Compass Reach (Paperback)

by Ed Cox (Author), Mark W. Tiedemann (Illustrator)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"Compass Reach is a rousing, inventive, far-future adventure by one of the most distinctive new voices in the field." -- Jack McDevitt

"Mark Tiedemann is a fine writer...he's one of the best new SF authors on the scene today." -- Allen Steele

"Mark Tiedemann is a fine writer; this novel proves that he's of the best new SF authors on the scene." -- Allan Steele

"Mark Tiedemann writes with an engaging energy, gritty realism, and a genuine concern for his characters. -- Jeffrey Carver

Product Description
Fargo owes nothing to the Pan Humana. He turned his back on them long ago, when he was stripped of his identity, his class, his position, and all the other ties to human civilization enjoyed by its billions upon billions of citizens. Fargo joined the ranks of the Freeriders. To themselves, Freeriders are interstellar gypsies, the disinvested and therefore the truly free. To most of the rest of society, to the Invested, they are parasites, freeloaders, bums.

But now Fargo finds himself caught up in events that are dragging him back into the folds of human culture and forcing him to choose sides in a struggle to determine the future of humanity in the galaxy. The aliens have come to make treaties, to interact with a paranoid humanity, to bridge the gaps that separate them. They do not understand the resistance they encounter and enlist aid where they can. Among those they pick, Fargo is their most unlikely choice. He is also their most dangerous choice.

To the humans opposed to embracing the new future offered, Fargo is representative of everything they reject, a threat to everything they hold important and fear to lose. He is an outsider, unwanted, unwelcome, in many ways a barbarian, yet indispensable to both sides.

For himself, Fargo has his own reasons for going all the way to Sol, to Earth, into the heart of power.

Fargo has touched an alien mind.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 340 pages
• Publisher: Meisha Merlin Publishing, Inc. (June 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1892065398
• ISBN-13: 978-1892065391
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,473,519 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Good Stuff, November 11, 2001

By	John Lowrance (Mid-Missouri) - See all my reviews

As a long time reader of science fiction, it's always a pleasure to discover a new author with genuine talent. Mark Tiedemann is such an author, and Compass Reach is a genuinely good book. As hard as it is to imagine, he has created a believable space opera. There are no stereotypical heroes or villains here, no mock heroics, no paint-by-the-numbers galactic empires. Instead, there are heroes who have doubts, make mistakes, get confronted with sitations they can't deal with...and yet, somehow they manage to survive and overcome. There are villains who are villains for believable reasons...Mr. Tiedemann makes you understand why they behave the way they do, and even empathize with them (not an easy trick!) And those inscrutable aliens...just what are they up to? It's all set against the background of a very well-realized galactic civilization, with supporting details that bring it to life in a most convincing fashion. After finishing this book, you have the feeling you have been somewhere and done something. Kudos to Mr. Tiedemann for creating such a memorable novel. I recommend it most highly.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars you gotta read this book, March 1, 2003

By	"dmosblech" (St. Louis, MO.) - See all my reviews

The first thing I have to say about Tiedemann's work is that once I begin one of his stories I don't want to put it down.
Whether it's a new Asimov Robot Mystery or his Secantis series, this author keeps you turning the pages. Compass Reach is crisply paced, with richly drawn characters and a compelling story. Tiedemann cooks up a spicy stew of Bradbury mystery with Asimov's galactic scope and a dash of Heinlein's humor. Watch for Metal of Night, the 'second' in the series, and Feel the Impact When Worlds Collide!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Compass Reach, February 6, 2003

By	Terry W. (Middle America) - See all my reviews

"I picked up COMPASS REACH last year after seeing it on the short-list for the Philip K. Dick Award, and discovered a sophisticated novel about interstellar civilization, aliens, and the humans who are trying to come to terms with a universe they know little about. At face value, that description may sound like standard fare, but this book isn't. And that's because of the characters and the way Tiedemann reveals them. I've always been drawn to the strange, imaginative worlds of possibility that comprise the science fiction genre, but what makes me a fan of Tiedemann's universe, in particular, is the beings who inhabit them. He writes about the human condition with an immediacy that makes you feel the world he's depicting is real. Instead of the neat political and ethical boxes that usually comprise 'space opera', he embraces ambiguity and talks about life as it is and how it might be under fully-realized future conditions.

"He's very visual, too. From the tortured landscape of the opening chapter to the startling evocation of Earth at the end, the world of COMPASS REACH is vivid and rich, equal to the intellectual and emotional explorations of the book--which are all multifaceted and fascinating. He addresses questions I've always wondered about when reading or watching traditional science fiction. Questions like, What would life be like for the people on the bottom of the economic pyramid in an interstellar culture? How would "wealth" be determined in such a system? How would interactions with alien civilizations change the way we see ourselves? What are the ramifications of--?

"Well, you get the idea. This novel is a sleeper. I hear it is on the preliminary ballot for the Nebula Award. I hope it wins! It's a refreshing twist on old ideas, liberally laced with some new ideas, but with a central power and drive that rewards close reading. The images stayed with me long after the last page. I don't have a lot of time to read for fun, so I'm a little behind, but I'm starting PEACE AND MEMORY, the third book in Tiedemann's Secantis Sequence, right now. This is a writer to pay attention to and enjoy for a long time to come.