Bait of Dreams (Daw science fiction) [Paperback]

Jo Clayton (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 1 pages
• Publisher: DAW (February 5, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0886772761
• ISBN-13: 978-0886772765
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,520,654 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Bait of Dreams, August 18, 2006

By 

John Suter - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Bait of Dreams (Paperback)

I've bought and read every book written by Jo Clayton. I bought this book when it first came out, but apparently forgot about it and actually thought I'd read it. As I got into the story, I realized I had not read it. What a treat! It takes place on the planet of Jaydugar some 300 years after Aletys (Diadem series) gives birth to her son, Sharl. Sharl goes by the name of Schounach and has the longevity and self-healing genes of Aletys. When he was six, he was given a Ranga Eye, an addictive killer, but gave it to his half brother, who died from it. This book deals with his search for the source of these Ranga Eye killers with the objective of destroying the source. If you are a fan of Jo Clayton, you will like this book. I'm confident Jo Clayton would have written more on Sharl and his adventures but for her untimely death in 1998.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great for the first 200 pages, then goes downhill, February 1, 2008

By 

Judah (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Bait of Dreams (Paperback)

This book has little to do with the Diadem Saga by Jo Clayton, though it is set in the same universe. It's not really a novel, more like a series of inter-connected short stories following the character Gleia. She's the central character in the first few, then later on plays a more restricted side-kick role.

Dramatically, because they are short stories, new important characters are introduced everywhere in the novel. The only constant is Gleia, and the Ragna Eyes, an addictive crystal which sucks out the souls of those it tempts. I enjoyed the earlier stories about Gleia the Embroiderer more than the later ones about Gleia the Vixen (four star early book, three stars later book), as the Juggler continuously produces deus-ex machina escapes and devices. The shallow character Deel the Dancer, mentioned in the back cover blurb, doesn't show up until well past the book's midpoint and doesn't do much.

What I didn't like was the transition of Gleia from multi-dimensional talented embroideress into the Juggler's sidekick. At the end of 'Fifth Summer's Tale, Part Three' it is a major plot point that Gleia has nearly finished making a noblewoman's dress of rare and expensive fabrics. After the story finishes, the dress in never mentioned again, much like many facets of Gleia's formerly developed character.

While I will be on the look-out for more of Jo Clayton's novels, this one had flat romance and spent an extra hundred pages meandering. Could've used an epilogue, as the major plot is wrapped up, but not much else.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An engrossing tale of addiction, November 13, 1998

By 

KitchenSharkMama "MicahBina" (NC,, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bait of Dreams (Daw science fiction) (Paperback)

This was the first book I read by Clayton and I have been addicted ever since. An in depth look at addiction with lots of twists and turns. It really keeps your interest and is an excellent read if you can find this work. One of my favorites.