The Deceivers [Paperback]

Alfred Bester (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 300 pages
• Publisher: Pan Science Fiction; First British Edition edition (1981)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671434322
• ISBN-13: 978-0671434328
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,710,723 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Over-written and self-indulgent, February 27, 2003

By 

chris romano "toonlets.com" (Topanga, CA USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Deceivers (Paperback)

I've previously read a few of Bester's stories. THE STARS MY DESTINATION, THE DEMOLISHED MAN, and some of the shorter pieces...I thoroughly enjoyed them all, with STARS probably being my overall favorite.

THE DECEIVERS was written later in his career, and it's my belief that THE DECEIVERS is one long in-joke, filled with cryptic goodies and extremes which probably only Bester and his closest supporters took any real enjoyment in. My feeling is THE DECEIVERS was much less written for the audience at large, and much more written for an aged author who was trying to keep himself entertained.

On one level, the text seems to be written with great ease and intricacy, but at what expense? It's a campy, oblique love story set in an elaborately expanded solar system, with tricky gibberish and painful future slang tossed in. I feel like Bester must've had an absolute blast writing this book. And in the process, I think he alienated the more casual reader.

I read it. I finished it. I can't say that I enjoyed it. In fact, there were a few moments where I asked myself, "Why am I reading this?" Libraries were invented for books like this one.

THE DECEIVERS is a very deliberate work of fiction, but more valuable as a performed effort of an accomplished afficianado than as accessible entertainment for the masses.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Only for Bester's completists, February 6, 2001

By 

Paolo Marino "pamar" (Torino, TO Italy) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Deceivers (Paperback)

I agree with most of the other reviews: it is a fun Bester book (not as depressing as "Golem 1000", for example) but it is not in the same league as "The Demolished Man" or "Tiger, Tiger". Why 4 stars, you ask? Well, considering the quality of Bester's works, even his worst is still better then most of the pure-fun SF you can read from other authors.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nothing new, but the old is damn good, April 8, 2001

By 

Greg Havlicsek - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Deceivers (Paperback)

I don't have too much to say about this book, except that it is deffinately worth reading. I've seen most of the concepts preseted in this book (chemically altered super genius, shapeshifting aliens, human/alien marriages, etc.) but everything a new twist, a special touch that makes this a fun and interesting read. It only took me a day to read, so one doesn't have to commit much time or effort to this book. For that reason, I'd recommend this book to anyone, not just fans of Bester or sci-fi in general.