Customer Reviews

Jumper Cable (Xanth Novels)

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

 

 

Wow, what a disappointment. I've been reading this series since I was 13 years old (I'm now 31), and it's always been my favorite, up to this point. I never thought I'd say this, but I think it's time for Piers Anthony to pack it in.

Instead of feeling like I just took part in a rollicking adventure, I'm left with the impression that Piers Anthony has gone senile and it's manifesting as a desperate obsession with sex. I'm not a prude and wouldn't normally care, but it's not even well done. It's just completely pointless, gratuitous sex that detracts from the story instead adding to it. I noticed this same problem with Under a Velvet Cloak (of the Incarnations of Immortality series), but I thought Xanth was safe. It isn't.

In the Author's Note he lambasts irate mothers (which I am not) and tells those who don't like the series heading in a more "adult" direction basically to take a flying leap. I get that it's never really been a kid's series (although it might as well have been considering all the kids who love it), but I've always liked the more innocent naughtiness rather than this in-your-face, "They had sex, and then this guy had sex with that girl...and then this other girl, and then this one, and then these two had sex all over again, and then..." sex, sex, sex, ad nauseum. I never thought it would happen, but I think I've just been turned off of the series. If you must read it, get it from the library. Don't waste your money.

It's too late for me, having read it, but my advice to you is:

RUN! SAVE YOURSELVES!

I've been a big Xanth fan from the beginning. Lately the Xanth series has been going downhill, but I loved them so much that I overlooked quite a bit. Jumper Cable pushed me over the edge. Sorry Piers, I think sex is great and all, but I like a good plot. Xanth books just don't have that any more. I agree with the other reviewer, it seems like Piers Anthony is just turning into a dirty old man. If you like porn more than plot, start reading this series with the later books, it's getting worse with each one.

A narrative hook drops the spider Jumper from one scene into another where meets a woodwife named Wenda (a woman made of wood with no back) who wants to be made flesh. They find a prophecy on Jumper's carapace and decide to go to the Magician Humphrey to find out what it means. The pair also hopes that Humphrey returns Jumper to his scene and makes Wenda flesh and blood. Along the way they meet Maeve the Maenad who is avoiding the stork because she doesn't want an infant. She decides to join them to see if Humphrey can get the stork to stop delivering her package.

Haughty Harpy meets the travelers and tells them that at night she turns into Hottie Harpy. She decides to join them to see if the magician can help her. Two more ladies join the troupe; Phaedra, who can turn into a host who is being stalked by Genghis the ghost and Olive Huie who has no friends; the former wants the stalking stopped and the latter wants a friend. When the group breaches the magician's castle, Humphrey tells them he will give them what they want if they fix the broken cable that connects Mundania's Internet to Xanth's Outernet. They have plenty of enemies who want to stop them for various reasons.

Thirty three punster fantasy quests later, Xanth remains alive as if Chameleon was still seeking a spell. The hero is an innocent spider who learns to play and work with humans as he and the women march across some familiar locales and a several new spots on their misadventures. There is plenty of romance and action even with the typical thin plot as JUMPER CABLE is a fun lighthearted frolic.

Harriet Klausner

"Jumper Cable" led me to do something I haven't done with a Xanth novel in recent memory--give up on it entirely halfway through (around page 193, actually.) The book was excruciatingly *boring* that the idea of picking it up actually made me cringe--and I'm someone who loves to read.

What exactly makes "Jumper Cable" so dull? I'll outline it here for you:

--Repetitive. The middle chapters are essentially the same story each time, with only the names changed; one consistency is in each, Jumper, a spider who can assume human form, "summons the stork". Seriously: he meets the same female character, they kiss, they talk for about two lines, they go summon the stork (no details included). Repeat in next chapter. Jumper does some "stork summoning" before this with the women traveling with him (and one who is imaginary) and it's about as exciting as reading about paint dry.

--Two-dimensional characters. Seriously, other than talents, there is almost nothing to set any of the five women apart in the group; they are are "fetching beauties" with near-identical personalities. Jumper himself never really seems to come alive; even his wonderment at sex feels dull and uninspired. The women themselves tend to come off as shallow, particularly when seeing Jumper in human form, suddenly seeing him more for his physical aspects than any others (ie., the women tend to come off as sex-crazed, which is not unusual for this author). Overall though none of them feel "alive" in the way past characters have; they lack any real depth and you simply don't care about them.

--Dawn and Eve. Let me say, I have grown to despise these two characters; they seem to exist only to fulfill the author's need for a "twins" sexual fantasy, as that is all these girls obsess about in the books they've appeared in. They made the otherwise delightful "Faun and Games" a chore to get through and their appearance in other books--thankfully brief--were akin to hitting a massive speed bump in the middle of the otherwise smooth road of the story. It wouldn't be so bad but I swear, all these girls seem to exist to do is tease men and flash bras/panties, and it's not even handled in a manner that is mildly intriguing.

--There is little actual action; past novels usually involved the protagonists solving various little problems in their quests, whereas this one seems mostly about "get from point A to B, summon stork, repeat". The story never really develops, and side characters are barely touched on. There's something about a Demon bet that was lost (no real details, and Demon bets have made for interesting plots in past Xanth novels), a Prophecy that's as vague as can be and uh...well, that's about it, really.

I'm not sure if it's because he's sick of writing Xanth or in his advancing years Anthony is simply saying, "Oh, to heck with this" and writing whatever he feels, but the Xanth novels of late have gone from "Oh God, I cant' wait to read this" to "Oh God, kill it, kill it with fire!" levels of bad. For me it's much more acute, as since March of this year (2011) I've been playing "catch up" on every Xanth novel written since "Vale of the Vole" ("Swell Foop" being the only one left, and that's on its way!), so I've been able to literally watch the decline in "real time", if you like. I will not be picking up Knot Gneiss; what little I read of the excerpt (at the back of "Jumper Cable") turned me off immediately.

So with this, I say good-bye to the Xanth I once loved, and go in search of something new.

Piers Anthony has either gone senile, or more likely was never a good writer and merely had excellent editors.

This book is a sad bunch of scribbling where the author is more worried about stuffing in a pun in each paragraph than he is in having any sort of plot, coherent flow or anything that you usually expect to find in a book. Additionally, I have never seen a book that had so much random non-erotic sex put in. Mr. Anthony reminds me of a ten year old who doesn't know anything about sex but gets their jollies by saying the word "Boobs" and then giggling.

There is nothing redeemable in this book, and this is coming from somebody who used to be a fan of the series. This author needs to just give it up and concentrate on answering his fan letters and not writing any more books.

I admire Piers Anthony's creative mind, but I think he's getting addled in his old age. His character spend entirely too much time summoning the stork. In my opinion, it really detracts from the story. I don't see how it advances the story at all. I got quite bored reading it, and was barely able to finish it. This book does not compare favorably with his earlier Xanth novels. I think it's time to cancel this series.

If you are already a Piers Anthony Xanth fan, you'll love this book. If you're looking for something new to try with a whacky sense of humor and overall entertainment-then give it a go!

This is a great series, very imaginative and colorful. I have collected the series for 30 years and they keep on coming, an ever expanding and growing story over generations. They're very enjoyable and fun!

Jumper Cable (2009) is the thirty-third Fantasy novel in the Xanth series, following Two to the Fifth. The initial work in this series is A Spell for Chameleon.

In the previous volume, Cyrus met Princess Rhythm and she used an aging spell. Cyrus wrote three plays and Curtis produced them. Piper found places to stage the plays and also discovered more actors and hands for the company. Eventually, the players reached rock candy mountain.

In this novel, Jumper is a spider. He is a descendant of the Jumper in Castle Roogna.

Wenda Woodwife is a fantasy female. She would like to become real girl.

Maeve Maenad is a wild bloodthirsty bare women. She is trying to evade the storks.

Haughty Harpy is a woman with the wings and legs of a bird. She has an obnoxious talent of changing personalities. At night, she becomes Hotty Harper.

Phanta is a girl whose talent is to become a ghost in the dark. But she also becomes a ghost when her eyes are closed, even for a blink.

Olive Hue is a woman with the talent of incarnating her imaginary friends. While they are embodied, they have real talents.

Dawn and Eve are princesses, the daughters of Dolph and Electra. They are also sorceresses.

Humfrey is the Good Magician. He answers questions and demands a service -- usually a year -- in return.

In this story, Jumper is stalking a juicy bug when a passing hook carries him off to Xanth. The first person he meets in Wenda. At first, he cannot understand her, but she gives him the gift of tongues.

Once he puts it in his mouth, Jumper can understand and speak her language. He explains his problem and Wenda tells him hers. As a woodwive, she only looks like a girl from the front. From the rear, she is only a hollow shell.

Wenda tells him about the Good Magician and Jumper decides to go with her to his castle. On the way, they encounter a stork looking for Maeve. A little further down the road, they meet Maeve herself.

Maeve relates her tale and decides to go with Jumper and Wenda. At a local tavern, they meet Phanta and Olive Hue. All six travel to the castle of the Good Magician.

Naturally, they are confronted with three conundrums and solve them. Humfrey asks them to state their Query. He describes a prophecy and a problem brought on by the Demon Pluto. Then he gives them a mission and adds Dawn and Eve to their party.

He also provides magical assistance to each Querent for the time of the mission. Wenda has a temporary body. Jumper is given vials of potion to change between a human and a spider.

This tale takes the eight through Xanth, meeting various strangers and familiar characters. First they travel to a meeting with Smash and Tandy Ogre. Then Olive Hue imagines Jenny and Sammy to guide them elsewhere.

This volume puts Jumper through some adult scenes. The girls also tease him with panties and bras. According to the author, the plots are becoming more mature.

Jumper decides that he would rather stay in Xanth than return home. The next installment in this series is Knot Gneiss.

Recommended for Anthony fans and for anyone else who enjoys fantastic adventures, weird situations, and tons of puns. Read and enjoy!

-Arthur W. Jordin

Jumper Cable (Xanth) Got the book very quickly. I love the Xanth books & plan to eventually fill my collection with those I've missed.