Williams, Walter Jon

Destiny's Way (Star Wars: The New Jedi Order, Book 14)

Average customer rating:

The end of Tsavong Lah (The Warmaster) ! A must read!!
A cool book
book 14
Things are starting to look up for the Republic!
Back to the war. Is there any hope?

Destiny's Way (Star Wars: The New Jedi Order, Book 14)
Walter Jon Williams
Manufacturer: Del Rey
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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Similar Items:

Traitor (Star Wars: The New Jedi Order, Book 13)
Force Heretic I: Remnant (Star Wars: The New Jedi Order, Book 15)
Force Heretic II: Refugee (Star Wars: The New Jedi Order, Book 16)
Force Heretic III: Reunion (Star Wars: The New Jedi Order, Book 17)
Enemy Lines II: Rebel Stand (Star Wars: The New Jedi Order, Book 12)

ASIN: 0345428749
Release Date: 2003-07-29

Book Description

The time of reckoning is close at hand. Events in the New York Times bestselling Star Wars The New Jedi Order series take a decisive turn, as the heroes of the New Republic prepare for their most volatile clash yet with the enemy—from without and within.

In the war against the ruthless Yuuzhan Vong, the fall of Coruscant leaves the New Republic divided by internal strife, and on the verge of bowing to conquest. But those who steadfastly refuse to consider surrender—Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Leia Organa Solo, and their children and comrades-in-arms—are determined to seize victory against overwhelming odds. And now, finally, there are signs that the tide may be turning in the New Republic’s favor.

After capturing crucial Yuuzhan Vong intelligence, Jedi fighter-pilot Jaina Solo prepares to lead a daring surprise strike against an enemy flagship. Meanwhile, Jaina’s brother Jacen—liberated from the hands of the enemy and newly schooled in an even greater mastery of the Force by the Jedi Knight Vergere—is eagerly poised to bring his unique skills to bear against the invaders. And on Mon Calamari, the New Republic’s provisional capital, the retired, ailing hero Admiral Ackbar has conceived a major tactical plan that could spell the beginning of a swift end for the Yuuzhan Vong.

Yet even as opposing squadrons face off in the depths of space, intrigue runs rampant: in the heated political race for Chief of State . . . in the shadows where Yuuzhan Vong spies plot assassinations . . . and in the inscrutable creature Vergere, a Jedi Knight whose allegiance is impossible to predict. And as Luke Skywalker sets about reestablishing the Jedi Council, the growing faction opposed to the ways of the Force unveil a terrifying weapon designed to annihilate the Yuuzhan Vong species. But in doing so, they may be dooming the New Republic to becoming the very thing it has sworn to fight against—and unleashing the power of the dark side.

From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Reviews:

The end of Tsavong Lah (The Warmaster) ! A must read!!.......2006-12-15

For the past three years the Yuuzhan Vong have laid waste to the galaxy. Mighty heroes have fallen, planets have burned, and Coruscant, the illustrious seat of government for millenia, is no more. The ruins of the great city planet have given birth to Yuuzhan'tar, the legendary homeworld of the Yuuzhan Vong. All hope seems lost for the New Republic as darkness sweeps the galaxy. But from that darkness emerges a beacon of light, a lost hero, a lost son - Jacen Solo.

"It is the turning point."

This phrase echoes throughout Destiny's Way, and it proves true. Walter Jon Williams leads us on a journey that chronicles the restructuring of the New Republic, the rebirth of the Jedi Council, and the return of a lost hero - all leading up to a clash of titanic proportions. At the Battle of Ebaq a conglomeration of Yuuzhan Vong battlegroups rivaling that of Battle Plan Coruscant is wiped out to the last living ship. By novel's end Warmaster Tsavong Lah is dead and the Yuuzhan Vong... well, if there were any Yuuzhan Vong survivors they would be licking their wounds.

Williams must have delved into the layers of EU material when penning Destiny's Way. The book is filled with subtle references to more-obscure content, such as the classic X-Wing PC game. Keyan Farlander, now a Jedi and a general, returns at the helm of a New Republic fleet. We also get to see a variety of ship types instead of the standard fare: Lancer-class frigates, Corellian gunships, and the classic MC80 Mon Calamari cruiser. At the end of the novel we learn what became of the other Super Star Destroyer the New Republic's been hiding - the Guardian.

The book has a variety of battles. Williams gives us small skirmishes and dogfights, grand space battles, lightsaber duels, and even the rare underwater conflict. The submarine battle is awesome, and seems like something straight out of the pages of The Hunt for Red October, but the Battle of Ebaq takes the cake for my favorite scene (even though it's a good chunk of the book).

My favorite parts of the novel, aside from the sprawling Battle of Ebaq, were those involving the Yuuzhan Vong. Shimrra is a veritable monster, and Williams does an excellent job showing us many facets of the Supreme Overlord. We finally get a glimpse into the inner workings of the highest-level of the Yuuzhan Vong government. The Shaper Lord Ch'Gang Hool, High Priest Jakan, Warmaster Tsavong Lah, High Prefect Yoog Skell, and of course, Onimi, who is destined to be a crowd pleaser with his antics and clever rhymes. Also sure to please fans: in Destiny's Way the veil of mystery surrounding what really took place on Zonama Sekot is lifted.

Destiny's Way offers more of my favorite character - the executor everyone loves to hate, Nom Anor. Having escaped the warmaster's wrath after the events of Traitor, Nom Anor finds himself in the court of the Supreme Overlord, where he undergoes a vigorous 'mind-rape' at Shimrra's hands. It is here that Nom Anor learns of the heresy among Shamed Ones and members of the worker caste. He infiltrates a small group of heretics and decides that they need a leader - a Prophet. Later, when events turn sour and Nom Anor unadvertently leads the Yuuzhan Vong to their greatest defeat, the executor abandons his position and goes into hiding amongst the heretics. I don't think we've seen the last of him just yet.

"What are you doing, Executor?"

"Giving Shimrra an itch."

Traitor left me fearing for the executor's life, and Destiny's Way is no exception. By the end of the novel Nom Anor is a marked individual, and Shimrra will stop at nothing to have his head. How long can one run from death before it finally catches up? Hopefully forever.

I applaud Williams for not falling into a common trap - what I like to call 'fan popularity bias'. Too often we see the main characters being forced into situations, often because of their popularity among the fanbase. For example, the majority of fans were counting on a rematch between Jacen and Tsavong Lah. Instead Jaina was the one to put an end to the warmaster's reign of terror. Instead of populating the Jedi Council with all the fan-favorites he included Kenth Hamner and Tresina Lobi, two Jedi with very little prior exposure. Not only does this add to the element of surprise and believability (the main characters can't do everything), it also gives us the opportunity to learn more about second and third-tier characters.

A cool book.......2006-11-15

As OVERrated as Traitor was, Destiny's Way is UNDERrated. Williams has a nice smooth flowing writing style that made it an easy read and, unlike Traitor, advanced the plot on a galatic scale. I'd like to address some of the statements made by previous reviewers.

I'm not sure how Williams `ruined' Palleaon. Sure, he wasn't as cordial with Han & Leia as he'd been in the past nor should he have been. It was business. The Empire wanted something from the Republic for their aid as they should. And I'm not sure why reviewers made such a big deal about his garden either. Geez, it was in 2 or 3 paragraphs. I don't get their gripe about the election either. Luke & Mara did NOT sabatoge it. Lando & Karrde did - and RIGHTFULLY so. They needed a Jedi friendly leader & got one.

The formation of The Jedi Council was one of the coolest scenes in the whole NJO. Jaina's title of `Sword Of The Jedi' was befitting in the context it was given. Vergere was FINALLY killed off so there won't be any more of her special brand of `help'. Her character could've been handled so much better. My only grip was the fight between Jaina & Tsavong Lah. It was over way too fast & should've been done better.

book 14.......2006-09-25

in this one the author ties up loose ends mostly.he also ignores some of the cooker stuff happening from previous books from the series.anyhow,lando has created mouse droids to weed out vong secret agents.luke skywalker begins the new jedi council and his wife[and lets not forget former sith] is the 1st on it.princess leia goes to the empire for help vs the vong.i didnt see that one coming!jaina solo gets promoted to major.she also makes jedi knight,despite the fact she turned bad a few books ago.do the authors of these read the old ones ?i wonder!vergere is taken prisoner by the jedis.id like to see her killed off.she is so obnoxious!5 more ppl make the jedi council only one of whom was really in any of the previous books.the ever controversial kyp durron!2 books ago in the series they introduced a sith lord called lord nyax.what happened to him?why are we keeping all the dorks and killing or not using all the really cool people?there is a major thing i cant say going on with the vong.the bothans declare a state of "ak'rai" which means like genocide on the vong.a few more folks make jedi knights also.among them the heart broken tahiri,jacen solo-who was on the dark side a book or so ago.......................and lowbacca-a jedi wookie.i still prefer chewie.the vong structure is coming apart at the seams.jaina is promoted to lt colonel after a major feat.once again im not allowed to spill the beans.this book is interesting but really has little to do with previous books in the series.

Things are starting to look up for the Republic!.......2006-05-09

After the extremely personal events of Traitor, the New Jedi Order series gets back to galactic adventure in Destiny's Way, by noted science fiction author Walter Jon Williams. Things are reaching a turning point as the Yuuzhan Vong are stretched almost to their limits, but the New Republic is too, and both sides are delivering weaker and weaker blows. Williams does a good job with this, though the politics in the book slow things down quite a bit. Also, some of the characterization seems off, though not to a huge degree. Still, it's another winner in this series, and with five books to go, things are starting to move toward a conclusion.

Jacen Solo is on his way back to the Republic, with new-found friend (possibly) and mentor Vergere coming with him. In Destiny's Way, Vergere reveals the truth about who she is and how she came to be with the Vong, and she also sows the seeds to what might end up being the solution to all of their problems. Meanwhile, the New Republic needs a leader, and Luke Skywalker wants to re-establish the Jedi Council, and he finds a good ally in Cal Omas. If Cal can win the support of the majority of the senators, he may be able to help Luke with his goals as well. Meanwhile, the Vong are discovering just how many resources they've expended in this relentless war, and they have to decide whether to regroup or go for a final assault. Admiral Akbar, retired military expert, comes up with a plan that may draw the Vong into a final assault that they cannot win, with hordes of Jedi (along with the most important ones, the Solo twins) as bait. Will things go off as planned, or will the Vong do something completely unpredictable and ruin everything?

Destiny's Way starts out with a bang, with Han and Leia facing off against a bunch of Vong coralskippers as they travel to the remnants of the Empire to ask for help. There, they discover that, while some help is better than none, the Empire may be waiting to see who wins. This, along with a mission proposed by Jaina Solo to decapitate the leadership of the Vong with one shot, gives the book a bit of excitement, as there isn't a lot of action after this (other than an assassination attempt and a another ship battle with Jaina) until near the end. Of course, any Star Wars fan loves spaceship battles with the Falcon, so Williams started out with the good stuff.

The problem is that it starts to bog down a little after that. Some of the conversation is interesting (I loved the scene on the Imperial Remnant, with both Leia and General Pellaeon dancing around diplomacy as they have dinner and visit with each other), but some of it wasn't so much. I found the politics around the new Republic head of state to be rather dull (assassins notwithstanding, as well as a cool Lando scene). The new Jedi Council has some interesting possibilities, but only two of them (Luke and one other) really grabbed my attention this time, even as they wrestled with some serious issues. Thankfully, Williams' writing always stands up, even when the plot isn't that intriguing. While the pace slowed, it never stopped, and that's down to his prose.

The other slight problem was the characterization of Jaina. Perhaps it's because of Jacen's return, but she seems to regress from the previous couple of books, and I thought she had come out of her dark shell more than Destiny's Way portrays. She was still gloomy, but this book has the return of her "I'm going to die anyway, so why should I care about anybody?" shtick. That was really the only characterization fault that I had. Jacen seems to have matured from his ordeals in Traitor, the changes in Luke's attitudes are clearly created by what's happened to him and what he discovers with Vergere (in fact, the scenes between the two of them are probably my favourite in the book), and everybody else is captured fairly well too.

The ending of the book is wonderful, though. Lots of action, reverses as things don't go quite as planned, heroics, and starships blasting each other out of the stars. There's a lot to like there, as everybody gets involved in one way or the other. It'll be interesting to see where the series goes from here, given what happens at the end. Williams' writing shines in these sequences, as he shows he can handle starship combat with the best of them. It's not quite as frenetic as Stackpole and Allston can be, but they are masters of the craft. I'm not familiar with Williams' writing (other than a couple of short stories, and The Courtship of Princess Leia, a book that didn't really contain too many ships), but he definitely has a clear way of handling it.

The New Jedi Order is entering its stretch run of books, and Destiny's Way is another high point. It's just not as high as some of the other books around it have been. I'm eagerly looking forward to the next one, though I haven't heard the best things about them. Here's hoping that the quality keeps up.

David Roy

Back to the war. Is there any hope?.......2005-09-28

After volume 13 which focused on Jacen's struggle with the Yuuzhan Vong, Vergere and himself, the focus returns to the war at large, which hasn't been going well. However, there may now be some light. New Republic forces are learning more and more about not only Vong biotech, but also their culture, and are picking up some weaknesses along the way.

However, the infighting and lack of confidence among the locals have been their greatest weakness. Politics has been the downfall of the New Republic thus far.

Will Luke and Cal Omas be able to turn the political tide? Will the work of Ackbar and Jaina produce the tactics needed to win the war? Will Danni and other scientists produce the advances needed to outgun and disrupt the Vong?

All of these questions are hanging through this volume. Some questions will be answered, but more than enough is kept lingering for future volumes. This read is one of the hardest in the series to put down. Williams does a masterful job of transitioning from one theater of the war to another (including the political and religious theaters of the Republic and Vong respectively) to keep you turning the pages.

The jedi themselves are beginning to come to order, but will that order be on the old lines of the Old Republic of Vergere OR will there be a new Jedi order? If it is the later, what form will it take? Read on!

The Sundering: Dread Empire's Fall (Dread Empires Fall)

Average customer rating:

The story continues...
All that is important is known...
Second book in one of the most entertaining recent space opera series
Excellent Story!
Very, Very Good

The Sundering: Dread Empire's Fall (Dread Empires Fall)
Walter Jon Williams
Manufacturer: HarperTorch
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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Dread Empire's Fall : The Praxis
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ASIN: 0380820218
Release Date: 2004-02-24

Book Description

The Dread Empire of the Shaa is no more, following the death of the last oppressor. But freedom remains elusive for the myriad sentient races enslaved for ten centuries, as an even greater terror arises. The Naxids—a powerful insectoid species themselves subjugated until the recent Shaa demise—plan to fill the vacuum with their own bloody domination, and have already won a shattering victory with superior force and unimaginable cruelty. But two heroes survived the carnage at Magaria: Lord Gareth Martinez and the fiery, mysterious gun pilot Lady Caroline Sula, whose courageous exploits are becoming legend in the new history of galactic civil war. Yet their cunning, skill, and bravery may be no match for the overwhelming enemy descending upon the loyalist stronghold of Zanshaa, as the horrific battle looms that will determine the structure of the universe—and who shall live to inhabit it—for millennia to come. </p>

Customer Reviews:

The story continues..........2007-01-02

The second book in Walter Jon Williams' Dread Empire's Fall series, The Sundering, resumes exactly where The Praxis left off. It continues the story of Gareth Martinez and Caroline Sula as they battle to retake the Shaa empire from the Naxid rebels. The writing and characterization continue to be top notch so if you enjoyed the first book you will definitely like the second. Although the second book was good, I felt that it put a lot of pressure on the third book to determine whether the series will be great or not. In other words, after reading about these people and their war for two volumes, I need the third book to be truly spectacular in order to make the first two books pay off. Therefore, I will withhold judgement on the entire series until I finish the third book, but if the first two books are any indication, I don't think I'll be disappointed.

All that is important is known..........2006-07-21

... so says the Praxis...

So often Science Fiction, and the sub-genre of Space Opera in particular, is set amidst a completely unbelievable background, either an unlikely extrapolation of current society and science or worse still, our current society set in a thinly veiled future that lacks any cohesion.

The Dread Empire series defies this trend by setting the books in very believable, cohesive, and reasonable setting. What a wonderful change from the likes of David Weber's Honorverse.

"The Sundering" is a marvelous continuation of the "Dread Empires Fall" series, providing more of the rich prose and exciting storylines experienced in "The Praxis".

While reading, I often paused to wonder at the depth Mr. Williams has developed for the story's universe, its beauty, and more importantly, for its cohesiveness. I give it 5 stars.

Second book in one of the most entertaining recent space opera series.......2006-05-23

The Sundering is the second of Walter Jon Williams's space opera series collectively called Dread Empire's Fall. (First was The Praxis.) In the first novel the last of the Shaa, the long-lived aliens who controlled the multi-species Empire, died, setting off a battle for control. One species, the Naxids, rebelled, arguing that their status as first species to be conquered by the Shaa made them natural successors. The other species were taken by surprise by the rebellion, as they had apparently assumed that things would continue much as before, with power divided fairly evenly between the several species. A war quickly followed.

The central characters are two humans, Lord Gareth Martinez and Lady Caroline Sula. Both are relatively young and quite brilliant, and both become heroes in early action of the war, effectively preventing an immediate Naxid victory, though it is clear that the Naxids have the advantage of numbers. Martinez and Sula meet and are obviously attracted to each other. However both have flaws that will obviously cause future problems. Sula has a very dark secret in her background, further complicating her already compromised status as the last surviving member of a disgraced family. Martinez's family, while very rich, is provincial and thus his social status is tenuous, and his ambitions (and those of the rest of his family) tempt him towards dicey social and political manipulations, and occasional rather careerist, and conceited, actions.

In The Sundering, the story of the war as well as the personal stories of Martinez and Sula are advanced but not resolved, as one might expect from a middle book. Both are responsible in part for some further military successes, due to their brilliant tactical minds (and to fruitful collaboration). Their personal relationship takes some steps forward as well, only to be impeded by mutual misunderstandings, and by the problems mentioned above: Sula's past, and the ambitions of Martinez and his family. By the end of the novel a plan the two concocted for saving the Empire has been put into motion, albeit credited to more respectable people, and each are involved in desperate battles (of very different sorts) with the Naxids.

The book is very exciting, with some first rate space action, and some ground-based action as well. Williams appears to take great care in making his battle scenes plausible, taking into account travel times, acceleration requirements, and the general physics of space travel in planetary systems. Various aspects seem modelled on Napoleonic era naval adventure books, such as the hierarchical nature of shipboard society, and indeed the aristocratic focus of the overall society. The overall design is quite familiar, including such important things as the hero and heroine being brilliant mavericks, and such small details as Martinez's crusty and wily veteran servant. But if much is familiar, even cliché, Williams works very well within the form. The intrigues and twists and those disasters the reader sees coming give great pleasure. The flawed characters still attract this reader, and I root for them despite grimacing at their folly. This series is great fun to read, one of the most entertaining space operas in many years.

Excellent Story!.......2006-03-23

I truly wonderful novel! It has been awhile since I read science fiction that is so good.

Very, Very Good.......2006-03-21

I commented on this books predecessor that the remarkable thing about Dread Empires Fall is that very little actually happens. I enjoyed the book but I was looking forward to the next installment. I am pleased to say that the second book certainly moved the story and it is rather more action packed then the first text.

As I usually make a point of I do not wish to give too much of the plot away so the review lacks some specifics. The book is far more action packed then the opening book of the series. The story moves at a good pace and the plot does not seem either rushed or artificially elongated. The weakness in middle books is that they often feel like a bridge between the foundation and the capstone and otherwise seem to have very little reason to exist. This is absolutely not true in this novel. The story was engaging and very satisfying. It is still true that the book would be hard to fully engage with if the first text had not been read first.

An excellent book. I hesitate to give this novel 5 stars and have settled on 4 instead. This book, in my mind, does not quite join the very top-level books in the field but it is very, very close.

Average customer rating:

i really liked the series
Slow To Start, But Some Promise
Good start. Let's see where it goes.
Sci-fi with some basic misunderstanding of physics
Good start to an even better series

Dread Empire's Fall : The Praxis
Walter Jon Williams
Manufacturer: HarperTorch
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 038082020X

Book Description

<h4><center> All will must bend to the perfect truth of The Praxis </center></h4>

For millennia, the Shaa have subjugated the universe, forcing the myriad sentient races to bow to their joyless tyranny. But the Shaa will soon be no more. The dread empire is in its rapidly fading twilight, and with its impending fall comes the promise of a new galactic order . . . and bloody chaos. </p>

A young Terran naval officer marked by his lowly birth, Lt. Gareth Martinez is the first to recognize the insidious plot of the Naxid -- the powerful, warlike insectoid society that was enslaved before all others -- to replace the masters' despotic rule with their own. Barely escaping a swarming surprise attack, Martinez and Caroline Sula, a pilot whose beautiful face conceals a deadly secret, are now the last hope for freedom for every being who ever languished in Shaa chains -- as the interstellar battle begins against a merciless foe whose only perfect truth is annihilation. </p>

Customer Reviews:

i really liked the series.......2007-04-18

I took my a while to get into the pace of this book, but once I did, I found it to be great entertainment.
Jon Williams speaks in a very cynical voice and I am quite sure he is settling scores with people he used to work with (or maybe school teachers?).
In any case, I am happy to recommend this book and the two that followed in the Trilogy.

Slow To Start, But Some Promise.......2007-02-17

Walter Jon Williams, having previously knocked out a couple of cyberpunk novels, here turns his hand to the venerable space opera genre with mixed results. It's roughly 300 pages of slow-building character development, focused exclusively on two protagonists, before anything major happens in the last quarter of the book. And as for the rebellion that the cover copy promises...well, the actions of the bad guys are predicated on mutual stupidity and gross ignorance on the part of the entire population of the galactic empire, including the rebels themselves. Another drawback is that the villains are villains because...uh...they're villainous or something. It's in their nature. Inevitable, really. We can't exactly say since we get virtually no clue whatsoever what makes them tick, and not a single one of their race stands out in any way at all.

Another quibble is that if you gave, say, David Brin or David Weber the same 300-page buildup, the one would have completely immersed you in the particular galactic milieu with its myriad cultural intricacies and nuances, and the other would've taught you all about shipbuilding, crew command, and fleet maneuvers. Here, Williams more or less settles for "Space is big. I mean, really big."

BUT. With all that said, at least our two heroes are relatively interesting, not to mention interestingly flawed. The male lead, Gareth Martinez, is in fact a bit of a social-climbing yutz who is primarily concerned about advancing his career and family interests, which is a refreshing change from your usual omni-competent destined-for-greatness born leader featured in many other series.

This is not the kind of thing you'll want if you need to see things blowing up from Page 1, or if you revel in layer upon layer of details, but if you like your space opera old-fashioned and with comparatively uncomplicated heroes and evildoers, you'll find yourself pleased.

Good start. Let's see where it goes........2006-12-30

I picked up this book based solely on the intriguing synopsis on the back cover and I wasn't disappointed. The story follows the military careers and personal lives of Gareth Martinez and Caroline Sula as they fight to recapture their empire from a rebellious alian faction. The first book of this well written space opera left me eagerly anticipating the second volume. The best parts were often the slow character developmental segments wedged between the fast paced interstellar battles. This is certainly not a hard science fiction book, no extravagant futuristic technological concepts here. No extrapolations of current scientific thought or conjecture. No artificial intelligence, virtual reality, clones, robots or supercomputers. Just worm holes transporting interstellar battleships from one solar system to another. The story solely rests on the strength of the various characters that we meet and their "every man" struggles for career advancement and romantic fulfillment. The story could easily have been written as a 20eth century Naval war epic that just substituted starships for battle ships and planetary ring stations for harbors. I hope that the second and third books delve deeper into the history of the empire and add new twists and turns to the story. For those that love a good space opera, The Praxis will fit the bill.

Sci-fi with some basic misunderstanding of physics.......2006-09-24

I'm a big fan of space opera, and usually find no difficulty suspending my disbelief to enjoy a good story. Faster than light travel? No problem. Transporter beams? I'm all there. Space suits that clean your bottom automatically? I want one! What bothered me about this book was some very basic problems with physics.

Some of the reviewers mention the rescue of a space yacht tumbling through space. The method of rescue involves the rescue ship matching the 3-dimensional tumble of the craft in trouble and then latching on to it. Sorry, no. Matching the tumble does not mean the two craft are stationary relative to each other. A student of basic kinetics will tell you this won't work.

Similarly, I love the "dog-fight" style space battles inside the various solar systems. But these battles take place with the space craft traveling at 70% of the speed of light! No mention of time stretching, relativity, or any number of other weirdnesses that would take place in such a battle. The author knows enough to not allow these ships to make quick turns at 0.7c and allows them "months" to reach such speeds, but still it's just hard to swallow.

All in all, good writing, good story, but dude, learn some physics!

Good start to an even better series.......2006-08-28

WJW's has developed a fascinating space-faring future world with deep and compellingly flawed main characters. Unlike more utopian futures, such as Jack McDevitt's Polaris/Seeker universe, the future in Dread Empire's Fall is built around a rigid caste structure, and a prohibition on AI that makes the world much like our own.

This opening book in the trilogy develops the two main perspectives through which the reader will experience Dread Empire's Fall, an ambitious lieutenant, Lord Gareth Martinez, and Lady Caroline Sula, who, as a "pinnace pilot" must guide batteries of missiles toward their enemies in the vacuum of space. The story spends more time with Martinez, though Sula's back story is more detailed, and relevant in that it both haunts and drives Sula. The oppressive and class-driven social structure makes for interesting observations from characters that have grown used to it, yet do not view it naively.

The action starts to pick up, and the pages turn quickly, when Martinez catches an early wind of a planned revolution by one of the other races that populate the wormhole-connected cosmos along with humans (known here as "Terrans"). The world is interesting, the space-battles invigorating, and the growing and complex relationship between Sula and Martinez captivating.

The first half of the first book is on average slower than the rest of the series, but well worth the investment. This is hard military-sf with characters worth knowing.

Conventions of War (Dread Empire's Fall)

Average customer rating:

Phew!
One of the worst endings to a series I've ever read
A nice ending
Exciting and frustrating all at once.
Hated to see the end of this series

Conventions of War (Dread Empire's Fall)
Walter Jon Williams
Manufacturer: Eos
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

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Similar Items:

The Sundering: Dread Empire's Fall (Dread Empires Fall)
Dread Empire's Fall : The Praxis
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ASIN: 0380820226
Release Date: 2005-09-27

Book Description

The universe has fallen into bloody chaos now that the dread empire of the tyrannical Shaa is no more -- at the mercy of the merciless insectoid Naxid, who now hunger for domination. But the far-flung human descendants of Terra have finally tasted liberty, and their warrior heroes will not submit. Separated by light-years, Lord Gareth Martinez and the mysterious guerrilla fighter Caroline Sula each pursue a different road to victory in tomorrow's ultimate battle -- for the new order will be far more terrible than the old ... unless one last, desperate stratagem can hold a shattered galaxy together.</p>

Customer Reviews:

Phew!.......2007-05-29

I made it all the way to the bitter end. Partly thanks to court duty. Granted, the book is well suited to court duty because it isn't too distracting. Whoah, that's harsh, dude, sorry.

I love several of Walter Jon's other books so much I refused to stop after the first of the "Dread Empire's Fall" series, despite how lame it appeared to me after the first 750 ppg. or so and I continued on to the bitter end, and so now I can honestly say I came, I read, and I got bored.

I never thought I'd say that about a Walter Jon novel either, and I was depressed about that. But looking at his cataloged work here at Amazon I see I've just barely dipped into all the books I'd sadly characterize as the ones he pays the bills with. And I'd further say that the ones I have enjoyed are the more serious efforts at "literature" which, like for many writers, have failed to pay the bills and necessitated writing "space opera," or Harlequins, or adventure, or porn.

As to my faulty understanding of "space opera," I had previously thought the phrase to be a euphemism for opera in space; i.e., colorful sci-fi drama, but now I understand it to mean soap opera in space, the pablum of the science fiction convention goer. I mean Walter Jon dedicates more energy to how well casseroles stand up to high-gravity acceleration in space than he does to any scientific notions about space travel. So this is more "All My Children" in space than it is "Carmen" or "Faust" in space. Well, at least it's not "Cats" in space.

So if you were hoping for a serious novel so ambitious as to take on real social or political issues like "The Rift," or "Days of Atonement," you may have to wait a while for Walter Jon to produce another serious book. Other books of his I have much enjoyed have been of course "Hardwired," "Voice of the Whirlwind," and "Aristoi," which in my opinion is a solid example of Walter Jon's science fiction skills, unlike this half-hearted series. But books that fill up the hours and don't challenge readers too much have always been a mainstay of the paperback market. So it goes.

One of the worst endings to a series I've ever read.......2007-03-17

Read this review prior to reading this book (or series, hopefully). This series ends probably as badly as any series possibly could. If it wasn't for the fact that parts of the book were OK, I'd give it 1 star, because the ending was so stupid that, if I could, I'd give it a negative five stars.

While I don't recommend you read this, I won't give away the specifics of the ending, as that would be wrong of me. However, everything that was frustrating about the first two books (i.e. silly caste structure, total reliance on patronage, accent descrimination) wins in the end, irregardless of the world changing honors that the two heroes achieve.

I truly don't understand the point of the author even writing this series, if he's simply going to allow the status quo to remain intact. One of the reasons people read books like this, is to see a civilization that has turned geologic, and then gets into a war of survival, have the ability to change. But no, the author strives to make sure that all of the stupidity that we wished to see overturned is put right back in place after the war is over.

Now, don't get me wrong, I don't mind the love triangle ending. But the political ending really makes me regret ever picking up the first book, as I now realize that reading this series has been an absolute waste of my time.

A nice ending.......2007-01-08

Conventions of War, the final chapter in the "Dread Empire's Fall" trilogy, wraps the story up very nicely. Though I felt the series was a conventional space opera, it was probably the best classical military science fiction story I've read. The last sci-fi trilogy I read was John C. Wright's "Golden Age" series, which was a meaty, hard science fiction epic, not really falling into the space opera category (although I could be wrong about that). The Golden Age happened to be one of the best science fiction stories I've ever read, wonderfully pushing my intellectual ability to imagine a radically new technological future and its philosophical underpinnings (needless to say I highly recommend it). Dread Empire's Fall was not that kind of tale. Though not ground breaking, I enjoyed the series very much. This series tells the story of a fractured empire and the military campaigns that ensue to make it whole again. More specifically, it follows the exploits of the two heroes of the war and how their ideas and actions changed the course of the war in their favor. The writing was excellent and I really grew to like and care about the two main characters, especially the low born noble, Lord Gareth Martinez. Like the two volumes that came before it, Conventions of War was a real page turner, and I recommend the series to anyone who loves a well written military space opera with great characters.

Exciting and frustrating all at once........2007-01-05

One of the hallmarks of well written fiction, for me at least, is that I get so caught up in the characters that I find myself saying "Why did they do that?" instead of "Why did the author write them that way?" This book definitely falls into the former category - well written, with real characters and a story that kept my attention and interest.

Read the entire trilogy - having the full context makes it so much richer.

Hated to see the end of this series.......2006-07-21

So often Science Fiction, and the sub-genre of Space Opera in particular, is set amidst a completely unbelievable background, either an unlikely extrapolation of current society and science or worse still, our current society set in a thinly veiled future that lacks any cohesion.

The Dread Empire series defies this trend by setting the books in very believable, cohesive, and reasonable setting. What a wonderful change from the likes of David Weber's Honorverse.

"Conventions of War" is a solid ending to the "Dread Empires Fall" series that leaves the reader wanting more, and happily, there seems to be plenty of room for additional books in the series.

Mr. Williams gives us rich character development and compelling action amidst the stars. Hallelujah! I give it 5 stars.

Average customer rating:

Four very varied tales...
Meh good enough
Superior but uneven works by major authors
Great intro to alternate history; hardcore fans might yawn
A well-developed alternate to traditional history settings

Worlds that Weren't
Harry Turtledove , Walter Jon Williams , S. M. Stirling , and Mary Gentle
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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The First Heroes: New Tales of the Bronze Age
The Protector's War
1812: The Rivers of War
The Sky People (Sci Fi Essential Books)
End of the Beginning: A Novel of Alternate History

ASIN: B000FTBPGY

Amazon.com

Alternate history is the branch of speculative fiction that explores what might have happened if history had taken a different turn. The obvious changes, like the Nazis winning World War II, have filled innumerable novels. Fortunately, the anthology Worlds That Weren't avoids the obvious with its four fine new novellas from four superior authors: Harry Turtledove, S.M. Stirling, Mary Gentle, and Walter Jon Williams.

The collection opens with "The Daimon," written by Harry Turtledove, AH's best-known practitioner. In Turtledove's turning point, the ancient Greek philosopher Socrates chooses to accompany General Alkibiades to war instead of remaining in Athens, and sets Alkibiades on a triumphant, terrible new course.

Set in the British India-dominated alternate history of The Peshawar Lancers, S.M. Stirling's novella is a rousing old-fashioned adventure. "Shikari in Galveston" follows a hunting safari through a regressed American frontier that might have given even Daniel Boone pause.

A prequel to her Book of Ash tetralogy, Mary Gentle's novella "The Logistics of Carthage" concerns Christian warriors serving pagan Turks in a North Africa conquered by Visigoths instead of Vandals, and is the strongest story in Worlds That Weren't.

The collection concludes with "The Last Ride of German Freddie," in which Nebula Award winner Walter Jon Williams considers what might have happened if the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche had taken himself and his superman theories to the Wild West. --Cynthia Ward

Book Description

In this collection of novellas, four masters of alternate history turn back time, twisting the facts with four brilliant excursions into what might have been.

Customer Reviews:

Four very varied tales..........2007-03-17

Four very varied alternative-history novellas:

In "The Daimon", Harry Turtledove lets Socrates guide Alcibiades in Athens' wars with Syracuse and Sparta. Well written, with lots of historical details. (Including a cameo by a teen-age Plato.) Definitely the best of the four.

In "Shikari in Galveston" S. M. Stirling takes a gallant officer from his Peshawar Lancers through a dashing adventure against cannibals in a post-Fall South-East America. Light, fun, fast reading.

In "The Logistics of Carthage", Mary Gentle describes a minor incident in an alternative medieval (Arian) North Africa, which is apparently part of the backplot to her novel "Ash". Unfortunately this rather drags as a standalone story, with a great deal of emotional agonizing and very slow plot movement.

In "The Last Ride of German Freddie", Walter Jon Williams gives us Friedrich Nietzsche in the Gunfight at the OK Corral. A little slow, but an amusing look at Nietzsche applying his philosophy in the old West.

Meh good enough.......2007-01-10

if you've got time to kill it's good enough, it's not their best work though

Superior but uneven works by major authors.......2005-07-22

This collection presents standalone alternative history novellas by Harry Turtledove and Walter Jon Williams, along with works by S.M. Stirling and Mary Gentle set in pre-established alternate universes. Generally, while all four stories are well-written (and, in Gentle's case, extremely well-written), none of them except William's piece are exceptional.

Turtledove's "The Daimon" takes the most literal turning point of the four: Socrates' decision not to accompany the Athenian invaders to Scicily. By sending Socrates on that expedition, Turtledove sets in motion a believable chain of events that lead, of course, to a very different outcome. Turtledove is at his best, a refreshing break from the anemic, repetitive writing found in his various series. My only complaint is that the story ends where it probably should begin.

Stirling's "Shakari in Galveston" takes place in the "Peshawar Lancers" world, in which a heavenly body struck the Earth in the 1870s, leaving climate change, famine, and cannibalism in its wake. That novel is first rate, and so is this story. "Shakari" presents an expedition in semi-civilized, cannibal-plagued post-Fall Texas. The hallmark Stirling Gothic horror is in check, as is the gratuitous sex that often mars Stirling's work. The story's exciting, but it's the weakest of the four novellas. Stirling might have been better off choosing the Mexican "high culture" or the ascendant Native Americans, rather than degnerated Americans, as his subject matter. And, few readers havent't read "Peshawar" will fully appreciate this story.

The same is true of Gentle's "The Logistics of Carthage." This story demands an understanding of "Ash: A Secret History." In that universe (according to Gentle's afterword), the Visigoths sacked Carthage rather than the Vandals. This, among other things, changed the nature of Christianity, the Ottomans, and any number of other things. It's pretty hard to figure out if, like me, you haven't read "Ash." This is (almost) beside the point given the strength of Gentle's characterization. She is a superior writer. "Logistics" features a female soldier and a sympathetic male comrade. They are caught in a tinderbox ignited when another soldier, also female, is denied burial by local Christian hardnoses. The bizarre ways in which this drama plays out make up the story.

Williams' "The Last Ride of German Freddie" is far and away the best of the four novellas. Set in Tombstone, Arizona, "German Freddie" is everything a novella should be -- long enough to be interesting, and satisfying as a self-contained story. It's a surprise to find out who the titular character is, and from that point forward it's pure drama. It's impossible to describe the action without using spoilers. One interesting fact, and an irony given the subject matter, is the appearance that nothing really changes as the result of the divergence.

Great intro to alternate history; hardcore fans might yawn.......2004-08-15

These four alternate-history novellas made an appetite-whetting introduction for me, a newbie to alternate history.

In Turtledove's "The Daimon," Socrates looks on in dismay as a great Greek general, Alkibiades, flouts politically-motivated criminal charges against him and parlays victory in one battle - a battle which, in "real" history, was lost - into a position of unmatched power in Athens. Once on this pedestal, however, Alkibiades resorts to the same murderous tactics used by his old foes.

Gentle's fifteenth-century heroine in "The Logistics of Carthage" followed her son to war, discovered that she preferred a soldier's life to a prostitute's, and joined a company of European mercenaries. Now, her company finds itself stranded on the coast of North Africa with a corpse they cannot bury because of a religious dispute. During a tense and bloody standoff, Yolande has what she believes are visions, but which are actually glimpses of the future 500 years hence. This was the least satisfactory story, as it seemed not to have much of a point. It might make more sense to fans of Gentle's "Ash" series.

In "The Last Ride of German Freddie," Williams plunks German philosopher Frederich Nietzsche onto the dusty streets of 1881 Tombstone, Arizona and pits him against the Earp brothers. Nietzsche tries his hand at some trigger-assisted social engineering at the OK Corral. But is it really social engineering, or merely the vengefulness of a man thwarted in love?

With Shikhari in Galveston, Stirling brings us the most inventive and fully-realized of these four universes: a radically different present-day Earth that, in the nineteenth century, saw her population slashed and much of her land rendered scarcely habitable by a catastrophic heavenly bombardment. The British Empire still reigns - albeit not supremely - over much of what remains. A British officer and his Indian servant travel to the wilds of southern Texas for a hunting expedition, and, rather than hunting for trophies, find themselves fighting for their lives against an adversary unlike any they ever imagined.

Those who, like me, are new to alternate history, or just not well versed in the real history behind the fiction, will benefit from first reading the afterword accompanying each novella.

A well-developed alternate to traditional history settings.......2003-10-08

Science fiction fans of alternate history settings will want to place Harry Turtledove, et.al.'s Worlds That Weren't anthology high on their reading lists: it provides four novellas by Turtledove, Stirling, Gentle and Williams, each featuring a well-developed alternate world from 1452 Constantinople to a mysterious Old World figure stalking Tombstone. Each makes for a diverse, well-developed alternate to traditional history settings.

Average customer rating:

Giving sf another chance
Left handed cyberpunk.......
Great fun, I'd call this proto-cyberpunk
Re-release in October 2006
Just because it looks like and sounds like...

Hardwired
Walter Jon Williams
Manufacturer: Night Shade Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Similar Items:

Voice Of The Whirlwind
The Sundering: Dread Empire's Fall (Dread Empires Fall)
Conventions of War (Dread Empire's Fall)
Dread Empire's Fall : The Praxis
The Ghost Brigades

ASIN: 1597800627

Book Description

Ex-fighter pilot Cowboy, "hardwired" via skull sockets directly to his lethal electronic hardware, teams up with Sarah, an equally cyborized gun-for-hire, to make a last stab at independence from the rapacious Orbitals.

Customer Reviews:

Giving sf another chance.......2007-06-24

I thought I had read all the sf/cyberpunk worth reading when I picked this book up off a going-out-of-business sale. I was drawn into Williams world - complex, believable, character-driven - and surprised that I could be surprised. I read others and it wasn't a fluke.

Left handed cyberpunk..............2007-06-18

This is one of the pioneering books in the cyberpunk genre, but is less well known than most. This is not because it is a bad book, or dull, far from it; but rather is because there are a couple of differences that distinguish it from the cyberpunk pack.

Contrary to most Science Fiction writing, cyberpunk tried to show and explicate its fictional world through the eyes of comparatively low-ranking people on the margins of their society, perhaps thrown into a situation where their actions are important to it (although not necessarily) but virtually always with the characters' mental environment shaped by, and immersed in, the larger social and physical/technical environment, and with their actions constrained by outsider and lowly status. This was a gesture towards realism, as most all people are greatly constrained by their circumstances and are much more caught up in the present than are typical characters in Science Fiction. The limited power and vantage points available to cyberpunk characters are complemented by the characteristic cyberpunk immersion into the techno-cultural environment of the story. Just as most people have more contact with DVDs, bottled water, and PCs than with nuclear reactors, so cyberpunk immerses the reader in the common environment present in the story.

By contrast, Hardwired, while utilizing the iconic technologies, imperfect world, corporate domination, assassins and smugglers of cyberpunk, is a far more traditional Science Fiction story in that the characters are that extra (unrealistically) bit mobile, are rather more powerful and connected to the center of events than is typical, and are concerned with the core issues of their world, rather than with a tiny fraction of it. In this way, Hardwired is not quite cyberpunk, and the criticism that this is "not real cyberpunk" is understandable. In a similar vein, the language, while comparatively poetic in true cyberpunk fashion, fails to completely immerse, indeed flood the reader with the world of the story (as opposed to the events of the story).

All this being said however, Hardwired is not only an entertaining and adventurous story, and a relatively "hard" one (as in "hard", meaning scientifically viable science fiction), but it also very usefully explores the stereotypical themes and characters of cyberpunk. The smugglers and assassins that populate the genre are less two dimensional, and the reader will get a much stronger feel for what such a profession or what corporate domination might MEAN. An additional bit of cyberpunk credit is due in that cyberpunk is very much about the intersection of culture and technology, and Williams has a keen sense of how future technology and trends might interact with world, particularly US culture. For these reasons, while this book differs from most cyberpunk (hence my description, "left handed cyberpunk"), I think that it is indispensable to understanding it, and this book should be considered a crucial part of the cyberpunk canon.

For those readers not interested in canonical status in their reading, I would again highlight that this is a great adventure story, and well written, with interesting characters. So long as you are not put off by a dark and gritty environment, this book has high entertainment value.

Great fun, I'd call this proto-cyberpunk.......2007-04-26

This was a really fun read for me back in the 80s, and fulfills most of the requisites for what came to be known as cyberpunk. I might make a crude comparison by saying that this book is to cyberpunk sort of as AC/DC or Black Sabbath was to punk rock. We used to joke that AC/DC is punk rock because they are punks and they rock.

What this book had that most other cyberpunk books lacked was the pulp (with the exception of Rudy Rucker.) Remember, this was almost pre-Tarantino, and that hunger for "the pulp" was a living, growing thing here in the U.S. and abroad. The characters in this novel are definitely leatherclad bad_ss fantasy creations inspired by Heavy Metal Magazine, rock videos, H.R. Geiger, and maybe the gun-crazy movies of Bronson, Eastwood and others from the 70s. All together, this novel was a real slice of the life and times that created such artistic masterworks as Doom.

Thinking about the comparisons to Gibson I'm seeing in these reviews, including the website's own, I'm vaguely offended. The claims that Williams is not "true" cyberpunk and such are hogwash. There is no "true" cyberpunk. A purist attitude regarding a subgenre like this, well, get real. Either you like it or you don't, but it's only a novel, not a religion. He may be no Gibson, but that's OK. It's only a paperback.

Re-release in October 2006.......2006-09-07

Can't wait for this classic tales re-release in October 2006. It's been too long! I haven't re-read it in a while since I lent my copy to a friend. (sigh) Oh well, soon I'll have it back. If they redo the cover art, hopefully it won't suck!

Just because it looks like and sounds like..........2002-03-25

...cyberpunk doesn't mean it is cyberpunk. Walter John Williams uses all the archetypes of cyberpunk fiction - mind-to-machine interface, powerful corporations with money superceding national sovereignty, criminals as the 'good' guys, cybernetics becoming intimate with the human body, and such - but that doesn't make this a cyberpunk novel. Its like painting stripes on a horse and calling it a zebra.

Customer Reviews:

Absolutely superlative.......2005-09-26

This collection of Walter Jon Williams's output of short fiction from the late eighties boasts a pair of remarkable characteristics: rarely will you see a writer exhibit such a breadth of subject matter (Williams is equally at home a hundred years in the past or millions of years in the future), and rarely will you see a story collection in which every single selection is legitimately first rate. The odds of both of these superlatives intersecting in a single anthology are slight, but intersect they have. This may not be the best single-author SF collection ever, but those who read it will likely find that it is the best collection by an author whose other work they have never read. Shame on whatever forces allow this book to continue to be out of print.

And now, the contents (all stories originally appeared in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine unless otherwise noted):
"Surfacing" (1988): A linguist, already able to converse with whales, attempts to decipher the language of underwater behemoths on an alien planet and must also contend with an entity who occasionally inhabits the body of his lover. A fantastic character study, although my suspicion is that whales and dolphins aren't going to turn out to be as intelligent as some people hope. This is set in the same universe as Williams's novel "Knight Moves," in which humanity has attained immortality (other stories and novels may well be set there, too; I'm not familiar with most of Williams's work).
"Video Star" (1986): In a cyberpunk future, gangs war over a supply of stolen drugs, but the real conflict arises as a result of the injudicious editing of a documentary of the crime.
"No Spot of Ground" (1989): Ingenious alternate history tale that sees unsuccessful (though significantly longer-lived) writer Edgar Allen Poe serving as a Confederate general during the Civil War. To say more would be to detract from the artistry of this piece.
"Flatline" (1988): A mild-mannered fellow develops a virus to invade the atificial intelligences that run everything; will the infection make them weaker or stronger?
"Side Effects" (1985): A cabal of drug companies, insurance companies and doctors ignore the interests of patients in favor of the bottom line. While it tends toward alarmism (the real pharmaceutical industry does infinitely more good than harm), I found it bittersweet; despite his nefariousness, the story's central character comes tantalizingly close to a real breakthrough.
"Witness" (1987, originally published in the first volume of the "Wild Cards" shared world series edited by George R. R. Martin): After World War II, four Aces (possessors of superpowers as a result of an alien virus) serve freedom's interests around the world until they become inconvenient and are subjected to the scrutiny of the House Un-American Acitivites Committee. Yet another excellent alternate history tale from Williams, though unfortunately he treads the customary fine line regarding communism. One can repudiate McCarthyist tactics and posturing while still acknowledging the infiltration of communism into America and particularly Hollywood. Communism in all its forms has proven to be dangerous, as millions of restless ghosts can attest.
"Wolf Time" (1987): In yet another future in which information is power, a free agent takes an assignment that requires the latest in semi-autonomous battle armor; but who is really in control?
"The Bob Dylan Solution" (1989, originally published in Aboriginal SF): What can a record executive do when his top artist starts to peak and won't modify his output to remain at the top?
"Dinosaurs" (1987): Far-future tale of a hyper-evolved human ambassador trying to make peace with, and justify humanity's acions to, a less-evolved species. At once epic in scope and deeply personal.

In the interest of avoiding the appearance of hyperbole, I will refrain from heaping accolades on the individual stories; each is a slice of a fully realized world that ought to be enjoyed on its own terms. I will say, though, that I cannot recommend this collection enthusiastically enough. You'll have to locate a used copy or seek out a particularly well-stocked library, but the effort will be worth it.

A good hard-sf collection.......2002-12-23

A good hard sf collection; 'facets' of Williams' talent.

Average customer rating:

Metropolitan and City on Fire
Really good story with a neat, original, SF/Fantasy world
Needs to be a movie
Aiah is one of the best female characters in recent SF
Fantastic new world!

Metropolitan
Walter Jon Williams
Manufacturer: Harper Prism
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Aristoi

ASIN: 0061052124

Customer Reviews:

Metropolitan and City on Fire.......2006-05-02

I recently re-read both these books, and I was again impressed with the quality of WJW's writing. I've read and enjoyed most of his other books (some notable ones being Aristoi, Voice of the Whirlwind, Angel Station, etc) and love the way he paints such a large landscape beyond the edges of the story. In Metropolitan, in particular, the descriptions of the world-city are a fascinating blend of hard-boiled urban noir, chrome-finned retrofuturism, and gritty realistic detail. Some parallels could be drawn to stories like "Perdido Street Station" by China Mieville.

All the main characters progress and grow over the story arc. The Aiah at the end of City on Fire is not the same girl we meet in the begining of Metropolitan.

Finally, I appreciate that WJW actually made his main characters have distinct and interesting ethnicities. The majority of american writers have no problem including all sorts of incredible aliens, but rarely have anyone who is not caucasian as a protagonist in the story. And race is actually a factor in the story line, not just a PC sop, ala Star Trek.

Highly recommend anything by this author.

Really good story with a neat, original, SF/Fantasy world.......2001-06-07

I've read quite a few Walter Jon Williams stories, generally with considerable enjoyment, but the only novels I've read by him are the first two Drake Majistral "entertainments". Those are fun, but light. For more serious Williams, people strongly recommended Metropolitan. And, indeed, this book is really good.

It fits in that genre called "Science Fantasy", in that it involves the use of magic, but that that magic is understandable and given a quasi-scientific backing. This seems to be set on Earth, possibly very far in the future or perhaps an alternate Earth. Millennia previously, the Ascended Ones have placed a "shield" around Earth. No one can escape. However, a source of (essentially magical) energy called "plasm" is available, and it is used for power generation, telepresence, and other uses both "magical" and "scientific" (also commercial). Plasm use is regulated and taxed, and the protagonist, Aiah, is a lowly functionary at the Plasm Authority. She is a talented member of the oppressed Barkazil ethnicity in an area dominated by the Jaspeeri. As such it has been a struggle for her to attend university and graduate to this job, and to get a decent apartment with her Jaspeeri lover, another functionary. One day she witnesses a burning woman, a manifestation of unregulated plasma gone out of control. She is assigned to the team tracking down the illegal plasma source. She's sent on what she thinks is a wild goose chase, but as it happens she finds the source, and on an impulse decides to hide her find and try to sell plasma on the black market. She has some difficulty finding a buyer, and finally stumbles on the notion of selling it to the prestigious, rich, former rebel Metropolitan (i.e. something like a mayor), Constantine. She finds herself far more involved with Constantine than she ever intended, and soon she is embroiled in his plans for engineering a coup and implementing his dream of the "New City".

It's an exciting novel, and it's built on a fascinating, original, SF/Fantastic notion. Some of the plot machinations were a bit creaky, I thought: I didn't quite buy the ease of her approach to Constantine, or his attraction to her. But all this leads to an end which asks some difficult moral questions, and doesn't provide answers either to the reader or to Aiah. She remains sympathetic, but many of her actions remain questionable. I thought this was very well handled.

This is a very fine book. There is a sequel, which I will have to seek out, but Metropolitan works very well on its own.

Needs to be a movie.......1999-07-30

This books needs to become a movie. Alec Baldwin as Metropolita

Aiah is one of the best female characters in recent SF.......1999-07-21

I love Aiah. She is one of the great overacheiving heroines of SF. And she does it all with just a to-do list, a business degree, and the occasional killer pedicure!

Fantastic new world!.......1999-01-07

What a world! Plasm (magical energy) seeps up and imbues human structures with magical potential. This plasm is metered and controlled by a large, inefficient bureaucracy where our main character works. I loved this world! I read tons of fantasy and sf and always enjoy being immersed in a universe totally different than anything I've seen before. The characters are fully realized, flawed humans struggling in an all too real conflict. I eagerly await the final book in this series!

Average customer rating:

I can't stress enough how superb this book is
Erase the infamy
A veteran's story told through authentic cyberpunk.
CLASSIC Cyberpunk
Excellent Buddhist work

Voice Of The Whirlwind
Walter Jon Williams
Manufacturer: Night Shade Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Similar Items:

Hardwired
Aristoi
City on Fire
Metropolitan
Angel Station

ASIN: 1597800872

Book Description

Steward is a clone. A beta. His memories are fifteen years old, because his alpha never did have a brain-scan update. And in those fifteen years, the entire world has changed: The Orbital Policorp which held his allegiance has collapsed; dozens of his friends died in an off-planet war which he survived; an alien race has established relations with humanity; both his first and second wives have divorced him. And someone has murdered him.

Customer Reviews:

I can't stress enough how superb this book is.......2006-06-04

It's probably a good idea to take my review with a grain of salt. I like this book so much there's a passage from it tattooed on my thigh. Yes, you did read that correctly.

Walter Jon Williams is one of the heavyweights of science fiction. His characters are intellegent and engaging, and his books always have a message, but he doesn't go out of his way to beat you over the head with it.

Voice of the Whirlwind, however, is in a class by itself. It has martial arts, love, betrayal, creepy aliens, dry humor, corporate currencies, synthesized drugs, chess, self sacrifice, Uzbekistan...well, basically everything you could ask for in a relaxing, engaging read. Why this book never made the best sellers list is one of the bigger mysteries.

I could rant for hours, but the fact is, the crazier I sound, the less likely it is that you'll listen. So *please* give this one a try.

Erase the infamy.......2000-11-12

Our story starts simply enough. A clone is revived, and is found to be missing some memory. Darwin days, a time of hyper-evolution, where the weak die, from plate glass windows dropped from skyscraper and worse, forms the backdrop of the urban chaos that is the heart of any good cyberpunk novel.

What do you get when you take a young gang member out of France, put him in rigorous training of both the body and the mind in Zen without the morality, and then drop him in the middle of a war that goes bad?

You get the Whirlwind. And the voice of the Whirlwind calls to our hero across death, across 15 years of lost memory, across cultures.

Because those who sow the Wind will reap the Whirlwind, our hero is caught up in the events of a past life (his), that tears apart the current life he is trying to build.

As the reader and our hero uncover the mystery of his past life, the story builds to an inevitable conclusion.

We learn philosophy, and the trap of only getting selected pieces of philosophy. We learn what one must do to survive.

And we enjoy the book immensely.

A veteran's story told through authentic cyberpunk........2000-06-30

An intense story with three dimensional characters and realistic portrayals of action, this is a fast-paced, gritty ride into the future. This novel is based on plot and characters (not technology or glitz) and is a real literary contribution to the cyberpunk movement. An enduring classic the day it was published, it addresses issues that are common to veterans of any war--what is life like in peacetime (after the struggle) and what is the value of a so called "broken" veteran of a horrible conflict.

CLASSIC Cyberpunk.......1999-01-31

Bought this book for the cover and was pleasantly suprised by the contents. Very well written, with all the paranoia and action cyberpunk fans expect.I wish he would write more like this one.

Excellent Buddhist work.......1998-10-06

WJW is one of my favorite writers and "Voice.." is one of his best books IMHO, on par with "Hardwired" if not quite as good as "Aristoi". This book is a masterful work of Buddhist literature, made even more delightful by being written in the SF genre.

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