Description

Series: Book 7 in the Deathstalker series

Rating: ****

Tags: EN-SciFi, Lang:en

Summary

Branded an outlaw and hunted by agents of the Empire, Lewis Deathstalker must stop the encroaching Terror that threatens all of humanity. But he can succeed only with the help of Owen Deathstalker, who supposedly died more than 200 years ago.

From Publishers Weekly

Bestseller Green's latest overstuffed entry in his Deathstalker epic (after 2003's Deathstalker Legacy) tests our heroes to the limit as they seek the supposedly dead Owen Deathstalker, for they believe that only he can turn back the oncoming Terror, an evil and unstoppable force bent on destroying all the worlds in its path. Lewis Deathstalker, descendant of the Beloved Owen, on the lam with his renegade companions, runs into adventure after adventure as he seeks Owen on a variety of planets. Their archenemy, former Paragon Finn Durandal, dogs them every step of the way as he seizes power, overthrows King Douglas and dismantles the Golden Age that Owen helped create 200 years earlier. Others seek to overthrow the nasty Durandal, including the enigmatic robots of Shub, Douglas (who's not the broken man he appears to be), Paragon Emma Steel and Steel's unlikely ally, gun-toting girl reporter Nina Malapert. Green ably juggles elements of sword and sorcery, high fantasy, humorous quest and SF, with homages to authors such as Moorcock, Adams, Cordwainer Smith and Zelazny. Amazing coincidences, or the sudden appearance of powerful, supposedly long-dead heroes who give advice, save the day a few too many times, blunting the impact of the characters' actions, but it's a fun, twisty romp with surprises around every corner.
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From Booklist

Lewis Deathstalker's troubles are many, even if he is with the woman he loves, Jessamine Flowers. The problem is that she was King Douglas' intended, and that makes Deathstalker a traitor. It is Finn Durandal, nominally a Douglas ally, who is actually hatching the highest treason, and whom Douglas and Deathstalker (the Killer Ds) really have to worry about. Deathstalker's cohorts continue to be a charming con man, an immortal female gladiator, and a reptiloid named Saturday. They and Lewis constitute a tough bunch, but what will happen should Lewis' ancestor Owen Deathstalker, thought to have been dead for two centuries, return? But then, is there anything dire enough to necessitate his return? Tune in on the next Deathstalker volume for answers to those questions, but meanwhile have fun with this one. After all, reading even one Deathstalker leaves one feeling jollier than before, for the series continues to avoid the lapses of tone so common in humorous space opera and fantasy. Roland Green
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved