In Conquest Born [Mass Market Paperback]

C. S. Friedman (Author)

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback
• Publisher: Daw Books (1991)
• ASIN: B000R7N7JC
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I Still Can't Figure Out Why I Liked This One So Much, May 4, 2002

By 

mayfayre "mayfayre" (New Jersey USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: In Conquest Born (Daw Book Collectors) (Mass Market Paperback)

I had already read Ms. Friedman's Coldfire Trilogy, and greatly enjoyed it, so by the time I read this book I was familiar with her style. I already knew that the book would be dense with detail and the characters complex. I also knew that the plot and characters would go in directions that I had neither imagined nor desired. I also knew that the odds were good that the ending would make me long for a sequel. In this book, my expectations were once again met.

Even knowing all that, I still can't figure out why IN CONQUEST BORN seems to be stuck in my mind. This book is more hard science fiction than the Coldfire Trilogy; it's a genre that I don't normally read much. The two main protagonists, Zatar and Anzha, are people that you would definitely steer clear of, if you met them in real life. Both are strong-willed, determined, driven by hatred, and ruthless. Yet for some reason, each has their own version of honor, compassion, and loyalty, and this makes them in some way surprisingly sympathetic. This dichotomy drives both the story and the characters. The Braxin and Azean societies are total opposites, yet both are so clearly drawn that you're able to understand why the characters behave the way they do, and accept that it makes total sense in their society's context, even though it may appear totally alien to your own. Ms. Friedman once again has shown her excellent world-building skills in this book.

The briefest synopsis of the plot is that the empires of Braxi and Azea have been involved in a multi-generational interstellar war. Braxi sees glory in war, Azea fights to preserve peace. Braxin society is very stratified, with a ruling class that has manipulated their genetics by ruthless evolution, while the Azeans have ruthlessly manipulated their genetics by science. The story tells of Zatar of Braxi's and Anzha of Azea's growth from childhood and adulthood, both groomed for leadership, one knowingly and one unwittingly. Both characters are complex, so there is no easily labelled good one or bad one. Of course the two of them become aware of each other and become sworn enemies. The story just expands from there.

If you're looking for an interesting, engrossing, challenging story, then this is for you. And in the end, that just may be why I liked it so much.

51 of 55 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant but I didn't like it, August 15, 2000

By 

"sarasarah" - See all my reviews

This review is from: In Conquest Born (Paperback)

I feel forced to give this book its due. This was obviously a very well-written, intensely gripping, original work, even though I completely failed to enjoy any of it. I had no sympathy for the characters, which was disappointing after my attachment to Damien and Tarrant (characters from the author's other work). If you are considering reading this book solely because you absolutely loved the semifantasy Coldfire Trilogy, just as I did, then DON'T read this because it's not only very different, but geared to a different audience. If on the other hand, you like hard and dark SF with alien races and ancient, futuristic hatreds, and savage people and barbaric civilizations...then this is a great book. The pacing was excellent, if bizarre, as the author gives us the viewpoints of different characters without being immediately clear as to what the narrations are doing there, and who these people are, and how in the world do they fit into the story? That comes later. Putting aside my dislike for all the corruption that made this such an "adult" book, I am left thinking this story very, very bizarre. That isn't neccessarily a bad thing; it's just a very confusing thing, and also makes the story haunt me, which is why I'm writing a review a year after reading the book. I didn't understand the end. Or perhaps I should say, I understood the end, but didn't understand why it had to happen. I still don't like the story, but that's me, and YOU (whoever you are) might like it, so I'll refrain from making a biased statement and just say that if you meet with the abovementioned requirements, you should like this, and if you're just a fellow Coldfire trilogy fan you shouldn't. I hope this all helps but I'm having my doubts as to my clarity. :)

31 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You *must* buy and read this book!, February 9, 2000

By 

Keith Johnson "actor" (Hollywood, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: In Conquest Born (Paperback)

This book is, without a doubt, the finest piece of literature that I've ever read.

I'm not kidding.

The plot is air tight. The characters are so well thought out and developed over the course of the novel that you will find youself cheering out loud at their triumphs and groaning in anguish at their pains. You will almost feel their heartbeats as they travel through this book.

The aspect of this book that I was struck most by, however, and the reason you should buy it, is that over the course of the telling of the story, there are no bad guys... no great evil to be overcome, no shining beacons of goodness... There are just real, 3-dimensional people, shaped by their cultures to be what they are. Their interactions fit beautifully into the world that Friedman has created even when those interactions involve planetary destruction.

The novel is written in a series of short, seemingly unconnected episodes that can easily be read as short stories. Then, around page 300, you'll be hit with this ominous feeling that absolutely every word you've just been reading is vitally important to what might happen next. And in the 50 pages following that, you'll decide to start the book over...

Then you'll be gripped by every single phrase.

Buy this book... you won't regret it.