Customer Reviews

Out of the Dead City

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Book 1 of 3: Out of the Dead City - 3/5 - An unknown planet is host to a radiation barrier. On one side are the humans which have a historical reminder of the terrible war and the other rests a glimmering yet dead city. The feudal kingdom is home to a weakened king and a promising heir to the throne. When the prince is kidnapped by a menagerie of colorful characters, the kind announces war on the unknown enemy beyond the radiation barrier. One man has been gifted a crystallized body structure to be withstand the barrier's radiation but also enables him to become transparent in certain light. It's with his gift and abilities that lead the colorful assembly to forge through the barrier in hopes of disarming the coming war.

Typical of a Delaney novel, from the onset the initial pattern of events is difficult to fathom; characters are disjointed and events are timelessly situated. But once the grooves begin to merge, an excitement unseen in other Delaney novels brings unsurpassed witticism and a powerful plot flow. A ravenous surge of power is witnessed. The falling of the pieces was epically plotted, great stuff. This is wondrous stuff but it soon lost me towards the ending pages when, like typical Delaney, the plot takes on ethereal essence with very little synchronization of the plot just laid out pages prior to the ambiguity. 136 pages

On the future Earth of an indeterminate time, mankind has been reduced to living in a small coastal area clustered about the island nation of Toramon. On one side, they are bounded by ocean and on the other a radiation barrier. The government of Toramon is preparing to make war against a mysterious force that lives beyond the barrier, but it has become clear to some that the real purpose behind the proposed war is tied to the economic problems and population pressures of the kingdom. Who is living beyond the barrier and what kind of understanding can be reached with them?

This is a truly schizophrenic novel. The first two thirds are brilliant. Samuel R. Delany introduces a fascinating and complex culture. His large cast of characters is drawn from all levels of society, and he handles them very skillfully. By the end of the book, though, it seems clear that this was never intended to be a self-contained story. The questions that drive the narrative and motivate the characters are left unanswered, and events sort of peter out inconclusively. Since this is the first part of a trilogy, it is reasonable to assume that these questions will be answered later. At that time, I may revise my opinion of this book. (...)