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dawn_marie's review against another edition
4.0
What do you get when you mix a little space saga with the western frontier, add a little sprinkle of swordplay, and a protagonist who rather write history books than lead a rebellion? Why you get Owen Deathstalker, the rather reluctant hero of Simon R. Green’s science fiction series.
ogreart's review against another edition
4.0
It is everything I have come to expect from Green's work, with the added benefit of a more complex plot. I am looking forward to continuing the series.
book_leigh's review
Very much political intrigue and these are not my kinds of stories.
jeremybost's review against another edition
3.0
It was okay, but too many POV switches for my liking. Also repeated phrases (mostly sarcastic ones).
cameronkc's review against another edition
3.0
interesting characters and a decent story line. I think I missed about 10 books before this one with lots of stories and character development...so perhaps I was a little lost. The main character's story line was underdeveloped (owen), yet could have been more interesting. This book felt a little rushed
rocketiza's review against another edition
3.0
I remember this being better when I read it back in middle school, but it was entertaining enough for a mindless space opera. It does sometimes read like it was written as serial and then collected though as the author endlessly repeats and elaborates on the same back stories and facts without really adding anything to the story.
blherrou's review
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Very fun pulp far-future adventure story. The setting features excuses for our space opera protagonists to use swords in their incredibly frequent combat encounters. Deathstalker lays it on thick and doesn't apologize. If the tropes appeal to you, you're going to love it. If you're looking for something highbrow or challenging or with nuance, you're going to hate it.
brassduke's review against another edition
3.0
If I am honest I listened to a dramatised version of this book but it was good scifi pulp.
abigcoffeedragon's review against another edition
3.0
This is very middle of the road for me - it is entertaining enough for me to finish and to read at a good pace - the learning curve is low so the reader does not get tripped up on too many out of place names or places, however, I also feel that the names were - cheesy - Owen is easy to remember, but Deathstalker - Noun-Verber it is - John Random? - Hazel Dark? sorry, I mean, D'Ark - remember, when you use an apostrophe, replace it with a *cough* -
The story is very straight ahead, and each chapter follows a single character and a third person point of view - the downside on this is that more pages are devoted to the enemy than the supposed hero, who really, he is a hero because the author makes it so, not because he does anything heroic
Simon R Green has a writing style that I enjoy, and I fly through his pages, and the characters are not horrible they are just - there - I wait patiently for more substance, but this is a high sugar and caffeine rush with no substance, and I am left hungry when the pages close -
I did finish, so that places this as a three star minimum, but I cannot give it anything higher, because as the first book in a series, it is the only one I will read - and I will likely trade it in for something else the next trip to the used book store.
The story is very straight ahead, and each chapter follows a single character and a third person point of view - the downside on this is that more pages are devoted to the enemy than the supposed hero, who really, he is a hero because the author makes it so, not because he does anything heroic
Simon R Green has a writing style that I enjoy, and I fly through his pages, and the characters are not horrible they are just - there - I wait patiently for more substance, but this is a high sugar and caffeine rush with no substance, and I am left hungry when the pages close -
I did finish, so that places this as a three star minimum, but I cannot give it anything higher, because as the first book in a series, it is the only one I will read - and I will likely trade it in for something else the next trip to the used book store.
leyaruth42's review against another edition
4.0
This book (and series I believe) truly is a parody of the Space Opera genre. There are aspects of every major sci-fi, fantasy, and space opera series I've read. There's the "young nobleman whose life is upended and he goes off on a journey and becomes a rebel against the empire" story from countless other books, but most especially from Dune. Dune's warring, intriguing families make an appearance in this book as "Clans", even down to the outright vendetta between two high ranking families (Atreides and Harkonnen = Wolf and Campbell).
The outright brutality in this story rivals that of Game of Thrones. This book takes brutality to a higher form that GOT, being outright disgusting. GOT gets a thrill with killing major beloved characters. This book just likes killing people in general, especially in very disgusting ways. The "brains exploding" parts seem to be straight out of pulp fiction from the 1910-1920s.
The "group of rebels" on a journey felt a lot like Hyperion, especially the flashbacks to their back stories. The "evil Empress" seems similar to Palpatine, although she's just basically a gross human being bent on total domination, she doesn't have any special powers like Palpatine. The Matrix makes an appearance as, you guessed it, "The Matrix", a computer-generated environment where all the internet type stuff happens. There's even the loading room from the movie (the white space).
So yes, this book is FAR from original. But nevertheless, I really enjoyed it. Having read previous reviews where people called this a parody of space opera helped me see this book in a new light. Having read A TON of sci-fi, I see all of the aspects this author is parodying. The outright humor in this book is refreshing. I definitely laughed out loud at several parts.
I'm going to continue with the story since I am thoroughly enjoying this author's take on the genre.
The outright brutality in this story rivals that of Game of Thrones. This book takes brutality to a higher form that GOT, being outright disgusting. GOT gets a thrill with killing major beloved characters. This book just likes killing people in general, especially in very disgusting ways. The "brains exploding" parts seem to be straight out of pulp fiction from the 1910-1920s.
The "group of rebels" on a journey felt a lot like Hyperion, especially the flashbacks to their back stories. The "evil Empress" seems similar to Palpatine, although she's just basically a gross human being bent on total domination, she doesn't have any special powers like Palpatine. The Matrix makes an appearance as, you guessed it, "The Matrix", a computer-generated environment where all the internet type stuff happens. There's even the loading room from the movie (the white space).
So yes, this book is FAR from original. But nevertheless, I really enjoyed it. Having read previous reviews where people called this a parody of space opera helped me see this book in a new light. Having read A TON of sci-fi, I see all of the aspects this author is parodying. The outright humor in this book is refreshing. I definitely laughed out loud at several parts.
I'm going to continue with the story since I am thoroughly enjoying this author's take on the genre.