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Loading... Helliconia Summer (original 1983; edition 1983)by Brian Aldiss
Work InformationHelliconia Summer by Brian W. Aldiss (Author) (1983)
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. Epic science-fantasy indeed, and somewhat sad, as you know that at some point, the cold will return and this fantastical civilization will eventually disappear beneath the ice. ( ) http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2583651.html Helliconia Summer also still worked for me - the twist here is that the Earth observation satellite sends a volunteer from its crew to the surface of Helliconia, where he knows he will not survive long due to a lack of immunity from local diseases, but gets very much mixed up in a complex dynastic / political / gendered dispute among local rulers. Aldiss plays the theme of technologically advanced individual failing to impress a much more medieval civilisation very nicely. There's only so much good worldbuilding (most of which has already been laid out in the previous novel anyway) can do to sustain meandering plotting and uninteresting characters. Aldiss being really bad at crafting fictional names and throwing hundreds of them at you doesn't really help matters; there's only so much of SartoriIvrash and MyrdemInngala going to Gravabagalinien I can endure. no reviews | add a review
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The Grand Master of Science Fiction's "monumental" epic continues as Helliconia nears its larger star--and a strange visitor joins its civilization (The Times, London). A handful of centuries on, Helliconia is close to the larger star in its binary system, and the Phagors have been driven into exile, but conflicting religions and hostility to science keep human civilization fragmented and constantly fighting wars over petty power and fertile land as a plague devastates populations. However, everything changes when a secret visitor from the observer satellite from Earth accepts a slow death in order to visit the planet and spend his time in the sunlight and open air. More than thirty years after the original publication of Helliconia Spring, the first volume of the Helliconia Trilogy, the series is newly available, now with a map, an afterword, and an introduction by the author. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)823.914Literature English & Old English literatures English fiction Modern Period 1901-1999 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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