The first three novels of David Brin’s Uplift universe were relatively standalone. Sundiver, Startide Rising and The Uplift War each held a self-contained story, while also developing an expansive universe with several larger mysteries running through the series. For the second half of his epic, Brin adopted a new strategy. Brightness Reef, Infinity’s Shore and Heaven’s Reach comprise a tighter trilogy than their predecessors. Here we have one story stretched across three substantial novels. The Uplift Storm trilogy, a sit is often known, tells a broader story than the earlier books, while also folding in the long-running mysteries and themes from earlier in the saga.

Now, this might sound obvious, but how much you enjoy this series very much depends on how much you enjoy Brin’s style of storytelling. Uplift Storm is Brin at his most Brin. Brin is a science fiction writer in the classic sense, throwing countless ideas at the page and seeing what sticks. Of course, there is the question of Uplift itself, of using science to increase the sapience of various species. Frankly, I lost count of how many alien species there are in these books. On the central planet alone, there are six, plus a scattering of external forces. Yet as the story grows, dozens more are folded into the narrative. Some of which are so utterly alien as to defy comprehension. I’m still not entirely sure how a species comprised of rings functions, but Brin appears to have it figured out.

There’s more to Uplift than Uplifting, however. This trilogy delves into the deep history of the universe, asking questions about the origins of intelligence, the rights of various species, colonialism, imperialism, and every oral quandary under the sun. There’s technology on display too, with each species having their own science built from the ground up. You can see this in how many methods of faster than life are on display. The imagination at work in this book’s genesis boggles the mind.

Where it all falls down is in the actual execution. Brin’s prose is functional, which is a strength when it comes to explaining an idea, but less successful when inspiring awe at the scope of his creation. Oftentimes (looking at you, Isaac Asimov) I adore functional prose, but Brin’s never grabbed me. That’s one of those writer-reader disconnects that all readers learn to live with, and Brin’s not at fault for my personal tastes. That being said, this trilogy does make some stylistic choices that I think weaken it. The book swings between third- and first-person narrators every few chapters. One of these first-person accounts is presented as the diary of someone learning to write, but is styled the same as every other chapter. Leaving aside the fact that I will never get on with writers writing about writers, the constant chop and change throws me out every time. Furthermore, and this really is the pettiest little niggle, there are some in-universe texts that use the absolute worst font I have ever seen. I still have nightmares about that W.

Interestingly, Brin’s afterword refers to this saga as space opera, whereas I have always thought of it as hard SF. Clearly, this is a matter of opinion, but I do find it worth noting that Brin, a renowned hard SF author, views this series as more fantastical than his usual fare. I suppose the sheer number of aliens and technologies is unlikely enough to classify as space opera, even if they do feel thoroughly researched and developed. If anything, this goes to show how malleable genre labels are.

Ultimately, The Uplift Strom trilogy is a fitting expansion of the earlier novels. It never quite hits the highs of Startide Rising, but there’s enough material in here for any science fiction fan to chew on for a while.