Timeweb (Five Star Science Fiction & Fantasy) (Bk. 1) [Hardcover]

Brian Herbert (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Bestseller Herbert, best known for his collaborations with Kevin J. Anderson (The Machine Crusade, etc.), gets off to a shaky start in this hard SF novel, the first in a series. Thanks to free faster-than-light travel provided by mysterious sentient podships, the "Human" interstellar empire is run by the rapacious Merchant Prince Alliance. Estranged from his Merchant Prince father, paragon environmentalist Noah Watanabe leads the eco-warrior Guardians in rebuilding the ecology of MPA-exploited planets. Meanwhile, Noah's jealous twin sister schemes and seduces the MPA leader to gain power. More seriously, the shape-shifting alien Mutati plan to destroy Humans one world at a time with the planet-busting Demolio device. Leaden writing and tired stereotypes (e.g., evil aliens, ancient prophecies, sentient robots who think just like people, scheming females who use sex to get men to do what they want) make it hard to care. Hopefully, the next installment will breath some life into the story. (May)
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Product Details

• Hardcover: 553 pages
• Publisher: Five Star (ME) (May 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1594142165
• ISBN-13: 978-1594142161
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,429,109 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

BRIAN HERBERT is a widely-published science fiction author in his own right. This is his first novel to call on his father's work: previously, he has created his own worlds, sometimes in collaboration. He has also written Dreamer of Dune, a comprehensive biography of his illustrious father.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Has potential... I'd like to give 3 1/2 stars, December 15, 2006

By 

veeerules "V" (St. Louis, MO USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Timeweb (Five Star Science Fiction & Fantasy) (Bk. 1) (Hardcover)

I really thought this book was pretty good. That is until I reread Dune (written by the author's father), I thought back to the Foundation Series (Issac Asimov, read them twice!) and then I decided Timeweb was just okay. There are SO many great ideas present in this book, Herbert has quite the web of a story, but it just seems like it was lacking in some way. Maybe I've become a science fiction snob, but Dune is such a masterpiece, it just makes Timeweb pale in comparison. Brian Herbert has a lot to live up to...
I think this book would be great for readers just beginning their venture in science fiction. There are intriguing characters, good story lines, fantastic ideas, and good old space drama. I love the idea of the timeweb, and these creatures that travel the web that have been there since the beginning of time. Some of the characters and details seem extraneous, but maybe I just haven't seen the full potential of these things, and that will come in the later books. Time will tell...
So, if you are into science fiction, you will probably enjoy this book. But after you do (or before), read Dune. And then read it again. Then read some Asimov. After that a person realizes how small they are in this universe....

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brian proves himself as solo author, October 13, 2006

By 

J. Bray (WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Timeweb (Five Star Science Fiction & Fantasy) (Bk. 1) (Hardcover)

The son of the mighty frank herbert has now proved without a shadow of doubt, his ability to spin an epic galactic tale not set in the Dune universe.
The galaxy of TIMEWEB has a multitude of alien species- mutati shapeshifters(who are at war with the Merchant Prince Alliance-human worlds), reptilian and mini humans that vy for control over sentient creatures known as podships, industrial ingineuists hibbil and adurians are but a few wonderfully conceived races from this book.

The Good
+ Creative use of alien species
+ Strong galactic eco philosophy without being too preachy
+ I like the use of quotes before chapters that put things into context or just make a point
+ Plenty of galactic intrigue
+ Well written(I have no idea what the previous reviewers are talking about)story flows rapidly with compact chapters that give multiple perspectives without jumping around too much.

The "Bad"
-Ending feels like it ran out of steam too fast
-having to wait a full year for the sequel(I sincerley hope that brian does not limit this to a trilogy!)
Bottom line,
This is Exceptionally great space opera

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Just badly written, October 19, 2009

By 

James A. King (Katy, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Timeweb (Five Star Science Fiction & Fantasy) (Bk. 1) (Hardcover)

About half of this book was all I could take. Maybe it gets a lot better in the second half, but I don't have the patience to find out. Bad, exaggerated characters; repetitive narration; dull plot; potentially exciting plot elements breezed over with hardly a mention.