Customer Reviews

A Point of Honor

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a story about total-immersion gaming (of the sort also found in Piers Anthony's "KilloByte"). It is also a story about honor codes applied to modern day life, copyright violation, and attempted murder.

The main character is a well-educated, California blonde, young woman, who won total immersion interface equipment through a college raffle. Discovering that she had a knack for the game "Chivalry", she began making her living by playing in game tournaments (literally tourneys, in this case). After several years, the earning of much glory, and the accumulation of a moderate fan-base, the main character accepts a challenge from a new, unknown, and off-puttingly overconfident new tourney entrant. He loses, as is the way with most of his kind who challenge masters, but has not the funds to ransom his armor and horse. Instead, he offers the deed to a virtual manor. From the moment she accepts the deed as payment, the main character suffers attempts made on her life IN REAL LIFE.

Going into hiding until she can make sense of and prevent the attacks upon her, the main character teams up with an original programmer of and the only monk in "Chivalry", in order to solve the problems of the manor (which shouldn't exist), the world to which it leads (which is tantamount to an unauthorized full immersion version of Tolkien's Rings series), and the people who value it so highly that they will kill to keep it a secret. Along the way, they uncover at least two major security violations, betrayal, and an event of Aristotolean physics in a world of Newtonian physics.

This book is refreshingly free of graphic sexuality, well planned, well executed, and gloriously fanciful in a believable setting. Ms. Heydt's descriptions strike the right balance that gives the imagination a foothold from which to design intricate environments. Also, this story pays moderate tribute to the fact that there are some people of the feminine persuasion who do not swoon in a fight when provided with a male fellow adventurer.

This book should delight fans of adventure, creative anachronists, programmers, and those who anticipate the advent of full immersion gaming in any form.

I'm a programmer by trade and an avid fan of science fiction, fantasy, and role-playing games, and this was one of the finest portrayals I have ever seen of what virtual reality could someday be. Many authors have tried and failed to do a good job of VR-related novels, and I was half afraid that this would be more of the same old stuff. Other authors make the mistake of spouting a lot of useless, nonsensical jargon that would make even the super techno-savvy reader confused. I felt that her command of technology is on a par with that of other authors, but she doesn't try to club the reader over the head with how techie she is. Her plot and character development are excellent, and I was so taken with her writing that I dropped by amazon.com to see if she'd written more. I highly recommend this book!

The idea of using VR for recreations of combat in the middle ages is superb. (This is probably a dream of most SF/fantasy readers, or at least it will be after you read this book!).

Unfortunately the quest that forms a major plot line fails to excite precisely because it is taking place in a safe artificial world (and hacked one at that.)

Still this book has a great set of ideas which, together with some very nice historical touches, makes the book a pleasant way to pass the time. Also a lot of potential exists for other stories based on the use of VR for historical re-enactment.

Overall a fairly good read but one which fails to live up to its potential.

This book is pure science fiction but the story is all fantasy. Its a beautiful blend that works quite well. I had the most fun I've had with a new book in a couple of years. Sir Mary de Courcy is the top knight in a virtual game/world called Chivalry. At the end of one successful tourney she suddenly finds herself the target of a killer. How can the aquisition of a virtual world manor be so important that someone is willing to kill for it, and why? To answer this question AND find out who is behind the attempts on her life, Mary joins with one of the original writers of the virtual universe. She handles the virtual 'physical' dangers, knights, dragons and trolls, while Greg analyzes code and studies how the hackers are manipulating the world. I want more!

An entertaining book; works as sci-fi, mystery, and even has a nice seasoning of romance. The characters were interesting and non-stereotypical, and I could say the same for the depiction of the future and VR, which was (happily, for me) nothing like Gibson's apocalyptic one.

If you're a fan of virtual reality, the Middle Ages and chase scenes, get this book--you won't be disappointed. The characters are a little thin and the future world is generic, but the mystery and cleverness of the central plot carries the book along.

Virtual Reality and SCA--what a combination! I whipped right through this book, a real page-turner. The heroine was strong and smart, without being smarmy or sickeningly goddess-like. And it sure was refreshingly to get a glimpse of a future world that isn't depressingly dystopian, but where it is obvious that Changes Must Be Made if people are going to survive. Also a pleasant change to find the good guys aren't brutal and bloodthirsty! Can't wait to see what this writer does next.

This book is wonderful. If you know about the SCA it is a GREAT book to read. A brighter, yet realistic look at our future with a story that brings many of the genres together without spoiling any of them. My own book is battered already.

From the opening scene, Dorothy Heydt pulls you in with the details of her VR medieval worlds as well as her hardworking heroine. The immersive sense of the fantasy VR plays well in opposition to the real world and the threats that cross over.

Anyone who enjoys fantasy escapes, whether in the Society for Creative Anachronism, wherein the author is a prominent figure, or in MMORPG games such as Everquest or Dark Age of Camelot, will experience a thrill of recognition reading this book. As a historian, I appreciated that the way Heydt worked in tidbits of medieval (and SCA) customs into her virtual world. Sure, the mystery wears a little thin two-thirds of the way through the book (and the heroine's newfound partnership accelerates unconvincingly) but the magic of the worlds-crossings worked their wonders right through the conclusion.

This book is a great read for those who like VR, the SCA or "real folks forced into a fantasy world" genre. It's full of fascinating tidbits that show the author's scholarship.

It is somewhat flawed in that much of the action takes place in the VR world, where apparently nothing deadly can creep into "the real world". This takes out part of the urgency and suspense. But- the same could be said of much of the Matrix.

All in all, an excellent first novel by an author more known for short stories.