Ahira's Hangar

I'm 300 pages or so in (I just finished the chapter when Mallory is on Agathna-something-or-other). Overall, the book reminds me a lot of Vernor Vinge's A Fire Upon the Deep, only with much better characterizations. I would be shocked if Richard Morgan and China Mieville had not read this book. There are a lot of themes from this book that pop up in the Takeshi Kovacs series and the Bas-Lag books. In particular, bringing characters back to life is a lot like the re-sleeving cortical stacks in Morgan's books (Zindell even talked a bit about the cortex). And the cutters in Neverness are an awful lot like the re-makers in Mievilles story.

I like this book a lot. My only complaint is that my copy smells kind of bad. I wish I had a new copy, or it was available as an e-book.

One other thing. I've read a lot of Zindell reviews recently. A lot of SF fans don't like the Ea books because they're disappointed that Zindell abandoned sci-fi for fantasy (never read the books myself, although I probably will). This book is practically a fantasy novel, if you ask me. I guess I don't distinguish a lot between SF and fantasy, but the section when they're all hanging out in the caves is purely a fantasy setting.

I'm really glad you're enjoying it!

Yes, Zindell creates wonderful characters. And while he does have some great harder science fiction sequences, bordering on math worship (particularly when Danlo becomes a pilot), he never goes over the line where the story becomes more about the ideas and the tech and the science than it is about the characters and the plot.

Now then I enjoyed the Ea books. I've read parts of the series 3-4 times now. But even I will admit that the first book (so ginomous that they had to split it into two for mass market paperback release) has sort of a slow pace. I believe this was deliberate on the part of the author, as he is taking his time establishing the characters and the world. He really comes into his own in the second novel and the ending of the second (Lord of Lies) can be a profound shock that can really shake up the reader, but is still perfect for the series (sort of like Martin's Red Wedding scene, if you are familiar with his series - it is shocking, but necessary for the story). But the thing is, I'm not sure that a lot of the people who criticize the fantasy series have read beyond the one/two volumes (depending on if you are reading hard cover or paperback) of The Lightstone. So they read the huge, more slowly paced intro volume, but did not ever meet some pretty important characters and only began edging into the heart of the plot.

The prose and characters in both series are rich, well developed, and quite beautiful.

I'm about 100 pages from the end. I really like this book. Scott R. Bakker just got a hell of a lot less original after reading this book. His warrior-prophet is not far removed from the warrior-poets. Wow, and the probability-sword in The Scar (Mieville) seems to have come from this book, too.

Wait till you hear what people say about the similarities between The Broken God and Harry Potter! Yes, Warrior-Poets are the coolest things ever created! Fall far and well Pilot!

Ha! Just the other night, I was thinking about this and there was a mention of a Sirius and some other name from the HP books (can't remember it for the life of me right now). I think they were stars, or something like that.

Sirius really is a star in our galaxy. it is also known as the dog star and (here is a Harry Potter spoiler):

Thanks! I'm about a 1/3d of the way through TBG right now. I like it a lot. I like the fact that it got off to a fast start. If Robin Hobb had written this book, it would've taken Danlo 200+ pages to decide to leave Kweitkel for Neverness. I was relieved that he got going on his inevitable journey as fast as he did.

I got a little tired of the Fravashi dude. I have to say, one of the recurring themes in SF that I'm sort of sick of is the wise aliens who have to teach humans the proper way to live. I was glad that Danlo started to question the Old Father's wisdom after a while. I just finished the part where Danlo was accepted into the academy. That was good stuff.

These books remind me a lot of Call of the Wild/White Fang by Jack London.

Yes I got the London feel too-I think Zindell must do a lot of hiking in the Rockies-most people who line near Boulder CO do...(tho, I don't know if Dan Simmons hikes-he lives in Boulder too)

Well I'm enjoying the books immensely. It feels like one of those series that need constant re-reading to really bring out its best qualities. There are good novels (not just scifi or fantasy) that you never really go back to, once is enough; then there are novels which you read again and again and again - I really think Neverness is up there with the best of them.
How good is it to be guided to treasures like this!

So, I'm a little confused about something (I'm just over half-way through TBG). So, the Reformed Cybernetic Church (or whatever they're called) are the crazy freaks that are destroying all of the stars and planets in the Vild. And they were started by the Edes dude. And the Academy wants to stop them, because Icefall is about to get waxed by a butt-load of radiation from a nearby supernova. So why in the hell are they educating Haluman (can't spell his name)? This just sort of dawned on me last night. Did they start schools in the Vild during the time between Neverness (the book) and TBG? Is that what they're trying to do, educate those crazy whackos so they don't destroy the galaxy?

Well, you do know that there have been billions of people in the Vild for awhile? What Zindell refers to as the Manswarm, that traveled out there in huge deepspace ships and colonized thousands of planets. Yes the RCC developed into a nilistic jihad in the Vild that gets off on destroying solar systems at a pop. While danlo and Hanuman have been at school the Academy has been planning the developement of a secret "second" Academy in the Vild in an effort to stop these "whacknoids". (you're about to put a lot of things together, and The Wild will explain the rest) and, of course, it much more complicated than that-Hanuman's situation is just as complicated-as you'll find.

Whoa; I just got through the section on the parties at Bardo's house. Things really slowed down for about a 100 pages or so, but have picked up now. Just read the restaurant scene where they get the fresh meat. Nasty. I want to eat there.

Just finished Neverness. Ideas still spinning around in my head. How horrible would it be to actually be 30,000 years old! How very fitting to have him called The Timekeeper - there may be a lot more humour going on than at first glance!