From Publishers Weekly
Zindell's ( Neverness ) tale is a futuristic epic, but readers will recognize in it the archetypal myth of the hero. Young Danlo must leave the land of his birth when his tribe, the Alaloi, is wiped out by disease. Braving arctic cold and near-starvation, Danlo journeys to Neverness, the "City of Light," to fulfill his dream of piloting starships. He is sponsored for an interstellar academy by Old Father, a gentle alien tutor who has educated the teenager in the ways of the city. At the college Danlo meets Hanuman li Tosh, whom he views as a soul brother despite Hanu's dark side--later Hanu will murder a pimply-faced, mean-spirited upperclassman named Pedar. Danlo eventually confronts his destiny when he learns he is the offspring of incest between Mallory Ringess--a dead and renowned interstellar pilot--and his sister. This is no surprise, however, as references to mysteries surrounding his birth (such as his lack of resemblance to other members of the Alaloi) are dropped early on. Though the narrative is gorily replete with burst pustules and jets of vomit, Zindell's world is lively and credible. A final confrontation between Danlo and Hanu delivers a surprise ending.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
In the follow-up to his critically acclaimed
Neverness (1988), Zindell returns to the planet Icefall in a captivating and complex saga that showcases a breathtaking gift for conceiving entire cultures and their native philosophies. Zindell follows the growth and adventures of Danlo, a Caucasian teenager living among an isolated, Eskimo-like tribe until a fatal epidemic leaves only Danlo alive to seek a new home. After a death-defying journey across the ice, Danlo arrives in the city of Neverness, where he is taken under the charitable wing of Old Father, a wizened, alien philosopher-guru, and discovers an ambition to pilot starships. With Old Father's help and instruction, Danlo explores the ways and beliefs of Neverness' many immigrant cultures, trains for an elite order of pilots, and learns the fate of his true father, Mallory Ringess, a missing pilot of legendary renown. Zindell draws on sources as diverse as Eastern mysticism, Eskimo culture, and linguistics for a novel of unusual depth and scope. An impressive achievement.
Carl Hays
