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billymac1962's review against another edition
2.0
I'm finding this very uninteresting. And I hit a spoiler in my review searches!
(I suspected anyways)
At the 50-page mark I am ungripped. This is the first Silverberg that I didn't care for, and loved the others so I will definitely read him again.
(I suspected anyways)
At the 50-page mark I am ungripped. This is the first Silverberg that I didn't care for, and loved the others so I will definitely read him again.
onetrueceyton's review against another edition
4.0
The opening sequence is a favorite of mine and the complete journey an epic of self discovery. This has to be my third or fourth read thru.
mr_dobalina's review against another edition
2.0
I liked this book a whole lot more in 1984 when I first read it than I did in 2018...
suzemo's review against another edition
3.0
I've had this book recommended to me a number of times, and I was prepared to love it... but I didn't.
The world-building in this book was phenomenal. I thought it was fantastic, stunning, etc. A giant planet known as Majipoor was settled, well, whenever humans fell from the sky and took the joint over. There's a giant continent called Padruid where the story takes place. There is a mix of left-over-from-long-ago science and magic, different species, a fully fleshed out culture, government, society and religion.
It's brilliant.
And then there are the characters. I found the plot to be tedious. It's a long damned book. Worth it if you are really into world building (I loved it), but the plodding actions of the weak characters felt so tedious. The main character bored me to no end.
I (as anyone with 2 braincells to rub together) figured out immediately that the character, who wakes up with amnesia, wandering around, was the actual leader of the world, who has been replaced by evil villains. He happens to have a strong talent for juggling, so he hooks up with a mixed-race juggling troupe. He travels around, slowly discovering that he's the leader of this planet's government, and then decides he doesn't want to be? but does? And goes to his goddess-like priestess mother for help take the joint over, and then takes the joint over. The end. With plenty of trusty sidekicks, because he's naturally awesome.
I was very, very bored with the action and just wanted it over with. But I really did enjoy the world, so it wasn't a total loss.
(It, btw, feels weird to like a book I didn't like, but I do).
The world-building in this book was phenomenal. I thought it was fantastic, stunning, etc. A giant planet known as Majipoor was settled, well, whenever humans fell from the sky and took the joint over. There's a giant continent called Padruid where the story takes place. There is a mix of left-over-from-long-ago science and magic, different species, a fully fleshed out culture, government, society and religion.
It's brilliant.
And then there are the characters. I found the plot to be tedious. It's a long damned book. Worth it if you are really into world building (I loved it), but the plodding actions of the weak characters felt so tedious. The main character bored me to no end.
I (as anyone with 2 braincells to rub together) figured out immediately that the character, who wakes up with amnesia, wandering around, was the actual leader of the world, who has been replaced by evil villains. He happens to have a strong talent for juggling, so he hooks up with a mixed-race juggling troupe. He travels around, slowly discovering that he's the leader of this planet's government, and then decides he doesn't want to be? but does? And goes to his goddess-like priestess mother for help take the joint over, and then takes the joint over. The end. With plenty of trusty sidekicks, because he's naturally awesome.
I was very, very bored with the action and just wanted it over with. But I really did enjoy the world, so it wasn't a total loss.
(It, btw, feels weird to like a book I didn't like, but I do).
louloureadsbooks's review against another edition
2.0
DNF this time round (first read over 20 years ago). I just don't think I can anymore, so I'm not. The End.
loonyboi's review against another edition
3.0
Good. A little slow, and a bit on the long side. But definitely a cool fantasy/sci-fi world (I would expect nothing less from Silverberg).
shane_tiernan's review against another edition
3.0
I've had this books sitting on my shelf for no less than 20 years. Eventually saw it available on audiobook and decided it was finally time to find out what this classic was all about.
The first quarter of the book was pretty boring. Way too much minutiae about juggling. I almost gave up. Glad I didn't. It got better.
I get the feeling that back in the day (when I was kid and before) authors mixed fantasy and sci-fi a lot more readily than they do nowadays. It was strange because the book read like a regular fantasy book 90% of the time, but then he would talk about aliens, or other planets, and hovercraft. It kind of jolted me out of the story.
The first quarter of the book was pretty boring. Way too much minutiae about juggling. I almost gave up. Glad I didn't. It got better.
I get the feeling that back in the day (when I was kid and before) authors mixed fantasy and sci-fi a lot more readily than they do nowadays. It was strange because the book read like a regular fantasy book 90% of the time, but then he would talk about aliens, or other planets, and hovercraft. It kind of jolted me out of the story.
rebeccacider's review against another edition
4.0
This was a lovely book, a picaresque adventure through an incredibly rich and wonder-filled world, played absolutely straight. It took me a while to read because it is so very linear—the characters are likable but uncomplicated, and there's this storybook certainty to the narrative that everything will come out right in the end, despite momentary setbacks.
I will note that certain details of the plot seem to make no sense, but this is definitely not a book that requires a logical plot. Additionally, Silverberg's female characters, while much better written than I expected, have a couple of WTF moments, and I would have liked to see more gender balance overall.
Nevertheless, a really exceptional adventure tale and not to be missed.
I will note that certain details of the plot seem to make no sense, but this is definitely not a book that requires a logical plot. Additionally, Silverberg's female characters, while much better written than I expected, have a couple of WTF moments, and I would have liked to see more gender balance overall.
Nevertheless, a really exceptional adventure tale and not to be missed.
alendis's review against another edition
2.0
Subtle as a brick and aged kind of badly. For the most part, nothing much happens.