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%T The Fortress of Eternity
%A Andrew Whitmore
%I Avon
%D November 1990
%O paperback, US$3.50
%P 251
%G 0-380-75744-3
You can judge this book by its cover. Formulaic fantasy, not redeemed by
pseudo-metaphysical maunderings in the last third. Whitmore's one touch of
originality -- deliberately writing a depressing heroic fantasy --
makes matters worse.
%T Venus Prime #5: The Diamond Moon
%A Paul Preuss and Arthur C. Clarke
%I Avon
%D November 1990
%O paperback, US$3.95
%P 278
%G 0-380-75349-9
More SF adventure and conspiratorial skulduggery as Preuss's version of the
bionic superwoman investigates an alien artifact hidden within the fifth moon
of Jupiter. The gimmick in this series is that each novel is built around
a recycled Arthur C. Clarke short story. In this one the seams are pretty
well hidden, but the series concept is definitely getting old. We do find out
more about the Prophetae, though.
%T The Mutant Season
%A Robert Silverberg & Karen Haber
%I Bantam Spectra
%D November 1990
%O paperback, US$4.95
%P 289
%G 0-553-28629-3
This ho-hum political potboiler (first of a series) is set in a
near future in which a 400-year-old group of psionically-gifted
mutants has publicly `come out' and is attempting to deal with
increasing intolerance from the `normals'. Uninteresting as SF, it
seems targeted at the `bestseller' market; it contains lots of sex,
skulduggery, and political power games. Yawn...
%T Insurrection
%A David Weber & Steve Wite
%I Baen Book
%D November 1990
%O paperback, US$4.50
%P 408
%G 0-671-72024-4
This is yet another
plucky-colony-worlds-against-decadent-oppressive-Terra space opera,
unfortunately neither as well written nor as original as last month's
Fire On The Border (RR#86). But
if you like lots of gaudy space battle scenes you'll enjoy it
anyhow. Enough said.
Up to Eric's Home Page | To Index | Fri Jan 18 16:48:25 EST 1991 |
Eric S. Raymond <esr@snark.thyrsus.com>