Shroud

Paperback Published on: 22/01/2026
Price: £10.99
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Bookseller Reviews

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Shroud
Phenomenal atmosphere!
This will be a review of many superlatives, as I think this is possibly Tchaikovsky’s darkest and weirdest novel yet! It’s also my favourite book of his si... READ MORE
Bookseller Adam, Lichfield

Synopsis

They looked into darkness. The darkness looked back . . .

An utterly gripping story of first contact on a hostile planet from Adrian Tchaikovsky, author of the Arthur C. Clarke Award-winning Children of Time.

New for this paperback edition: The short story ‘Sins of the Children’, the fascinating prequel to Shroud.

An expedition to a distant star system discovers a pitch-black moon alive with radio activity. Its high-gravity, high-pressure, zero-oxygen environment is deadly to human life, but ripe for exploitation.

They name the moon Shroud. But they never mean to go there . . . until a catastrophic accident forces Juna Ceelander and Mai Ste Etienne to crash-land on its inhospitable surface in a barely adequate escape vehicle. Alone, and fighting to survive, the two women embark on a gruelling journey in search of salvation. But Juna and Mai’s tenuous existence is threatened by Shroud’s extraordinary alien species. If they can escape, they’ll have to explain the impossible and translate the incredible . . .

Publisher information

  • Publisher: Pan Macmillan
  • ISBN: 9781035013814
  • Number of pages: 480
  • Dimensions: 207 x 130 x 30 mm
  • Weight: 324g
  • Languages: English

Customer Reviews

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Shroud
Shroud
Adrian Tchaikovsky’s Shroud is a science fiction novel that covers themes of survival, first contact, and the complexities of alien ecosystems. The story f... READ MORE
Mark Redman
Shroud
A fascinating exploration of humanity on an alien world
Wow, what a story! Thank you to NetGalley and Pan MacMillan for this arc! I’m not quite sure where to start with this one. I knew of Adrian Tchaikovsky (... READ MORE
Zoe Rogers
This reviewer received a free of charge product for review.
Shroud
Shroud is a unique & must read take on First Contact.
I have to salute Adrian Tchaikovsky’s imagination, the more I read of his greater catalogue of written works the more I am in awe of his ability to transpo... READ MORE
MrDarkReads
Shroud
Intriguing, intelligent sci-fi
This is my first read by this author, and my first hardcore sci-fi in a while. This is skilful, erudite, imaginative writing of the first degree. The hand... READ MORE
Diane Gill
Shroud
A wonderful new stand-along Sci-Fi novel from Adrian Tchaikovsky. A fine addition to his body of work.
I am grateful to the kind people at Pan Macmillan for providing an advance copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.  ‘Shroud’ i... READ MORE
LJF
Shroud
A slow build with an incredible reveal
This book got off to a slow start for me, and there were points where I wasn't sure I was going to finish it. But, I'm so glad I pushed through as this boo... READ MORE
Madison Pollard-Shore
Shroud
Excellent alienness
This is another excellent example of Adrian Tchaikovsky exploring alienness by dumping some unfortunate protagonists into a hostile and incomprehensible al... READ MORE
Ian Payton
Shroud
Fantastic Sci-Fi
Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky is one of my favourite Sci-Fi books, so I was very excited to read his latest novel. And it did not disappoint! I... READ MORE
Helene Walters-Steinberg
Shroud
Darkly Brilliant
If there's one thing Adrian Tchaikovsky does well (ok, he does very far more than one thing, but go with me), it's alienness. Not just alien life, but worl... READ MORE
Cat Treadwell
Shroud
Tchaikovsky does it again! Superb Sci-Fi!
I am in awe of Adrian Tchaicovsky’s imagination. His world-building is excellent. He has taken common Sci-Fi themes- humanity expanding through our galaxy,... READ MORE
Karen Campbell
Shroud
First contact meets Aliens
In Tchaikovsky’s latest, if ever humanity actually gets to another planet and finds sentient life there, we will be confronted by ourselves: our assumption... READ MORE
Huttson Lo
Shroud
So interesting
Thank you to @torbooksuk and @panmacmillan for having me on the Blog Tour for ‘Shroud’ which is out now in paperback. I was completely immersed in this ... READ MORE
Mrsbookburnee
This reviewer received a free of charge product for review.
Shroud
Memorable first contact encounter with a wonderful twist ending...
This is a bleak dystopian take on humanity’s future. The Concern has its capitalist hooks into the whole of society so that children are raised together wi... READ MORE
Sarah Higbee
This reviewer received a free of charge product for review.