Customer Reviews

Lucifer's Hammer

5 star:		(97)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

The Hamner-Brown comet, separately but concurrently discovered by a pair of very excited amateur astronomers, was still a very, very long way from the earth in a typical high eccentricity orbit having barely begun its descent toward the sun. As the world's telescopes are trained on the incoming comet and its orbit is calculated to higher and higher degrees of accuracy, the possibility of an impact with the earth escalates to an uncomfortably high probability. The minute changes in mass and momentum, outgassing and the resulting small changes in the comet's orbit caused by the sun's radiation make it impossible, even up to the moment of actual impact, to accurately predict whether the comet would graze the earth's atmosphere, pass it by entirely or devastate earth with a direct impact.

Panic begins to tighten its grip on the world as a zealous fundamentalist preacher whips the US into a religious frenzy suggesting that the comet is a punishment from God visited upon a wicked humanity. Hoarding begins and roads clog as the population begins a mass exodus from coastal cities in anticipation of the possible tsunami that would result if the comet landed in the ocean. Even a joint Apollo-Soyuz mission sent into space to study the comet, now dubbed "The Hammer" by popular media, is unable to confirm or refute its potential collision with earth.

The final result is perhaps the worst of all possible outcomes. The Hammer does fall, having broken up into several smaller comets that land around the world with devastating results, striking parts of Europe, Africa, the Gulf of Mexico, and both the Pacific and Atlantic. Volcanoes and earthquakes are endemic around the entire Pacific basin as fault lines shift in California and everywhere else along the fabled Ring of Fire.

Tsunamis ravage every conceivable inch of exposed ocean coastline and upstream for miles along major rivers such as the Mississippi. Weeks of non-stop rain liberally loaded with salt from the ocean impact drowns a devastated world for weeks after the initial impact and flooding destroys practically every dam and levee, leaving a search for food a top survival priority. Civilization simply falls apart as people are forced to defend themselves and whatever they were able to salvage from one another.

"Lucifer's Hammer" is Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle's graphic but frighteningly realistic vision of humanity's descent into anarchy and chaos and its struggle to re-establish a semblance of normality after an apocalyptic event devastates the world with inconceivable damage and death but does not actually push humanity over the brink of extinction - hoarding; heroism; brutality; the potential change in attitudes towards sex, sexuality, racism, marriage, religion and love; the evolution (or devolution) of government from democracy into more effective alternatives under the circumstances; the re-establishment of innovation and technological expertise; the potentially changing roles of women in a more basic almost feudally structured society; and, of course much more.

Most readers would class "Lucifer's Hammer" as science fiction. However, I believe it is fundamentally an exciting thriller and a very impressive extended essay on the psychology and anthropology of humanity's behaviour in the face of global tragedy. The science of the comet, its formation in the distant Oort cloud, its orbit, its structure, its evolution as it accelerates towards the sun and the aftermath as the remnants race away from earth back into deep space, is touched upon but only in a cursory fashion.

Sci-fi fans will probably think the book relatively weak in this area and would have hoped for much more depth in the science. Thriller fans, on the other hand, will see "Lucifer's Hammer" as an exciting post-apocalyptic novel that just begs to be turned into a movie with an enormous budget for special effects.

From my perspective as a long-time fan of classic sci-fi, "Lucifer's Hammer" gets only three stars. Others, less concerned about the science will doubtless rate it higher. I recommend that you read it and judge for yourself. You'll enjoy the book no matter which genre your tastes favour.

Paul Weiss

This is a good book but he concentrates mainly on people who survived the impact, not going into too much detail about the actual event.

Once read you may agree that this has influenced quite a few of the disaster and apocalyptic novels since its publication (The Stand, Swan Song, World Made by Hand) but without any supernatural aspects. The authors keep a large cast of characters moving with clarity and interest. Some good 1970's references like "honkies" and telegrams take one back. Overall an enjoyable and well-researched read.

The book was interesting and had a captivating theme, however there was extensive character development. It took awhile for the book to really get going as it kept introducing new charaters. Most of the charaters were essential to the story, but there were some characters that I felt could have been removed from the story and nothing would be lost.

I would recommend this book to anyone that liked The Stand.

I first read this when I was in 5th or 6th grade...in the 70's. I still re-read it at least every few years and it is still my favorite end of the world book ever. While some of the plots and descriptions of the world have become outdated, they rang true at the time. When given the chance I tracked Mr. Pournelle and Mr. Niven down and got a signed copy. To this day Mr. Pournelle is my favorite all time SF author. If you haven't read his books you are missing one of the Icons of the artform.

I first read Larry Niven's and Jerry Pournelle's apocalyptic novel "Lucifer's Hammer" when it was released in 1977. Raised on the popular disaster movies from this period (which undoubtedly inspired this book), I remembered thinking this epic novel would make a fantastic movie. I had the good fortune of re-reading this book again recently after many years and was pleasantly surprised, if not haunted, by how accurately the end of the world was portrayed. History, in many ways, has eeriely mirrored "Lucifer's Hammer." From the Rodney King/LA riots to David Koresh to the 911 terrorist bombings, Niven and Pournelle have done an extraordinary job in creating an account of what just might happen if modern society was confronted with a complete end-of-the-world scenario. This book, while dated in many ways, has withstood the test of time.

A comet is discovered and as it comes closer to earth, it becomes apparent it may strike our planet. An American/Russian joint expedition is quickly sent into space so the comet can be studied as it passes. The first third of "Lucifer's Hammer" introduces 20-plus protagonists, developing their characters prior to the disaster. All of these characters have similar traits in that they cannot imagine the comet will hit the earth, but they make rudimentary preparations just in case. When the comet does indeed hit the earth in multiple places, causing gigantic tidal waves, earthquakes and destruction, "Lucifer's Hammer" follows these characters' lives as they attempt to survive in a society without law enforcement, without electricity, without adequate food. Some of the most exciting passages deals with the comet strike, witnessed from multiple angles though most memorably from the joint American/Russian spacecraft. The stunned astronauts shockingly view the disaster, the growing cloud cover, the tidal waves and a nuclear war which erupts between China and Russia.

As pandemonium strikes, these characters do whatever they can to survive. Cars are stolen, people are shot, and everyone scrambles for high ground as the tidal waves and rain drown everything in sight. The final third of the book deals with the pockets of civilization that slowly form. Small strongholds are built, roving groups resort to cannibalism, everyone looking for safety and food. Like castles in the Middle Ages, these groups form warrior-like bonds, with leaders forced to make tough decisions, fighting off stragglers and armies.

Much of the criticism of "Lucifer's Hammer" has dealt with its portrayal of black people, most notably that of Alim Nassor. A former Black Panther and a full-time thief, he gathers his friends together after the comet strike, adorned in a full-length mink coat, spouting ghetto slang and doing whatever he can to survive. He bonds with a band of cannibals, eventually led by a Jim Jones-like quack. They begin sweeping the countryside, raiding, looting and murdering. Granted, it's a bit uncomfortable reading these passages, as society has not only become a huge race war, but a class war. The stronghold they eventually lay siege to is made up almost entirely of caucasin residents, educated, wealthy and determined to survive.

When attempting to understand human culture, all one has to do is view a normal high school cafeteria. The pockets are abundantly clear as people bond by class, by status, by culture and by race. If earth was faced with the kind of disaster so realistically portrayed in "Lucifer's Hammer," undoubtedly pockets of survivors would form in such a fashion. When there is no food, people will begin to kill for it. The groups they bond with would be people of similar race, similar class and similar status. In today's politically-correct society, it is uncomfortable reading a book like "Lucifer's Hammer." But there is not a doubt in my mind the wars which take place in this book would indeed happen.

A scary, fascinating work, "Lucifer's Hammer" has remained in print for many years because of its uncomfortable realism. It is not a perfect work, with stilted dialogue and a few too many characters introduced and in many ways forgotten, but it is one of the finest of the apocalyptic genre.

This book tells the tale of how events might unfold after a catastrophic comet impact takes place. While saddled with some standard clichees of the genre (such as two-dimensional characters), it does contain a fascinating view of what life on Earth might be like after such an event. Originally published in 1977, much of the technological trappings are dated, but it's still a well-written page turner of a story.

Some of the discussion of race in this book is definitely pre-PC, and left me a bit taken aback, but overall it's a worthwhile read for fans of sci-fi genre fiction.

This is without a doubt one of the best books that I've ever read and makes me very thankful that Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle, who are very good authors in their own right, joined forces to become a force to be reckoned with anyone in terms of character creations, spinning a good yarn and making it very real. I read this book shortly after it was published, and more than 20 years later, it's still one of my favorites. The authors do a great job of capturing people, their hopes and their fears realized as the comet approaches and their reactions and deeds in the aftermath. For a great ``end-of-the-world'' book with wonderful imagery that can really evoke the amazing pictures in one's mind's-eye...this is NOT to be missed. Read it now.

Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle have combined to create a real winner. For once, the blasted thing hits! How many tales have we read about close calls, altered calls, mistaken calls, meteors that broke apart, that barely hit, etc. No, this is a real winner - both the rock and the book.

The first 40% or so of the book is pre-hit with a long buildup in excitement and all the requisite "it won't ever hit" bull. We know, of course, that is does and when it happens, things are never the same. The criminal element has a field day but the good people of Earth join forces and fight back. All of God's chillin are involved - Americans, Russians, whites, blacks, cops, farmers. All united against the New Brotherhood, a band of religious nuts who think God wants folks to live like cavemen. The Brotherhood boys are caricatures who scream just the sort of things people who don't go to church think people of that ilk scream. In the end the good guys plan to win the power plant while out in space another asteroid is beginning its long path.

This is one of my all-time favorite books. Engaging characters, interesting scenario. What would YOU try to salvage? How would you survive the collapse of society? Wish this was available in hardcover - my paperback copy has been read & re-read!