Sly Mongoose (Xenowealth, #3)

Sly Mongoose (Xenowealth #3)

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3.83 of 5 stars 3.83  ·  rating details  ·  290 ratings  ·  50 reviews
Welcome to Chilo, a planet with corrosive rain, crushing pressure, and deadly heat. Fortunately, fourteen-year-old Timas lives in one of the domed cities that float 100,000 feet above the surface, circling near the edge of a monstrous perpetual storm. Above the acidic clouds the temperature and pressure are normal. But to make a living, Timas (like many other young men) is...more
Hardcover, 320 pages
Published August 19th 2008 by Tor Books (first published 2008)
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Seizure Romero
Someone else has already pointed this out, but it bears repeating:

Zombies. In space.

Ok, so they're not old-school brain-eating zombies (don't want to mislead hard core horror fans), but they still wanna bite you & if you get bitten, you become one of them. Destroy the brain, they stop moving.

Zombies.
And they're in space.
Wealhtheow
Buckell's writing is exuberant, his plot choices audacious. There is a fantastic energy to his books, as though anything might happen. Each book has been better than the last, without ever losing the adrenaline rush or interesting world-building with which Buckell first burst onto the scene.

For generations, a race of mind-controlling aliens calling themselves the Benevolent Satrapi enslaved the human race. Small bands fought back, and finally defeated their overlords in Ragamuffin. But the victo...more
Scott Marlowe
Tobias Buckell posted a request for advanced readers for his upcoming science fiction novel, Sly Mongoose, and, of course, I took him up on it.

This is my first go-around with Buckell’s work, though I’ve had one of his other novels, Crystal Rain, on my radar for a long time. Sly Mongoose is and isn’t a continuation of the story told in Ragamuffin. While there are clear references to the story that unfolded in that previous book, at no time did I feel as if I was missing something by not having re...more
Logan
Jan 13, 2009 Logan marked it as to-read
Zoooooombiiiiiieeeeeesssss iiiiiiiinnnnnn sppaaaaaaaaccccceeeee....
Andrew
This was a heavily-delayed paperback, which means it's been almost four years since I read _Ragamuffin_. But then, I recall having trouble absorbing the space-opera background even then. The history behind everything is *big* and complicated, and we've been getting barely a soda-straw view of it per book.

In any case, we now alternate between Pepper (semi-immortal defender of humanity, cranky bastard) and Timas (a teenager growing up in a ramshackle-poor mining town). Pepper drops into down just...more
Gary Baker
For a sci-fi by an author I'd never heard of, this book kicked serious ass.

The tale brings sci-fi fans into the back alleys of spacial domination, with a world much like Mexico compared to the U.S.A. when compared to the other worlds in this story. As such, the wealthy are there because of exploitation and the hoarding of resources, and the poor face the worst scenarios to stay alive, often resorting to crime and the like to keep their floating city above the harsh lower atmosphere.

In comes a m...more
Brendan
Sly Mongoose is the third book by Tobias Buckell that takes place within the same far-future universe in which human beings have expanded but have done so on the technology of more advanced species, so now they’re trapped holding on to what little they have left. Using this historical backdrop, Buckell crafts a group of flying cities (Bespin style) over a harsh, Venus-like world. Enter space-zombies. You heard me.

* The book has a couple main characters, including a super-soldier not unlike Taka...more
Tensy
Fast paced sci-fi. Interesting protagonists including a young hero, Timas, who must face incredible challenges on an inhospitable home world and a war weary, tech-enhanced, older man named Pepper. I had just finished reading Alfred Besters "The Stars My Destination" and I thought it was interesting how Buckell used a truncated English speech pattern with some of his characters, just like Bester did in his classic sci-fi novel. If you like your sci-fi full of battle sequences this is the one for...more
Alan
Jan 25, 2009 Alan rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Hungry readers, hungry for braaains
Recommended to Alan by: io9 [http://io9.com/]
A science-fictional adventure story which moves along with headlong pace in an exotic setting. This tale of a super-soldier trapped on an inhospitable world of cloud cities inhabited by fundamentalist Aztecs still reeling from their exploitation by aliens they thought were real gods (!) is likeable enough, has a couple of strongly-drawn characters, and definitely has its exciting moments. Oh, and did I mention it's got zombies (kinda)? That's the key word that pulled me in, actually, but Buckell...more
Josh Gentry
This was fun. I have read all 3 of Buckell's Xenowealth novels, and this was the best. I enjoyed the first 2, but each had their problems from my view. In _Chrystal Rain_ I did not connect with or care about any of the characters enough. This changed in _Ragamuffin_, which had a good protagonist, but it lost me when 2 thirds of the way through the book we moved away from her and back to characters from _Chrystal Rain_. _Sly Mongoose_ has a potent mix of cool tech, over-the-top action, and Pepper...more
Bryan
Update March 2012 - the paperback is here! The hardcover was published Aug 2008 so it wasn't quite a 4 year wait, but the book arguably languished by the delay. I'm sure ebook sales helped... Now back to the original review.

Hey Tor... where's the paperback edition?

I really enjoyed the first two books in this series, so I was eagerly awaiting this 3rd entry.

But... something happened. While it's beyond the scope of this review, and does not reflect on the book or the author, I feel it's worth men...more
Stephen
4.5 to 5.0 stars. It is official...I am a fan of Tobias Buckell and he has become an author that I will begin purchasing his new books upon release (at least until I come across a bad one). This is the third novel set loosely in the universe of the "48 worlds" and it expands and adds to the mythos referred to in the preceding novels, Crystal Rain and Ragamuffin. I am really enjoying how Buckell is slowly expanding the scope of the novels and parceling out the back story of how his universe is se...more
Sarah
I'm not a huge science fiction fan, but love fantasy! So I couldn't believe it when I LOVED this adult sci fi novel! I read in some reviews after reading the novel, that this author has created several books in this world, but I've never read them. However, I read this book as stand-alone just fine and highly recommend it.[return][return]Timas is a 14-year-old boy who helps upkeep the ore thingie under his city. Everyone depends on him to keep the city alive. And to stay thin. He forces himself...more
Ron
If you loved the way classic science fiction writers like Hal Clement would imagine a planet with radically different living conditions than Earth, and then extrapolate what sort of people would live on that planet, you're going to love this story: Chilo is a planet with massive atmospheric pressure, intense surface heat, and corrosive precipitation -- so the only societies that can flourish there are in floating cities, miles above the surface.

And then a virtually indestructible warrior, jumpin...more
Jim
Space zombies. Floating cities. And Pepper leaping out of a spaceship and riding a heatshield down, sans parachute. What else do I really need to say about this one?

Sly Mongoose is Tobias Buckell's third novel, set in the same universe as Crystal Rain and Ragamuffin, but Pepper is the only character from the earlier books. As with Ragamuffin, this isn't a direct sequel, though it does continue the larger story Buckell is creating about humans struggling to survive and find their place as they d...more
Paul Stotts
After an innovative and entertaining debut with “Crystal Rain”, author Tobias Buckell followed that up with an even better sophomore effort in “Ragamuffin”. Both novels are essentially stand-alone stories that share the same universe, the Forty-Eight worlds, and some of the same characters. Both also strongly hinted at great things to come from Buckell in the future. Well, the future is here my friend, as Buckell easily solidifies his claim as a hot new writer to watch. His absolutely incredible...more
Elijah Kinch Spector
I was scared that this book would be a bit weaker than its predecessors, but Tobias Buckell has kept up a surprising level of quality in his non-series (it IS a series, but each stands on its own). My biggest worry, all told, was about the fact that this book focuses on Pepper, the ultra bad-ass who's been in each one of the books (and in some short stories). For one, Pepper is so powerful that one wonders how he can be the center of a story where there's any real threat, and secondly he's such...more
Shaun Duke
Welcome to Chilo, a planet with corrosive rain, crushing pressure, and deadly heat. Fortunately, fourteen-year-old Timas lives in one of the domed cities that float 100,000 feet above the surface, circling near the edge of a monstrous perpetual storm. Above the acidic clouds the temperature and pressure are normal. But to make a living, Timas, like many other young men, is lowered to the surface in an armored suit to scavenge what he can.
Timas' life is turned upside down when a strange man crash...more
Guy Gonzalez
Tobias Buckell's third entry in his Xenowealth series is arguably the tightest and most accessible of them all, and might even be a better starting point for new readers than Crystal Rain/Ragamuffin. From the intense nail-biter of a opening scene to its very satisfying conclusion, Buckell puts one of his best characters, Pepper, in a thrilling, high stakes situation that includes floating cities, political intrigue, intergalactic war, and zombies. Yes, zombies! Two kinds, actually; both subtly i...more
Joy
In which Buckell follows up Aztecs and airships (Crystal Rain) and space pirates (Ragamuffin) with space zombies. I kid you not. I enjoyed this novel, but I don't think it holds together quite as well as Buckell's earlier work. It's told from multiple points-of-view, but only Pepper's is at all interesting; that's extra problematic because Pepper himself works great as a side character and not so well is a central protagonist. Anyway, I found myself really missing the narrative balance provided...more
Jonathan
The setting, a Venus like planet where the population lives in air cities, was absolutely fantastic. In fact, all aspects of the world building this book were great and I would love to read more set in this same universe. The main "villain" was a bit 'meh' and the characters were hit or miss. Overall though, it was an enjoyable read.
Rawle Charles
Although this was the third book in Mr. Buckell's Xenowealth series, it was actually my first experience with his work. I enjoyed this story and the adventure Mr. Buckell crafted very much - especially Pepper and the Ragamuffins. I can't wait to read the rest of the series, and more of this authors work in general.
Nate
A nice spin on the zombies versus robots genre. In this case, I suppose, it's zombie hive-mind versus human hive-mind working with human farmer plus decked-out cyborg superhero guy, and eventually with a dangerous hideout alien colony. Asimov dreaded this sort of science fiction, but it's good fun, good fun.
Nathan
Interesting plot, well-developed characters. It was a fun read. Kind of a random selection on my part, but some of the books I've enjoyed the most were random selections to help me break out of my normal genre.
Moe
Another expansive tale of high adventure, politics, and alien invasion.I found this third installment of the Xenowealth series slightly less riveting than the first two.The second book, Ragamuffin rocked so hard that I was a little let down but that having been said I still enjoyed Sly Mongoose very much. I think I just missed Nashara she was one bad ass sister!
Gene
I gave this book 5 stars because it really was an engaging read even though there is a lot of information and background dumped on you (I didn't realize this was book 3 in a series lol). Sure, I got confused by factions and species and descriptive imagery, but I was very engaged.
Joe Davoust
Third in a series, this book tells a story that is related to the first two, but can also stand on its own as an exciting adventure. And yes there are zombies in space. Character development is superficial but is made up for by a rich imaginative world that includes floating cities, airships, steam punk flying automatons, Aztecs, dreadlocks, aliens. space ships and zombies.
Mark Argent
not quite as imaginative or strongly written as the first two books in the Xenowealth trilogy/series, but still a rollicking actioner that I tore through in about a day.
Amanda
Mar 04, 2011 Amanda marked it as to-read Recommends it for: freegade
Recommended to Amanda by: boingboing.com, I think
This almost never happens, but I got bored. There were space zombies, but I got bored. Too much leading-up-to-the-fight. I was waiting for the fight! And they aren't your usual slow, brain-eating zombies, either (sorry zombie fans). They're quick, and they learn. But they grow things from their necks, ala brain slug, and that's pretty cool.

I got busy, and it wasn't enough to keep me interested. Disappointing, as I had high hopes for it. I think that when I have fewer pressing things on my mind I...more
A. Non
Memorable for the floating city above a gas giant, and the selected few who go to the surface to face the awesome pressure. Pepper is back!
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Sly Mongoose (Mass Market Paperback)
Sly Mongoose (Xenowealth, #3)
Sly Mongoose (ebook)
Halo: The Cole Protocol Crystal Rain (Xenowealth, #1) Ragamuffin (Xenowealth, #2) Arctic Rising The Executioness

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