The Serpent's Shadow (Elemental Masters, Book 1)

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Mercedes Lackey returns to form in The Serpent's Shadow, the fourth in her sequence of reimagined fairy tales. This story takes place in the London of 1909, and is based on "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." Lackey creates echoes of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, pays affectionate homage to Dorothy Sayers's Lord Peter Wimsey (who plays an important role under a thin disguise), and turns the dwarves into seven animal avatars who masquerade as pets of her Eurasian heroine, Maya.

Some of Maya's challenges come from the fact that she is not "snow white," and she has fled India for her father's English homeland after the suspicious deaths of her parents. Establishing her household in London, she returns to her profession as a physician, working among the poor. Her "pets" and loyal servants stand guard, and Maya herself uses what bits of magic she managed to pick up in childhood to weave otherworldly defenses as well. But the implacable enemy who killed her parents has come to London to search for her; if Maya can be enslaved, her enormous potential powers can be used to the enemy's ends. Fortunately, English magicians of the White Lodge have also noted a new, powerful presence in their midst, though they're having trouble locating her, too. They send Peter Scott, a Water Master, to track her down. He finds Maya beautiful and benign, and is determined to teach her to use the Western magic she is heir to, before her enemy discovers her.

Some will find the author's Kiplingesque descriptions of India and Hindustani culture offensive. Lackey describes Maya's enemy as a powerful devotee of the goddess Kali-Durga, though she carefully shows that the avatars of the other deities will not attack her, and has Kali-Durga repudiate her servant in the climactic confrontation. And, though the story is layered, its surface is as glossy and brightly colored as an action comic. But readers who enjoy late Victorian London, Sayers, Sherlock Holmes stories, and a page-turning tale will want to take this one home. --Nona Vero

Book Description

From the magical mysteries of India to the gaslit streets of Victorian London, Mercedes Lackey's unique departure from her Valdemar series follows a young woman doctor as she searches for the secret behind the sorcery in her blood.

Customer Reviews:

Almost there.......2007-04-22

Based on the fairy-tale "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (although I personally wouldn't make that reference because it makes you expect something that it's not) this story is in the time of the Suffragettes, in the heart of the movement, London. Maya Witherspoon enters England following the shocking death of her parents, an English doctor and Hindu mage, to establish herself as a physician. Inherited from her mother, Maya knows a bit of magic, which she uses to defend herself (she lives in the poorer side of town) and for small healings.

The English Masters of the White Lodge are not ignorant; they sense the magic and its foreign scent. They send Water Master Peter Scott to inspect the disturbance, and he is shocked to find a beautiful woman.
Immediately attracted, he begins to teach her what he knows about magic. Together, they soon suspect the presence of another outlander in London. An unwanted other.

With her seven pets to protect her, Maya sets about revisiting the past and discovering the truth of her parents' death, ultimately endangering herself. She soon finds she is in over her head, until all the mysteries are solved and she realizes what she needs to do to survive. What she needs to do to fight.

Eh. It was good, and it moved pretty fast, but I feel like there needed to be something more. It seemed like Maya's character was a little shallow, but Shivani's is the worst. She's so stereotypical and probably even a little offensive to the Hindu culture. I just wished for a more innovative character. Then I would've given it 4 stars!

But beyond that there's all the historical blabber. I know it sets the setting (ha), but I didn't like the Suffragette thing. It was all just too much.

All in all, it didn't bomb. Sure, there were some things that irked me, but it's still an enjoyable story. It's not much of a retelling, but more like its own original plot. For any Mercedes Lackey fans, you know what to expect, and you'll like it. I just didn't love it.

A Lovely Read.......2007-03-28

This book is pleasantly creepy. The spookiness of gaslit London and the romance of mystic India combine to make an atmospheric adventure. Nice details create a sense of being there. How I'd love a place like Maya's conservatory, complete with tropical plants and magical animals! The story isn't too fairy-taleish until the apple seller appears near the end. All in all the story is a fun read.

Begining the Elemental Masters series with this one........2007-03-07

Back in those long ago days when I was a teen, I came across the work of Mercedes Lackey and her tales of young teenagers coming of age in a land of magic. But after a time, I became rather bored with her stories, seeing them as mostly the same tale being told over and over again, with very little change in the characters, and most of them being badly abused by their families -- a topic that had absolutely no interest for me. So I didn't bother with picking up her novels, until recently, when I read one of her adaptations of traditional fairy tales revised into tales of sorcery in Edwardian England -- a place and time that I am very fond of reading about.

And I was hooked. The settings and history, while sometimes skewed about a little from what I had known, were well detailed and full of colour, the characters were well drawn, and while some of Lackey's earlier flaws peeked through, the stories were enough to entertain me for an evening or two.

The first book that was published was The Serpent's Shadow. Set in London, in 1909, it's an England that is somewhat close to our own, but with a few vital twists. For one, Magic works, based around the idea of the four elements -- Earth, Air, Fire and Water -- and being able to draw on these forces, along with coaxing or commanding the help of the paranormal creatures that inhabit them. Into this world comes Maya Witherspoon, a young doctor from Delhi, India who is determined to not just practice medicine but to do everything that she can be able to.

But Maya isn't just a budding feminist, but also a magician. Accompanied by an assortment of pets -- an owl, a haruman monkey, a peacock and a pair of mongoose amoung them -- she has settled into one of the poorer parts of London, and woven spells of protection around her home. And Maya more to worry about than just coping with the male chauvinists in her profession -- for a family secret is literally haunting her, seeking to punish her for the sins of her parents -- an English doctor and a lovely Hindu woman, who defied society on both sides and married.

But she is not entirely alone, for when her magic attracts the attention of London's White Lodge, a Master of Water is sent to investigate. Peter Scott is a retired sea captain who now runs an antiquities shop and import business, and when he meets Maya there's a mutual attraction between them both.

Finally, there is the wider world outside of the one that Peter and Maya move in -- several other characters from the series make an appearance, from the leader of the White Lodge, Lord Alderscroft, who doesn't think that women have a place in the more formal world of magic; Lord Peter Almsley, Peter Scott's "twin" and fellow Water Master, and several other characters who make a very brief appearance. There are other touches of the 'modern' world, from the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb, the intrusion of motorcars, and the Sufferagette movement, albeit not always in the familiar chronological order that we know them in. While the tone does get a bit strident at times, especially when it comes to the oppression of women, the lower classes, the poor, the Indians, and indeed, all minorities, it does lend to the realism of the story, and helped to create the sense of place and time.

The magic is also well done, working in touches of both Eastern and Western occultism, but the story isn't all about combat between rivals, but also has moments of pure colour -- most intriguing for me is the glimpse of the Selkies in Scotland.

While the story is certainly an old classic, and not that hard to figure out, I did like the way that Lackey gave it a twist or two. The biggest problem with the story is that the villains of the piece, the wicked Shivani, is pretty much a bloodthirsty one note throughout, determined to evict the English from India by any means possible, and preferably by sorcery -- unhappily, Lackey tends to do this, and it gives little balance to the story, as evil is so evil that it ends up being very flat. That's a pity, as with some more effort and care, Lackey could easily come up with intricate characters if she so chose to do so.

What I did like about this is that so far, each novel in the series that I've read has been a stand-alone. There is no need to have read the previous works to grasp what is going on, and while characters from the other books do make appearances, it's more of a cameo, rather than a full blown character.

I appriciate that Lackey is taking her time with this series, and trying to get it right, rather than just churning out yet another fantasy novel to meet her contractual obligations with her publishers.

Recommended.

Lovin Every Minute of It.......2007-01-14

I LOVE this book! Lackey does it again with taking a familiar tale and adding quite a bit of her own imagination to the mix to create something enchantingly new. After I read about Maya, I had to read about the others in the Elemental Masters series (I started reading this series rather late). Now I own the four that are published (and might have to buy new ones soon if my creases get any deeper) and am most eagerly waiting to see if Lackey will delight us with a fifth!

A Eurasian Fairytale?.......2006-08-12

The Serpent's Shadow (2001) is the first Fantasy novel in the Elemental Masters series. In this volume, Miss Maya Witherspoon has come to Edwardian England to escape enemies in India. The daughter of an English physician and a Brahmin healer, Maya was her father's assistant from her teens and later trained in medicine in that country. Her mother, however, refused to teach her the magic of her homeland, insisting that Maya learn the magic of her father's country.

Maya fled from India to escape her mother's twin sister; she just didn't have enough power to confront this enemy who may have killed her mother and who has certainly killed her father. She has also brought with her a few of her household -- Gupta and his son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren -- as well as her mother's pets. Using her mother's jewelry, she has bought a house in the East End and has converted it into an office and home. She has also placed as much protection on the property as possible with her few magical skills.

Amelia Drew is Maya's friend and a fervent suffragette who is studying at the London School of Medicine for Women. She keeps trying to get Maya to march in the "Votes for Women" rallies, but Maya keeps refusing her invitations. Then women on a hunger strike are force-fed and one of them dies from the crude technique. Maya is familiar with this cruel method and joins the march out of protest at this denial of basic liberties.

Peter Scott is the former master of a merchant vessel and is now the owner of an import shop dealing in Egyptian wares. When asked by the head of the White Lodge in London to locate the source of a magical disturbance in the East End, Scott tracks down the magical emanations to Maya's office/home. He goes into the building requesting help with his bad knee, but gives himself away when he first comes face to face with Maya.

After his initial moment of astonishment and delight, Scott confesses his ruse and eventually tells all. After an extended discussion, he realizes that Maya is an untrained mage. Since she is a half-blood, no reputable guru in India would accept her as a chela; thus, while she practices magic, her works are a patchwork of various enchantments that she has picked up on the streets.

Scott convinces her to let him instruct her in the basics of Elemental Magic. Gupta is exceedingly pleased, since he knows that she will need such powers to face her aunt. As Scott begins teaching her the basics of Western magic, he also begins to see Maya as a lovely young lady and gradually falls in love with her. Unknown to him, Maya is beginning to feel the same love for him.

This novel is about the plight of women in English society under Edward VII. Not only did women not have the right to vote, but were treated essentially as chattel, first to their fathers and then to their husbands. If their fathers and husbands died, then they were prey to any man willing to have them declared incompetent in court. Obviously the first step had to be getting the vote so as to change the laws!

The similarities between this story and the fairytale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is very slight. Aside from a mirror-slave and a witch selling apples, the storyline is nothing like that of the fairytale. Indeed, the role of the seven pets was not anything like that of the seven dwarves; these "pets" were actually the avatars of hindu gods.

BTW, India has fairytales of its own. A great many fairytales from the varied cultures and religions of this subcontinent. Maybe the author will import a few to this country.

Highly recommended for Lackey fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of magic, women's liberation and romance.

-Arthur W. Jordin

Hercules: Serpent's Shadow (Penguin Readers, Level 2)

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Hercules & Iolaus: Partners In Print
This book captures the characters' relationship quite well.
let down
A semi-interesting diversion for fans only.

Hercules: Serpent's Shadow (Penguin Readers, Level 2)
Boggs
Manufacturer: Pearson ESL
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0582401313

Customer Reviews:

Hercules & Iolaus: Partners In Print.......1999-05-18

I could be wrong but I think this is the first of the Timothy Boggs H:TLJ novels to actually have Hercules paired with his best buddy, Iolaus. And - if I do say so myself - it was about time! "Serpent's Shadows" is fun read. The duo are faced with a multitude of problems, not the least being a sea serpent who has a thing about chewing on pretty maidens. It's an enjoyable read about our heroes, as a team, doing what they do best. The dialogue is typical between characters, if a little predictable, but warming. Hercules has his god-family problems and Iolaus gets the attention of a beautiful girl who, unfortunately for the stressed hunter-warrior, sees him as a perfect marital prospect. The final battle with the serpent is well written. You can almost feel the splash of salt water and the mental and physical strain that is put on both Herc and Iolaus. If you're interested in reading these tie-in books I suggest this be your first -- It's the best.

This book captures the characters' relationship quite well........1999-03-18

The characterizations of both Hercules and Iolaus were quite well done. Iolaus's fun-loving nature leads to some refreshingly light-hearted moments. The plot, too,is very interesting, introducing another of the gods with whom Hercules has a relationship of sorts, Poseidon.

let down.......1998-04-30

This was bought because of the tv tie in, we all felt let down by this disjointed story.

A semi-interesting diversion for fans only........1998-02-18

While only a marginal fantasy novel, fans of the show may enjoy the brief moments when the flavor of the show is captured. Other times, the main characters (Hercules and Iolaus) don't really act like themselves and there's not much tension. The supporting characters are rather weak and somewhat stereotypical. It's a pity, but the book seems to be geared toward a very young audience and thus may hold its greatest appeal in a pre-teen to teen market segment. Check out the synopsis for a plot summary. [Note: This is my first attempt at reading a novel based on this show, which I happen to really like, and will be giving another book in the series a try]

Barnabas, Quentin and the Serpent (DARK SHADOWS)

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Barnabas, Quentin and the Serpent (DARK SHADOWS)

Manufacturer: PAPERBACK LIBRARY GOTHIC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000BRNF4U

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BRANABAS ENGAGES IN MORTAL BATTLE TO RID COLLINWOOD OF THE CURSE OF AN ANCIENT MONSTER

The King's Shadow (AKA The Serpent and the Dove)

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The King's Shadow (AKA The Serpent and the Dove)
Judith Polley
Manufacturer: J. M. Dent
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Historical | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0460042637

The Serpent and the Dove (formerly, The King's Shadow)

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The Serpent and the Dove (formerly, The King's Shadow)

Manufacturer: Dell Publishing Co., Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: 0440146151

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Serpent In The Shadow
A. F. Barron
Manufacturer: Berkley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0425024776

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A Wonderfully Romantic dark story.

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SERPENT'S SHADOW
MERCEDES LACKEY
Manufacturer: New American Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000KKX84U

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SERPENT'S SHADOW
MERCEDES LACKEY
Manufacturer: DAW Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000LL61HE

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Serpent's Shadow

Manufacturer: Turtleback Books Distributed by Demco Media
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0606275398

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Serpents Shadow
Mercedes Lackey
Manufacturer: PENGUIN PUTNAM * TRADE
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000UCG5ES

Book Description

Be careful what you wish for.After what seemed like a lifetime of waiting, the Remnants are back on Earth---for better or worse. Yago has taken control of Mother and stranded the Remnants along with their ruthless enemies the Riders and Meanies to keep them company. Meanwhile, Jobs discovers that Earth has some ‘remnants’ of its own humans who don’t know any world other than the new Earth. Will the survivors of the Rock help the remaining Remnants? Or does a new enemy lurk on the horizon?

Customer Reviews:

What happened to research?.......2005-07-04

K.A. has forgoten one of the most important things when she wrote the Remnant series. Realism. The first book was by far the best in the series, a book that I liked more then most of the animorphs books even. Then, something happened. I lost my connection with the setting as soon as I figured out the nature of the "planet" the Remnants reside on.

One of the main selling points of animorphs was the realism. You felt that these yeerks could possibly be right next door, or even in your town.

I know it's not right to compare an author's series, but I personally agree with the reviewer below. I should never of had to force myself to "go along" with the story sometimes. The events and other things that happend were just so far out there I lost interest. It would have been much more interesting if they had landed on a -real- planet and had maybe found some sort of spacecraft on it latter.

Despite these points, I must say that K.A. is still a riveting writer. If you are a K.A. or Animorphs fan I reccomend you read/buy the first book and the second to see if you will like the series.

A dark, depressing, intruiging page-turner.......2003-10-09

After Lost and Found this book manages to rise above its predecessor in quality, but delves even deeper into Applegate's dark, depressing, intruiging story.

Stranded on the post-apocalyptic, rather inhospitable Earth, the remaining Remnants struggle to survive, though it seems unlikely. How they manage to survive, not just on Earth, but through the rather cataclysmic pychotropic Dream Storm. . . well, that's why you read the book.

This is the last book where D-Caf makes a significant appearnace, and where we get our first in depth look at the Alphas, survivors of the apocalypse, and most particularly Echo, and a look our first look at the Marauders, the other group of survivors, although their society is covered more in the next book.

The book is extremely dark, especially with the scenes with the older kids, but I couldn't put the book down, and the characters, for once, are so desperate and extreme as to seem slightly more than two-dimensional for once, and the ending only leaves you wanting more. Even if you're not a Remnants fan, this book should offer an interesting read.

Only good for sci-fi fans.......2003-04-12

I read this book in one day and really enjoyed it. It has a intersting storyline and many deaths. If you like sci-fi books and surival books then you will enjoy this. One problem. Way to short. I finished this book in three hours. Still recommened it.

Still got the same ol' feelin.......2003-03-04

Remants one opened up and had a pretty good story that I thought would open up an even greater series than the author's previous series, Animorphs and Everworld. Remnants ended up being wierd and started to get weirder and weirder by every book.
Now, the books started to level off after awhile, but then they returned to earth and things started to get wierder. This book has just thrown the series back into the wierd phase. I always used to get weirded out when i would read earlier remnant books(#2-#8). I would always feel wierded out and like i was in the twilight zone. I would have to psyche myself out before reading one of these books.
This book is interesting until they experience the "dream storm". This is described as a psychoenergetic storm or something like that. It isnt really plausible( even less so than previous things in remnants) It was kinda wierd and It got me disoriented towards the end of the book of where the characters really were and what was really happening.
I never really liked the nickname urself mindframe that seems to have taken over the kids. What happened to plain ol Roger, Jim, John, Samantha, or the like. It bothered me that some of the earth remnants(the ones that stayed behind) seemed to have stayed in that mindset but some of them had slightly normal names which somewhat pleased me.
Im just glad that were away from "mother" ( probably jsut temporarily) the end of the book promises that maybe it wont get as wierd as it was aboard mother and that the story can get more interesting.
Overall, this book was okay and I'm just reading the series to see what happens instead of being totally interested in the series. In the end, this book just left me with the same ol feelin.

Magic School Bus Chapter Book Boxed Set 9-16 (Science series - Butterfly Battle, Voyage to the Volcano, Electric Storm, Polar Bear Patrol, Amazing Magnetism, ... Under, Dinosaur Detectives, Books 9-16)

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Magic School Bus Chapter Book Boxed Set 9-16 (Science series - Butterfly Battle, Voyage to the Volcano, Electric Storm, Polar Bear Patrol, Amazing Magnetism, ... Under, Dinosaur Detectives, Books 9-16)

Manufacturer: Scholastic
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0439688760

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Self Reliance
How to fix a boat while sailing around the world

Storm Passage: Alone Around Cape Horn
Webb Chiles
Manufacturer: Times Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0812907035

Customer Reviews:

Self Reliance.......1999-12-06

"Storm Passage",A great sea story,one of which I read of many years ago,one I'd like to read again.Its a narrative about Survival and resourcfullness at sea. An important work about single handed sailing.

How to fix a boat while sailing around the world.......1998-12-22

This book gave me confidance in the Ericson 37, which my family owns and often sail in Lake Huron. After learning about some of Webb's adventures at sea my father and I took much of his advice and improved our boat so we would not experience any of the problems he delt with in his circumnavigation. It is true that with a lifetime of sailing in Michigan Waters we would not inflict as much wear and tear on our boat as he did his but it was nice to know what the old girl could take.

The book was a story about one man and his ability to take a racing sail boat and sail it around the world. The problem is that this boat was not a blue water cruiser. Many of the problems he encountered along the way were due to the fact that the boat was not designed for this type of abuse. In a normal sail on Sunday afternoon you might sail 20 miles around a protected lake. Webb sailed his Ericson 37 8,000 miles around the Cape. All of which was beating to weather. I admire his determination and feel connected to his adventure due to the years spent on her sister ship.

Book Description

During the heroic age of Antarctic exploration, Dutch artist Willem van der Does talked his way aboard a Norwegian whaler and made a daring, often dangerous voyage to Antarctica in 1923. "Storms, Ice, and Whales" is the riveting eyewitness account of his nine-month ocean journey, including 141 original illustrations by Van der Does.

At once adventure story and natural history, Van der Does's tale is alive with the sights and sounds of his exploits, also revealing the many powerful emotions that he experienced during this epic trip. The first Dutchman ever to set foot in Antarctica, Van der Does grippingly captures the excitement, fascination, and fear generated by life in the coldest place on earth. His travelogue chronicles an amazing range of adventures, from the harpooning and processing of whales at sea to a ski trip atop the forbidding Ross Ice Shelf, and he renders much of what he saw in distinctive pen-and-ink illustrations that enliven every chapter.

First published in the Dutch East Indies in 1934 and later in the Netherlands, this historical gem is now available in English for the first time. The book has been expertly translated by Ruth van Baak Griffioen, who also contributes a preface containing firsthand anecdotes about Van der Does the man and highlighting the fascinating story of how she came to know and translate this book of his.

An entertaining, vividly realistic memoir and visual journal of whaling life, "Storms, Ice, and Whales" will appeal to a wide range of readers.

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Wild Weather (Kingfisher Voyages)
Caroline Harris , and Warren Faidley
Manufacturer: Kingfisher
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Nonfiction | Weather | Nature | Science, Nature & How It Works | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
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Space (Kingfisher Voyages)

ASIN: 0753459116

Book Description

Join the world-renowned tornado chaser and weather photographer Warren Faidley, who will be your guide as you explore the world's most extreme environments in this innovative new book. Visit Tornado Alley in the United States and take a close-up look at how these deadly twisters form. Find out from Warren what it's like to be a storm-chaser, and learn about monsoons, tsunamis, blizzards, mirages, and the effects of weather phenomena like El Nio. Investigate the wildest and the worst weather Mother Nature has to offer with the man they call the "Cyclone Cowboy"!

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An enjoyable thriller.
An enjoyable thriller.

Voyage of the Storm
Bart Davis
Manufacturer: Pocket
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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Dark Pacific

ASIN: 0671769057

Book Description

A vintage attack sub rises from the grave to torpedo a deadly terrorist plot!

Admiral Peter MacKenzie has stood at the helm of the most advanced submarines in the world -- the U.S. Navy's nuclear-powered lords of the sea. Now, when Hawaii and America's Pacific coast are at risk, he has but one vessel under his command: the H.M.S. Storm, a World War II sub salvaged from the bottom of the sea.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff in Washington have assigned Admiral MacKenzie to oversee the transfer of a shipment of plutonium from Russia to Japan. But fanatic Japanese terrorists have hijacked the deadly cargo in mid-ocean. Isolated on a South Seas island, MacKenzie and a small band of survivors are determined to raise the Storm and sink the terrorists before they unleash a ring of deadly fire.

Success could come at a terrible price: The terrorists have taken hostages, among them Peter MacKenzie's CIA agent wife, bearing their unborn child. The Storm is underway -- and it's a voyage into hell.

Customer Reviews:

An enjoyable thriller........1999-01-30

This is only the second book I have read by this author, the other being 'Blind Prophet' at least 10 years ago, but I couldn't help seeing a similarity between this author and Clive Cussler. This is not a bad thing as I like Cussler too.

The story takes place in the Pacific Ocean, when a ship carrying a cargo of plutonium from Russia to Japan is hijacked by a group of Japanese terrorists, who want to remind the world of the effects of nuclear devastation.

The remainder of the book follows the trials and tribulations of the passengers who are being held hostage and of the hostage takers themselves, as a race begins with one side building a bomb and the other trying to prevent it. There is a section in the book that is a bit implausible to me, this being what the five men achieve on the island, but then without this achievement, there would be no story.

It took me a few chapters to get into the swing of this book, but once I did, I thoroughly enjoyed the story. There is some nice ingenuity shown by the captives, both on the boat and the island. The expected conflict within the terrorist group was handled well, as are a couple of the bad guys that pop up in the most unexpected of places.

If you like books by people such as Tom Clancy and Clive Cussler, then you will probably like Bart Davis' works too. IMO, it's not quite as good as a Cussler book, simply because the reader has to work that little bit harder to make it through the story.

This book only gets 3.5 because although I enjoyed the story, I had to work at reading the book a little more than I really wanted to.

David Lucas (davidlu@sco.com).

An enjoyable thriller........1999-01-30

This book only gets 3.5 because although I enjoyed the story, I had to work at reading the book a little more than I really wanted to.

Amazon.com

David Herter dazzles in his first novel, Ceres Storm, the leadoff of a series. Herter tells a huge and complex space opera in relatively few words, allowing the reader to fill in the blanks without sacrificing narrative integrity. In this age of ever-larger science fiction and fantasy novels, the effect is breathtaking, an ice cube down the genre's back.

Ceres Storm is the story of Daric, a boy whose entire existence has been encompassed by a modest compound on Mars with some orange trees, a lake, his older brother Jonas, and a thinking statue he calls Grandpapa. When Daric is sent on a mysterious errand to the city, he buys a knowledge drink that connects him intimately with the starlines between planets and suns and sets him on a crash course with a startling destiny. For it seems Daric is a clone of the Leader, a conquering hero of yore who ruled the far reaches of space before a vast and powerful nanostorm destroyed much of the inner solar system. A powerful interplanetary cartel, the Kay-Tees, is after Daric's genetic material to reconquer his former empire.

Herter blends biological and mechanical detail in a compelling fashion to give the reader a strong sense of distant time. When Daric travels to Earth, he sees the deadly wonders that the engulfing nanostorm has made:

With each step the castle became clearer; perhaps it was made of birds, the hundreds winging overhead, flecks of ash caught in clear water, drifting down toward the castle, darkening the red and gold into a hue called Tyrian purple, into black etched with silver, the small arches of windows gleaming like inset jewels, thousands of them ranked up the edifice....
"See what our infernal machines have done."

Like Gene Wolfe, Jack Vance, and others before him, David Herter has imagined a far future where humanity is both reduced and exalted. Ceres Storm is a thrilling debut and promises even more amazements to come. --Therese Littleton

Book Description

David Herter breaks into print with a first class science fiction entertainment. The human race has settled the solar system and expanded out among the stars. Daric, still a boy, has been raised in an isolated enclave on Mars, and is about to become aware of his destiny. Ceres Storm is SF adventure in the tradition of Alfred Bester, Samuel R. Delany, Roger Zelazny and John Varley.

Customer Reviews:

A read for one perfect day.......2004-06-08

What makes this extropian novel work is its limited focus on one boy's perceptions in a super-technological world which he takes for granted. The future will not be subtitled for foreign visitors! Not explained is the nature of the boy's constant companion from birth - computer chip, or just conscience? Not explained or shown is what his Grandfather is, whose care he exits at the novel's start. Not explained is the nature of a Century Rose, a beautiful object of no little value, bartered by the boy for an expensive wine, whose nature is explained -- some.

The wine puts another living voice in his head, one which constantly cries for its homeland -- homeland divided into a thousand distant places. It enables the boy to navigate on a short trip within the solar system, during which he finds only a part of the answers to who he is, where he came from, what he is expected to do, and what he will refuse to do. Throughout, there is a total lack of menace, as if the universe were a dusty, deserted museum of natural history, or as if the boy's sole concern now was with absorbing it all.

This book plays at being mysterious without the cognitive dissonance or dated hip of Neuromancer. Its flaw is that it is so short, and that the wait for a sequel has been long.

Poetic writing, weak plot.......2003-04-19

I really wanted to like this book, it has excellent style and beautiful writing. However, I hardly knew what was going on most of the time. This is partially due to the protagonist being confused, but more so by the writing itself.

However, that being said, the writing style is excellent, well formed poetic sentences drip off the page, and there is a consistent tone of wonder. The universe is well formed, if incomprehensible.

I read a ton of books, and have read a lot that are poetic yet understandable (such as Ursula K LeGuin) so was saddened by my lack of interest in the story itself. For the right reader, this is undoubtably a gem.

This is a great fun weird stuff.......2002-06-15

I loved this book. Okay, so it's not full of explaining and telling you what to think. It's a full speed ahead adventure, and sometimes the kid doesn't make sense of things, so it's hard for the reader, too. But I hear there's a sequel, so just sit tight.

Magnificent and Subtle.......2002-06-07

Don't read this book if you want your wonders spoon-fed to you. This is subtle, poetic stuff, and will fly beneath the radar of your average slack-jawed Baen-reading TV-watching fanboy. But if you have a certain amount of intelligence, and maybe insanity, then this book will be a treasure chest of wonders. And remember -- it's only the first book of a series. Not everything is meant to be clear in this one. Just hang on for the ride!

Serious waste of time.......2002-05-28

There were a few novel concepts, but mostly I was reminded of one of those horror movies where you hope everybody is murdered, and quickly, so you do not have to watch any more of it. Zelazny could say little but make you see the larger things implied - and all the more real for having come from your imagination. When Mr. Herter tries that it just looks incomplete. I abandoned it after 70 or 80 pages.

The Best Plays 1943-1944 (Includes Winged Cictory, The Innocent Voyage, Storm Operation, The Searching Wind, etc)

Average customer rating:

The Best Plays 1943-1944 (Includes Winged Cictory, The Innocent Voyage, Storm Operation, The Searching Wind, etc)
Burns (ed.) Mantle
Manufacturer: Dodd Mead
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000Q6N7K8

Average customer rating:

Dream weaver
Brad Storm
Manufacturer: StormWay Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006OULAO

High adventure: Being an account of the adventures of a printer-cowboy on the "S.S. Occidental Victory," which encountered storms in the North Atlantic ... horses to Poland and sugar to Finland

Average customer rating:

High adventure: Being an account of the adventures of a printer-cowboy on the "S.S. Occidental Victory," which encountered storms in the North Atlantic ... horses to Poland and sugar to Finland
John Wesley Clay
Manufacturer: J.W. Clay
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Finland | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0007FNUEQ

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