- Hardcover: 320 pages
- Publisher: Tor Books (Mar 8 1993)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0312852827
- ISBN-13: 978-0312852825
- Product Dimensions: 22.9 x 15.2 x 2.5 cm
- Shipping Weight: 626 g
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
An original premise, interesting characters and stylish writing distinguish this first novel, but they are buried under a mountain of pseudo-mystical philosophy and fuzzy science. Set five centuries in the future, the narrative concerns a conflict between settlers and Native Americans. However, these settlers are colonizing not new continents but new planets, on which they find Indians who began to inhabit these far-off realms long before Columbus discovered the New World. Individual character portrayals of both settlers and Indians are well-rounded and credible, but the structure of each society is only vaguely suggested. Much of the conflict, for example, is caused by the manipulations of the Clerisy, which seems to be a spiritual descendent of the Catholic Church but whose tenets are never adequately explained. Characters complain that politics on Earth are creating trouble, but the reader never gets a clear picture of the political situation there. Too many pivotal plot developments take place off-stage, and the narrator keeps interrupting the action to give us his views on the Life and the Universe, views that are neither new nor particularly deep. Soft science fiction need not be technically accurate but it does have to be convincing. Daniel's effort, despite his evident talent, leaves important details unfortunately vague.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
The planet Candle becomes the focus of a conflict between technologically superior spacefaring humans and a group of American Indians whose mystical knowledge of space travel predates modern science. Daniel's first novel uses Native American lore and hard science to create a compelling visionary tale that is part adventure and part dream quest. This impressive debut belongs in most sf collections.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Customer Reviews
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
2.4 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
If you can take the premise, you'll love it, Nov 15 2001
By Daniel J. Linehan - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Warpath (Hardcover)
Egads, these reviews are appallingly negative. "Steal this book and then burn it"? This must be one crap-fest, this wacky Indian book here. It must suck something fierce, no? I admit, the summary is probably turning you off. I felt the same way; I found it in a used bookstore and giggled. Indians in space on birchback canoes?However, that summary and most of the reviews here can't tell you how good this book is. They don't mention the sheer inventiveness of the novel; Daniel has half a dozen good ideas weaved in and out, along with themes of imperialism and cultural sensitivity, and a sly satire of secular humanism to boot. On the surface, it seems like a future-western, with white folk facing off with Native Americans, but to be so simplistic does the novel a disservice.
Now, it is true that sometimes it seems like Daniel is stringing his book along more on pathos and cool sf ideas than by actual plot, but my enjoyment never suffered for it. I loved the exhilaration of creativity; why should mere logic come into the picture? Daniel is brilliant, and should he ever control and direct that brilliance, you can be assured that nothing less than a masterpiece will result.
4 of 7 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars
Steal this book, then burn it...., Dec 16 2000
By Arnold - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Warpath (Mass Market Paperback)
Good grief... how do you justify having Indians paddle about between the planets in canoes as the basis for a modern SF novel? There's usually plenty of elements and devices in the plot of any SF novel or story that you just have to let go of - there's no sense wasting any of your mental energy trying to determine the legitimacy of the physical sciences portrayed within their pages. Just take a break from reality and enjoy the book, that's what reading SF is all about. But Indians in canoes traveling between the planets? If it had been marketed as juvenile SF, I wouldn't be so harsh about it, but it wasn't, so I'm not cutting it any slack.Anyway, as my previous statements imply, the book combines many of the common elements associated with native American Indian culture, animal gods and the like, being one with nature, canoes (yeah, right), and lots of stupid white people, into one seriously bad SF novel. What was sort of funny was that even though these space traveling white folk were living on a distant planet, they totally lacked any real technological capability? They were using sheet fed printing presses to publish the local newspaper, and culturally still seemed to fit the backwater image of the average southern hillbilly with a racist attitude towards anything that didn't look Caucasian. Maybe they traveled there using rafts made by binding tree limbs together?
The real unfortunate thing about reading this book was that I had to review it for a local newspaper. The editor for book reviews was a friend of a friend of the author. So with no real way to slash the author for writing a complete piece of garbage, and not damage my relationship with the book reviews editor, I did what I had to do. I wrote a pretty basic review of the book that did little more than outline the plot elements, collected my fee, and never went back for another book to review for fear of getting a reputation for delivering nothing for something! THE END...
2 of 4 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Writing style counts for a lot, Jun 14 2001
By C.K. "C.K." - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Warpath (Mass Market Paperback)
I will admit that Warpath forces a tighter suspension of disbelief than many S.F. novels.The writing, however, is superior!
I would much rather have a off-beat, or even odd, alternate universe written tightly and with a very enjoyable style than most of the poorly-written, but straight-line extrapolation, SF novels one runs across.
Daniels writes fluidly, engagingly, and I felt very connected to the characters, the plot, and the alternate universe he created. I'll admit that some fo the universe conceptualizations were hard to accept, but have you every tried analyzing the universe A.E. Van Vogt created in "Slan"? It's got more inconsistencies than one could shake a cliche at, but in the end it doesn't matter because you enjoy how it's written, and you have a good time reading it. Warpath and Daniels writing affected me that way. I want to read more, and have two Danniels books on pre-publish order here at Amazon based on his entertaining and professional writing style.
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