It all starts when a man comes to deliver a message to Frank Compton--only to fall dead at his feet. What follows is a suspenseful thriller that o...
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reviews
Mar 18, 2011
Grant
rated it: 
A distinctly fun read - Zahn has the quality of thrusting you knee-deep into the story within the first few paragraphs of a story and Night Train to Rigel is no different. Part political-intrigue, part suspense, part mystery, and full sci-fi, Zahn deliberately keeps you in the dark as the book proceeds letting you guess along with the characters where its all leading. And it's just the first book in the trilogy.
Harkening back to the "train movie" mysteries (à la "The More...
Harkening back to the "train movie" mysteries (à la "The More...
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Jun 15, 2011
Katy
rated it:
This book is not meant to be thought-provoking; its characters are not meant to be great thinkers nor are they meant to be overly developed; it is not written to become the next Great American Novel. No - it is meant to be a fun romp, an homage to the spy flicks that it constantly references. The old spy flicks of the 60s-80s (even some of the newer ones) don't give us great characters, deep thinking or plot developments - they give us action, conspiracies, villains - and nifty gadgets. And, in
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Apr 25, 2010
Lindsey
rated it: 
I was a huge fan of Zahn's Star Wars sequel books when I was much younger, so I came into this hoping for a cracking good adventure ... and I was both disappointed and not.
The mystery and intrigue in this novel take off to a quick start when Frank Compton sees someone murdered in front of him and finds a ticket to the human colony Yandro on him ... made out to Frank. This ticket takes him on a path to the mysterious Spiders, who run the cross-universe railway system.
I fo More...
The mystery and intrigue in this novel take off to a quick start when Frank Compton sees someone murdered in front of him and finds a ticket to the human colony Yandro on him ... made out to Frank. This ticket takes him on a path to the mysterious Spiders, who run the cross-universe railway system.
I fo More...
Apr 08, 2011
Punk
rated it: 
Futuristic Railway Intrigue. Disgraced former intelligence agent Frank Compton steps out of New Pallas Towers to find a freshly dead guy carrying a Quadrail ticket with Frank's name on it. Obviously Frank can't pass that up, and soon he's travelling on the space train, being followed by at least three people, and about to be offered a job he can't refuse: He has to prevent an intergalactic war. Or maybe an intragalactic one; it is NEVER clear.
Whatever, right? The most remarkable thin More...
Whatever, right? The most remarkable thin More...
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Jan 12, 2010
Jasmine
rated it: 
I always get the impression when reading Zahn that the book showing in my head is in black and white, not colour. This is less connected to any actual mentions of colours in the story, and more to the from-another-era feel of the tale. This is not to say that the story is poorly done, any more than Casablanca or The Apartment are poor films. The pacing is just different!
Oh, and I always get the impression while reading that there is no way I will ever be able to make a plot like this More...
Oh, and I always get the impression while reading that there is no way I will ever be able to make a plot like this More...
Jan 12, 2009
David
rated it:
A fun space opera/spy thriller. The protagonist is a former intelligence agent caught up in a galaxy-spanning conflict. As for many stories of the genre, the reader gets to "play along" as if he were the Watson to the protagonist's Holmes. The protagonist will state that a certain statement, event or piece of evidence has allowed him to reach a conclusion. He does not reveal immediately what that conclusion is, so the reader is left to try to determine for himself what it is and how it
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Sep 29, 2010
Jim
rated it:
Timothy Zahn is a consistent writer. I don't remember ever saying his books are great, and I've never said they weren't good. So a safe place to turn to for a good book. The one "bad" thing I'll say is his endings are usually fairly flat. Usually not disappointingly so, but rarely really strong.
And exception is the concept of the Conqueror's series, which was well above average, but the writing was still just good--not great, not bad.
Night Train to Rigel is is n More...
And exception is the concept of the Conqueror's series, which was well above average, but the writing was still just good--not great, not bad.
Night Train to Rigel is is n More...
Feb 14, 2009
Foomy
rated it:
The different civilizations of the galaxy are connected by a train. You read that correctly. And apparently the conductors of said train have a problem, and it's up to Our Hero™ to solve the mystery.
The only reason I made the last part sound as cliché as it does is that the male lead of the story seems very similar to the main character in Icarus Hunt. He seems to know a little too much about a little too much (a lot of "a little-known fact about such-and-such is..") and More...
The only reason I made the last part sound as cliché as it does is that the male lead of the story seems very similar to the main character in Icarus Hunt. He seems to know a little too much about a little too much (a lot of "a little-known fact about such-and-such is..") and More...
Dec 21, 2008
CJ - You Carry On As If I Don't Love You
rated it:
It was a good book but I only gave it three stars because I have to admit my attention wavered a lot during this book. Don't know if it was the hardcore (to my usual fantasy taste) sci-fi words, explanations and world-building. It was very interesting and it reminded me a lot of James Bond in space and had a Dashiell Hammett hard-boiled crime fiction feel to it which was super cool. The gadgets were good but I think the main issue, and perhaps why my attention wavered, was that gadgets, relation
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Aug 18, 2011
Mike
rated it:
I'm not quite sure how to describe this book. The overall plot was mediocre and predictable in many spots. As the story progresses, readers are led to believe in a "big reveal" but when the ending arrives, it's underwhelming.
Yet with all that said, I simply can't bring myself to be TOO harsh on this book... and I'm not exactly sure why. I THINK it has to do with Zahn's writing style; it's an easy read and the character dialogue seems quite natural.
While I can't More...
Yet with all that said, I simply can't bring myself to be TOO harsh on this book... and I'm not exactly sure why. I THINK it has to do with Zahn's writing style; it's an easy read and the character dialogue seems quite natural.
While I can't More...
Jul 14, 2010
Jodi
rated it:
I don't usually read sci fi, but lately I've been reading and enjoying some of Timothy Zahn books. This book is kind of a science fiction mystery, where the main character, Frank Compton, and you are trying to figure out what exactly is going on. Frank Compton has been hired by those who control the intergalaxy transportation system to figure out who is trying to destroy the quadrail (transport system) and start a war. He soon finds that things aren't quite what they seem. This is also a nice
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Mar 18, 2011
Mary JL
rated it:
This is an excellent space opera/adventure. No great philosophical insights or incredible inventions. But a fast paced, well written tale.
Frank Compton, a former government agent for the "Western Alliance" has little time to prepare. When the messenger drops dead at his feet, he has only two hours to make the shuttle to take him to the space shuttle/ferry; he will in turn take that ferry to the Spiders' Quadrail Station.
The Quadrail--located in the outskirts More...
Frank Compton, a former government agent for the "Western Alliance" has little time to prepare. When the messenger drops dead at his feet, he has only two hours to make the shuttle to take him to the space shuttle/ferry; he will in turn take that ferry to the Spiders' Quadrail Station.
The Quadrail--located in the outskirts More...
Aug 21, 2008
Mike
rated it:
This is the second Zahn book I've read and I have to say that while he writes very well I can already see hints of secrets that will probably be important later but are currently just hinted at. When reading, or rather listening to on Book On Tape, The Icarus Hunt I didn't get that there was a big secret hidden in the narrative. Now that I know that he puts big twists into his books I am looking for them, but I don't think that anyone would necessarily see it if they weren't looking for it. And
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Nov 19, 2009
Jake
rated it:
Yes, I know I am deeply, deeply behind on my review. In my defense, I tried to write a review of this one, but it got lost by the Interwebs, and now I'm trying to do it again. Hopefully, it will stick this time.
In short: Night Train to Rigel is a pulp/hard boiled detective novel that has found it's way into a science fiction setting. Adventure ensues. Good times are had by all.
The slightly longer version: Night Train to Rigel is the story of Frank Compton, a retired (read More...
In short: Night Train to Rigel is a pulp/hard boiled detective novel that has found it's way into a science fiction setting. Adventure ensues. Good times are had by all.
The slightly longer version: Night Train to Rigel is the story of Frank Compton, a retired (read More...
Mar 13, 2010
Jeffrey
rated it:
For years, I have heard that Zahn was a master of science fiction. Based on Night Train to Rigel, I would say that is stretching the case a little. Still this was a very fun yarn. It reads like a pretty good spy novel set on a international trainline, only the train moves at faster-than-light speeds and the trainline is intergalactic. I enjoyed this one. When I was fifteen, I would have loved it. In fact, I wish I had read Zahn when I was fifteen.
Jun 23, 2010
Jared
rated it:
Meh. Two and a half stars. I read this because I'm trying to read books by authors whose last names start with every letter of the alphabet this year. Good writers with a last name starting with 'z' are hard to find. This book doesn't improve much on that.
It was okay; it just seemed like everything went too easily for the main character. He figured out what was going on with too little wrong supposition.
It was okay; it just seemed like everything went too easily for the main character. He figured out what was going on with too little wrong supposition.
Nov 14, 2011
Carl
rated it:
While I prefer Icarus Hunt, Night Train to Rigel is still Timothy Zahn, and still awesome. He loses me more often than not, but I suppose that's half of what makes mysteries fun. The suspense and comprehension of the situation (character and reader) ramps nicely, and the climax is gripping, to put it lightly. I was surly for days after late night reading to finish it.
Nov 29, 2010
Dave
rated it:
I read this one out of order, but honestly, the author did a great job of bringing you up to speed so if you read a later one first you'll be ok but this one might not be as enjoyable since this book sets up the series and a lot of the basic concepts are revealed here as surprises and plot twists. Lots of fun.
Jan 20, 2010
Becca
rated it:
I've enjoyed other Zahn books in the past, so I thought I might like this one. But I didn't really. It took forever for the plot to get interesting. The twist at the end was pretty good, but getting there wasn't too fun. I wasn't invested in any of the characters. And the cover art is horrendous.
Dec 20, 2009
Wendy
rated it:
Reminiscent of Icarus Hunt, but a little bit better about spacing out the plot twists. Bonus points for Hitchcock references and for making intergalactic travel have the feel of old-style train journeys. Negative points for me forgetting along the way what the various alien species looked like. Anyway, I'm hooked into the series now.
May 26, 2011
Natasha
rated it:
A giant conspiracy. Not too big of fan of them in my science fiction. A tad dramatic at times. The story was at times hard to follow. It all made sense in the end though. I liked the Spiders the best (I like spiders). I didn't like Frank.
Jan 24, 2009
Craig
rated it:
This is a very good science fiction/private detective mystery novel, a rare combination. The aliens are convincing, the plot is tight, the detective and his his side kick are engaging, and it's an altogether fun ride.
Jan 23, 2012
Pokie
rated it:
There are a lot of twists that make this a lot of fun. And, Timothy Zahn's a great writer, of course. It's a little like an old western murder mystery (quadrail = railway). It's fairly short, too (~260 pages).
Sep 07, 2011
John
rated it:
Grade A-. Sort of a covert agent novel in a large scifi setting told in an almost classic detective story style from the detective's POV. Out of print but available for Kindle with a sample available for trial reading.
Jan 16, 2012
Junius
rated it:
An excellent cross of old school Agatha Christie, spy action, and sci-fi. I haven't been able to put it down since I started it; feels like I'm in the middle of a good movie.
Mar 21, 2010
Karlen
rated it:
Fairly straightforward detective story in a science fiction setting. Nothing "exciting" but I enjoyed it.
Jun 24, 2009
Clinton
rated it:
Ok, so i realize that the cover art looks terrible (a giant beaver???) but it is still a really good book.
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Mar 24, 2010
David
rated it:
This is a truly excellent book. Zahn's style is as always efficient, and the story itself, with it's share of rebunds, is very interesting.
All in all, this is a book that's very difficult to put down, and when I finished it I was almost sad that it was ended : fortunately for me, there are 3 more in the series !
All in all, this is a book that's very difficult to put down, and when I finished it I was almost sad that it was ended : fortunately for me, there are 3 more in the series !
Dec 29, 2010
Kae
rated it:
This SF reads almost like a spoof. The Our-Man-Flint superhero takes on mastermind of the universe--and wins, of course. Well written 60s style, male-dominated action mostly taking place on an Intergalactic train in a 200 - 300 year future. Interesting future technology and gizmos. Very convoluted plot where, even though told in first person, many of the protagonist’s key insights and information are not revealed to the reader.
