Anvil of Stars [Paperback]

Greg Bear (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 4, 2008

The Forge of God described the destruction of Earth itself by self-replicating robots, Von Neumann machines designed to use the planet's mass to create more robotic creatures and spread throughout the Galaxy. Only a few humans have survived, aided by a mysterious alien race known only as “The Benefactors”, who arrived at Earth too late.

 

Now the small group of human survivors is determined to track down the criminal race who launched the planet killers. Humanity is given a starship by The Benefactors, and driven only by revenge they set out to find the unknown beings who are responsible for the destruction of Earth, and many other worlds.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Like Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game, this sequel to The Forge of God explores the issues of morality and justice, using children as its vehicle. Bear's treatment differs, however, in that his characters have already lost their innocence and face their destiny with open eyes. As a stylist, Bear writes with a heady brilliance that communicates a sense of immediacy and credibility.”

--Library Journal on Anvil of Stars

 

“One of the outstanding sf novels of the current year is also the best book so far from an author whose versatility is continually growing.  Literate hard-science or alien invasion novels are no longer rare, but a book such as this, which effectively blends these concepts and is also compellingly written, is a joy to behold.”    

--ALA Booklist on The Forge of God

About the Author

Greg Bear is the author of more than thirty books of science fiction and fantasy, including Blood Music, The Forge of God, Darwin's Radio, and Quantico. Awarded two Hugos and five Nebulas for his fiction, one of two authors to win a Nebula in every category, Bear has been called the "Best working writer of hard science fiction" by "The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Science Fiction." He lives in the Seattle, WA area.

Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Orb Books; 1st edition (March 4, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765318148
• ISBN-13: 978-0765318145
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #203,845 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Greg Bear is the author of more than thirty books, spanning thrillers, science fiction, and fantasy, including Blood Music, Eon, The Forge of God, Darwin's Radio, City at the End of Time, and Hull Zero Three. His books have won numerous international prizes, have been translated into more than twenty-two languages, and have sold millions of copies worldwide. Over the last twenty-eight years, he has also served as a consultant for NASA, the U.S. Army, the State Department, the International Food Protection Association, and Homeland Security on matters ranging from privatizing space to food safety, the frontiers of microbiology and genetics, and biological security.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, hard, spacefaring sci-fi., November 22, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Anvil of Stars (Mass Market Paperback)

I was somewhat disappointed with the first book, The Forge of God, in part because it was bound to terra firma, and in part because of the weak political intrigue. Fortunately, Anvil is a different sort of animal; it takes the reader from planet to planet, star system to star system, spinning believable struggle-for-power subplots, with a few red herrings thrown in for good measure.

At times, however, I had a hard time empathizing with some of the characters: the dialogue simply wasn't powerful enough to convey what Bear was trying to get across. There are several of these literary lapses, when a character would break down emotionally, for no apparent reason (i.e., Theresa, while talking to Martin). The effect is there, but not the cause.

These quibbles aside (for Bear can surely write better than this lowly reviewer), Anvil offers believable aliens (David Brinnian, in fact), convincing physics (convincing-sounding, at the very least), cool spaceships, and an appreciation of the grandeur and vastness of space. Some parts remind me of Orson Scott Card's Enders Game.

Very well done and addictive to the end. And oh yes, you don't have to read Forge to follow this book; it's self-contained.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This novel has everything! One of my favorites . . ., October 19, 2000

By 

Lee D. - See all my reviews

This review is from: Anvil of Stars (Mass Market Paperback)

In Anvil, Bear combines speculations on quantum physics with war-story melodrama, immense ethical quandaries with teen romance, exobiology with whodunit. Yet with all this intellectual weight, the novel proceeds at a brisk and exciting pace.

Anvil picks up where Forge of God left off: the earth has been destroyed by alien machines, and aliens from a different civilization have rescued a small population and resettled them on Mars. From the survivors are drawn adolescents to serve as crew on a Ship of the Law, charged with carrying out a death sentence passed by humanity's benefactors on the race which created the planet-killing machines. Fans of SF writer Orson Scott Card will see many parallels to the Battle School milieu from Ender's Game: youths incongruously training for war under the tutelage of inscrutable teachers.

We join Earth's last children some years into the mission, when they are beginning to draw close to a prime suspect civilization. Bear does not shy away from the titanic moral questions raised by Galactic Law and its harsh retribution, as youths who might otherwise be arguing capital punishment or abortion in Philosophy 101 must weigh the evidence against the suspect civilization. Simultaneously, they must stuggle within the constraints of an alien justice system that has no provision for such human notions as mitigating factors, statutes of limitations, or redemption.

Bear's young protagonists (and antagonists) stand out in the often bland universe of SF characters. The crew has established a unique shipboard society of pseudofamilies and shifting allegiances, a kind of co-ed Lord of the Flies. At times they embrace the shortsighted, hedonistic tendencies that would be the invevitable consequence of college-age kids cut off from polite society, parents, and pregnancy. But when they must focus on "the Job," the youths become a cadre of genius mercenaries, armed with - and burdened with - the ability to destroy suns.

Particularly conflicted is the main character, Martin, from whose perspective the story is told. As the crew's leader at the outset, Martin is the focus of all their emotional turmoil as they struggle to balance their quest for justice with their revulsion at the prospect of slaughtering innocents. He must combat his own doubts and dreads while attempting to hold togeher the crew that includes cynical boatrocker Ariel, gung-ho Machiavellian Hans, and serene intellectual Hakim. The interplay becomes even more complex when the crew are joined by the Brothers, aliens that attest to Bear's supreme inventiveness.

Even with all of Martin's introspection, the novel proceeds quickly through an obstacle course of unconventional skirmishes, disheartening setbacks, and mounting evidence against the suspects. The background is a milieu of superadvanced science featuring intelligent biomechanical ships and intriguing speculations on the nature of matter.

The climax is exciting, and its aftermath devastating. The poignant coda serves to add even greater depth to the main characters and the story as a whole.

It's been several years since I first read Anvil, but I pick it up occasionally to relive the enjoyment it originally brought me.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Absorbing and creative study of war and morality, July 26, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Wahsington, D.C.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Anvil of Stars (Mass Market Paperback)

I read two or three science novel a year and am usually disappointed. This book is one of the reasons I keep on looking. This book uses the setting of 80 odd juveniles without parental or moral guidance to explore both the morality of war and the contradictions inherent in any belief system founded on following another's command. It is to the science fiction interstellar war genre what Saving Private Ryan is to conventional war movies. There are no easy answers to the dilemmas posed, and Bear thankfully does not suggest that there are, he merely explores the depths of the problem. Along the way, Bear pushes to their limits two science fiction conventions: interstellar war by advanced civilization and alien intelligence. In this novel, war technology is so advanced that supernovas can be engineered by combatants. And the aliens are so alien that humans are able to communicate with them at all only with help. The implications of both concepts are daunting, but! Bear pushes them through to their natural conclusions. What's even more surprising is that this is a sequel to Forge of God, a novel I found trite by comparison. Characterization is not Bear's strength, but the characters are believable enough to sustain the fascinating story.