Lake of the Long Sun

The second book in Wolfe's Book of the Long Sun continues the story of Patera Silk. Embroiled in intrigues with powerful people to save his temple, his manteion, he undertakes a trip to the town of Limna, with its lake, in search of funds to pay off a debt. But he uncovers more than he bargained for. He also finds himself the centre of intrigue as he is suddenly, and through no action of his own, proclaimed Caldé by a faction of citizens of his home city, Viron. This may not be a Good Thing.

This book veers from discussion to action and back again. Silk discovers things about his world that he never expected; we know - because the publisher has told us from the outset - that he is aboard a multi-generation starship, but although the show more citizens of the Whorl are aware that their world has unusual features, and that high technology is available to some, the knowledge that they are on board a starship is not in general circulation. So when Silk is shown some of the workings of the ship, he interprets them as high technology, but is unable to make the conceptual leap to understanding his true position. And why should he? This is outside his experience.

We see wonders: the gods of the Whorl appear to be able to temporarily transfer their consciousness to other bodies; and we are given a clue that this is down to a technological process, as we also see humans who can do this. We get more information about the "chems" - organic robots - who co-exist with humans in the Whorl. We are told more about the gods of the Whorl, and there is a clue about their significance.

Throughout, Patera Silk retains as much of his dignity and virtue as he can, though there is a sense that he is being caught up in a swirl of events that he cannot control. We see other characters and follow some of their stories. Overall, this is an encouraging volume that leads the reader further into the world of the Long Sun and gives us more puzzles to work out. show less

If Nightside the Long Sun (here's my review) was about a moral dilemma, Lake of the Long Sun is a coming-of-age for Patera Silk. Or perhaps he's just getting better at matching the world in his head to that outside his skull.

Memory is on a par with religion and politics as a theme, as the politics of Viron are brought more to the forefront. "Silk for Calde" is the poem on the walls of the Whorl, and the good Patera is considered a bit of a rabble-rouser. While his mission to sane his manteion recedes to the background for a while (as survival takes precedence for a while), Silk's resolve is as strong as before.

What makes this more than just an adventure in church politics is the sophistication Silk is gaining with nearly every chapter. show more And what makes this admirable is that only a few days have passed in the first two books combined.

Better even than Nightside was, Lake of the Long Sun is possibly my favorite volume of the series so far. And I have two more to go! show less

In this second volume of The Book of the Long Sun, Patera Silk continues on his journey to save his poor church. Events heat up as gods appear at sacred windows and take possession of parishioners. Silk decides to raise money by blackmailing a spy, and sets off for the nearby lake to look for information. He finds much more than he expected to, and both he and we learn a lot more about his world, its history, its gods, and other matters.

Wolfe continues his fluid writing and sharp characterization. Sentences and paragraphs build the story elegantly, crying out to be read aloud. Like the first volume, this one takes just a few days, but is packed full of action (moreso in this one) and insight. A real treat for lovers of literate show more speculative fiction. show less

If Nightside The Long Sun was about the protagonist’s self discovery, this second book in the series is about Patera Silk slowly discovering the true nature of his world.

The 4 volumes of The Book Of The Long Sun are set on a multigenerational starship – a fact that Tor reveals on the back cover, but one that is only revealed to the reader in this second book. It’s understandable that Tor did so, as The Long Sun is extremely hard to market: it’s an odd book: a lot more accessible than Wolfe’s magnum opus The Book Of The New Sun, but less lush, and a lot less compelling – at first sight maybe even boring. Tor might have increased its sales, spaceships sell, but the spoiler doesn’t do the reader any service: it takes away show more part of the joy of discovery, and it sets wrong expectations. Multigenerational starship yes, but no space opera or high tech scifi of whatever ilk.

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This second installment in Gene Wolfe's Book of the Long Sun series picks up directly from Part I, and maintains its exceptionally high quality of characterization, plotting and depth. It differs in being a bit more action-oriented, but this is all for the good, in that the action sequences are both well-done and serve to illustrate and deepen the characters and Wolfe's themes.

And although this second part is less overtly philosophical/speculative than the first part, its spiritual symbolism is even stronger and more fascinating.

I'm quite taken with this series, and am looking forward to moving on to the final two parts.

Silk goes deeper into the Whorl. This is the part in the series where you realize it's got an underlying detective story going on, in addition to about a hundred other hidden mechanisms.

The second volume of the Book of the Long Sun shows more...: LAKE OF THE LONG SUN is the second volume of Gene Wolfe's The Book of the Long Sun, an epic story of revolution, political intrigue, and Christian allegory that is linked to his acclaimed work The Book of the New Sun. The first volume, NIGHTSIDE THE LONG SUN, was a slow and simple introduction to the Whorl, the giant starship sent out from Urth, and its inhabitants, including the protagonist young Patera Silk. LAKE OF THE LONG SUN picks up the pace significantly, and much is revealed.LAKE OF THE LONG SUN consists of several plot threads that dance around each other but never quite touch. The morning after another theophany occurs in Viron, Silk goes to a remote shrine at Lake show more Limna in order to confront Crane and extort money from him to save his manteion. Through a coincidental occurence, Silk is lost in the tunnels beneath the city, tunnels that go to the very outside of the Whorl. There, he meets an enigmatic woman who remembers the creation of the Whorl, and for the attentive reader the story's link to The Book of the New Sun is revealed. Meanwhile, back in Viron, political intrigue continues and everyone but Silk himself is certain that Silk must become Caldé of Viron. Auk and Chenille search for Silk at Limna, and Chenille has a run-in with another goddess.The Christian allegory is slight in LAKE OF THE LONG SUN, and the most touching moment is when Silk speaks to Crane of a scene revealed to him in his enlightenment from the Outsider. The next volume, CALDÉ OF THE LONG SUN, is the most visibly Christian of the work, but LAKE has its moments, too. show less