First hardcover in an established paperback series about a young man, Philip Lynx, the product of illegal genetic experiments, who has the ability to sense (intermittently) the emotions of those around him. Also weighing on Flinx's conscience is the danger represented by the vast, disembodied essence of pure evil that he's sensed far out in space. His constant companion is Pip, a similarly gifted, venomous flying snake. Here, Flinx is resting on the tranquil planet Samstead, where the headaches and mental turmoil caused by his talent are minimized when the rich, arrogant Jack-Jax Coerlis demands to buy Pip—and won't take no for an answer. Rather than kill Coerlis, Flinx flees into space. He ends up on Midworld, an unexplored planet covered by a vast forest containing innumerable curious and hungry beasties—not to mention humans, descendants of those who survived a long-ago crash, and their large, intelligent native symbionts, the furcots. Then the maniacal Coerlis shows up, closely followed by a squad of alien AAnn Empire troopers—these latter intent on grabbing Flinx's state-of-the-art spaceship. A fairly typical Foster outing: pleasant, breezy, and of no great craft or significance.
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1995
ISBN: 0-345-38374-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Del Rey/Ballantine
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1995
Sequel to The Other End of Time (1996), Pohl's new saga in which an unsuspecting Earth has become the object of a galactic war waged between the Beloved Leaders, or Scarecrows, and the Horch over who controls the ``eschaton,'' a time in the remote future when every being that has ever lived will rise again. Spook Dan Dannerman, astronomer Pat Adcock, and others were abducted from the orbiting Starlab, cloned, and subjected to horrid experiments by alien ``Dopeys'' and ``Docs,'' controlled by the Beloved Leaders. They manage to escape and return to Earth, where they find other copies of themselves with altered memories already in residence. The returnees have also captured a Dopey and two Docs who promise to help them understand Beloved Leader technology. Colonel Hilda Morrisey of the National Bureau of Investigation takes charge of the clones. Then the Docs break free of their Dopey's control and warn of imminent invasion by the Beloved Leaders, and maybe Horch too—until Hilda's assistant, a religious fanatic mole, attempts to blast Hilda, Dan, and the Docs. Pohl does a seamless job of reintroducing readers to the convolutions of his black-comic future tussle. However, while The Other End of Time was both self-contained and sequel-ready, this crowded, complex entry merely seems incomplete.
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-312-86375-6
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Tor
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1997
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
But not touched, sad to say, by much originality or narrative momentum: new fantasy from the author of Out of This World (1994), etc. As a newborn, Malledd the blacksmith's son bears the claw- shaped birthmark of the god Ba'el, indicating to the priests that he is the Domdur Empire's chosen champion. But as time passes, the mark fades, and Domdur remains at peace, so young Malledd shrugs off the title and takes up smithing. Meanwhile, Tebas Tudan develops a New Magic that, unlike the priests' traditional magic, uses cunningly crafted crystals to transform the power of the sun; one of his pupils is Rebiri Nazakri, the hereditary warlord of the defeated Olnami nation, who thirsts for revenge for his people's years of repression. Encouraged by a god, Rebiri taps into the dark powers of the nightwalkers, which can reanimate corpses—thus allowing Rebiri to create an all but invincible army. As Rebiri gathers his zombie warriors, he also stirs up treachery among the Domdur leadership. Malledd, learning of the situation, is only gradually persuaded that he is needed, and even then refuses to take command of the Empire's wavering armies; instead, he lops off the heads of the zombies—the only way to kill them permanently- -while seeking a showdown with Rebiri Nazakri. Ho-hum.
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-312-86060-9
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Tor
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1997
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