Scan barcode
tstevens3's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
beefmaster's review against another edition
4.0
Didn't quite understand the ending but had a blast anyway (no pun intended)
crowfood's review against another edition
4.0
Another fun volume chronicling the quest of Kirth Gerson.
Favorite quotes:
"If religions are diseases of the human psyche, as the philosopher Grimtholde asserts, then religious wars must be reckoned the resultant sores and cankers infecting the aggregate corpus of the human race. Of all wars, these are the most detestable, since they are waged for no tangible gain, but only to impose a set of arbitrary credos upon another’s mind."
"An ancient proverb stipulates that ‘he who sups with the devil should use a long spoon.’
You would seem to have attempted such a meal with a small dessert fork.”
Favorite quotes:
"If religions are diseases of the human psyche, as the philosopher Grimtholde asserts, then religious wars must be reckoned the resultant sores and cankers infecting the aggregate corpus of the human race. Of all wars, these are the most detestable, since they are waged for no tangible gain, but only to impose a set of arbitrary credos upon another’s mind."
"An ancient proverb stipulates that ‘he who sups with the devil should use a long spoon.’
You would seem to have attempted such a meal with a small dessert fork.”
arthurbdd's review against another edition
4.0
Taking a hiatus when writing The Demon Princes series turned out to be the right call, with The Face bringing to the table an intricate plot and a genuinely clever twist ending. I cannot in good conscience give it full marks because there's a bit where the group rape of some tourists is treated as a big joke, the fact that I didn't mark it down even further as a result of this should be taken as a sign of how good the rest of the book is, rather than downplaying how bad that incident is. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/2022/03/16/interstellar-hit-list-infernal-targets/
skojar's review against another edition
5.0
The Demon Princes are fun reads and this is the strongest of them in my opinion. Clever social commentary, inventive world building, engaging intrigue/adventure elements, but best of all a delightful master plan from the villain.
moonbroth's review against another edition
5.0
Review by David Langford: http://www.ansible.co.uk/writing/nightlmp.html
jameseckman's review against another edition
5.0
If you seek revenge you should dig two graves.
This series is one big novel, they just couldn't publish giant SF novels in the early 60's. So read them in order! Though to be fair, Vance did take almost twenty years to finish something that Brandon Sanderson cranks out in a single book, so if you are out of sequence, I can understand that.
First we have hero of this space Odyssey, Kirth Gersen, whose grandfather groomed to be a tool for his revenge against the five Demon Princes. Kirth has led a tough and murderous life and has trouble relating to ordinary people, his sad attempts at dating are indicative of how much damage his upbringing has caused, he has a tendency to either see women as love objects or as tools for his purposes and cannot form personal relationships, he's a closed book to everyone in his life.
Then we have what is the series real focus; the villain Lars Larque. An outcast from his clan, possibly unjustly, he takes up a life of crime with panache. (Vance invents a special word for this!) His ruling characteristic is that he never forgives a slight and pursues lavish and eccentric revenge upon his enemies.
Any Vance book of course would be incomplete without strange human societies and worlds, often explained through extensive footnotes or infodumps, for our characters to adventure in. Darsh is no exception, the men and women lead separate private lives and marry solely economic reasons. For sex, they take to the deserts, using the young adults as bait to capture members of the opposite sex. This is not the first time Vance has used this as a theme. Darsh men tend towards violence and present a macho face to the world, the worst kind of punishment is to publically humiliated, a fate worse than death.
Gersen fights his way to a most satisfying ending of his foe, showing at the end that he has more in common with Lens Larque than I would feel comfortable with. An outstanding SF classic of its time, marred somewhat by lack of decent female characters.
This series is one big novel, they just couldn't publish giant SF novels in the early 60's. So read them in order! Though to be fair, Vance did take almost twenty years to finish something that Brandon Sanderson cranks out in a single book, so if you are out of sequence, I can understand that.
First we have hero of this space Odyssey, Kirth Gersen, whose grandfather groomed to be a tool for his revenge against the five Demon Princes. Kirth has led a tough and murderous life and has trouble relating to ordinary people, his sad attempts at dating are indicative of how much damage his upbringing has caused, he has a tendency to either see women as love objects or as tools for his purposes and cannot form personal relationships, he's a closed book to everyone in his life.
Then we have what is the series real focus; the villain Lars Larque. An outcast from his clan, possibly unjustly, he takes up a life of crime with panache. (Vance invents a special word for this!) His ruling characteristic is that he never forgives a slight and pursues lavish and eccentric revenge upon his enemies.
Any Vance book of course would be incomplete without strange human societies and worlds, often explained through extensive footnotes or infodumps, for our characters to adventure in. Darsh is no exception, the men and women lead separate private lives and marry solely economic reasons. For sex, they take to the deserts, using the young adults as bait to capture members of the opposite sex. This is not the first time Vance has used this as a theme. Darsh men tend towards violence and present a macho face to the world, the worst kind of punishment is to publically humiliated, a fate worse than death.
Gersen fights his way to a most satisfying ending of his foe, showing at the end that he has more in common with Lens Larque than I would feel comfortable with. An outstanding SF classic of its time, marred somewhat by lack of decent female characters.
More...