L. Hall

Fantastic!, Mar 27 2003

This book takes a little while to get started (about 30 pages--not too long), but once it does, wow. What a world! The alternative Victorian England they've created, in which gigantic steam-powered mechanical computers are used by the government in an attempt to control people's lives, is such a thrill to "visit" that I dearly wish they would write another few books in the series. The characters are unusually well drawn, for sci-fi, and the antiquated style of much of the writing and dialogue is lots of fun. Highly recommended.

Badly written, Mar 27 2003

I bought this book to get an inside view, however fictionalized, on what it's like to be an up and coming band in England. For that purpose, this book is good. In terms of other things you buy novels for... such as characters, dialogue, good writing, etc... it's appalling. The characters are so flat it's really a chore to read.

No better book for predictive astrology, Mar 26 2003

I'm a practicing astrologer and have published several astrology articles. I still refer to this book regularly and recommend it--and Forrest's other books--to anyone interested in learning about astrology. Aside from his hands-down expertise in astrology, Forrest is a hell of a good writer and an excellent psychologist--what more could you ask for when you're trying to understand how astrological cycles affect real people in real life?