The Pastel City [Mass Market Paperback]

M. John Harrison (Author)

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback
• Publisher: Morrow/Avon (January 1, 1976)
• ASIN: B000MRJ5XO
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great tale!, June 4, 2002

By 

Phillip G. Cameron "gottlos" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Pastel City (Paperback)

I pull this book out a couple of times a year and let it take me for a spin. I've been doing that for about 30 years now and I still get a thrill every time. This is very fine work indeed.

Mr. Harrison will have you visualizing his landscapes and characters as few other authors could ever hope to do. These are real people in unreal settings, and that makes for the greatest of storytelling.

This is a tale of a far future land where technology has mostly been forgotten and rusted away. A power struggle between two queens has erupted in the post-Arthurian city of Viriconium and a handful of loyal old knights gather together to protect the young queen and restore her to the throne. Some of my favorite characters in fiction live in this book. I consider it an absolutely must read for sci-fi and fantasy fans alike.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Terrific Book!, June 13, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Pastel City (Paperback)

Every year or two I take this book off the shelf for sheer
reading pleasure. Many authors would have padded this
volume out to make a trilogy (or worse), but the brevity of the
tale and the beauty of the writing make this a wonderful
experience. More is not necessarily better - this book just
leaves the reader wanting more. A great adventure story,
a quest, with memorable characters, plot, and a startling
denouement. Scour your pre-owned bookstores for this one. (I buy every copy I can find and pass them on to friends.)

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars the Pastel City, July 16, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Pastel City (Tales of Viriconium, Vol. 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

This a short novel that's set in the same world as the Viriconium short stories from the same author. It tells of how Viriconium, where the remains of an extinct technological civilization are exploited by a sort of medieval kingdom under a young queen, is defended by a small band of warriors against the invasion from the north by the enemy queen, who has resurrected an army of brain-eating androids. The book is a good read for anyone who enjoyed the oblique, surreal world in Viriconium Nights..