Starplex: Amazon.ca: Robert Sawyer: Books

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Product Description

From Library Journal

Multiple award-winning Canadian author Sawyer offers an epic hard-science space adventure full of technical descriptions of starships and physics tempered by human concerns. In 2094, scientists on the Starplex study the mysterious artificial wormholes that make space travel routine and convenient. Then the wormholes' creators appear, and the scientists must understand and communicate with them to save the galaxy. Highly recommended for sf collections.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Entertaining and episodic, Starplex is a tale of interstellar exploration and adventure rather like a reconceptualized and debugged Star Trek. In the twenty-first century, the human race has both developed faster-than-light travel and contacted nonhuman intelligent races. Starplex, under the command of Keith Lansing, is one of the contact makers. Lansing faces hostile crew members, the personal and cultural idiosyncracies of nonhumans, the problems of first contact, and a marriage that may be deteriorating. No one, probably including Sawyer, will claim great originality for the yarn. Technically, it is good rather than great, yet it emphatically works, will draw readers, and may be the opening of a long-running series. Roland Green

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Customer Reviews

25 Reviews

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(4)

Average Customer Review

3.2 out of 5 stars (25 customer reviews)

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Most helpful customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars An Enjoyable but Uneven Space Opera, May 14 2002

By	A. Keith Parker (Huntsville, AL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Sawyer's foray into space opera and space adventure is a fun book to read, but lacks the depth of (human) characterization and philosophical thought that are the strengths of his later works. The book's strengths include
1. the Ib Race -- a brilliant construct
2. the dark matter entities
3. the enigmatic glass man
4. the tightly woven plot threads
5. an interesting twist on the gateway concept

The book's weaknesses include
1. a weak protagonist
2. too many "Star Trek"-like devices (tractor beams, force fields)
3. uneven treatment of the human-Walhal (the pig creatures) dynamics.

Unlike many of the (harsh) negative critics below, I found the book quite enjoyable, even if there is some hand-waving here and there. It's not like that hasn't been done before in SF. And just to set the matter straight, Sawyer does NOT imply that laser beams are visible (he clearly states that the computer animated the laser fire in a holographic display) and he does not say that a spaceship swerves to avoid direct laser fire; what he does say is that a spaceship maneuvers to avoid another, spinning spaceship which happens to be firing a laser.

The book is enjoyable science fiction. The key word in this phrase is fiction.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Creative realities, Sep 28 2001

By	"jburton75" (Dover, NH United States) - See all my reviews

Robert J. Sawyer's book "Starplex" was one of the most entertaining, thought-provoking, and mind-twisting books I've read in a long time.

To begin, Sawyer is an excellent writer. Plotting, dialogue, and human drama aspects are all well-represented here. He also never loses sight of using humor, awe (in its truest sense), human limitations, and philosophical twists to create realities that are at once far, far away, yet understandable.

I'm sure Robert J. Sawyer has his critics - every writer does. Bottom line here, though, is that Sawyer has created his own voice with which to tell great stories (science fiction and otherwise), and Starplex is one of his best.

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1.0 out of 5 stars ..., Jul 24 2001

By A Customer

At first glance, it may seem like a hard SF reformulation of Star Trek. Then you realize the tachyon beams, warp speed, subspace disturbances, ... pseudo-science, and deus ex machina-based plots of Star Trek are actually better than this piece of junk.

Sawyer attempts to create a grand space opera and in the process falls flat on his face. The science is miserable, in the league of such travesties as the aforementioned Star Trek: Voyager. It seems like Sawyer read a book on theoretical physics and completely misunderstood it. E.E. Smith's space operas seem like hard SF compared to this.

Aside from the ludicrous science, the book is terrible. The characters are flat and one-dimensional, particularly the lead. The protagonist is constantly whining and more than a little annoying, and as a result the reader cares little for him. The plot is trite and predictable, and has been done dozens of times before.

In short, avoid it like the plague.

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Most recent customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Another intelligent SF novel from Sawyer...
Upon reaching the stars, mankind discovered wormholes. Artificially generated, these tunnels allowed transport from one part of space to areas light-years away. Lisez davantage

Published on Jul 14 2001 by Jonathan Burgoine

5.0 out of 5 stars Starplex
Starplex is good as Hawking, Wheeler, and Thorne. Rob Sawyer's gedanken experiments on dark matter, wormholes, black holes, time travel, etc. Lisez davantage

Published on May 27 2001 by TONY STJOHN

2.0 out of 5 stars Snoozeplex
Most of Starplex is a very dull read, packed with dense physics discussions that become tedious for the science-impaired. Lisez davantage

Published on Mar 11 2001 by BJ Fraser

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely Wonderful
Frankly, I'm surprised at some of the reviews of this book. It looks as if some people just want to attack this poor man. This book is great! Lisez davantage