A review by ponga
The Eternal Flame by Greg Egan

4.0

An interesting continuation of the trilogy, in much the same style as the first. Plotwise, it may suffer a bit from the middle book syndrome, although to be fair, the science is still the main character, and its process of being extended into the analogues of quantum mechanics and neurobiology is lovingly captured. I'm not sure if Egan will be able to fill in the gaps in the alien biology as convincingly as he does the alien physics: but for now, I'm reserving judgement, since the discovery process and lack of deep knowledge by the aliens themselves feels realistic.

I'm certainly looking forward to the final book this autumn, but more for the continued exploration of ideas, and not primarily for the surface plot or characters. Egan does a credible job on both, even if the aliens still feel a bit too human -- but their reactions to new reproductive possibilities are delightfully ironic.