Trapped - James Alan Gardner Book Review

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"Trapped"
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Review Summaries

" Eos, Oct 2002, 6.99, 416 pp. ISBN 0380813330 Imagine a world without computers, cars, airplanes or manufacturing. This is not a place in Earth's past but in its future. Four centuries ago, civilization collapsed forcing the League of Peoples to send in the Spark lords, a policing agency of the League to make sure the planet is salvageable. People use horses and sails as the main means of transportation and for light, kerosene lamps are used. When the Spark Lords arrived, they used genetic engineering to make one person in every thousand psionic. Phil Abu Dhubhai, a teacher at Feliss University learns from his psychic friend that he and four others are going on a quest. An alien who can assume any disguise has made off with Sebastian the most powerful psionic student the world has ever known. Phil and company must stop the evil alien from letting loose an evil entity upon the earth with Sebastian's mind fogged up. TRAPPED is a witty, cutting-edge science fiction adventure novel satirizing “Arthurian” novels. This novel could have easily have taken place in the middle ages as in the year 2457. The high tech touches that are interspersed through the story line are used to remind readers that earth has reverted to pre-industrial revolution times although the inhabitants know what they have lost and don't seem to miss it. James Alan Gardner is a talent who comes along very rarely. This reviewer is going to find and read his backlist. Harriet Klausner "
Harriet Klausner, Resident James Alan Gardner Scholar

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Overall Review

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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot

Composition of Book
Descript. of chases or violence - 10%
planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 50%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 10%

Tone of book - suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - science fiction story
Explore/1st contact/ enviro story Yes
Plotlets: - surviving a post environmental/nuclear disaster
Mental/magical powers focus Yes
magical powers: - telepath (scifi)
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book

Main Character
Identity: - Male
Profession/status: - teacher
Age: - 20's-30's
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - bulging muscles

Main Adversary
Identity: - An "It".
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a little/some
How sensitive is this character? - mean, arrogant
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters

Setting
Earth setting: - medium future 22-24th century
Takes place on Earth? Yes

Style
Person? - mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
scientific jargon? (SF only) - an average amount of scientific explanation
How much dialogue? - significantly more dialog than descript

Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).

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