundation that it's all built upon。 This book， set ten years later， follows the same main characters who've set up a new means existence for themselves in the culture。 The new situation has them serving as a kind of trouble-shooting service for the greater community of human villages。 This sets them up to more deeply explore the world - both its past and present。 The flavor's a little different from the first just because the kind of mysteries they're presented with are thematically changed。 And the last third of the book takes on a particularly Lovecraftian vibe in both subject matter and writing style。 So the first book painted the world in broad strokes。 The second book went back and filled in some of the details。。。 as well as shining a light into some rather dramatic shadows。 I'm guessing a third book is likely and it's most welcome！ These are the best books I've read。。。 well， since I read Tchaikovsky's "Children of。。。" books last year。 Both series tickled my imagination， though for differing reasons。 Good stuff！ 。。。more
Gareth Russell
，