I am almost positive it is a book by Stephen Baxter. I'm trying to avoid having to re-read them all.
There was a side story that gave the early history of the universe, starting at the big bang. It describes the weird physics a few nanosecond after the bang, and the creatures that live then.
After a bit of the main story, it cuts back to the Big Bang story.
A few nanoseconds later, the physics of the universe changes again. The first creatures become extinct (though for them it has been eons). New creatures evolve, whose biochemistry is based on the new physics.
@nyrath ah, dang! glad you found it. I did have a look at World Engines and there is a bit set at the start of the universe (lol) near the end of Creator which is probably what I was thinking of.
I do love the scale of his books, I have quite a lot of them (Time is one of my all time faves). The only one that really fell flat for me was Galaxias, that one felt really phoned in. The Thousand Earths was quite fun though, even if it was a bit different to what he usually does.
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