Customer Reviews

Canby's Legion

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Baldwin has created a steamy universe with a debauched Emperor and crass commercial Empire. Though the hero, Canby, fights for right, the dark and debauched scenes of sexual orgies -- and in one case pedophilia, make this a book unsuitable for younger readers. Baldwin writes as if he was unhappy with the straightforward good versus evil in the Helmsman series and needed to make a universe reflective of everything that is bad.

This is a step down in Baldwin's otherwise finely crafted space operas that are suitable for younger and adventurous teens.

Canby's Legion is NOT Suitable for younger readers

Hey, lets face it, Bill Baldwin is not the worlds greatest author. He will not set new standards for literature. He will not be required reading in high school, nor will his style be appreciated by many. That's not what Bill Bauldwin is about. Bill Bauldwin tells a damn good story, period. Canby's Leagon is just that, a damn good story. If you liked his other work, you will enjoy Canby's Legion.

Mr. Baldwin has the makings of an excellent series in "Canby's Legion". There is a corrupt government, a distrusted ex-military caste, a conquered enemy, and pirates. However, Mr. Baldwin seemed to cut the story short and gave some simple, unsatisfying explanations to tie up all the lose ends. Disappointing.

I found this to be a work of no redeeming value. I treasure my books and I threw this one out. I wanted the hours of my life I spent reading it back. The characters are flat, the plot stale, and the action lame. Additionally, every woman in this "novel" (and I use that term loosely here) is a prostitute, betrayer, or sadistic torturer. Stay away.

Don't get me wrong, I read a lot of books, and normally finish them before I decide whether it's a good read or not. But as I kept plugging away at this one, it just left a bad taste in my mouth. Oh, not the sex or the society the plot was set in, but the writing style. Mr. Baldwin kept giving us three paragraph summaries of what is going on in the universe, then spent two chapters showing us that the lead villian is fat and disgusting, with no real plot value. This isn't even mind candy, it's a long and involved character study of people who aren't apparantly going to do anything while we're watching. I hope it ended better then that for those of you who did get past pg 251

Baldwin has always displayed a certain facination with hyper-sexual appetites but Canby's Legion is a complete surrender to this questionable practice. I found that his depiction of the sex obsessed imperial society detracted from the story, which was very weak in the first place, and his characterization of the principals (Kobir and Canby) were almost amateurish. I hope this book is an abberation and not the new direction that Baldwin intends to take his work