Customer Reviews

Entoverse

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

 

 

Hogan, as usual (Giants, Lifemaker, Thrice Upon a Time), does a magnificent job creating a gripping story based on plausible-sounding scientific principles. Hogan's writing is quite intricate, and he does a great job tying up seemingly unimportant loose ends. Some of the character development seemed a little artificial, though. I would strongle recommend having read the first three Giants books, although this story does stand mostly on its own.

The first three books were excellent, however I think Mr. Hogan stretched the story to far. First of all it took till chapter 22 to finally get in to what the story was actually about and although Mr. Hogan has a great way of tying things together at the end of the story, it was just not the same. Next time, don't listen to your agent Mr. Hogan.

This is the fourth book in the "Giants" series which began with "Inherit the stars" and continues with "The Gentle Giants of Ganymede" and "Giants Star."

The first three books in the series are also available in a "3 in 1 Giants Omnibus" and there is now a subsequent fifth book, "Mission to Minerva".

Continues the story which started when human ideas of our place in the Universe were turned completely topsy-turvy by the discovery of a 50,000 year old human body on the moon in "Inherit the Stars" which was one of the most brilliant SF novels ever written.

I thought the story had finished with "Giant's star" but James Hogan finds a way to continue it with brilliant new twist. Something is going wrong on the planet Jevlen, and to solve it the heroes of the first three books have their minds projected inside a huge computer - where they find a whole different kind of Universe.

About the only thing on which I agree with the reviewers who trashed this book is that it's not quite as good as the first three. However, I think it's still well worth a read if you are into science fiction and original ideas.

I could not put this book down! It is a brilliant mystery book, with a fair amount of action thrown in for good measure. My only regret is that I have not read the previous three books in the series, so I was, so to speak, thrown in at the deep end, with no knowledge of the characters. All the same, I was able to pick up the story very quickly. I just wish that it had been longer!

Entoverse is the fourth novel following the Giant's Trilogy. Like the previous three, the same characters can be found throughtout. Also, there is a great deal of scientific research done by the main characters. But unlike the previous three novels, this novel fails to maintain interest and can be confusing.

First off, the novel takes you back to Jevlen, following the "Pseudowar" between the Thuriens and the Jevlenese. The supercomputer JEVEX has been shut down....or so all non-Jevelense think. In harsh reality, JEVEX is still running at a small rate, but there is a totally different world living in its system. The author has created a new world for us to explore, however it turns out that this world does not follow the laws of physics in our universe. To make it even more confusing, it seems that this world is merely just a computer generated pattern designed by the Jevlenese. To complicate things even more, the inhabitants of this "new" world, are taking over the bodies of our universe.

Now, don't get me wrong, I am one for all types of science fiction and new ideas. As a matter of fact, I think unique ideas make a science fiction novel. But this idea has gone too far. The novel becomes confusing because this world is run through a computer process. Yes, it is a new idea, but the idea has been taken to far. In fact, this novel does not have the quality writing and suspense as found in the previous three novels. It seems this novel was written just to be written, lacking purpose and further muddying the waters. I do not recommend this novel, as a matter of fact, if you read the previous three novels, you might want to stop there, because this one could leave you highly disappointed.

I loved this book. Both as a stand alone work and as the 4th in the Giants series. I had read some bad reviews before cracking the cover, and now wish I hadn't looked at them. They were just not accurate. This is one of the best books I have read all year, and holds a place on my top 10 shelf.

The only way the subtle plot and social commentary could be considered "murky" is if you read at the 3rd grade level.

If you have read all of his material, or if you have never heard of James P. Hogan, buy this book.

I love the clear, clean, crisp writing of James P. Hogan. The solid scientific research behind his scenarios cannot be hidden.
His plots are anything but trite. But after reading this one I am forced to the conclusion that Mr. Hogan was doing some bad drugs at the time he wrote it. It is muddy, murky, and overlong.
It bears almost no resemblance to anything else he has written.
It is confused and confusing. It is boring and unsatisfying.
Avoid at all costs!

Hogan is possibly my favorite Sci-Fi author, but this one does not deliver at all. Had it not been Hogan, I would have quit halfway through, and I have rarely put down a book in my life - especially because I am picky about what I read in the first place.

As mentioned in other reviews, it's not only confusing but there is just no compelling story here. Even though we're seeing some familiar characters from previous books, there's nothing I really care about in the story. I don't care about Jevlenese being taken over, I have no investment in them. Nothing is really threatening the main characters until very late in the story - too late for you to care.

And the people we are supposed to care about are not likable. The new female character introduced is not compelling either.

I SO wanted to like this book, and I struggled and pushed on, but I was only relieved when it was done, not satisfied. Skip this one and stick with Hogan's better stuff.