This probably doesn't deserve 4 stars, but at least 3. It was one of my favorite books as a teenager. I liked the whole Campbellian theme behind it, at the time. I still like the book & read it every few years, but the 'earthmen are the best' idea doesn't quite ring as true. Still, if you like heroic space fantasy, this is for you. It's one of the best ever written. ( )

If I had read this book at 13, I'd probably have a much more positive opinion of it. Not that I think it was a bad book, but it had some flaws. The protagonist Roan is an intriguing fish-out-of-water character, but I felt that his personality seemed to change unreasonably towards the end of the book. I'm not sure where it happened, but somewhere in the story, he began acting like an asshole... It was like someone flipped a switch.

The ending was very good though. Overall, this was a satisfying read, but I think the idea could have been executed so much better. ( )