Customer Reviews

Sword of Orion (Beneath Strange Skies, Book 1)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Sword Of Orion is the start of new series by Lee and Miller, written for a new publisher. This often means a complete departure from previous work, and that does seem to be the the case. One can pick out echoes of some of their other stories, especially in the basic plot, which consisted of the heroes being chased from planet to planet, never getting a chance to catch their breath. But the book lacks the depth of either plot or characterization that is found in the Liaden novels. And really nothing much was resolved at all -- the characters just run and run and run and then they meet a new character while one of the former ones is lost.

If they had ever stopped running long enough to start doing anything else, a few of the characters showed some potential to be interesting. The book is written in tight-focus third person, following the viewpoint of an orphaned teenage girl who is talented, somewhat street-wise, but still mostly innocent. She is also the only daughter of famous revolutionaries and possibly the key to resolving an interrupted revolution one way or another. But for all of that, she never seems to be more than an archetype. She's a role, not a person. A plot mechanism.

Her best friend and proto love interest (who happens to be the son of the leaders who the revolution was fighting against) is actually a more interesting person. We don't actually see much of his character, but he does have a "real" feeling to him that the central heroine is lacking.

Her (young) uncle is both a parent-figure and a sibling-replacement. He's also the most interesting character in the book, but since his neice doesn't understand him all that well, we don't get to do so either.

And the final member of their quartet is an alien, but one of those annoying aliens who is alien just for color, not because his alienness plays any role in the story (so far). Another reviewer mentioned Star Wars, and it does kind of have the feel of that movie, where it seemed that the only purpose of the aliens was to show off the abilities of the costume designers.

The book is smoothly written and it flows well. I picked it up while I was making dinner and didn't stop reading it until I had finished it early in the morning. And at the time I liked it a lot. But now, just a few hours later, it seems much less satisfying. Rather like eating a chocolate truffle -- very tasty but leaving you with a sense of transient fulfillment.

I can't shake the idea that this would have worked much better if it had been a third the length and only the introduction to a complete novel. As it is, it reminded me more of reading a comic book, where the characters have all sorts of wild adventures but by the end nothing much has actually happened.

Perhaps because of the age of the central figure this could be called adolescent fiction, but to excuse its lack of depth by saying it is written for teens is an insult to young readers. Instead, it feels to me more like Lee and Miller were concentrating so much on coming up with a new series that they forgot to make the first installment into an actual novel.

Take notice of the dedication page please. This is, IMO, a Hardy Boy's In Space 'young adult' adventure. It should have been labled such by the publisher. I wonder if they were trying to suck in Liaden fans. If so, it may backfire on Sharon and Steve by causing new readers to think the Liaden books are similar.

I've read all of their Liaden books, starting in 1988 with Conflict of Honors, one of the best. Take it from me, the Liaden books are in a class of their own. An exalted class.

This was my first book from these writers: I have no idea what all this "Liaden" stuff is. All I have is this too-slim volume to judge... and I wasn't all that impressed!

At first I struggled to get into the book. We've seen the rebellious teen angst heroine with a super-secret past thing before. The writing is strictly of the Trekno-babble "word replacement" variety (skate board == slide board, etc.). Then things got interesting. These writers *can* write...

Alas, the characters never really develop and things get bogged down again. The aliens aren't very alien, just there for color and the plot is pure Heinlein juvenile--think Podkayne--only it ain't Heinlein. There are echoes/borrowings (not really homage per se) from other great books or series of the past. For example, the castle bit in the middle is reminiscent to me of Zelazny's Amber series; and those books that share the rapid shifting of worlds amid constant peril theme.

Frankly (and when was the last time anyone said this about an SF book?!?) this book would have been better if it were twice as long. But there is talent on display here: its use in the service of this tired vehicle makes me sad. Perhaps the follow-on volumes will be better. In the meantime, wait for the regular paperback.

I bought this book because I love the Liaden stories and think Sharon Lee and Steve Miller are great SF writers. Unfortunately I'm having trouble with Sword of Orion, Book 1. I'm only 1/3 of the way in and I keep putting it down. Two things are bothering me. First, the teen protagonist, Jarel, is not working for me. There are hints that she will end up being rather brainy and interesting but where I am in my reading now (page 105) she's provoking a hostile reaction. If she doesn't wise up soon, I'll give her the TSTL rating and start cheering on the villains of the piece. The secondary characters, Uncle Orned, Erazias the alien and Kay the teen love interest, are also slow starters. Second, I'm disappointed in the writing. Where's the complexity I'm used to in the Liaden stories? The sentences are all short and composed of lots of one syllable words as if the attempt was to go after a Hemingway style as opposed to a more complex Fitzgerald style.

I'll keep plugging away on this in hopes that it gets better further in, but I'm wishing I had waited until a few more of the sequels were published. I read most of the Liaden books in one big gulp starting with I Dare and Plan B and the universe was so rich, the characters so compelling and interesting, that I didn't mind that the quality of some of the other Liaden books taken individually was uneven.

As an after-thought, I wonder if the new publisher and editor are to blame for this? Were they aiming for a J K Rowling style? Seems like, but Rowling's writing style is not the best model. Her stories work for a lot of reasons that have nothing to do with her writing style which is not that riveting... a review waiting for another day and a different book.

Fans of the Liaden Universe be warned; this is not your usual Lee and Miller. Written in a very unsophisticated style and with a plot that goes almost nowhere, this book does not capture the imagination or the intellect in the way that Liaden or Gem (where are you, Gem??) stories do. Buy it for your young readers, but pass it by if you are over 20. I didn't even finish it - a first for a Lee & Miller collaboration.

I love Lee & Miller's "Liaden" books, but sadly, this novel did not live up to that level. I felt like the entire thing was "set up" for future books without much plot of its own and it had a very unsatisfying ending. I don't mind multi-novel series, but I do expect each individual book to be somewhat complete in and of itself. Also, I didn't identify much with the teenage main characters, but perhaps that might not be a problem for a younger audience.

I was disappointed as this was Not up to this dynamic duos usual superb writing....this first book in a new series is more suited to the teen generation, skate board jargon and takes a few chapters to get going somewhere? Leaves you hanging in the end like a TV series - till Next year folks...Just plain disappointed especially when paying more than it was worth...They need to followup on Balance of Trade and the Liaden Universe to get me back! Those are worth waiting for.

This book is so bad I almost didn't finish it. The story is juvenile, as are the heroine and her boy friend (at least they have an excuse -- they are teen agers). They're on the run, skipping from planet to planet, but the bad guys always seem to know where they are. Hmmm. Boyfriend is the son of a supporter of the deposed regime. Mom sends him off with a backpack and tells him to help our heroine. Do you think mom might have planted some sort of locator on son and is using him (without his knowledge) to track our girl? The girl's "uncle" is by far the most interesting character - and he's left behind at the end of this book. I will read the reviews of book 2 in this series before I spend any money on it.

I have all Lee&Miller books and until this one I never was dissapointed. No plot to speak about, no characters to be interested in, no logic even in what is there (the group keeps running from their enemies, they keep repeating to themselves that now finally they lost the "tail" and they are nearly immediately found - perhaps it is time to check for hidden bugs? Especially as one of the heroes is so called "licensed assasin" and should have thought about this?). In fact, everything that made Liaden series so wonderful, is absent. If I got this book without a cover, I would never have thought it was written by the same authors.
An attempt to write a young adult S/F - all I can say, Heinlein did it better.

While generally enjoyable, The Sword of Orion is OK in almost every way but never quite gets really good. Overall it reminds me of Heinlein's teenage books - though without quite the same innocence and bright edge of burgeoning space exploration. The characterization is fine - the people interesting enough, the plot is fine - but you're never surprised. I have tremendously enjoyed almost everything Lee & Miller have written - I suppose they can have a bad day. For Liaden fans I would say go ahead and read it so you can say you are truly dedicated fans. For those who aren't prior Lee & Miller fans I wouldn't start here.