Destiny's Children
Encyclopedia
Destiny's Children is a science-fiction series by Stephen Baxter
. It takes place within his larger series, the Xeelee Sequence
. Like his previous Manifold Trilogy
, the books are not direct sequels to one another, but are instead thematically linked by the appearance of concepts, themes, and sometimes characters in multiple books. Examples of this include:
Books in the series:
Stephen Baxter
Stephen Baxter is a prolific British hard science fiction author. He has degrees in mathematics and engineering.- Writing style :...
. It takes place within his larger series, the Xeelee Sequence
Xeelee Sequence
The Xeelee Sequence is a series of novels and short stories by British science fiction author Stephen Baxter. The novels span several billions of years, describing the future expansion of Mankind, its war with its arch-nemesis , and the Xeelee's own war with dark matter entities called photino birds...
. Like his previous Manifold Trilogy
Manifold Trilogy
The Manifold Trilogy is a series of science fiction books by Stephen Baxter. It consists of three novels and an anthology of short stories relating to the three. The three books in the trilogy are not ordered chronologically; instead, they are thematically linked stories that take place in...
, the books are not direct sequels to one another, but are instead thematically linked by the appearance of concepts, themes, and sometimes characters in multiple books. Examples of this include:
- A coalescence is visited in all three novels.
- The Kuiper Anomaly, a tetrahedral artifact that appears in the Kuiper beltKuiper beltThe Kuiper belt , sometimes called the Edgeworth–Kuiper belt, is a region of the Solar System beyond the planets extending from the orbit of Neptune to approximately 50 AU from the Sun. It is similar to the asteroid belt, although it is far larger—20 times as wide and 20 to 200 times as massive...
, is discovered in Coalescent, mentioned briefly in Exultant, and finally explained in Transcendent. - The characters George Poole, Michael Poole, and Rosa Poole appear in both Coalescent and Transcendent.
- Each book deals in some way with the future evolution of humans, both physically and sociologically. For example, Coalescent discusses the ability of humans living with limited space and resources to evolve a society that resembles insect hives. Transcendent deals with several post-human forms that are found to have evolved to adapt planets that they colonized. The theme is present in Exultant insofar as the novel deals with humanity as evolved to fight a war that has lasted tens of thousands of years.
- Each book further deals in some way with the existence and identity of God. For example, Exultant suggests that there was consciousness present before the universe began that selected this universe for its ability to sustain life. Transcendent discusses a group of humans that have transcended to a higher consciousness as becoming a god, and uses established theology to attempt to dissect the Transcendent's motives.
Books in the series:
- CoalescentCoalescentCoalescent is a science-fiction novel by Stephen Baxter. It is part one of the Destiny's Children series, and is the first in the reading order for the Xeelee series...
(20032003 in literatureThe year 2003 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-New books:*Peter Ackroyd - The Clerkenwell Tales*Atsuko Asano - No...
) - Arthur C. Clarke Award nominee, 2004 - Exultant (20042004 in literatureThe year 2004 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* Canada Reads selects Guy Vanderhaeghe's The Last Crossing to be read across the nation....
) - TranscendentTranscendent (novel)Transcendent is the third novel in the Destiny's Children series by Stephen Baxter, and a 2006 Campbell Award nominee.-Plot summary:The story alternates between two timelines: the world of Michael Poole in the year 2047, and that of Alia, a posthuman girl who lives approximately half a million...
(20052005 in literatureThe year 2005 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*February 25 - Canada Reads selects Rockbound by Frank Parker Day as the novel to be read across the nation....
) - John W. Campbell Memorial award nominee, 2006 - Resplendent (20062006 in literatureThe year 2006 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Literature:*Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - Half of a Yellow Sun*Chris Adrian - The Children's Hospital *Martin Amis - House of Meetings...
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