Amazon.com Review
Paul J. McAuley's Confluence trilogy, with its far-future bioengineered setting, lush prose, and messianic themes, adds up to brilliant, literary storytelling.
Ancients of Days is the second book in the trilogy--the first was
Child of the River, in which young Yamamanama (referred to as Yama, thankfully) began to search for the secrets of his bloodline. His world, Confluence, is an artifact of a civilization long gone, a vast, keeled structure that rocks back and forth on its long axis as it travels around its sun. Confluence is populated by nanoengineered peoples tracing their origins from thousands of animal species. The entire galaxy, including the locations of stars, has been artificially manipulated in this unimaginably distant future, presumably by ancient humans--known as the Preservers--as they extended their reach beyond earth. In
Ancients of Days, Yama continues his quest, learning that he may be one of the Builders, the first bloodline created by the Preservers. He can control the many machines that roam Confluence, and people of other bloodlines obey him. But Confluence is a world in conflict, and the evil Prefect Corin continues his hunt for Yama, in order to use the young man's powers to control weapons of war. Yama's friends help him as best they can, but as his power grows, they must decide whether to trust him or fear him. Is Yama one of the Ancients of Days, a messiah come to raise up the bloodlines from their base existences? Or is he a hapless tool of the malevolent feral machines that hover in orbits just off the horizon of Confluence? Don't miss this amazing series, destined to be one of the most memorable in science fiction.
--Therese Littleton
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Publishers Weekly
In McAuley's followup to Child of the River, named a PW Best Book of 1998, Yama continues his quest for identity, still pursued by the implacable Prefect Corin of the Department of Indigenous Affairs, who would subvert Yama's burgeoning psychic powers and put them to use in the war against the Heretics. Confluence is a planet-sized, needle-shaped artificial environment set millions of years in the future by the Preservers, humanity's distant descendants, to orbit a star. Nearby is the Eye of the Preservers, a massive black hole within which the galaxy's remaining humans have evidently hidden themselves, for reasons unknown. The inhabitants of Confluence, the 10,000 bloodlines, are, apparently without exception, animals, some of earthly origin and others not, all genetically engineered for human intelligence and form. Yama, an orphan of mysterious parentage, is a Builder, a member of a bloodline thought long extinct. His desire to uncover the mystery behind his birth is the motivating force for both his quest and the series. Throughout, he is opposed not just by Prefect Corin but by other intelligent beings, both organic and inorganic, who would bend him to their will. Although there are many exciting incidents along the way, what counts most in this colorful tale is the complex world that McAuley has created. Reminiscent of Gene Wolfe's classic series Book of the New Sun and the best of Jack Vance, the Books of Confluence are highly entertaining and beautifully written, full of exotic settings, unusual characters, nuggets of scientific speculation and a healthy dose of decadence. McAuley is one of the field's finest practitioners and here he is writing at the top of his form. (July)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
