Mercycle [Hardcover]

Piers Anthony (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1991

On Earth with the hope of saving the planet from a meteor strike, an alien from an alternate reality recruits five humans to help him on his mission, using his advanced technology to enable them to breathe while under water. Reprint. PW. K.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

According to the author's note, Mer-Cycle was written in 1971 but remained unsold until now. It might better have stayed in oblivion. The plot postulates a series of parallel earths, each due to be struck by a meteor that will destroy it. A planet that has survived the meteor attack has assigned proxies to warn the many other human races and save them from being wiped out. One proxy decides against contacting world leaders--which invariably fails--and instead gathering four "ordinary" humans and circuitously showing them evidence of the danger, in the hopes that they would be more likely to convince the population than would unknown aliens. None of this is revealed until the 15th chapter; prior to that, five characters--who are in an aspect of reality that is 99.9% out of phase with their surroundings, so they can breathe underwater--are seen bicycling around the seabed of the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean and getting to know and trust one another. The situation is unoriginal, the romance between two of these stereotypical characters is telegraphed from the instant they meet, and the framing communiques that open each chapter are repetitive. The pacing is good enough that the reader is mildly engrossed, but only mildly.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Anthony's latest explores the sea's ancient mysteries--on wheels.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Tafford Pub (October 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0962371262
• ISBN-13: 978-0962371264
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,931,712 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Piers Anthony is one of the world's most popular fantasy authors, and a New York Times bestseller twenty-one times over. His Xanth novels have been read and loved by millions of readers around the world, and he daily receives hundreds of letters from his devoted fans.In addition to the Xanth series, Anthony is the author of many other best-selling works. Piers Anthony lives in Inverness, Florida.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars I thought it was great!, February 18, 1999

By 

S.L. Graham (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mercycle (Paperback)

I thought Mercycle was a great book! I've never had a book just grab me like that and take me in along for the ride. From the first page to the last, I just couldn't get enough! Now I'm waiting for the next book after Mercycle. Hopefully there will be one! And let the next adventure begin!

4.0 out of 5 stars Better-than-average SF, with a few original ideas. Not bad., September 28, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Mercycle (Paperback)

I found MerCycle to be one of the more interesting SF novels I have come across. The idea of a lost Minoan city was fascinating to me, as I am a history major in college. While I would not go as far as to say that this is Piers Anthony's best work, I do believe it is, at worst, better than average for him.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Save your money, November 30, 2002

By 

Michael Rossander (Westlake, OH USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mercycle (Paperback)

This book had potential but somewhere it got lost. It has interesting characters and a reasonably good plot. Unfortunately, the sub-plots don't blend well in this story. The entire bit with the Chinese mer-people struck me as an overly complicated plug to test Don's ability to commit. The plot and sub-plots should flow like a melody and the harmonies. In Mercycle, the sub-plots were dischordant. They distracted rather than added to the story.

This story is not nearly as tight as other Anthony novels. I usually like his work. This book was a disappointment to me.

On the back flyleaf of my copy, Anthony tells the story of how this story was originally rejected by eight publishers and how its merits were miraculously discovered only after he was a popular author. I found myself instead thinking that the editors were right the first time and prostituted themselves once he was a popular author and that both of them are relying on the Anthony name to trick as many of us as possible into buying this book. Don't.