Customer Reviews

The Palace of Love (The Demon Princes, Book 3) (Daw UE1442)

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"Many fine things your father had planned for you: learning and useful work; a life of satisfaction and peace. All this is gone now, do you understand? But the learning you shall have - the use of your hands and mind. And useful work: the elimination of evil men. What work is more useful than this? Finally, I cannot give you peace, but I promise you ample satisfaction, for I shall teach you to crave the blood of these men more than the flesh of a woman."

These are the words uttered by Kirth Gersen's (sometimes called Keith Gersen) grandfather after a raid on their homeworld by 5 super-criminals (known as the 5 Demon Princes) leaves everyone but these two either dead or enslaved. True to his word, the old man forges his grandson into an unstoppable instrument of vengeance. In fact, Gersen often seems more a force a nature than a human being, more machine than man in his single-minded quest for revenge. His fighting prowess and physical abilities are without peer; likewise, his mind is sharp and focused.

This is the third book in Vance's "Demon Princes" Series. I found it enjoyable, but not as much as the first two books. In this book, Gersen - after his epic swindling of Interchange to the tune of 10 billion SVU (Standard Value Units) - is undoubtedly the richest person in the Gaean Reach (the area of space inahabited by human beings). Of course, no one is aware of who it was who cheated Interchange, but Gersen now has virtually limitless resources with which to pursue the 3 remaining Demon Princes.

As in the first two books, the third Demon Prince also masks his true identity by pretending to be someone else. Half the fun of this series is seeing Gersen doggedly attempting to unearth the secret identity of the super-criminals, and that is the case here. The other half is watching him catch the bad guy.

As usual, Vance's Gaean Reach is populated with a wide variety of memorable characters who etch themselves into one's memory on blocks of granite. Gersen himself, is, of course, magnetic - created in the classical hero motif but far from static or boring.

Third revenge.


Girlfriends are part-time, killing your crimelord enemies is a full time occupation. So Gersen now turns his newly acquired wealth from the previous book to the task of getting to Falushe, the next on his list.

Yet again he has to find the planet the guy hangs out on, find out which person he is - which is kind of interesting, overlord megalomaniac types that like to hide who they are. Be a bit easier if they paraded around like Ming the Merciless, but a much shorter series.