Scan barcode
woody4595's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
bruiserbran's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
miq33l's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
Hamilton produced a hulking work of Sci-Fi. Over almost 800 pages he develops a vision of a plausible multiplanetary future, where the backbone of the human civilization is formed on the ability to produce wormhole travel. Hamilton’s imagination is certainly detailed, as he frequently spends long passages providing detailed description of this or other aspect of his universe. It sometimes whiffed of exposition, but I never found myself bothered by it. Nevertheless, in some cases these sections could be made shorter.
One serious gripe I have with this book is the portrayal of women. Im not sure whether this vision for females is just how Hamilton tends to write them, or whether it’s the outcome of his vision for the future - but regardless, I would like to see some more variety, and less focus on just one aspect of their personalities.
There is a passage in the middle of the book which describes something like first contact from the perspective of the alien. It is one of the scariest sections of any book in fact that I have read, probably ever. The book was worth picking up just to read this section.
Overall I would comfortably recommend this book. It reads well, presents a detailed (and hopeful) vision of the future of humanity as interstellar species. I will be getting the second book - Judas Unchained.
Hamilton produced a hulking work of Sci-Fi. Over almost 800 pages he develops a vision of a plausible multiplanetary future, where the backbone of the human civilization is formed on the ability to produce wormhole travel. Hamilton’s imagination is certainly detailed, as he frequently spends long passages providing detailed description of this or other aspect of his universe. It sometimes whiffed of exposition, but I never found myself bothered by it. Nevertheless, in some cases these sections could be made shorter.
One serious gripe I have with this book is the portrayal of women. Im not sure whether this vision for females is just how Hamilton tends to write them, or whether it’s the outcome of his vision for the future - but regardless, I would like to see some more variety, and less focus on just one aspect of their personalities.
There is a passage in the middle of the book which describes something like first contact from the perspective of the alien. It is one of the scariest sections of any book in fact that I have read, probably ever. The book was worth picking up just to read this section.
Overall I would comfortably recommend this book. It reads well, presents a detailed (and hopeful) vision of the future of humanity as interstellar species. I will be getting the second book - Judas Unchained.
joshhall13's review against another edition
2.0
Tried twice, abandoned twice. This story just meanders too much.
geekwayne's review against another edition
4.0
'Pandora's Star' by Peter F. Hamilton was the March book for my book club and I am woefully behind on finally finishing it. Regardless of that, I did enjoy it.
This 768 page sprawling novel takes place in 2380 when humans have inhabited planets and learned to extend their lives, but are still humans in many flawed ways. A disappearing planet begins a voyage of discovery, but what is found may not be so beneficial to humans.
There is enough content here for a couple books. There are lots of characters to follow and as one friend stated it "a very long camping trip." I enjoyed the journey and I'm glad I finally got around to reading this book.
This 768 page sprawling novel takes place in 2380 when humans have inhabited planets and learned to extend their lives, but are still humans in many flawed ways. A disappearing planet begins a voyage of discovery, but what is found may not be so beneficial to humans.
There is enough content here for a couple books. There are lots of characters to follow and as one friend stated it "a very long camping trip." I enjoyed the journey and I'm glad I finally got around to reading this book.
adhalliday22's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
karinlib's review against another edition
3.0
Prior to reading Pandora's Star, I read [b:Great North Road|13573419|Great North Road|Peter F. Hamilton|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1344371600l/13573419._SY75_.jpg|19154394], which I really enjoyed. I was a little disappointed with this one. I kept putting this down and reading other books. I found that some of the storylines were more interesting than others.
The book started off really well: An astronomer, while observing the night sky, sees a star completely vanish. Then the book slows down to a crawl with a huge cast of characters, political machinations, rejuvenations, wealthy dynasties, and sexism.
I will read [b:Judas Unchained|45244|Judas Unchained (Commonwealth Saga, #2)|Peter F. Hamilton|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1316501189l/45244._SY75_.jpg|44507] because I want to read [b:The Dreaming Void|866136|The Dreaming Void|Peter F. Hamilton|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1440047585l/866136._SY75_.jpg|851537] for a buddy read.
The book started off really well: An astronomer, while observing the night sky, sees a star completely vanish. Then the book slows down to a crawl with a huge cast of characters, political machinations, rejuvenations, wealthy dynasties, and sexism.
I will read [b:Judas Unchained|45244|Judas Unchained (Commonwealth Saga, #2)|Peter F. Hamilton|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1316501189l/45244._SY75_.jpg|44507] because I want to read [b:The Dreaming Void|866136|The Dreaming Void|Peter F. Hamilton|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1440047585l/866136._SY75_.jpg|851537] for a buddy read.
billymac1962's review against another edition
2.0
Nope.
Alright, I can see that this novel plus its sequel Judas Unchained combine to make a very good Sci-Fi story. But I can also see many complaints that the time and effort to get there were pushing the bounds of worthwhile reading.
Last Saturday morning I spent two hours reading about a recreational glider flight. Okay, fine.
Still I pushed on. And on. Checking my progress: 9%...........10%.........10%........10%.......10%......10%...........11%, you get the picture.
Once I hit 14% I started checking out more reviews that matched my experience. Many of these reviewers made it to the end of the tale, and were happy. A few were not and blamed the attention to detail of every fringe character, event and setting.
I envy those who can read quickly enough that they can knock down doorstops like this and walk away with a good overall story in their head, but my reading time is at such a premium and I'm not getting any younger.
I'm disappointed that I'll never get this whole story in my head because I'm sure it's fantastic, but I just can't look forward to another 1800 pages or so while there are so many other books on my list I'm excited about. I've moved on to something else and am very happy with it so far, so it was a good call to pull the pin on this one.
This is my second strikeout with Hamilton, and too bad. I love his ideas and storylines. Just way too bloated for me.
Alright, I can see that this novel plus its sequel Judas Unchained combine to make a very good Sci-Fi story. But I can also see many complaints that the time and effort to get there were pushing the bounds of worthwhile reading.
Last Saturday morning I spent two hours reading about a recreational glider flight. Okay, fine.
Still I pushed on. And on. Checking my progress: 9%...........10%.........10%........10%.......10%......10%...........11%, you get the picture.
Once I hit 14% I started checking out more reviews that matched my experience. Many of these reviewers made it to the end of the tale, and were happy. A few were not and blamed the attention to detail of every fringe character, event and setting.
I envy those who can read quickly enough that they can knock down doorstops like this and walk away with a good overall story in their head, but my reading time is at such a premium and I'm not getting any younger.
I'm disappointed that I'll never get this whole story in my head because I'm sure it's fantastic, but I just can't look forward to another 1800 pages or so while there are so many other books on my list I'm excited about. I've moved on to something else and am very happy with it so far, so it was a good call to pull the pin on this one.
This is my second strikeout with Hamilton, and too bad. I love his ideas and storylines. Just way too bloated for me.