The Five Gold Bands [Mass Market Paperback]

Jack Vance (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Kirkus Reviews

The first hardback edition of Vance's 1950 short novel--a space opera wherein picaresque adventurer Paddy Blackthorne and his Earth cop-sidekick Fay Bursill team up to search for an important secret (how to manufacture a space drive) that, for safekeeping, has been divided into five parts and concealed at different locations. Each of the five gold bands of the title contains a cryptic clue to the whereabouts of a hidden part. Amply displayed here are the young Vance's cardinal virtues, along with the usual flaws: a lively assortment of alien beings, a variety of exotic settings, strong characters, a narrative set forth with rare energy, color, pace, and style--not to mention the formulaic plot, strained motivations, and perfunctory resolution. Entertaining but by no means essential. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback
• Publisher: DAW (February 5, 1980)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879975180
• ISBN-13: 978-0879975180
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,585,902 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Grand Space Opera, May 18, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Five Gold Bands (Mass Market Paperback)

An Irish spaceman Paddy Blackthorn is caught attempting to steal the secret to Intersteller Drive technology and is sentenced to death by the ruling council of mutant human species whose creator granted them it's secrets. With the help of a beautiful Terran agent, Fay Bursill, Paddy searches the home planets of the "Sons Of Langtry" for the secrets to the drive hidden in 5 gold rings that the mutants possessed. Terrific Space Opera! I absolutely adore this genre and Vance is one of it's best.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Forgettable pulp fiction, October 7, 2009

By 

Adam Risch (Silver Spring, Md.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Five Gold Bands (Mass Market Paperback)

The reviewer below pretty much nailed it - this is an early Vance novel that only gives you the slightest glimpse of the genius that is evident in much of his other work. The plot stretches the limits of credibility and there is little of the style and depth that marks most Vance stories. It's a light, mildly entertaining read that I would only recommend to hardcore fans who have already read just about everything else Vance has written.

1 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars An early Vance not his best, June 24, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Five Gold Bands (Mass Market Paperback)

A formulaic, pulp SciFi novella. I actually have never finished it...and I love Vance. It seems as if he were just learning his craft at the time he wrote this. In hindsight, one perceives bits of the later master, but that's not enough. Only for the Vance fan who has to have EVERYTHING.