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Deathstalker (Deathstalker #1)

3.92 of 5 stars 3.92 · rating details · 2,080 ratings · 115 reviews

The Iron Bitch-- her Imperial Majesty Lionstone XIV-- ruled the human Empire with fear. From peasants to masters of the galaxy's most powerful families, all were subject to the queen's unpredictable decrees of "outlawing" and death.

Owen Deathstalker, unwilling head of his clan, sought to avoid the perils of the Empire's warring factions but unexpectedly found a price on hi...more

Mass Market Paperback, 571 pages

Published (first published 1994)

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Dec 19, 2012 Becca rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

I have to say, that if you can't read a book without analyzing and reading to actively criticize, then you will certainly find loads of things to criticize about this book - the gore, the incessantly repeated phrases often within a couple of pages of each other, the cliche's and the ways that the main characters get out of situations. But, I read for pure enjoyment, nothing else, and if like me you read for enjoyment, love fantasy, science-fiction, and pure fun, then you will love this book.

For...more I have to say, that if you can't read a book without analyzing and reading to actively criticize, then you will certainly find loads of things to criticize about this book - the gore, the incessantly repeated phrases often within a couple of pages of each other, the cliche's and the ways that the main characters get out of situations. But, I read for pure enjoyment, nothing else, and if like me you read for enjoyment, love fantasy, science-fiction, and pure fun, then you will love this book.

For anyone who is slightly confused - yes, this book has the flaws that I have mentioned, and many other people mention them also, but I either don't see them as "flaws" or they barely influenced my enjoyment for more than a few milliseconds at a time - hence the five star rating.

Deathstalker is a book centered around a young man named Owen Deathstalker, an amateur historian, outlawed with a price on his head by the Empress (also known as the Iron Bitch). The novel follows his adventures to several enigmatic planets with his companions - Hazel D'Ark, ex-clone-legger and pirate; Ruby Journey, the bounty hunter; Jack Random, the professional rebel; Tobias Moon, the cyborg; Ozymandius, the AI (artificial intelligence); and Giles, the 900 year old original Deathstalker, founder of his clan. The book also follows the movements of the Empress's court and the nobility, with intriguing and diverting characters here also - Finlay Campbell, the fop and dandy with a deadly secret; Evangeline Shrek, lover to Finlay and, as seems to be common among the nobility, dark secrets of her own; Kit Summerisle, Kid Death, the Smiling Killer; David Deathstalker, cousin to Owen who became head of the Family upon Owen's outlawing. And perhaps my favorite character (in terms of disposition, not character, mind you); Valentine Wolfe. Valentine is an amazing character - a "professional" drug user, with cunning fighting skills and intelligence hidden behind the everyday mask of his scarlet mouth and mascaraed eyes. Despite his (to be frank) oddness, and (not so much in this book but certainly later on in the series) his increasingly unpleasant or downright evil actions, you cannot help but love this character, with his unique attitude and dialogue - a marvelous character to read. And lastly, this book follows Captain Silence of the Darkwind, and later the Dauntless, and his comrades Security Office Stelmach and Investigator Frost, in his attempts to do his duty and follow orders from the Iron Bitch that he often has no taste for.

I think perhaps, aside from the dialogue (which I shall get to later), my favorite thing about this book and the later books in the series (which have their own charms) is that Simon R. Green shows us without a doubt that there are good people on both sides of a war. People whose differing beliefs prevent them from ever being able to agree or work together or even like each other - but because of the different points of view we are given, people on both sides are wonderful and like-able, or if not that then at least enjoyable characters nonetheless.

The dialogue, though as mentioned containing many cliches and barely disguised repeated phrasing, is consistently light and amusing, with friendly (and sometimes not so friendly) banter, jokes, and overall, a unique tone that Simon R. Green has throughout Deathstalker. This tone is not always "funny" as such, but it does certainly have a light touch and vague air of amusement to it at all times - except when there are heads exploding and the like. But the overall tone of the dialogue and descriptions, which is hard to explain unless you have read the book, prevents you from taking things like that too seriously - but just seriously enough. Perhaps one of my favorite sequences where this banter and amusement is brought in is the sequence where Owen and Hazel go to find a name from a clerk, who subsequently goes on a rant about being "up to his lower lip in paperwork and sinking fast." He is certainly unhappy with his job - "the lunch break's a joke, there's only one toilet, and the pay's rotten. I'd quit if it wasn't for the pension. And the constant chances to screw up peoples lives... it's either this or planting explosives, and explosives are expensive." :D

Lastly, I should like to mention that I first stumbled across these books when my dad gave me the audio-books by Defiance audio for Deathstalker, Deathstalker Rebellion and Deathstalker War. The later books were done on audio with the same voice-actors, but by a company called Graphic Audio. I can justifiably say that the audio-books of Deathstalker are by far the best I've ever encountered. There is one amazing narrator, who does some of the voices along with the main descriptions, and he is accompanied by three or four other voice-actors - two men and two woman, I think. And these voice-actors also have wonderful variety and seem to me very talented. On top of this, the books have special effects (like making the voices echo slightly when said characters are, for example, in tunnels), sound effects (like the sounds of rushing water, sword fighting or energy guns firing), and also various fitting pieces of music that play along at suitable moments. The audio-books are quite expensive, but I would highly recommend them.

I have both the paperbacks and audio-books - for reasons mentioned above, the audio-books have their own charm, but the paperbacks do have things that the audio-books left out, and make the story feel less interrupted. Plus, they're far more fun to have on your bookshelf. :D

Overall, a wonderful, fun book that definitely has it's many flaws, but none of which ever bothered me in the slightest.

P.S. If anyone is a fan of this series like me, perhaps you would consider joining the group I started up for Deathstalker. It's called Deathstalker, funnily enough, and I would love to discuss this series with people. :) Here's the link:
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/8...(less)

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Dec 18, 2009 Mary JL rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fans of science fiction--esp space opera

Recommended to Mary JL by: Found at sale

Shelves: main-sf-fantasy

Review is a bit late guys--unpacking from the move took longer than I thught! Amazing how much stuff one accumlates after 15 years in one apartment. Did not get much reading done either. (*sigh*)

Onwards to the review. When it first came out, the cover looked to me like the story inside was a Star Wars clone; so I was in no hurry to read it.

However, while there are many similarities to Star Wars, there are such similarities in many space opera tales.

Simon Green's style is interesting. I liked the...more

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Jan 06, 2009 Collin rated it 1 of 5 stars

I've recently been on something of a Simon Green kick. That's ok, let it out. What can I say? I kind of like this guy. He's prolific as all heck, clearly has a very active imagination and is making a living as a writer. He's practically my idol. However, he also drops books like an overfed pigeon and when you do this there's absolutely no way they are all going to be good. Deathstalker is, I think, the best example of this. When you read a lot of an author's work you start to pick up on their ti...more

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Jan 21, 2013 Oddmonster rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: sci-punk-fi

Great laser-mounted cannons of excess! What is this nonsense?

In one first volume of a space opera we have, in no discernible order: Mob-style family feuds! A merciless and corrupt ruler! A hope for the future of Humanity* macguffin! Imprisoned empaths! Clones! A lecherous old woman-hater in charge! Two ninjas who both disguise themselves as Emo Philips! A reluctant hero! A rag-tag band of sidekicks! Killer whores! Naked assassin sex-slaves! Gay assassins in love! Rooftop-guardian-angel-assassin!...more

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Oct 21, 2012 Rafael rated it 1 of 5 stars

The worst space opera I have read so far... I gave it a try in German and later thoght that maybe the translator fucked up. So when I found an English copy in a friends bookshelf I gave it another try. Nothing improved though.
Characters without any trace of credibility, a world wich keeps getting more unrealistic with every page you turn. An then there's the great mystery how the world manages to present You with even more deadly (yet before never mentioned) antagonists.
I forgot whom You have t...more

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Sep 09, 2009 Mark rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: People who really love star wars but want to read something non-star wars

Shelves: sciencefiction

Deathstalker...yeah...

Where to begin?

There's this evil empire of humanity and it's led by the dark evil emporer...no wait...she's an empress and she's not so dark, but she is evil. Anyway there's this hopeful young farm boy named Luke Skywalk...wait, that's not it. He's a young aristocrat named Owen Deathstalker. So the Empress puts a bounty on the head of Owen for seemingly no reason, causing him to make a run for it.

Luckily, he is rescued by the spunky-yet-beautiful princess Leia...wait, it's...more

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Jul 15, 2009 Cody rated it 4 of 5 stars

Well this series is a little old but actually doesn't seem very dated.

What I like is its a fabulous story, the author puts people into situations, settings, plots that sell themselves. After that however the Author comes up short with most things.

The incredibly annoying thing is certain phrases, ideas, and thoughts get repeated 20 times... Seems like lazy writing and no editing, if there was an editor he should have blown his whistle and said "you just used that freaking phrase no need to say it...more

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Dec 20, 2011 Scott Weber rated it 3 of 5 stars

I have been reading Simon Green's Nightside books and enjoying them well enough, so I thought that I would try one of his other works. I like series and it has been some time since I read any sci-fi, so this sounded pretty good.

This book takes place within a vast human empire run by a tyrant affectionately refered to as the Iron Bitch. The hero, Owen Deathstalker, is a minor noble of an ancient noble house. Somehow, unknown to him, he has run afoul of the empress and finds himself suddenly witho...more I have been reading Simon Green's Nightside books and enjoying them well enough, so I thought that I would try one of his other works. I like series and it has been some time since I read any sci-fi, so this sounded pretty good.

This book takes place within a vast human empire run by a tyrant affectionately refered to as the Iron Bitch. The hero, Owen Deathstalker, is a minor noble of an ancient noble house. Somehow, unknown to him, he has run afoul of the empress and finds himself suddenly without position, power, money....all the things that make being nobility good. Oh, also he has a bounty on his head big enough to make everyone once close to him pick up a weapon and do hunting. This is the main story, Owen on the run and finding some sort of destiny. There are several side plots, the rebellion against the empire, intrigue in the royal court, and a clan war between two houses. After the 4th major set of characters, I realized this was going to be one of those series where the first book exists to set up the other books. That is a big committment, so the first book better really deliver in order for me to commit to the other books. It didn't fail, but then again I'm not sure I'll read the other books.

The characters are distinct from each other and have clear, logical motivations, but struggle to get past two dimensions. This isn't so much a criticism as a statement. Characters in Fantasy/Sci-Fi rarely make it to three dimensions. This story does not lack for ideas or scope. There are more ideas in this book than there are in three or four other books. Two different types of augmented humans, Swords-guns-energy weapons, Big starships and little cruisers, ESP warriors, Undead warriors, and a couple of alien species - and everybody is in the pool. Frankly it is a bit overwhelming.

The stories are written in a deliberately over the top fashion and are meant to be a bit of a parody or pastiche on the whole space opera genre. In this context, they don't quite succeed. In a parody I expect some humor and it is noticeably lacking in this book. Then again, it may be much more subtle than I was looking for. As a straight ahead sci-fi adventure it suffers from having too much going on.

If you are looking for something light with a space opera feel and you are really into lots and lots of ideas....this series is your big comfy blanket. My ultimate measure of a books worth is if I plan to read another one like it. I give Deathstalker a maybe. If I want something light then I might get the next one, but I will read something else on my to read list first.
(less)

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Dec 15, 2012 Traci rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A long fan of Green's, I first thought about reading the Deathstalker series while working my way through one of his Secret Histories entries (Eddie Drood enlists the help of a Deathstalker, though for the life of me I can't remember which one). The idea sat on a back burner of my reading brain until I found a copy on Amazon for a penny + shipping. Well, why not, I thought? If it's good, great. If it's horrible, not a huge investment, and I could always donate it to the library.

This is a much di...more A long fan of Green's, I first thought about reading the Deathstalker series while working my way through one of his Secret Histories entries (Eddie Drood enlists the help of a Deathstalker, though for the life of me I can't remember which one). The idea sat on a back burner of my reading brain until I found a copy on Amazon for a penny + shipping. Well, why not, I thought? If it's good, great. If it's horrible, not a huge investment, and I could always donate it to the library.

This is a much different sort of work than what I'm used to with Green. Instantly I noticed that this is in third-person narrative, meaning I might get the chance to see a lot more than usual. (Both the Nightside and Secret Histories series are told from a first-person perspective). "A lot more" is putting it mildly. This book has everything - heroes, villains, beautiful women, space travel, an "Imperial Force" which brings up all sorts of thoughts of huge armies and certain space opera movies, cyborgs, regeneration machines, stasis fields, etc. There's even an arena (called appropriately enough, The Arena) where gladiators of sorts fight against each other to the death, just as in Roman times. At over 500 pages in mass market paperback, this thing is truly epic. And of course, now that I'm finished with it, I find myself wanting to continue with the next book in the series - and keep reading until I'm done with the Deathstalker Saga. Hopefully that will happen before the next millennium.

Anyway, back to Owen and his tale of woe. As the story opens, Owen is about to make love yet again to his girlfriend, only to be attacked by her as she tells him he's been outlawed - wanted dead or alive. Owen kills her and begins his life on the run, something he's not very good at, as he's forsaken the usual Empire intrigues for a life as a historian. Rescued by smuggler Hazel D'ark, he continues running for his life, picking up Hazel's friend and bounty hunter Ruby, tracking down the legendary rebel Jack Random, and bringing his ancestor, the original Deathstalker, out of stasis. There's Oz, Owen's lifelong AI friend and protector, who saves his galactic rear end more than once. And there's Tobias Moon, an augmented man aka Hadenman, who leads them to the Darkvoid, hoping to awaken his fellow Hadenmen from their arctic slumber.

While reading of Owen's adventures, the reader is also introduced to several of the clans or Families of the Empire: the Campbells, the Wolfes, the Schreks. The Empress herself and her high court are also introduced, and yes, the similarities between this court and those of Europe back in the day will not be lost on anyone. There are court intrigues galore, as well as costumes that sound like they wouldn't have been out of place in those same European courts. And while I appreciated being able to see all the characters and get all the background, it's a lot to take in, and sometimes a bit distracting. At first, that is.

Green's masterpiece with such a huge cast and what appears to be a sprawling plot is this: as you're reading and reading and reading, you start to see the small, almost infinitesimal, connections. Then those connections become threads, and those become wires, and suddenly - it all makes sense. It takes talent to bring these seemingly separate stories together in a way that doesn't feel like they've just been mashed together. And while I love Green's first-person, snarky narratives, this book is just as good if not better. It's definitely on the more serious side, as befits a tale as epic as this one. There are still a few moments of comic relief, but overall, Green plays it serious here.

I highly recommend this for science fiction fans, and fantasy buffs would probably enjoy it, too. I look forward to the next installment of the series, which I so desperately want to read right now. But I think I'm going to give myself a break and read some shorter, lighter works over the holidays. 'Til we meet again, Deathstalker. (less)

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Nov 03, 2009 Chrissyreads rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is definitely not a book for every sci-fi lover. Especially those who like serious space adventures. This book is satirical in nature and explores most standard plot lines for a space opera. Evil ruler, gigantic empire, and epic battles are a given in this book. Plus he adds zombies and all sorts of things you won't find in, say, Star Wars. Also, this book has some of the most reprehensible villains that you find yourself growing a little fond of. My personal favorite is Valentine (though,...more

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Oct 11, 2011 Trak rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, fantasy-sci-fi, fiction

I have read a far bit of Simon R Green and have always liked his books. The Deathstalker series I have never got around to reading and being on holidays felt it was time. I have read Mistworld and that was okay.
The first is an establishment novel, we learn who the major players are and some of their motivations. Yet I really did not get into the book, I found some of the internal and external character dialogue annoying and some of it really cliched.
I like the world Green has created, I liked...more

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Aug 02, 2011 Greg Curtis rated it 4 of 5 stars

I read Deathstalker and the sequels a couple of years ago and despite some reservations, found them extremely readible. The tale is relatively simple though the plots and the players constantly change, and through it all I liked the hero and many of his companions, and they didn't dissappoint me. On the purely technical side I found it hard to decide whether these books were truly science fiction, even though they were set in a far flung future, or in actually some sort of swashbuckling fantasy....more

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Oct 10, 2010 Rob rated it 4 of 5 stars

I've owned this book for quite a while but have only recently got around to reading it. After some comments I'd seen I wasn't sure the purchase was a good idea but I'm glad I finally started it.

The main characters in the book are fairly well realised in how they act and they never seem to stray from character (but they could possibly have done with more fleshing out) and some that you think you'll always hate start to become likeable as the story continues.

Whilst it may seem that it's trying to...more

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Jun 22, 2011 John rated it 1 of 5 stars

Dreadful. Repetitive language and tropes ("lithely muscular" over and over again, exploding heads, about 5 mysterious master swordsmen), stiff and stereotypical characters, a plot that doesn't really make much sense, "political intrigue" that's completely unconvincing, villains with the sophistication of Skeletor...

Yeah, the popularity of this book baffles me. If you want space opera, there are authors out there (Alastair Reynolds for one) who can actually write it in a manner which resembles li...more

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Mar 30, 2013 Chris rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

3.5 stars. Was a good read and entertaining, yet it seemed more of a set up book than the actual back-cover stated. I enjoyed the detail, the description, yet at times it seemed to have repeating ideas, that can be okay except that they were worded nearly exactly the same with each repetition. Overall I enjoyed the book, and the characters which were presented in a way that gave depth to each one and I will be reading the next in this series by Green in order to see where he takes the characters...more

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Mar 05, 2013 Elyshia Schafer rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Feb 19, 2011 Elijah Kinch Spector rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Now hold on, because I am about to compare Deathstalker to Ivanhoe.

Deathstalker is a very enjoyable book, but its title character has almost nothing to do with that. It's not that Owen Deathstalker (hee hee) is a terrible character, he's just sort of there, much like Wilfred Ivanhoe. But Owen, like Wilfred, is surrounded by so many great characters, and spends so much time not even on the page, that the result is a wonderfully fleshed-out world with a bunch of bizarre characters who may not exac...more Now hold on, because I am about to compare Deathstalker to Ivanhoe.

Deathstalker is a very enjoyable book, but its title character has almost nothing to do with that. It's not that Owen Deathstalker (hee hee) is a terrible character, he's just sort of there, much like Wilfred Ivanhoe. But Owen, like Wilfred, is surrounded by so many great characters, and spends so much time not even on the page, that the result is a wonderfully fleshed-out world with a bunch of bizarre characters who may not exactly be three-dimensional, but that's just fine.

I'd always wanted to read this, although I was never exactly sure what it was that drew me toward it (certainly not the cover, ick). First I tried to listen to the audio drama, and while the idea of a full cast doing this sort of big, fun space opera was a good one, some of the actors were just so very terrible and I couldn't get through it. (Too bad, I liked the narrator a lot, and the prose is a goddamn showcase for a narrator.) Still, I enjoyed the big, ridiculous story, the old-fashioned embellishments to the prose, and the ridiculous detail, so I finally picked up the first book for extra-cheap. I kinda wanted the newer, less ugly, cover, but used versions of it do not seem to exist.

If Star Wars told a modern take on the 1930s Buck Rogers serials, Deathstalker is the same thing when that source material is the lurid, violent, and adjective-laden pulps of the 1920s, which would themselves influence the serials. Heavy on action, weird shit, mysterious mysteries, scope, and great sleeping powers, but light on any sort of realism (scientific or otherwise) or true depth of character. Again, that's just fine. I don't think depth of character was what Green was going for here (I haven't read any of his other work, so I don't know how it stacks up), I'm pretty sure he was trying to tell a fun, ridiculous story with some satire thrown in, and Deathstalker is definitely that. It doesn't necessarily stick with you (although the series as a whole may, once I've read more of it) but it's a lot of fun while you're in it.

There are so many fun, interesting, and strange ideas at play here, and the world created is a really neat one, but one of the more interesting aspects comes from the fact that one of Green's inspirations was Star Wars... sort of. Apparently, he was watching Star Wars and began to wonder how a galactic rebellion would actually finance itself, and how a galactic empire would actually work. The parts of the book dealing with this were often my favorite, as the ins and outs and political intrigue were often more fun than the actual swordfighting and spaceship battles (and I fucking love swordfighting and spaceship battles), and even if there's nothing exactly realistic about the universe presented, the internal logic is extremely strong. But my favorite part was probably how many disparate elements are running around in it -- so many, that it ends up feeling more like a long-running TV show or comic series that's had the time to build up its own continuity with no particular thought for congruity, and so all of these bits and piece run together in strange ways. Watching them do so was immense fun, and made me look forward to future books in the series.

Actually, the urge to jump right on ahead was strong, but there's not a lot out there like this -- big and epic while silly and fun at the same time -- so I'm saving reading future books until I feel like this is exactly what I need at any given time. It'll definitely happen.(less)

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Oct 05, 2010 Mark Black rated it 4 of 5 stars

Simon R. Green is a fantastic contributor to the genre of the written space opera. "Deathstalker" introduces you to a brilliantly conceived world of corrupt governments, epic heroes and likable villains caught up in a tale far beyond terrestrial scope. Green blends science fiction with a keen imagining of the Human condition, easily guiding you through a glittering technological masterpiece without ever losing sight of the story. His many well-developed characters have individual depths which co...more

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Mar 05, 2013 Matthew Gill rated it 4 of 5 stars

After having read Twilight of the Empire years ago(and adored it) I had to read Deathstalker upon discovering that there was more stories to hear. It was a good read, all around, and one I did enjoy. However, I have to admit that by the end of it I did find myself expecting a bit more. Still can't quite put my finger on anything specifically, but I just can't rate it at 5 stars. It is charming and rich with some interesting characters like it's predecessor. Not to mention a depth of scope that e...more

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Sep 11, 2011 Ross rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, fiction, owned, science-fiction

I picked up this novel because I've enjoyed other writing by Simon R. Green (specifically, his Nightside series. I really didn't know what I was getting into with this book, and was pleasantly surprised to find a modern-day space-opera, albeit with some tweaks and twists that make it a little unconventional compared to the classic space-operas of the pulp era. (I've been told since then that these aspects are semi-satirical of those golden-era space-operas, and that makes sense.)

I enjoyed the bo...more

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Oct 08, 2008 Cera rated it 4 of 5 stars

I had very low expectations when I started reading this, because previous books I'd read by Green had been so unfortunate (see _Mistworld_ &c for details), which may have artificially inflated my perception of its enjoyability. That being said, I did *really* enjoy it. It is hyper-melodramatic space opera, with characters who have ridiculous names ("Kid Death") and intrigue and deception and aristocracy and tons of fighting and horrifying alien monstrosities and an evil Empress that people w...more

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Feb 11, 2011 Bill Gudde rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy-sci-fi

This is a really nice start to the Deathstalker saga...if you like sweeping epics, then you'll probably like this. It is packed with interesting characters and interesting storyline that will be revealed in upcoming books. My one negative is that it seems to take a long time to get to the point where the main storyline starts but it is a very entertaining read to get to that point. I have only recently been introduced to Simon R. Green's work but I really enjoy the fact that he knows how to writ...more

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Mar 13, 2011 Dan Choquette rated it 5 of 5 stars

Having read (& enjoyed) the second book of Green's "Secret Histories" series, I sought out this series. And doesn't disappoint.
Reading like Michael Moorcock filtered through Dune and Star Wars, Deathstalker follows the exploits of one Owen Deathstalker, who finds himself on the run. On the way, he hooks up with space pirates, bounty hunters and rebels, soon becoming a reluctant rebel himself.
I found this to be a lot of fun. Though the scenes involving 'the Iron Bitch' empress are a littl...more

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Sep 21, 2011 Brian Lee rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

#23 DEATHSTALKER by Simon R. Green: Durfee's top 50 novels countdown. My one guilty pleasure is the 8 volume DEATHSTALKER series. A strange twisted space opera with a sordid mix of high-tech, swordplay, and wondrously warped and quirky characters. Green blends enough derring-do, space battles, gladiator matches, and wry banter in 100pgs than all of Star Wars n Battlestar Galactica combined.

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Aug 16, 2012 Dono West rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites, science-fiction, will-read-again

This review is for the entire Deathstalker series, in which I listened to the Graphic Audio version rather than reading the actual books.

I loved this series. In fact, everything I've read/listened to by Simon R. Green is just plan fun. The storyline and characters are never very deep or even that varied and he has loads of pet phrases that will drive you crazy... But it's all action! And fantastically over-the-top! And extremely violent! And hilarious!

If you enjoy fast food and B action movies f...more

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Jan 09, 2013 Zachary Wagoner rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: my-sci-fi-collection

This book was alright. There were some interesting things going on and some of the adventures were pretty great. Had a very strong start, though I felt as if the second half of the book was rushed, maybe? A few things that seemed to contradict what had previously been mentioned. Felt like I was reading a series of pen and paper role playing adventures, which I can handle, though it wasn't what I was expecting.

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Jan 30, 2013 Drwhome rated it 5 of 5 stars

Okay, not for everyone. This is rompin', stompin', SPACE OPERA from the man who gave us the Nightside. In a way, you might say it's Nightside in Space.

If you like your heroes nobler than Aragorn, bigger than Paul Bunyan, and in some cases, actually faster than a speeding bullet, then join the rebellion and "Down with the Iron Bitch!"

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Apr 22, 2011 Lauren Smith rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: aliens, biopunk, dystopia, genetics, ebook, politics, reading-challenge, science-fiction, space-opera, vampires, war

It's absolute overkill from beginning to end, but it's quite good fun. Reading Deathstalker is the literary equivalent of going to see a blockbuster for the sheer thrill of awesome special effects, superhuman warriors and amazing fight scenes. In other words, watch out for the one-liners, expect no subtlety, sit back and have a great time as a few bold rebels face insurmountable odds going up against a cruel galactic Empire.

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Sep 16, 2010 Kadja Draenor rated it 3 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this book quite a bit, almost enough for a 4 star rating. The only problem is, it doesn't really flow. The story feels like it jumps and stops, like it was written at different times. Still, it was enjoyable enough to continue the series. Many interesting characters and events, and a fascinating universe to explore in further books.

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Jan 07, 2011 Jason rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: apocalyptic, fantasy, fiction, science-fiction

I only got 50-60 pages in to this before I had to put it down. The writing jumped all over the place, leaving me pretty confused! It wasn't well written and didn't draw me in at all. I'll own the fact that I'm not a huge fan of "space novels" so they have to be really good to hold my attention. Unfortunately, this wasn't one of them!

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The Sword and Laser: A True Sword & Laser Series Read	1	46	Oct 26, 2011 07:03am

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About Simon R. Green

Simon Richard Green is a British science fiction and fantasy-author. He holds a degree in Modern English and American Literature from the University of Leicester. His first publication was in 1979.

His Deathstalker series is partly a parody of the usual space-opera of the 1950s, told with sovereign disregard of the rules of probability, while being at the same time extremely bloodthirsty.

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Books by Simon R. Green

Something from the Nightside (Nightside, #1)

Agents of Light and Darkness (Nightside, #2)

Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth (Nightside, #6)

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Trivia About Deathstalker

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Quotes from Deathstalker

“Too many people live the lives other people think they ought to, following orders they don't agree with, for causes they don't believe in. They live lives that don't matter, that touch no one and change nothing. For better or worse, you and I stared evil in the eye and didn't flinch. We raised our swords and went to war, and even if we didn't win we kicked some ass along the way. We made a difference, and that's all any man can ask.” — 24 people liked it

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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/629068.Deathstalker?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1257708375l/629068.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/629068.Deathstalker?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Deathstalker by Simon R. Green[/url]

Deathstalker (Deathstalker #1)

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