Customer Reviews

The Dark Beyond the Stars: A Novel

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I read "The Dark Beyond the Stars" shortly after its original publication in 1991 and was blown away by it at the time. I lost track of both the name and the author, but the plot stayed with me. Thanks to Google, I've rediscovered the bibliographic details and plan to reread the book in the near future.

This book is an engrossing piece of SF that blends many disparate elements into a coherent whole. It takes place on a decaying generations ship whose mission has been to search for sentient life. Robinson ably depicts the necessities of life in such a closed environment, but he also uses them as a backdrop against which to spin out other themes--the protagonist's search for identity, the captain's obsession with the mission and his endangerment of the crew, plus portrayals of love, friendship, rivalry, competition, and above all, loneliness.

The many plot twists and reversals make "The Dark Beyond the Stars" an exciting read, but what lingers afterwards is the humanity of its characters and their sense of aloneness in a big, dark universe.

I'm a periodic sci-fi reader and must be interested to finish a book in this genre. This met my needs--a thrilling page-turner that's a fine blend of sci-fi (without too much science) and suspense. I heard about this after finding it was a Lambda award winner in 1991. After reading it, I'm surprised it won a "gay" award--though that occurs in the book, it's in the context of how all of society feels. I wouldn't call it a "gay" novel.

The story is of 17-year-old Sparrow, who, after an accident, has no memories. He's on a ship called the Astron, which has been in space for centuries looking for other life. As others and events begin to seem vaguely familiar, he discovers a secret movement aboard--some want to go back to earth. They've been to hundreds of planets and found nothing and believe earth truly is the only source of life.

Things are at a crisis point now. They must enter the "dark," a part of space where there are no planets to explore. After they will pass through it (which will take a whopping 100 generations), they will enter an area of more planets to explore.

This story kept me gripped, and the main character and other characters were well-drawn. I was surprised at the level of sophistication in the characterization. Fine points usually found only in literary novels make the characters a rich tapestry. The spaceship environment seems likely and real. Apparently Frank M. Robinson has not written a lot of sci-fi, but I am sure to read the rest of his books.

This immensely thought-provoking sci-fi extravaganza must surely be the most vibrant depiction ever of the generation-ship concept.

The Astron, once the shining zenith of humankind's technological achievement, has been in deep space searching unsuccessfully for alien life for two millennia, and is now rapidly falling into decrepitude. Robinson paints vivid pictures of the grime-smeared bulkheads, the fetid stench of recycled air, bland reconstituted food and gradually failing life support systems. In this daunting environment however, the ever hopeful spark of human spirit shines forth like a diamond. The few hundred crew represent a true microcosm of humanity. Good, bad, noble and treacherous; everyone has hidden depths and all the time in the world to reveal them.

The skillfully depicted dynamic human interaction would be enough in itself to recommend this book. But there's more, much more. Our hero - Sparrow's quest for his missing memories reveals intrigue and mind-blowing secrets of Machiavellian proportions, which lead to a breathtaking conclusion. Throughout, Robinson's prose is flawless - I'm sure I shivered whilst reading the description of the frozen methane hell of Aquinas II. My only criticism would be that the novel does take rather a long time to gather momentum. It is a substantial work (over 400 pages) and its measured pace may not appeal to lovers of more conventional action-packed sci-fi.

The poignancy in the book's denouement, generated by relentless turning of the wheel of time, has a profound philosophical edge to it and will certainly make you consider your own humanity. I am very glad to have read this book.

This is a beautifully-told, fascinating story that begins in a fairly straightforward, but enjoyable, direction and takes several 180-degree turns--moments that make you say, "Yes! That's exactly how it has to happen! And yet I had no idea that *that* was going on!" I love it when authors can do that. The best advice that my old creative writing professor gave us was that the ending of a story should be "surprising yet inevitable." Robinson does an incredible job of accomplishing that very thing, not once but *twice*.

One caveat: Do not read this book just because it is a Lambda Literary Award winner, and do not pay attention to the note on the back that claims it is "a powerful epic of interstellar travel, alternate sexuality, and overpowering obsession." The so-called "alternate sexuality" is a *very* minor aspect of the book, and it is really closer to what I would call "normal" (i.e. people are generally bisexual--although even in this case, there are conspicuously few gay pairs). Nevertheless, it is a beautiful, enthralling story that I couldn't put down, and I urge everyone to get their hands on a copy.

DBTS is one of the more fascinating sci-fi novels I've ever read (and I've read hundreds). One of the things I love most about it is that in a very short novel, Robinson manages to develop a really well-rounded protagonist, while still leaving plenty for you to think about on your own. The story line is great and while there are many interesting and unexpected plot turns, they all end up making sense and furthering the story (unlike some plot devices used as red-herrings). Another thing about this book that's so fabulous is that it plays with alternate lifestyles and human relationships very convincingly. I can't give many details without possibly ruining your pleaseure, so just get a copy of this great novel and enjoy.

I enjoyed this book immensely. The Dark Beyond The Stars made me think about what it means to have LIFE. This is a beautiful book whose ending brought tears to my eyes. It is a book not just about life, but also about death. I enjoyed the first person narration as well as the author's pacing and resolution. I love books that make you think and this was one whose primary question I will think about perhaps for the rest of my life. The Dark Beyond The Stars made an impact on me and I think that any authors greatest achievement. Simply a powerful novel. It is ashame that works like this share the same genre with campy sciece fiction "thrillers". Robinson's Sparrow was as good for me as Zelazny's Corwin (Amber) or Wolfe's Severian (Shadow). The story stays with Sparrow and never drifts so you can latch onto Sparrow and enjoy the read.

Keeping this short: I LOVE this book, have read it twice and will eventually read it again. I bought copies for friends. A beautiful read.

Frank Robinson has crafted a true science fiction novel marvel. From the slam-
bang beginning, the reader and our hero is turned upside and dazed. Frank will
take you along for the ride as our multi-generational space ship is searching
out life. If you can pick this title up used...get it. Thankfully, Frank is still
writing and is even now finishing up his latest novel.

John Gunnison
Adventure House
In Tandem Publications

I was just randomly choosing a second hand book at a bookstore and happened to pick this one up. The cover looks cheesy but there was something that made me feel that the book was going to be a good read and so, here I am writing a review about it! The characters are nicely developed and the climax builds up at a good pace (not too fast and not too slow). Most of the plots are explained in the end, although they may seem strange when the plots are happening. Mainly the theme of this book deals with the question of whether there is life out there in the vast universe, pitting both extremes against each other in the form of the mutiny, with Sparrow (the main character) being caught in the middle. There are also many interesting ideas of the changes in culture and customs in a closed environment of the generation-ship. Overall, this is one of the best sci-fi stories that I've read in a long time!

Looking back on the book I can't recall why i thought the opening was slow because, in light of the evolving plot, the opening now seems just as fascinating to me as the rest of the book. This book is like an artichoke: multi-layered, each layer different, with a spiky flower lying at its core. It's a tale of a fascinating, life and death quest of discovery by an amnesiac on a generation starship. A few seeming inconsistencies don't spoil my joy in this discovery. It's been a long while since Frank Robinson has written anything, so take your time with this one, and savor every sentence.