Forsake the Sky
by Tim Powers
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9/10
I know this is the first book piblished by Tim Powers, and many say it shows the weaknesses of a first book. But I found it to be a marvelous, if rather bloody, adventure story with an engaging hero. Yes, Frank adjusts to the changes in his circumstances a bit too easily, yet he does so in ways that are always plausible. The science fiction aspects of this story are almost irrelevant except as framework for the setting and circumstances of the planet Octavio.
I know this is the first book piblished by Tim Powers, and many say it shows the weaknesses of a first book. But I found it to be a marvelous, if rather bloody, adventure story with an engaging hero. Yes, Frank adjusts to the changes in his circumstances a bit too easily, yet he does so in ways that are always plausible. The science fiction aspects of this story are almost irrelevant except as framework for the setting and circumstances of the planet Octavio.
Forsake the Sky is an updated version of The Skies Discrowned, Tim Powers first book. I am a big fan of Power's early work. I enjoy Forsake the Sky and Dinner at Deviant's Palace more than Earthquake Weather. The earlier books are short and tight, albeit sometimes less polished.
Forsake the Sky is set in a futuristic end-of-empire setting. I've long been interested in cyclical theories of history, and doubly so in fiction, because the rise and fall of empires makes for a cracking good yarn. This is more of an adventure story than one of Power's typical secret histories. And what an adventure it is! Francisco de Goya Rovzar finds himself unjustly imprisoned and sentenced to hard labor in the uranium mines before the first chapter is over. show more Rovzar escapes, finds refuge in the criminal underworld, and works his way to the top. Classic stuff here, the hero's journey, with Power's characteristic themes of providence and the true price of adventure.
This is a great book. show less
Forsake the Sky is set in a futuristic end-of-empire setting. I've long been interested in cyclical theories of history, and doubly so in fiction, because the rise and fall of empires makes for a cracking good yarn. This is more of an adventure story than one of Power's typical secret histories. And what an adventure it is! Francisco de Goya Rovzar finds himself unjustly imprisoned and sentenced to hard labor in the uranium mines before the first chapter is over. show more Rovzar escapes, finds refuge in the criminal underworld, and works his way to the top. Classic stuff here, the hero's journey, with Power's characteristic themes of providence and the true price of adventure.
This is a great book. show less
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Common Knowledge
- Original title
- The Skies Discrowned
- Alternate titles
- Forsake the Sky
- Original publication date
- 1976-05
- People/Characters
- Francisco de Goya Rovzar
- Dedication
- To Roy A. Squires
- First words
- Dominion, it was called - a network that eventually encompassed a hundred stars in a field five thousand light-years across - it was the most ambitious social experiment humans had ever embarked upon.
- Quotations
- "*Can* you read?" he asked, in a voice that was soft with pity.
"Actually, no," said Frank, putting on the saddest expression he could come up with. "I've had to work in the cotton mills ever since I was four y... (show all)ears old, and I never learned to read or to eat fried foods. Every Saturday night, though, my mother would read the back of a box of cereal to me and my brothers, and sometimes we'd act out the story, each of us taking the part of a different vitamin, My favorite was always Niacin, but---" - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)It's a dry region, but it's my father's country, and it's there, if anywhere, that I'll be able to practice the craft I was born and named for.
- Original language
- English
- Disambiguation notice
- Forsake the Sky is an updated version of The Skies Discrowned. The text is not identical. Please do not combine these works.
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- Members
- 210
- Popularity
- 154,218
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (3.32)
- Languages
- English, French
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 2
- ASINs
- 1
