Customer Reviews

The Candle of Distant Earth (Taken)

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On the planet Hyff, an astronomer sees three ships approaching and fear the Iollth are approaching as they do every century or so to loot and plunder. The Hyffs are pacifists by nature and simply do not have the military mindset to wage war even on an enemy. However, the ships the astronomer saw are not from Iollth but are Nyyuan carrying Marcus Walker, the sentient speaking canine George, the squid like creature Sque and the giant Braouk from the planet Tuuqalia.

These four aliens have been abducted from their homeworlds by the Vilenjii traders who believe sentient beings are commodities to be taken. The astronomers of Hyff find Braouk's planet but before they can travel there the Iollth arrive. The people of Hyff have been so kind and helpful to them, they find they can't leave without solving the Iollth problem. On Braouk's world they find the homeworld of Sque and once they arrive there, the isolationist egotistical beings of K'eremu refuse to help George and Marcus find earth because it is not their problem.

Readers are treated to a tour of the galaxy filled with sentient aliens of all shapes and sizes. It is a dazzling universe and Earth is considered such an isolated backwater place, nobody knows where it is. Allen Dean Foster has written an excellent Star Wars like novel that dazzles the readers with characters that are so realistic and unusual. There is plenty of action but what makes this tale stand out from others is that that these different worlds are explored in intricate detail.

Harriet Klausner

THE CANDLE OF DISTANT EARTH (2006) is the third book from THE TAKEN TRILOGY, following LOST AND FOUND (2004) *****, and THE LIGHT YEARS BENEATH MY FEET (2005) ***.

In LOST AND FOUND, we were introduced to Marcus Walker, the "All American Boy" who gets abducted by aliens while on a solo camping trip in the Sierra Nevadas. Walker is paired with the "All American Mutt", abducted from a Chicago alley, whom he calls George... the dog is able to speak, due to brain enhancement and implant technology of the "evil" abducting aliens. While in captivity aboard a giant alien ship, our heros encounter all sorts of strange oxygen-breathing aliens in a Wild Animal Park setting; and eventually work with some of them to execute an exciting escape attempt - but as they are breaking free in a "life boat", an even bigger space ship arrives on the scene manned by "interstellar cops" who take pity on the 4 individuals, whom they take back to their planet near the center of the galaxy, which can be described as near the height of galactic civilization, and where they put the four abductees on the government dole as hardship cases.

In the 2nd book, the 4 folks (human, dog, giant poetical monster, & genius pompous land octopus), manage to find a way out of their "boring" government sponsered lives, where they are basically provided everything they want, except for a ride home (nobody knows exactly where home is)... they are put to work on an alien planet that is hopefully closer to their homes out on the galactic "outback"... this alien planet turns out to be constantly at war, but with some strange rules (that closely parallel those from the STAR TREK Original Series episode A TASTE OF ARMEGEDDON). Suffice it to say, those adventures were far less believable than the ones from the first book.

In the third book, the 4 aliens eventually manage to find their way back to their individual worlds, and new adventures and situations transpire... the book starts off well, but slows down in the middle, and winds up with an unsatisfying ending that leaves the door open for similar future books.

Spoiler:

Ever read a book or a series of books, enjoy them thoroughly, only to reach the end and then have the author deliberately choose an "easy" resolution which not only seems entirely implausible but has you seething at being cheated out of what could have been the best part of the entire story?

Candle of Distant Earth is the most frustrating of books, as the consistently entertaining series screeches to a most disappointing ending as our reluctant hero and dog and friends decides AGAINST visiting earth and - most unlikely of all - somehow manages to convince the arch villain to not only spare his life but become - incredibly - a likely business partner! Keep in mind that in Book 1 our hero and friends managed to KILL several representatives of the kidnappers and Pret-Knob spends the entirety of the last two books trying to reacquire his cargo! And never mind the bloodthirsty Iollth whose brief appearance in this book raises far more questions than it answers. And can anyone not see the cosmic and comic possibilities of a Man and Talking Dog and "Weird" Friends actually visting good old Earth! But nope - Walker decides that after finally reaching his home he can't go home again so there goes the book (even though Pret-Knob never said that he wouldn't kidnap yet more human cargo or for that matter that they haven't been doing it for some time!).

One can only hope ADF revisits this series which was otherwise well-written, charming, and immensely sly and entertaining - at least until page 254 of this book (with the words "I am going to kill you") before it jumps the shark....

I was a little reticent to read this, esp. after so many bad reviews. But then, I guess those readers had a certain expectation of how the series should finish. That, plus the let-down *anyone* feels knowing that a favorite series is ending, usually makes for moody results.

That said, I found this latest (and last) chapter to be refreshing, fun, and ultimately uplifting. Each character has come a long way, and their time spent together has changed them irreversibly (even Sque). I would definitely recommend that you begin and finish this book knowing that you are treated to a wonderful ending, and to keep an open mind.

Having read and re-read almost everything Alan Dean Foster has written, I was cruising reasonably well through The Candle of Distant Earth, and found myself bitterly disappointed at the awful ending.

This smacks of sheer American teenage footballer stupidity and selfishness and is very unbelievable.
Someone such as Marcus would surely be able to see that carefully introduced alien technology would solve many of earth's problems (such as clean efficient sustainable energy production, to name but one). I cant believe he wouldn't want a human girlfriend to accompany him, and maybe a bitch for George too.

It would also be nice if earth were to be introduced into the galactic civilization maybe ?

If he was such a good trader he would also see that his own position makes him able to choose any role for himself from intergalactic traveller through to ruler of Earth if he really wanted that.

At the very least, surely anyone other than a selfish idiot would want to ensure that further abductions were prevented, whether by the Villenji or any other race of aliens.
I appreciate that advanced civilisations wouldn't execute or imprison kidnappers for life, but I would imagine that the Villenji would have been subject to restorative or compensatory justice where they would have been forced to repatriate all their victims and compensate them for their suffering.
It is stretching things far too much to have the Villenji constantly popping up to annoy us in aq most unlikely way.
I can also understand how it would be easy to kidnap from a planet with no spacegoing systems such as earth, but how did the Villenji get Braouk or Sque, when both their planets have abundant security ?

Also, what makes the naming of earth a self centred thing ? This concept appears many times in Foster's books, and I can't see how it is egocentric to call our planet Earth.

I didn't realize this was part of a series and wondered why it felt like I'd missed the beginning of the story. I think I even looked back to the beginning to see if I'd been asleep at the wheel. Finding nothing, I half-thought it was an interesting start to a book. Since others have covered the storyline, I'll speak to impact.

I read along, moderately enjoying the story, and didn't realize until the last third or so of the book that I really, really liked it. Not knowing the players from the previous novels, the characters' development and charm snuck up on me, as Walter's insights snuck up on him. In the end, I was surprised by how delighted I was that I got to spend time with them on this journey.

Additionally, I am impressed with the way the characters learned to relate across differences, and how the protagonist's perspectives shift over time. It was a great reminder to allow myself to look at others with greater appreciation than initial impressions might evoke in me. This is a book I'll want my children to read when they get older, as a model for faring well given a world of tremendous diversity and a life full of surprises, including one's own strengths.

Abducted by the profit-conscious Vilenjji nearly four years previous, the K'eremu Sque, Tuuqalian Braouk, human Marcus Walker and dog George continue to enlist whatever aide helpful aliens are willing to give them in their search for their respective homeworlds.


The Candle of Distant Earth concluded Foster's Taken trilogy in a most efficacious manner. While at times the story felt a bit like it was leading towards a pre-determined and obvious conclusion -- getting everyone home -- the alien cultures that are met along the way provide most of the reason for turning pages. There was always something different on the next page...even if the story itself was a bit predictable. Ultimately, despite this predictability, I was less interested in knowing that all parties involved would get home, and much more interested in the path that would take them to their respective planets of origin. The Candle of Distant Earth (and indeed the entire trilogy) should be viewed as an easy, fun, lighthearted page-turner. It is with this in mind I will consider picking up further Foster stories in the future.

alan dean foster again has written an excellent book that brings a conclusion that only he could come up with. Thoroughly enjoyable

Candle of Distant Earth (2006) is the third SF novel of the Taken series, following The Light Years Beneath My Feet. In the previous volume, Walker, George, Sqee and Braouk were provided with three ships and crews to search for their home worlds. The Niyyuuan astronomers even found some evidence of Tuuqalian ships traveling through one sector of the galaxy.

In this novel, Marcus Walker was a commodity trader on the Chicago exchange. Then he was captured by the Vilenjii, a group of alien slavers. Now he is a chef in a galactic civilization.

George is a dog from the streets of Chicago. His intelligence and vocal cords were enhanced by Vilenjii slavers, so he can now think and talk. George is very cynical and somewhat paranoid from his time on the streets.

Sequi'aranaqua'na'senemu is a cephalopod-like alien from K'eremu. Sqee has a high intelligence and an even higher opinion of her abilities. She also had been captured by the Vilenjii.

Broullkounuvv-ahd-Hrashkin is a huge alien from Tuuqalia. Braouk is a singer of long sagas. He too had been a slave of the Vilenjii.

Sobj-oes is a Niyyuuan astronomer. He had led the search for the home worlds of the escaped slaves. He is accompanying them on their voyage.

Gerlia-hya is Commander-Captain for the three Niyyuuan ships searching for their homeworld. He is the military commander of the expedition.

Ussakk the Astronomer is a Hyfft. He is the senior astronomer on duty at the observatory.

In this story, Ussakk is notified of the presence of three spaceships approaching Hyff. The only times that three ships have appeared in the system, they contained Iollth invaders. He confirms the observations and takes a conveyor to the nearby city to report to the local Overwatch.

In Therapp, he swaps his conveyor for a smaller urban model and travels to the administrative center. Then he presents his findings to the Delineator of the Day. She immediately calls a meeting of the other Delineators and orders Ussakk to remain for the conference.

When the Niyyuuan ships arrive at the planet, the natives don't respond to their signals. Sobj-oes is puzzled by the reactions of the natives. As they take a shuttle down to the planet, they notice the natives evacuating the city where they are landing.

After the Niyyuuans and Walker's party touch down at the spaceport and leave their shuttle, the Hyfft are relieved to discover that they are not Iollth. The visitors are treated as guests and make some friends. After they find a common language, Walker and the Niyyuuans learn of Iollth raids on Hyff and of Hyfft attempts to dissuade the invaders from killing them and stealing their artifacts.

Gerlia-hya provides the Hyfft with plans and samples of Niyyuuan armaments. The Hyfft first manufacture small arms and then start producing the more powerful weapons. The Hyfft should be prepared for the next Iollth visit.

As the Niyyuuans depart the planet, Iollth ships appear in the system. The Hyfft have prepared plans for their return, but are not fully equipped to fight. The Iollth detect the three Niyyuuan ships leaving the system.

This tale reveals the history of Hyff and their response to the Iollth. Then it follows Walker and his party as they search for Tuuqalia. The voyage takes them even further into the hinterlands of the galaxy.

This novel concludes the trilogy. Yet it does not end the adventures of Walker and his friends. Read and enjoy!

Recommended for Foster fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of alien civilizations, interstellar travel, and strange relationships. If anyone has not previously read this series, the initial volume is Lost and Found.

-Arthur W. Jordin

I actually picked up this book first, then about two chapters in realized it must be a sequel. So I got the first two books and worked my way back to it.

I found the whole series to be charming, although perhaps slightly stretched out a bit too long. I liked all the main characters and enjoyed most of the plot.

It became clear that something would have to give way at the end of the tale -- the stated goal of getting home to Earth was just not going to fit in with the way the characters had developed. But the execution of the final twist in the story fell flat. It didn't really fit the characters either.

This was a charming story with a lot of humor and some drama, but in the end it was something like a fireworks display without a grand finale. It leaves the audience saying, "and ... that's it?"