Clearing up the mix-up here. Children of Time is the first book in the series that centers on a spider civilization while Children of Ruin is about octopus. I

Clearing up the mix-up here. Children of Time is the first book in the series that centers on a spider civilization while Children of Ruin is about octopus. I haven't read Children of Ruin yet, but I've consistently heard from people that they enjoyed Children of Time more.