Martian Rainbow [Paperback]

Martha D Trustee (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 6, 2001

Mars starts out as a battlefield, but soon both armies find themselves united against a charismatic dictator of all Earth, who is demanding that they return or be destroyed. Their only hope is to turn Mars into a new home, which they do, with the aid of some ancient caretakers of the planet.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Another aspect of the good/evil dichotomy is illustrated in Forward's novel. Twin brothers Alexander and Augustus Armstrong--one a general and the other a statesman and scientist--unite to conquer the Russian forces on Mars but find themselves on opposing sides in the uneasy peace that ensues. Although Forward ( Dragon's Egg , LJ 4/15/80; Starquake , LJ 10/15/85) excels in hard sf adventure, his moral heavy-handedness and lack of political acumen weaken this otherwise intriguing foray into future politics. Not an essential purchase.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

Simple-minded, Heinlein-esque, medium-future interplanetary power-struggle from the author of Dragon's Egg and Starquake. In the 21st century, Mars, after a brief independence under Communist Russians, is reconquered by UN forces under General Alexander Armstrong. Alexander returns to Earth and soon, heading his own religious cult, becomes supreme dictator of the planet. His scientist twin brother Gus stays on Mars as governor. So when the ever-more paranoid and megalomaniac Alexander orders all space colonies abandoned, interplanetary war seems likely. Deterred from invading Mars by missiles the Martians no longer have (they used them all to destroy an earlier nuclear strike), Alexander arranges that, if he dies, an asteroid will blow the Earth to bits. On Mars, meanwhile, Gus discovers an ancient alien-robot civilization; the robots agree to help terraform Mars for human occupation. A sophomoric rehash of standard notions, with cartoon characters and strained plotting, though the accurate, informative Marsology helps. -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse (March 6, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595167462
• ISBN-13: 978-0595167463
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,893,174 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

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Characters are not believable..., February 12, 2001

By 

Oliver Von Spreckelsen "sir_ollibolli" (Frankfurt am Main) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Martian Rainbow (Hardcover)

The books foundation lies in the similarities and differences of the two main characters, Alex the General und Gus the Scientist. The other point to start from is the effort to make Mars a planet to live on. Both plots are being treated too black and white (the schism between Alex and Gus and how they are drifting more and more apart is not handled well) or solved with a deus-ex-machina solution. The plot itself could have been made into a complete trilogy (Step 1: Conquer Mars, Step 2: Build Mars, Step 3: Save Earth...) with enough emphasis on the different characters.

On the positive side: I was captured by the principles of making Mars a habitable planet. This kind of situation suits well with Robert Forward, only his characters are not believable, and therefore not interesting enough to bring life into this book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A good beach read but not his best work, April 18, 2000

By 

Randy Buchanan - See all my reviews

This review is from: Martian Rainbow (Hardcover)

This book was good but not great. The Mars angle is very interesting and his science is terrific as always. His characterization and plotting were on the thin side. If you like Forward's other books you will like this one, although Dragon's Egg/Starquake and the Rocheworld series are more interesting in terms of both their science and plot/character development in my opinion. Maybe that's because the other books include alien races, which Forward seems to do better than human characters.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars I'm a fan of Robert Forward. . ., October 15, 2001

By 

David Zampino "21st Century Hobbit" (Delavan, Wisconsin) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Martian Rainbow (Paperback)

. . .really I am -- but in this book, Forward concentrates almost exclusively on what is the weakest element of his writing -- character development -- and neglects the strongest element of his writing -- serious "hard-science" fiction.

I've admitted in other reviews (see "Saturn Rukh") that I don't read Forward for character development or depth. Good thing too! The by-play between the twin brothers in this novel is unbelievable at best; the transformation from General to religious dictator is ridiculous; and the alien robots which suddenly turn up to save the day? Come on, guys!

Dr. Forward -- PLEASE keep writing your "hard science". It's wonderful and thought-provoking in its own right. But forgive me for negative rating here. The downsides of "Martian Rainbow" far outweighed the upside.