Brother Assassin (Berserker) (Mass Market Paperback)

by Fred Saberhagen (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
When the planet Sirgol is targeted for destruction by the Berserker war machines, who plan to travel through time to kill a pivotal scientist in history, Time Operative Derron Odegard becomes the world's only hope. Reprint. NYT.

About the Author
In addition to the popular Dracula Series, Fred Saberhagen is the author of the popular Berserker (tm) Series and the bestselling Lost Swords and Book of Lost Swords. Fred Saberhagen lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Tor Science Fiction (January 15, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812536428
• ISBN-13: 978-0812536423
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,478,457 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The 'UNDO' Command, March 17, 2000

By	Pantagruel (orbit) - See all my reviews

Hiding in their bunkers beneath a blasted world, the inhabitants of Sirgol are still not defeated. They have a unique colony world; their civilization is as old as Earth's, since Sirgol is the only planet known where time-travel can happen, and the first colonists dropped back thousands of years. Now the berserker machines have found them, and almost beaten them by scouring off the surface of their world, but the Sirgolians still have a chance as they fight the machines through the loops and bends of their planet's earthlike history. And on Sirgol, you can really go back and make it not happen. Saberhagen's berserkers are always a scary concept, but here they have a different side. It's a question critical to my own survival: how complicated can a machine be before it can be said to be 'alive?'

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Berserkers in time, December 4, 2005

By	Kurt A. Johnson (Marseilles, Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Brother Assassin (Berserker, Bk. 2) (Paperback)

The planet Sirgol sits in a strange part of the space-time continuum, the only place in the universe where time travel is possible. And when the first Earth ship arrived, it was plunged 20,000 years into Sirgol's past, where the survivors became the first humans to live on the planet. And by the time the Berserkers arrived, Sirgol was a fully matured world with 400 million people which could assist Earth in its war against the enemies of life.

However, now the Berserkers are ready to use time travel against the humans of Sirgol, and it is up to Time Operations to thwart their plans. Lieutenant Derron Odegard is the man on the spot, and he will be intimately involved in the time war. But, the war will cost Odegard more than he expected, and take him farther than he ever thought.

I have always loved Fred Saberhagen's Berserker stories. To me, they are the quintessential villains, with no pity and no remorse. In this story, Mr. Saberhagen moves into new ground, pitting the Berserkers against humans in an alternate, but basically Earth equivalent, history. It's all here - the Neolithic, the late Roman Empire, and the Renaissance.

But, what did I think of the story? Well, it's not as blood-chilling as the other, pure science-fiction, Berserker stories I have read. But, I must say that I found it a very good read, a very interesting story. If you are a fan of good science-fiction, or time travel stories, or love the Berserkers, then this is a good book to read. I enjoyed it, and think that you will too!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's a battle in time to stop the Berserkers., July 15, 1998

By A Customer

This is yet another great Berserker book... Saberhagen goes into great detail about all the events of Sirgol's history, the planet literally comes to life... In this book time travel is the key. It's a race to stop the Berserkers from going back in time to destroy the planet's past.