Aphelion

It reminded me (of course), of James Clavell's 'Shogun' crossed with, I don't know, 'A Canticle for Leibowitz'? Something by Jules Verne? The depiction of a man of God facing (and ultimately triumphing over) his ambition (for himself, for the Jesuits, the Church, and Portugal) and lust for power and wealth was quite compelling.<br><br>Robert M.

The story held my interest because it didn’t jump around nor take any sharp turns. The words flowed together as if a hand were pointing out character’s on a stage, and I was able to follow them without worrying about missing some detail.<br><br>I think the story was very well written, and the descriptions came in when needed and not interjected as an after-thought.<br><br>Many parts of this story reminded me of ‘Shogun’ especially the use of ‘eta’ and the man, Akio, in the pit. <br><br>For some reason this story also reminds me of ‘The Last Abbott’ by Jon Wesick. Maybe the religious overtones in both stories and the similar writing styles were the common denominator. I don’t know, but both stories are well written, and they both unfolded themselves to me in a nice, even pace.<br><br>I enjoyed it.<br><br>

...however, it went downhill for me once we realized Sixtus was piloted by a human, and although by now novel, the notion of every world inhabited by humans struck me as way too Trekkie to be appreciable....

Lee

<br><br>Well, they were presumably humanoid, anyway, in size and general shape and appearance. It's possible that Sixtus may have reshaped the images of his original crew to emphasize their similarities to Alfons rather than their differences (or Alfons's mind may have made adjustments to make the images more palatable and understandable).<br><br>Robert M.

...and the house of my choice must surely be Corrino.

Lee

<br><br>Wow -- it never occurred to me that the Butlerian prohibition against artificial intelligences would permit the use of Sorting Hats.<br><br>Robert M.

never read, watched or even discussed in length anything to do with harry potter. sorry.

Lee

<br><br>Would it entice you into giving the books a try if you knew that Stephen King mocked the labelling of "Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell" by some readers and critics as "Harry Potter for grown-ups" -- because he believed that "Harry Potter is Harry Potter for grown-ups"? That is, the series is written for children (although each book seems to be aimed at an older audience, as the characters themselves mature), but is as entertaining as any 'adult' genre fiction around ...<br><br>Robert M.