Customer Reviews

Dreamer: A Novel of the Silent Empire

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

It is so rare that a book just grabs me and refuses to let go. I started "DREAMER" yesterday, and could not sleep until I finished it at 3 am! Steven Harper certainly knows how to tell an engaging tale and keep the reader's interest from start to finish.

Harper has created a new science fiction universe which shows incredible imagination and skill in world builing. His 'Silent Empire' is superb, both in it's concept and execution--a universe where Dreamers of numerous species communicate on a plane of existence entered by their thoughts. They can 'possess' the bodies of Silent slaves thousands of light years away, and are crucial in the running of the various galactic empires.

The plot revolves around two major points: a Silent being of great strength that has been recently sensed within the Dream, one who can possess the non-Silent as well; and there is also a great change taking place in the Dream, where the Silent are losing control, and a great storm of change is coming.

Told with great care and filled with fascinating characters, this is one of the best books I have read in a very long time.

I look for books by walking up and the isles until I find a book title that catches my interest. And so is the case with Dreamer: Silent Empire. What is it that caught my interest? The idea that humans can communicate over thousands of light-years of space through a interstellar gateway called the Dream. It is a place that only the Silent can walk. The Silent being a members of any race that have this ability, who at times are genetically engineered. So as it ends up the entire known galaxy is dependent upon this form of communication. Which causes problems for the Silent themselves. To be Silent on certain planets is to be a slave.
Enter the Children Of Irfan, an organization of Silent who free(if need be) and train the Silent in how to use their abilities. And they know something no one else does. There is a Silent out there who can posses Silent and Non-Silent against their will. A feet that should be impossible. All the clues as to this Silent's whereabouts bring them to a planet called Rust where a government, not to dissimilar to any third world country,enslaves any Silent for it own use. Can they find this Silent before any one else does? And when they do, what happens if this Silent proves to be to dangerous?
Over all a good read.

People can enter the Dream, a mental plane of existence where thoughts are communicated to others though their bodies might be light years apart. Only the Silent may actually enter the plane of the Dream, but they can also take over the mind and body of another Silent if that person is willing. On the planet Rust, a new phenomena surfaces when teenage Sejal has the ability to take over the mind and body of Silent and non-Silent alike, up to eight at a time.

Agents of the Children of Irfan look for Sejal because they know if knowledge of him reaches the other Silents or the public at large, the ancient history Salem witch trials on Earth will look like a picnic. When they manage to locate and get Sejal to leave Rust, human and other species that can enter the Dream State have already learned about this unique individual. All have a use for him but the only people willing to listen to Sejal's wishes are the children of Irfan and even they doubt he should be allowed to live.

DREAMER is a fresh, original story that will interest readers who want something different. The plot has so many twists and turns that nobody will be able to predict what happens next. Steven Harper has created a clever concept tightened by the issue of the needs of the majority vs. the rights of one (similar to killing or exploiting instead of isolating Typhoid Mary) and weaves an exciting tale around it. Let's hope Mr. Harper is not silent about the Silent in the near future.

Harriet Klausner

Dreamer, by Steven Harper

Players in my games and acquainted with my RPG characters know that dreams are a theme I enjoy. Dreamer is unusual in that it is a melding of space opera and these themes and many of the ideas that I employ in my games are coincidentally mirrored here. All sentient minds are connected to a plane of existence called the Dream, and a few individuals can access this plane for communication, and sometimes more.

The plot revolves around twin axes...the story of a young powerful dream sought by various sides, and a blight on the Dream itself. Interesting characterization and intriguing characters add to the unusual locales, both in and out of the Dream. In our time of tumult about such things, I was pleasantly surprised at the tenderness of a same-sex relationship as depicted in the book.

There are problems with pacing, its clearly the first book in a series, and some of the action of the book feels padded, and the ending clearly is ready to ramp up to sequels. These structural difficulties, while noticeable, do not greatly impact the enjoyment of the novel. The ideas, worlds and milieu carry the novel successfully.

Recommended.

"Dreamer" by Steven Harper marks the beginning of a new science fiction series. The start is very promising and one can only hope that the interesting story elements have a chance to grow and mature into a truly memorable series.
There are several unique things in "Dreamer" first among them is the lead character Kendi, a deep and caring telepath of Aboriginal descent. So many main characters who dominate most of science fiction/fantasy novels are basic wasp that it is refreshing to see a minority character used to such good effect

Hard core SF fans will enjoy the intriguing notion of universe where interplanetary society is held together by the telepathic skills of genetically engendered individuals, called silent. Unfortunately most parts of the galaxy silent are slaves.
Dreamer is not without it's problems however first is the often stilted dialogue. Several times the story is told through journal entries of young Sejal however I found this to be distracting from the story line. The more significant issue is the fact that the initial plot line is resolved halfway through the book leaving the main characters with little or nothing to do. A secondary plot about the dream world being ripped apart by tortured children just doesn't grab the attention the way the search for Sejal did.
It is fortunate that Mr. Harper's second book of the series "Nightmare" resolves this works structural difficulties.
All in all a good book worth seeking out.

Through contact with an alien species, humans gain knowledge of the Dream, a plane of existence where beings can communicate over vast spaces. Those beings capable of entering the Dream are called the Silent, due to their tendency toward silence during adolescence. On the planet Rust, a young man named Sejal has developed the power to enter the Dream without aid, and to possess and control others. Kendi, one of the Children of Irfan, is the first to notice this disturbance in the Dream, and he leads the group, including his estranged boyfriend, determined to find Sejal before anyone else does. There are also huge disturbances in the Dream which are destroying whole worlds of sentients. Could Sejal be the reason? And what will the Children of Irfan, or any of the other groups vying for control of Sejal, do if he is? "Dreamer" is a fascinating novel that draws the reader deeper and deeper into the story until its final pages. While the story and characters are a bit flat at the beginning, it all develops into a compelling read that is soon impossible to set aside. This book was a finalist for the Spectrum Awards, which honors science fiction depicting positive queer characters.

Steven Harper (Piziks) deserves kudos for his intricately-crafted future universe. Dodging the stereotypical notion that any future interstellar human civilization would be a single homogeneous political entity universally subscribing to progressive or repressive politics, Harper instead creates a vivid backdrop where the myriad worlds of humanity (and aliens) are only loosely-coupled by the telepathic abilities of the Silent.

In an intriguing variation on the telepathy theme, the telepathic individuals of Harper's setting (Silent) can only communicate by entering a sort of astral plane known as The Dream". In this mutable reality distance has no meaning and humans (and aliens) can communicate freely across the vastness of space. The problem is that this makes Silent individuals an immensely valuable commodity. Worse, the fragmented nature of the many worlds has resulted in some having high standards of sentient rights, while others have pragmatically, but ruthlessly, adopt such practices as slavery. An no slaves are more valuable than the Silent.

This sets the stage for the heroes of this space opera piece, members of an organization called the Children of Irfan from the socially-progressive world of Bellerophon to have their adventure. Their mission: recover a newly-discovered and uniquely powerful Silent from a planet ruled by the Nazi-esque Empire of Human Unity. Their actions have a sense of urgency, because something is disrupting The Dream itself, and it may be linked to their quarry. If The Dream is damaged badly enough then not only will it mean the end of Silent interstellar communication, but of all sentient life!

The heroic characters are mostly very richly-defined. If I have any complaint it is that the motivations of the enemy are less clearly explained and this detracts somewhat from the novel. Harper also makes a point to be broad in his choice of characters, with them coming from a variety of human ethnic backgrounds as opposed to all being white Euro-Americans as is often the case in a lot of sci-fi. He even has an excellent romance between two of the male protagonists. It is also nice the way he gives each character their own clear voice and manner of speaking, thus making conversational dialogue very easy to follow. Because the characters are all noticeably different, right down to the way they speak, it makes them more fully-realized and thus enjoyable.

The Silent have the ability to communicate through the Dream, a plane where one exists in a purely mental state of awareness, and can communicate over vast immeasurable distances in an instant. Such ones are greatly valued, but when it becomes apparent that there is boy with even greater abilities such that he can posses even the non silent at his will, the search is on to find, and if necessary destroy this boy.

The Children of Irfan, a benevolent monastic like order of the Silent, are amongst the first to become aware of this boy and Kendi, one the Children, is quick to search him out; but his fate, and that of the Dream itself, are not necessarily secure.

Dreamer is the first book written in The Silent Empire series, and as we meet Kendi we learn that his lover Ben, the son of Kendi's one time teacher at the Chldren of Ifran, has ended their relationship much to Kendi's disappointment. While dealing with the problem of finding and protecting this boy he also hopes that he can re-establish his relationship with Ben.

The writer has created an interesting future Universe, with well drawn characters one quickly comes to care about. The later written prequel, Nightmare, while not necessary reading for an understanding of Dreamer, does add much to the characters, especially Kendi, Ben and his mother. In truth having read Nightmare first, I find it hard to imagine approaching the series any other way. The stories make for pleasurable and at times suspenseful reading; I am already part way through the next book in the series, Trickster

I am only half-way thru this book and it is great. the author has so much to say about racism in my opinion and has put it into a rich storyline. The characters are real and believable at every turn in the plot and the discription of all the parts of the story..people,places,things are all so detailed that i can picture all so clearly..very nice. I myself see "the dream" as sort of a metaphor for the "internet" and the disturbances on the dream as scary images like the ones i've seen on some PC video games! I apreciate that the people often have good sides and bad sides depending on the complex level of them mananging their fear which makes the story espically vivid. The book has a great mix of male and female players as well as different sexualities and racial types that would make this a great book for science fiction readers as well as young adult readers in general,I understand this will be followed by another and I am looking forward to it already as I finish this book. I am interested very much in this world Rust and its political and social story because of its complexities

I guess I should stop reading SF just because it involves gay main characters. It was never my genre, I generally find it too depressing, as it is the case with this book.

This is a fine book indeed: the author's lack of experience is clear only because of some clumsy character descriptions. The writing is already satisfying, the pacing good and the characters finely drawn and consistent.

It is the setting which is depressing: the world... well the universe we are given here is complex, believable, complete... just depressing: plenty of worlds where the law of the strongest is the only law, corruption, slavery, abuse are the unhappy rules. No way we can escape our own grim reality because we find it here, finely pictured, incredibly cruel.

The idea of the "Dream" I found extremely interesting, new and original. I think that just that makes the reading of this book worthwhile.

As mentioned above the two main characters are explicitly gay: sensitive reader should not shudder, though: there is no explicit sex, just a bit of believable, "manly" romance.