Customer Reviews

Lodestar (Firestar Saga)

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

 

 

After constructing a magnificent, progressive universe with a cast of dozens of well-rounded, genuine characters in Firestar and Roguestar, Michael Flynn apparently has forgotten how the first two books were written. This book simply takes a sharp left turn, with regard to style, characterization, and plot. Whereas previous books had a sense of awe and suspense at first about Mariesa's Plan and then about the struggle to get the FarTrip expedition off the ground, the plot here is simplistic at best. Old characters make convenient cameos but are sorely underutilized. Simply put, this book feels rushed, written solely in order to meet a publisher's deadline and shows little of the depth or emotional power of the previous two titles in the series. LET IT BE SAID HOWEVER, THAT THE PREVIOUS RANT WAS WRITTEN ONLY BECAUSE THE FIRST TWO BOOKS WERE SO GOOD THAT THIS FEELS LIKE A DEFINITE STEP DOWN! Overall, the story, though somewhat lukewarm, is a good one, and fans of the series will enjoy seeing the children of Mariesa's program taking the most prominent roles. So check out Firestar and Roguestar, and perhaps by then you'll be as hooked as me. One last comment, someone really needs to tell Michael Flynn that for the next book to get a different cover artist. The circa-1940s fish bowl space suits make the novel's very serious and at times wrenching story look sophomoric and silly. Put that in your next contract, Mr. Flynn.

After enjoying the first two books in this series, I eagerly awaited Lodestar. Now that I've finished it, I still eagerly await anything that resembles the first two books.

If you take the Jimmy Poole at the virtual OK Corral story arc out of this book, the remainder of plot progress takes up no more than a hundred pages. Jimmy on a virtual gambling boat, Jimmy fighting virtual attacks, Jimmy fighting not to be a jerk and read his wifes book. Geez! Nuke Jimmy and get back to the plot.

Rogue Star, Firestar...Lodestar. Is this the big payoff to Michael Flynn's near future saga of an obsessed woman's crusade to get mankind back into space in order to protect Earth from falling rocks? Well, let's just say the story continues entertainingly. Last time we took a deep space trip to the asteroids and found that somebody was nudging them our way. This time we try to talk the world into doing something about it. Dealing with people, Flynn demonstrates, is always the toughest problem; past, present, or near future.

. . . as the first two books in the "Firestar" series, but, in the opinion of this reviewer, still a worthy read. In this, I apparently disagree with a few of my fellow reviewers!

"Lodestar" carries the "Firestar" series through the end of the second decade of the 21st century, (though the prologue is set in 2021 and is an effective backward reflection). The plot, like "Roguestar" is considerably "tighter" than in "Firestar" and much of the action takes place in earth orbit -- or in virtual space.

Many familiar characters from the previous two novels are further fleshed out, including ultimate computer geek Jimmy Poole and his lover/wife Tani. A number of new characters are introduced as well as representing the "next generation" of space pilots, my favorite being the feisty Jacinta Rosario.

A recurring theme throughout all three novels is the inability of the government to move past "politics as usual" even in the face of emergency situations. Sound familiar?

"Lodestar" does leave one hanging, and hoping for resolution. See you at the next book!

This takes the first two novels to the next level. I expect this series will go another two books at least. Poole was developed much more, as was Tani, his wife. More characters were introduced and some were taken out. It's the world as it might be.

Honest, I couldn't put it down. I almost gave it a five star, but not many books deserve that.

I loved the "virtch" world, as it seemed my more realistic than many of the cyberpunk stuff I've seen. It just brought the two previous books together and left me panting for more.

Write, Mr. Flynn. Write.

This is the third in the Future History-type series that Michael Flynn started in Firestar. It may well be the best yet, if you enjoy hard science SF with deep people underneath the glitter and steel. However, the dust jacket, with it's somewhat ludicrous '40's-retro look 'space suits', is a big disappointment. If I had never read any of Flynn's other works in the series, I would have passed on it, giving it a WIDE berth to make sure I didn't get seasick (or spacesick) -- and therefore missed an excellent read. In fact, I finished it for the first time two days after it came in from Amazon. (I had to finish what I was reading at the time.) That was last week; I just finished re-reading the first two books, so now I have to go back again and read it in sequence, to link everything up properly. But I gotta get rid of that cover...

The Firestar Saga: Firestar, Lodestar, Roguestar, and Falling Stars; was so vivid that I can only compare it to blockbuster movies. I find myself at a loss of a sufficient comparison to other SF books and authors -- even after over half a century of reading hard SF. This was one of the best, of course building on all of those that went before. Michael Flynn learned from the best of the best, and you get hints and allusions to that SF background from comments made by the characters - they are as amazed and thrilled to be DOING science fiction as we are to read it.
Unlike classical science fiction (even some of the best of the best), the character development is as deep and intricate as a New York Times bestseller or a prime time mini-series. The action is as gripping as any thriller.
The movies to compare to, again the best of the best: Stand and Deliver; The Right Stuff (Two-Disc Special Edition); Manions of America [VHS]; Dirty Sexy Money: Season One; and Space Cowboys.
Even after 2000 pages, you will be surprised and disappointed that it is over.

Wealthy heiress Mariesa van Huyten's fears have finally come to fruition. When a remote satellite is sent out to observe an approaching asteroid, it is destroyed just as the asteroid slightly changes its trajectory. Even though she has been displaced at CEO at her consortium, she gains back some credibility when the news gets out that the asteroid will impact in six years. Thanks to her obsession, Earth has a chance to send out a crew to alter the course of the asteroid, but only if a myriad of things go right.

The plot of this novel is somewhat slower than her last one, owing to the deeper development of some of her main characters, especially computer nerd Jimmy Poole. Much of the "action" in the plot occurs online in a virtual world which may turn off some pure sci-fi fans. This book is OK, and serves as a decent bridge between "Rogue Star" and "Falling Stars".

I am a great admirer and have much enjoyed Michael Flynn's series. Lodestar is still pretty good, even though maybe not up to the first two. I admire Flynn's characters as he develops them.. and sort of miss some of the earlier ones (e.g. Barry Fast). I found myself skipping over some of the "hacker" text. I could sort of follow most of it, and it may have been dynamite to someone more computer-wise than I.... but it did drag on. I kept expecting more space travel to occur, and was disappointed when it was such a small part of the story. I do admire how with each successive book the cultural landscape becomes more removed and different from that of the present. He has some creative slang terms, most of which I can decipher. He does keep coming up with great characters, and making some of the established ones more interesting. I like his inclusion of and interplay among the topics of science, technology, politics, high-finance, even a bit of art, and makes it all into a complex and compellng story.

More SF should be written this well!

I waited what seemed like ages for this book to be released. I devoured the first two books in the series in no time flat and the publisher had "coming soon from Tor books - Lodestar" on the inside cover.

When I first saw the book on the shelf, I had to look twice to make sure it was what I had waited for. Judging by the cover, this has got to be one lousy book, I thought. After reading it, I can tell you it's not as bad as the cover would indicate. It's not a bad read, but it is no where near as good as the first two novels (Firestar and Rogue Star) in the series.

Contrasting Lodestar vs. Firestar and Rogue Star: Lodestar lacks a strong plot. There is a battle in cyberspace and we do see deeper into the twisted soul of Jimmy Poole (Crackman), but the resolution of this conflict is not satisfying. There are corporate battles, but these are not on the same scale as in the prior two books. The hero wins, I think, but it is difficult to figure out exactly what he won.

I expected Lodestar to bring some closure to the series. It doesn't. It is clear from the ending that there is another book coming. This concerns me because the characters developed in Lodestar are pretty weak when compared to those in the first novel. I don't think they were developed enough in Lodestar to carry another novel.

I wonder if Flynn wrote the book to fulfill a contractual obligation...