The novel “Inhibitor Phase” by Alastair Reynolds was published for the first time in 2021. It’s part of the Revelation Space series.

When a spaceship enters the system that includes the planet Michaelmas, the inhabitants of the small colony of Sun Hollow are alarmed. Their main fear is that it will attract the wolves, as they call the Inhibitors, the self-replicating machines that seek out humans to wipe them out from the universe.

The colony’s administrator, Miguel de Ruyter, sets out to intercept the spaceship and destroy it at all costs, the only constraint being the need to simulate an explosion caused by a malfunction that won’t attract the wolves. A cryogenic capsule is ejected from the spaceship and sends out a distress signal. Brought to Michaelmas, it contains what appears to be a normal woman, at least until she takes control of all the colony’s machines. Miguel de Ruyter’s only choice is to give in to her demand that he accompany her in search of a weapon to fight the Inhibitors.

“Inhibitor Phase” is set in the Revelation Space universe and is a direct sequel to the main trilogy, which shares the same name as the series. Alastair Reynolds set it a few centuries after the events of the main subplots of “Absolution Gap” and developed it to make it as self-contained as possible. It’s still recommended that you have at least some knowledge of that universe to appreciate the many details and references to other works in this series.

This novel is set in a time when humanity is fragmented into small groups trying to hide from the Inhibitors. The opening section, featuring events on the planet Michaelmas and in nearby space, is used by Alastair Reynolds to describe the plight of groups like the Sun Hollow colony and their paranoia toward anyone arriving from interstellar space.

Glass, as the woman who apparently survived by chance the destruction of the spaceship calls herself, possesses technologies of the kind used in humanity’s golden age. They’re far superior to what was recovered and used at Sun Hollow. Initially, her intentions and motives seem incomprehensible, and it takes a while to understand her interest in Miguel de Ruyter and the details of her plans.

Glass’s actions, forcing Miguel de Ruyter to leave with her, start a quest of sorts. Alastair Reynolds has become famous for his hard science fiction stories, and it may seem strange that he develops this novel with a typical fantasy structure, featuring a quest to find items that might be essential to fight the enemy. In this case, we’re not talking about magical objects but rather products of highly advanced technology, but we know they’re indistinguishable.

The events unfold at a fast pace, but Alastair Reynolds manages to include a lot of brief exchanges between characters that offer explanations and various details about the situations they find themselves in and those they must face. Readers familiar with the Revelation Space series will recognize the name Clavain, mentioned by Glass shortly after the beginning of her journey with Miguel de Ruyter. For these readers, it’s easy to guess at least part of the first twist, which arrives fairly early in the plot anyway.

Like any decent quest, Glass and Miguel de Ruyter’s is full of obstacles and dangers. The Inhibitors are by far the most powerful enemies, but humans can be their own worst enemies. Along their journey, the two of them also find important allies.

Another classic plot element is the choice to begin the quest with a pair of protagonists in conflict, to the point that Miguel de Ruyter vows to kill Glass at the first opportunity. This type of dynamic risks being clichéd in its development, but Alastair Reynolds includes original elements that take great advantage of the possibilities existing in the Revelation Space universe.

All this creates a novel that, in my opinion, continues to develop the future history set in the Revelation Space universe with excellent quality. For this reason, I recommend reading “Inhibitor Phase,” possibly after reading at least the previous trilogy. You can find it on Amazon USA, UK, and Canada.