duane@anasazi.UUCP (Duane Morse) (02/11/86)
The jacket reads: "A mysterious explosion has destroyed an Albenareth spaceship and left nine survivors trapped in the confines of a fragile lifeship -- eight humans and their alien commander now face a test far more grueling than the terror they have survived... Giles Steel, member of Earth's master race, will lead this strange band of survivors through a power struggle as ruthless as the very forces of nature they must outlive!" The summary above is rather terse, and the book is a lot more interesting that you'd think. The jacket also contains a comment by Roger Zelazny: "Before you have turned very many pages, you are riding on a wave of suspense that carries you through an entire book." Zelazny's right. The book is full of suspense. Most of the action takes place on a tiny lifeship, and, as expected, things break down and people start acting funny. The suspense and mystery is hightened by Steel's underlying task. The "universe" for this story is also interesting. Basically there are two races, and spaceships are manned exclusiverly by aliens. Earth is divided between "adelmen" (from the German Edelman = noblemen) and "arbiters" (from Arbeiter = worker). Steel is an adelman, but one of the interesting processes to watch on the lifeship is how his views about the function and nature of arbiters changes. This book has an awful lot going for it: the suspense of trying to survive on the lifeship, the interpersonal conflicts on the ship, the relation between Terrans and the aliens, Steel's mission, the technology, and the nature of the societies (Terran and alien). And there are some surprises. I give this book 3.5 stars (very, very good). It's one I'll keep. -- Duane Morse ...!noao!terak!anasazi!duane (602) 870-3330