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| Review Summary |
Tor, Apr 2003, 14,95, 304 pp.
ISBN: 0765305607
Over a millennium ago, humans established a religious colony on Imakulata. The newcomers keep far away from the native Geblics, abuse the empathic Gauntish, and enslave the slow thinking Dwelfs. Since the beginning of the star ship landing, the Heptarchs have ruled humanity on this orb.
However, concern surfaces over The Starship Captain's prophecy. The prediction is that the seventh seventh seventh daughter or the 343rd since the first Heptarch will be the mother of Kristos, either the savior or destroyer of the human race. Patience is the daughter of the rightful Heptarch, Lord Peace, slave to the pretender, King Oruc. Peace teaches Patience to live up to her name in order to avoid war. When Lord Peace dies, Patience knows her protection died with her father's death. Before the Oruc can end the prophecy by killing her, she flees. Her adventure begins, but will she fulfill the prophecy while on the run?
WYRMS is Orson Scott Card at his world building best as he creates a complex social system with several races that feel sociologically authentic. As he always does Mr. Card poses moral dilemmas that seem almost paradoxical as he nudges his readers to consider right vs. wrong, but offers no simple turpitude. There is plenty of action and the cast, especially the heroine, is very complex and brave so it is easy to see why this is an award-winning tale.
Harriet Klausner
Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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Humans colonized a planet and set up a kingdom. There are two other alien/mutant groups residing on the planet, one group has no will and since they don't care what they do, they're pretty much everybody's servants. The other race has all but died off and one wants to breed with the humans to keep the race alive. His mate of choice is a princess. Luckily for him he has mind control or something, otherwise he'd be hard pressed to get a beautiful young princess to even consider calling him on the phone, let alone accepting the role as the mother of his child. The princess, along with a motley crew of misfits including a fat chick/would-be assassin and a head in a jar, heads off in search of this alien/mutant, though she's not too keen on the idea of mating with it, she, like a cat in heat, just can't help herself. A thoroughly unfulfilling book, to say the least. While the majority of characters have moments where they are interesting and even likable, they are not strong enough to hold up the sex with alien/mutant creature plot and one had to wonder if Card originally had something better in mind and lost it somewhere, or if this was something he just threw together for some quick cash to sustain him while he was thinking up a story more meaningful and interesting. A terribel tragedy, unless your into that kind of thing.
sayruh, Resident Scholar
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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 - 40%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 20%
Tone of book
- suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION?
- science fiction story
Explore/1st contact/ enviro story
Yes
Plotlets:
- colonizing/homesteading another planet
Political power play
Yes
Political plotlets
- overthrowing govt/kingdom
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Religious overtones?
Yes
Cultural problems, alien culture
Yes
Culture clash-
- one culture tries to impose its culture on another group
Main Character
Identity:
- Female
Profession/status:
- Prince/Nobleman/King
- champion of justice
Age:
- a teen
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
- Male Alien
Age:
- 40's-50's
- long-lived adults
Profession/status:
- Prince/Nobleman/King
Has magical powers?
Yes
Magical/mental powers of main antagonist:
- mind control
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
- an average amount
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
- mean, arrogant
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Setting
A substantial portion of this book takes place on a non-Earth planetary body:
- humans in a futuristic society
- inhabited by friendly aliens
- unfriendly aliens
Planet outside solar system?
Yes
Style
Person?
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
scientific jargon? (SF only)
- a fair amount of scientific explanation
Sex in book?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- weird alien sex
- main character impregnated against her will
How much dialogue?
- significantly more dialog than descript
- significantly more descript than dialog
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