Whores of Babylon (Paladin Books) [Paperback]

Ian Watson (Author)

Book Description

Series: Paladin Books | Publication Date: May 1990

Alex Winter and Deborah Tate arrive by hovercraft at the city of Babylon, lying on the river Euphrates in the Arizona desert. He is a sociology drop-out from the University of Oregon at Eugene who wants to become a Babylonian. She has a much stranger ambition. Their minds are babbling in the Greek that has been pumped into them via computer interface at the University of Heuristics. To them, English has yet to be invented and the young king Alexander lies dying in his palace. The city is dominated by the tower of Babel, its spiral roadway curling up towards the heavens and wide enough for several donkey carts. And women sit outside the Temple of Ishtar, waiting for some stranger to drop a coin in their laps. The prospect seems to fascinate Deborah. She wants to become one of the Whores of Babylon. Whores of Babylon was first published in 1988 and won the British Science Fiction Association Award for Best Novel. Ian Watson has revised and updated the Immanion Press edition for a new century.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

This Award Winning novel has been revised and updated to bring it into the new Millennium, with addition material and appendices. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

Born in England in 1943, Ian Watson graduated from Balliol College, Oxford, in 1963 with a first class Honours degree in English Literature, followed in 1965 by a research degree in English and French 19th Century literature. After lecturing in literature at universities in Tanzania and Tokyo, and in Futures Studies (including Science Fiction) in Birmingham, England, he became a full-time writer in 1976 following the success of his first novel, The Embedding (1973) which won the John W. Campbell Memorial Award and in France the Prix Apollo, and The Jonah Kit (1975) which won the British Science Fiction Association Award and the Orbit Award.

Numerous novels of SF, Fantasy, and Horror followed, and many story collections. His stories have been finalists for the Hugo and Nebula Awards, and widely anthologised. His novels have been translated into 14 languages. From 1990 to 1991 he worked full-time with Stanley Kubrick on story development for the movie A.I. Artificial Intelligence, finally directed by Steven Spielberg, for which he has screen credit for Screen Story. His memoirs of working with Stanley Kubrick appeared in Playboy in August 1999. In 2001 DNA Publications issued his first chapbook of poetry, The Lexicographer’s Love Song, and in Spring 2002 Golden Gryphon Press published his ninth story collection, entitled The Great Escape, chosen by the Washington Post as a book of the year. In 2003 Golden Gryphon Press published his newest SF novel, Mockymen. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Grafton Books; First Edition edition (May 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0586087737
• ISBN-13: 978-0586087732
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 4.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,806,396 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Topsy Turvy!, October 10, 2000

By 

"snoozymoose" (Alaska USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Whores of Babylon (Paladin Books) (Paperback)

This book is topsy turvy. Alex Winter, a survivalist from 2000, is embarking on an experiment, which involves a sort of time freeze, where Babylon has been moved to the Arizona desert and frozen in time, in 323 BC before Alexander the Great's eventual demise. The story starts out as an affection aimed at a fellow traveler named Deborah Tate. The story keeps on throwing monkeywrenches into the works. And many ironic situations. And, of course, Alex creates a dizzying intellect that causes him to come up with the most intriguing conspiracy theories.