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The Hidden Family (The Merchant Princes #2)
In the tradition of Roger Zelazny's classic Amber novels, the second volume of Charles Stross's thrill-a-minute saga of multiple worlds. Miriam, a hip tech journalist from Boston, discovered her alternate world relatives in The Family Trade, and with them an elite identity she didn't know was hers. Now, in order to avoid a slippery slope down to an unmarked grave, Mir...more
Paperback, 336 pages
Published
May 2nd 2006
by Tor Fantasy
(first published 2005)
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The first book in this series started as a refreshing take on the world-walking motif, in which instead of people just being kings in a magic world and then occasionally coming home, they exploit arbitrage opportunities, bringing goods back and forth. It was an interesting spin. Unfortunately, it ended abruptly, without making much sense or wrapping up much of anything. (There's one set of characters, apparently intended for a later part of the series, who show up, have a conversation, and never...more
Stross clearly has some Marx education in his background; a lot of his novels very definitely bring on the way your situation and economics affect how you live your life. Often times this is sci fi economics: how does the ability to travel through space change the way we live, or sentient computers, or something like this.
This is his trip into the fantasy world, where he creates a plausible economics of the ability to jump between dimensions.
Don't worry, it's a lot more excit...more
This is his trip into the fantasy world, where he creates a plausible economics of the ability to jump between dimensions.
Don't worry, it's a lot more excit...more
This book is a continueation of the Merchant Prince series. It basically has the same review as book 1.
In this book Miriam in her struggles to stay alive in a world that makes the Italian Renansiance look like politics in a kindergarden. One of the assasins that came after her had a locket that she took from his body.
Later looking the locket over she determines that its different from the lockest her family carries when she tries it she ends up in an alternate worl...more
In this book Miriam in her struggles to stay alive in a world that makes the Italian Renansiance look like politics in a kindergarden. One of the assasins that came after her had a locket that she took from his body.
Later looking the locket over she determines that its different from the lockest her family carries when she tries it she ends up in an alternate worl...more
Taken in the context that The Family Trade (the previous book in the Merchant Princes series) is a standalone volume, it's okay. Taken in the context that it's the first half of larger book and The Hidden Family is the second half (which is apparently how he wrote it), it's suddenly much better. After reading both of them, it's actually so obvious they're one connected story (even within the larger story context of the series) I don't actually know how a review of one of the halves would be just...more
This book adds some interesting twists to the setting of the Merchant Princes, and expands on the main character, her family/clan, the relationships and business activities.
It shows the main character's quick adaptation and ability to apply an outsider's viewpoint to understanding the economical problems and an approach to them that is new and unique while dealing with assassins and other problems.
The last chapter of the book is its weak point. There's a climactic leap ...more
It shows the main character's quick adaptation and ability to apply an outsider's viewpoint to understanding the economical problems and an approach to them that is new and unique while dealing with assassins and other problems.
The last chapter of the book is its weak point. There's a climactic leap ...more
Well, more of the same, that is, not really worth reading. Scott stopped reading after this one, and I think he made the better choice.
We're already struggling to assimilate information about two worlds and Clan politics, and then this novel goes and adds a third world. While Miriam's actions there are fairly interesting, I just couldn't figure out why Stross had to add this third dimension. It seems to me there was more than enough of interest in the interaction of the first two wor...more
We're already struggling to assimilate information about two worlds and Clan politics, and then this novel goes and adds a third world. While Miriam's actions there are fairly interesting, I just couldn't figure out why Stross had to add this third dimension. It seems to me there was more than enough of interest in the interaction of the first two wor...more
Hester
rated it
The fun continues. My brother and I disagree about both Miriam and Roland. I think it isn't quite believable that Miriam makes the perfect technology choices outside of her wheelhouse, biotechnology. My brother, a freelance journalist, thinks it is credible. He thinks Roland is out of a romance novel. I think he has been in DC too long.
Olga and Brill continue becoming more interesting; they make a wonderful foil for how emotionally clueless Miriam can be. Her mother's emotional rel...more
Olga and Brill continue becoming more interesting; they make a wonderful foil for how emotionally clueless Miriam can be. Her mother's emotional rel...more
I'm not sure why I don't like this book. I read it and it's predecessor on the strong recommendation of a friend, but it hasn't grabbed me. I was skimming the last third of the book, because I just wanted it to be over. The characters are likable, the story is interesting, but I'm just not interested. Perhaps I can't get into his style of writing, but it doesn't seem all that different from the style of many others. I think I'm just not involved in the characters, and the problem seems both...more
Jumping straight into this book the second I finished "The Family Trade" felt particularly natural. Throughout "The Family Trade", I felt like I shouldn't be as far into the book as I was--it still felt like it was just getting rolling when I was less than 100 pages from the end. This turns out to have a lot to do with the changes Charles Stross made to this series between when he started writing it and when he sold it. I learned in an interview he gave Locus magazine that he...more
http://nhw.livejournal.com/499648.html[return][return]Enjoyed it. Our heroine from the first book has a business plan, an economic model, three parallel universes to trade between, and a bunch of enemies out to kill her. Some vivid scene-setting, including of the weather; one nice little touch:[return][return]"I don't know much about English history, but it's got this civil war in the sixteen forties, goes on and on about some dude called the Lord Protector, Oliver Cromwell. I looked him up...more
An interesting concept to begin with, parallel-universe traveling Medicis.
This particular book was good; although it is, like the others, a little hrad to get through if you don't know an insane amount of medieval or industrial revolution fun facts to match up with the various time periods traveled through.
All in all, good series; interesting and original concept to start with and well written to boot.
This particular book was good; although it is, like the others, a little hrad to get through if you don't know an insane amount of medieval or industrial revolution fun facts to match up with the various time periods traveled through.
All in all, good series; interesting and original concept to start with and well written to boot.
Following the previous book in the series, "The Family Trade", the author added a bit more excitement in this book by adding another "world" to explore and also revealing the mysterious "6th family".
I think the author has opened up a HUGE world to explore with the mechanism that he has devised with the "world raveling" mechanism.
Other than that, the story I think is okay. It is definitely more building of world than building of cha...more
I think the author has opened up a HUGE world to explore with the mechanism that he has devised with the "world raveling" mechanism.
Other than that, the story I think is okay. It is definitely more building of world than building of cha...more
The continuation of the merchant princes story about a family that can travel between worlds. In this book, a new family branch is revealed which has been traveling to a third world whose technology is in between Earth and the original homeworld of the family. Lots of theorizing about mercantilism and capitalism. Interesting, and a quick read, but somehow lacking in greatness.
Picking up right from there the first book left off, Miriam's life gets more complicated with some additional, unexpected, family machinations and a deadline to get her next generation economic model in place and proven before she's declared incompetent by her grandmother.
At least as much fun and even more interesting than the first book.
At least as much fun and even more interesting than the first book.
A reread of the 2nd book in the Merchant Princes series. And as a reread I found it more enjoyable than book 1. Perhaps the books did ramp up - so far I haven't checked my previous write-ups. Still bubblegum - but enjoyable bubblegum with interesting ideas of taking advantage of parallel worlds to boot. 4.5 of 5.
It was a nice continuation of the first book
A third world, one where the clan did not think about. A lost brother and a lost family in this new world, trying to kill Merriam because they misunderstood something.
It shows how much knowledge is worth. And also what money can do.
A third world, one where the clan did not think about. A lost brother and a lost family in this new world, trying to kill Merriam because they misunderstood something.
It shows how much knowledge is worth. And also what money can do.
Weaker second novel, but the world-spanning capitalist venture and multi-dimensional intellectual property theft is surprisingly engrossing. Miriam is very smart when it comes to running a business, but less intelligent about dealing with byzantine family politics.
The 2nd book in the series, and as good as the first, the world jumping now includes a 3rd world at yet another different stage of development. Miriam is working on getting a more sustainable commercial model going that does not include classified drugs, an interesting concept
Bah! I forgot that one person;s identity was switched, and another person I got fond of was eliminated. A third world was found and that was amusing. I hate it when an author kills off a sympathetic charactor for no reason. The third book better make up for it.
Not as good as the first one. Stross starts doing science fiction "what if" analysis of the theme, and it's OK, but since I came looking for Amber style escapism, I'm a bit >_>. Regardless, I'm all in till the end of the series so we'll see.
Ending less truncated than book 1.
Ending less truncated than book 1.
I don't know what took me so long to get back to this series. As I read it I remembered how much I liked the old style pulp cliffhanger feeling. Sometimes the plot runs a little thin but I really like the characters and all the back stabbing. I am looking forward to the next one.
This was a good book about alternate worlds. I liked how Miriam learned about the third world and how she brought new inventions there. I looking forward to reading the next book in the series, The Clan Corporate.
A slow start but be patient, it picks up nicely.
Sequel to The Family Trade.
Miriam's story continues as she discovers a missing Clan family, starts a business in a 2nd parallel Earth, and flushes out a traitor.
Sequel to The Family Trade.
Miriam's story continues as she discovers a missing Clan family, starts a business in a 2nd parallel Earth, and flushes out a traitor.
The second book in Stross' Merchant Princes series, this one takes up right where The Family Trade left off. As I'm a sucker for any books that mixes long passages about economics, medieval court intrigue and automatic weapons, I pretty much read this one in one sitting. If you like Stross' sci-fi works, you should give this fantasy series a try.
Miriam continues to remake worlds to her own vision! Reminded of S. M. Stirling's Draka and other books quite a bit, but less grim.
A quick, fun read. Much better than the first in the series, I thought. The writing was more confident and suffered less from labored attempts to be descriptive.
Not sure after the first one... but kept reading now I can't stop!
Great mix of fantasy and future science fiction
Great mix of fantasy and future science fiction
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Moved much faster than the first book. On the strength of this one, I bought three and four.
Rereading this series. An enjoyable romp with world-walking Miriam sees a third world come into play and much chaos ensue.
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Charles David George "Charlie" Stross is a writer based in Edinburgh, Scotland. His works range from science fiction and Lovecraftian horror to fantasy.
Stross is sometimes regarded as being part of a new generation of British science fiction writers who specialise in hard science fiction and space opera. His contemporaries include Alastair Reynolds, Ken MacLeod, Liz Williams...more
More about Charles Stross...
Stross is sometimes regarded as being part of a new generation of British science fiction writers who specialise in hard science fiction and space opera. His contemporaries include Alastair Reynolds, Ken MacLeod, Liz Williams...more
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