false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1176566854m/635403.jpg 635403 2 Julie E. Czerneda is going to make it into the awards nominations very soon, if her first two books are any indication. Her first novel, <I>A Thousand Words for Stranger</I>, was called "thoroughly entertaining" in <I>Locus</I>. Czerneda's second book, <I>Beholder's Eye</I>, is even better.<p> Esen-Alit-Quar is the youngest of her Web, a "family" of extremely long-lived shapeshifters. Web-beings live in the diverse cultures and forms of intelligent life to learn and preserve their accomplishments. On her first assignment Es rescues a human, Paul Ragem, from the culture she's studying. But he and some on his first contact ship learn about her shapechanging. This could be fatal for Esen's Web, as an Enemy has appeared, seeking to destroy them and consuming all intelligence in its path. Es must elude pursuit by humans, who believe <I>she</I> is the Enemy, warn her Web members, and defeat this danger. Paul Ragem offers help, but asks Es to trust him with knowledge of her kind. He could lose his friends, his career, and his life, or he could betray Es to his human colleagues out of fear.<p> The characters, races and cultures are marvelously distinctive and well drawn, the action swift, and the conclusion satisfying. If you've enjoyed Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan books, give <I>Beholder's Eye</I> a once-over. <I>--Nona Vero</I> 696698 book 1 10 1998 Beholder's Eye (Web Shifters, #1) total:133|5:43|4:57|3:23|2:7|1:3| 133 529 186 14 4 0 false false Sat Oct 31 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 31 04:59:09 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 31 04:59:09 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Jul 02 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Aug 31 01:48:59 -0700 2009 Mon Aug 31 01:48:59 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jan 15 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 06 08:12:35 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 15 18:22:12 -0800 2009 1 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 27 20:41:36 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 27 20:45:13 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Tue Jan 13 20:07:28 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 13 20:08:29 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Mon Nov 10 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Thu Jan 15 18:57:59 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 15 19:06:41 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Wed Sep 16 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 08 21:02:41 -0700 2008 Thu Sep 17 21:17:48 -0700 2009 2
It's not quite as stunning upon a reread as I remember, but still a solid and inventive sci...more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 1998 Thu Jun 07 15:44:55 -0700 2007 Thu Jun 07 15:46:15 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Jan 12 21:02:45 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 22 09:37:04 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Tue Jun 17 12:06:18 -0700 2008 Tue Mar 03 17:11:16 -0800 2009 2 0 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Jul 03 17:14:00 -0700 2007 Mon Oct 15 19:55:31 -0700 2007 Beholder's Eye, but just wasn't captivated enough to continue.]]> 5 0 false false Thu May 22 05:37:35 -0700 2008 Thu May 22 05:38:00 -0700 2008 4 0 false false Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2005 Wed Aug 01 14:09:14 -0700 2007 Wed Aug 01 14:14:32 -0700 2007 0 0 false false Sat Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Thu Sep 27 13:49:49 -0700 2007 Thu Sep 27 13:49:49 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Sun Nov 15 00:12:47 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 15 00:13:04 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Wed Nov 11 17:53:12 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 11 17:53:12 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Sat Nov 25 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Mon Nov 09 14:36:18 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 09 14:36:18 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Mon Nov 09 06:32:57 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 09 06:32:57 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sun Nov 08 16:13:37 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 08 16:13:39 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Thu Oct 29 18:03:59 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 29 18:03:59 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=635403