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gossamerwingedgazelle's review
5.0
What a wonderful book! It is kind of a military sci-fi mystery. My main complaint is that the switch between describing a text and the words of the text was very unclear. It could have just been my version though. Nonetheless, a very good story.
timinbc's review
4.0
This is a good book, but if you have a friend who's about to read it you should issue a warning. It's not exactly loaded with rail guns and photon cannons and nail-biting action. But it worked for me. We're selling our house, and it's a tense time with a LOT of work to do, and this book was JUST right.
It's a mystery that happens to be set in an interstellar future. McDevitt treats all the futurist parts of it as if they had been routine for decades. Hyperspace, virtual reality headbands ... as ordinary as a toaster. Heck, the whole book could have been rewritten to star a Sussex vicar trying to find out if Borgatrix and his woad-coated warriors really did fight off the Romans.
I've been re-reading some of my other 1980s novels, and they all have a similar comfy I'll-tell-you-a-story feel to them. I guess it would be a while longer before we got into darker stuff.
Benedict gets stuff done, steadily and without sparks, and slowly reasons his way through things. Unlike many book heroes, he never does the leap-of-logic thing -- "Hmm, a teaspoon and a smudged footprint ... aha! He's in the abandoned tunnel at the north end of the Shoreditch Tube station, and he has three hostages, one in a pink dress and another with mismatched socks!"
I don't remember much about other Benedict novels I've read, but I suspect I agree with others here that Chase makes a better narrator.
Worth reading, but save it for when you need to slow down a tad.
It's a mystery that happens to be set in an interstellar future. McDevitt treats all the futurist parts of it as if they had been routine for decades. Hyperspace, virtual reality headbands ... as ordinary as a toaster. Heck, the whole book could have been rewritten to star a Sussex vicar trying to find out if Borgatrix and his woad-coated warriors really did fight off the Romans.
I've been re-reading some of my other 1980s novels, and they all have a similar comfy I'll-tell-you-a-story feel to them. I guess it would be a while longer before we got into darker stuff.
Benedict gets stuff done, steadily and without sparks, and slowly reasons his way through things. Unlike many book heroes, he never does the leap-of-logic thing -- "Hmm, a teaspoon and a smudged footprint ... aha! He's in the abandoned tunnel at the north end of the Shoreditch Tube station, and he has three hostages, one in a pink dress and another with mismatched socks!"
I don't remember much about other Benedict novels I've read, but I suspect I agree with others here that Chase makes a better narrator.
Worth reading, but save it for when you need to slow down a tad.
cecile87's review
4.0
It's been a while since I read this book, but I do recall liking it. I like Jack McDevitt's future--all people are equal be they of a different skin color or gender.
Although I know I can expect a few set pieces in all of his books where there is some major space-oriented acrobatics, and although some of his books can go on a bit too long, I have read all of them save one, which I will get to soon.
Although I know I can expect a few set pieces in all of his books where there is some major space-oriented acrobatics, and although some of his books can go on a bit too long, I have read all of them save one, which I will get to soon.
manx's review
3.0
The prose of the book and the sci fi elements of the story were phenomenal. I had a hard time being invested in the story until the last 100 pages, but the ending had an execellant plot twist and was very satisfying. But I found that a prefer more tension and action to the plot than there was. I would classify this story as a sci fi mystery novel.
leflambeur's review
4.0
Great writing, pretty good characters and an interesting plot. Enjoyed quite a bit.
john_huppenthal's review
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
This is a fascinating story told in a kind of baffling way. So much of the narrative is told through the main character doing research. What his story is really about, the themes behind it, don’t become apparent until the last 15 pages or so. And it’s a really interesting turn to take! But the book gets there far too late making the most interesting ideas feel more like an afterthought than the point of the whole thing.
joshhall13's review against another edition
3.0
There's more going on here. A subtext that I really wish I listened for at the very beginning, since I feel like I missed out on it. A good candidate for a re-read through a contemporary filter.
geekwayne's review
4.0
A solid future history novel, this was my first McDevitt and certainly not my last.
When Alex Benedict's estranged uncle dies in a hyperspace accident, he leaves behind information on the archaeological find he was working on. The nature of it means it has to be picked up from his uncle's house. Before Alex can get to the house, thieves have broken in and stolen the information. Alex is left to reconstruct the information with the help of sophisticated house AI, named Joseph, and his uncle's business partner.
The mystery surrounds events that happened 200 years before during a war with a telepathic alien race. Although the war is long over, the peace is tenuous and shaky. Benedict walks in the path of ancient war heroes and traitors to uncover a startling truth.
It all works rather well, with the exception of a femme fatale character that is somewhat of a minor character to the grander story. What works is the futuristic world with it's artists, poets, historians, heroes and breathtaking sweep of time and space. The story even ties back in to Hellenistic Greece in a really nice way.
I started reading this series because book 6 was just nominated for the Nebula. It seemed the right time to discover McDevitt, and I wasn't disappointed.
When Alex Benedict's estranged uncle dies in a hyperspace accident, he leaves behind information on the archaeological find he was working on. The nature of it means it has to be picked up from his uncle's house. Before Alex can get to the house, thieves have broken in and stolen the information. Alex is left to reconstruct the information with the help of sophisticated house AI, named Joseph, and his uncle's business partner.
The mystery surrounds events that happened 200 years before during a war with a telepathic alien race. Although the war is long over, the peace is tenuous and shaky. Benedict walks in the path of ancient war heroes and traitors to uncover a startling truth.
It all works rather well, with the exception of a femme fatale character that is somewhat of a minor character to the grander story. What works is the futuristic world with it's artists, poets, historians, heroes and breathtaking sweep of time and space. The story even ties back in to Hellenistic Greece in a really nice way.
I started reading this series because book 6 was just nominated for the Nebula. It seemed the right time to discover McDevitt, and I wasn't disappointed.
billymac1962's review
1.0
DNF’d at 25% in. As most reviews have warned, this story is told in a very dull manner. I bought this and Polaris at the same time so hopefully that one is much better once I decide to get to it. Disappointing, though. Even with the reviews I had read I still thought this would float my boat.
kreppen's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0