Another episode in Simmons's vast and hypercomplicated far- future saga (The Fall of Hyperion, 1990, etc.). Now, the repressive Pax of the Church rules human space through its possession of ``cruciforms,'' symbiotes that allow the dead to be resurrected. On planet Hyperion, woodsman Raul Endymion is snatched from death row by the thousand-year-old poet Martin Silenus and given the task of protecting the child Aenea, who will shortly emerge from the Time Tombs having time-traveled from 264 years in the past; Aenea is destined to save humanity, and Raul is her designated hero. Other matters on Silenus's list of things for Raul and Aenea to do: find planet Earth, long since mysteriously vanished; defeat the TechnoCore, a hostile and immensely powerful alliance of advanced artificial intelligence; form a friendship with the weird space- dwelling Ousters—oh, yes, and destroy the Pax and topple the Church. Unfortunately, the Pax knows about Aenea, and sends Father Captain de Soya in his state-of-the-art, superfast spaceship to capture her. So Raul, Aenea, and the ancient android Bettik flee into the planet-hopping network of ``farcaster'' portals. Eventually, an invulnerable construct, sent by the Core back from the future, will show up to assassinate Aenea—but she'll be defended by the enigmatic Shrike, previously considered hostile to all humans. Intriguing ideas and above-average characters in a choppy narrative marred by friable plotting: gripping sometimes, though equally often glutinously overdetailed—and series regulars will note the endless scope for further installments.
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-553-10020-3
Page Count: 480
Publisher: Bantam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1995
A shelf-cracking sequel to The Great and Secret Show (1989) that begs the question: Is this sort of hermetic dross really worth the felling of defenseless forests? It's back to the shores of Quiddity, the undulant dream sea that separates worldly Cosm (a.k.a. the Helter Incendo, where we Sapas Humana live) from the trippy Metacosm (home of fabulous beings with names like Noah and King Texas), for a restaging of the epic struggle for the Art, major magic that was last coveted by the infinitely wicked Kissoon, who sponsored the previous battle to control this transcendental force. Itinerant biker chick Tesla Bombeck leads the way to Everville, a sleepy small town in Oregon about to be savaged by the passage of the Iad Uroboros—a mindless, evil juggernaut bent to Kissoon's will—through a rip in the veil between Cosm and Metacosm. Determined to thwart Kissoon, Bombeck enlists the aid of several cronies, among them Catholic gumshoe Harry D'Amour, a tattooed student of necromancy; computer archivist Nathan Grillo, guardian of the novel's paranormal Internet; and Phoebe Cobb, an Everville resident whose lover, Joe Flicker, has fled to Quiddity. A vast array of freaks and oddities—moody ghosts, supernatural impresarios, serpents molded from feces—crops up as everyone lurches toward the apocalypse at Everville's crossroads (there's even a vigilante marching band). Flogging his readers with one limp cliffhanger after another and concocting increasingly more baroque pseudo-religious explanations for each new image of wonder or shock that floats, flies, drifts, swims, or slithers into view—while relinquishing a lot of the sex and gore that have enlivened other efforts—Barker gasses on to a feeble climax before abandoning the story to its doleful collapse. The man should have his pens and paper taken away before he can get to thinking about a trilogy. Everville? Never mind.
Pub Date: Oct. 27, 1994
ISBN: 0-06-017716-0
Page Count: 704
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1994
Turgid—sentences swell into paragraphs, paragraphs bloat into pages, pages expand to fill entire chapters—though empty of...
Completing the Prestimion trilogy and, we’re told, bringing the entire fantasy/SF Majipoor Cycle (Lord Prestimion, 2000, etc.) to a conclusion. On the giant planet Majipoor, humans live alongside dozens of alien species; all are ruled by a human Coronal (King) and Pontifex (Emperor). The current Pontifex, old Confalume, may or may not be dying, so the present Coronal, Prestimion, may or may not soon become Pontifex; and Prestimion’s anointed successor, Dekkeret, may or may not be crowned Coronal. Dekkeret may or may not marry his lover, Fulkari, who’s reluctant to become the wife of a Coronal. So much for narrative tension. Meanwhile, on the continent of Zimroel, where 20 years ago Prestimion crushed the rebellious Procurator Dantirya Sambail in a ruinous war, Mandralisca, Sambail’s evil henchman, incites another revolt by making extravagant promises to Sambail’s five stupid, oafish sons. Mandralisca has obtained an improved version of the mind-coercing helmets used to great effect in the previous struggle. This time, though, Mandralisca intends to strike at Prestimion’s family, driving them to despair, madness, and death. In due course, Confalume dies, and Prestimion’s new battle with Mandralisca begins.
Turgid—sentences swell into paragraphs, paragraphs bloat into pages, pages expand to fill entire chapters—though empty of wit, zest, or creativity: the terminal episode in a hitherto interminable series subsides with no more than a tiny gasp.Pub Date: June 12, 2001
ISBN: 0-06-105171-3
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Eos/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2001
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
