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A Plague of Angels (Plague of Angels #1)
Atop a twisting,canyon-climbing road, a witch lurks in a fortressbuilt strong to keep out dragons and ogres. Inanother part of the countryside, a young orphan ismaturing into a beautiful woman in the enchantedvillage that is her home. Somewhere nearby, a young manis seeking adventure after running away from hisfamily's small farm. Suddenly a strange andterrible prophecy se...more
Paperback, 588 pages
Published
November 1st 1994
by Spectra
(first published September 1st 1993)
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I read this book almost 20 years ago, so I don't remember every detail. What I do remember is hating the ending so much that every time something reminds me of this story, I still get a little bit upset.
But maybe that's the mark of effective story-telling. To be honest, A Plague of Angels takes a lot of my favorite tropes, such as post-apocalyptic life, acknowledged archetypes, and questionable technologies, and mixes them in with pretty compelling characters. I remember being especially fond of...more
But maybe that's the mark of effective story-telling. To be honest, A Plague of Angels takes a lot of my favorite tropes, such as post-apocalyptic life, acknowledged archetypes, and questionable technologies, and mixes them in with pretty compelling characters. I remember being especially fond of...more
It is hard to describe this book, honestly it is just one of those books you have to read to understand. I have read a Tepper book before, and she does have a way to build a story.
This starts as fantasy, but nothing is as it seems. No it is this strange mix of fantasy and sci-fi and Tepper does it so well. She mixes things up and little by little I get to understand this world. Is it Earth? Is it a new planet? Well, I will not tell you that, read and see. What I can tell you is that it is a worl...more
This starts as fantasy, but nothing is as it seems. No it is this strange mix of fantasy and sci-fi and Tepper does it so well. She mixes things up and little by little I get to understand this world. Is it Earth? Is it a new planet? Well, I will not tell you that, read and see. What I can tell you is that it is a worl...more
3 likes · like · see review
This has to be the most bizarre book I have ever read. A fantasy type novel, with fantastical creatures, talking animals, quests to foreign lands. Add in self-aware characters from Archetypal Villages, like Orphan, Oracle, Hero, and Martyr. But then it is set in post-apocalyptic war that was ravaged by war, stds, and famine, although the characters don't know much about that because book burners take out anything older than 50 years. Oh yeah and an evil witch is trying to put a spaceship back to...more
Can i choose somewhere between "it was OK" and "i liked it"? Another embarrassing book to carry (couple on a horse, wind blowing their hair), the back cover blurb playing up the fantasy cliches...
Honestly, can i tell the lady who asks me (as i walk down the sidewalk reading) "it's fantasy, but it's *self-conscious* fantasy, with feminist and ecological themes and a hidden framework of post-apocalyptic sci-fi?"
Anyway, looks like sci-fi/fantasy with an ideological axe to grind w/r/t gender or ecol...more
Honestly, can i tell the lady who asks me (as i walk down the sidewalk reading) "it's fantasy, but it's *self-conscious* fantasy, with feminist and ecological themes and a hidden framework of post-apocalyptic sci-fi?"
Anyway, looks like sci-fi/fantasy with an ideological axe to grind w/r/t gender or ecol...more
I liked this novel quite well, but I am not prepared to articulate why. Usually when I feel that inarticulateness I don't bother to write a review at all, but this time I do feel compelled to say something about genre classification. I prefer science fiction over fantasy, but if you look at my bookshelf you will see that I am not exactly opposed to fantasy either. Even though there might be some overlap, just like you might have a western that is also a mystery, the two genres have little to do...more
I KNOW I read this but I can't for a moment remember it. I've just read a few reviews (and the blurb, of course) but I still can't remember it. I'd like to read it again some day because I know I enjoyed it so much that when I saw a second-hand copy for sale I grabbed it.
Having said that, I am now giving it away! It pains me to give books away, but Lions is having a Big Book Sale and two and a half thousand books is far too much for anybody to own, especially when that somebody is going to be mo...more
Having said that, I am now giving it away! It pains me to give books away, but Lions is having a Big Book Sale and two and a half thousand books is far too much for anybody to own, especially when that somebody is going to be mo...more
This book is by far one of the craziest books I’ve ever read—not so much in subject matter, as in style. Tepper tries to cram way too many genres into one book, which results in a conglomeration of things that don’t quite mesh and causes the reader’s disbelief. First off, the book is set in a post apocalyptic Earth where men have returned to a pre-industrial way of life, however, some high technology still remains in the form of nuclear robots who roam the Earth as inquisitors for an evil witch...more
In this novel, Tepper once again explores the realms of myth and fantasy as they relate to a future Earth. The story takes place in what once was the southwestern United States. Mankind has been "reduced" to an agrarian society, although a few crime- and drug-ridden cities still stand, and remnants of technology are preserved in isolated locations. Fantastic creatures -- trolls, griffins, ogres and the like -- roam the countryside. Heroes, Princesses, Oracles and other "archtypes" are preserved...more
Sheri Tepper manages to write compelling stories but laced with an almost surreal vision of mankind. I've been a huge fan of hers for some time and this book falls well in line with many of her latter books.
I think that where she hooks the reader is by throwing him into an unfamiliar world where the desire to piece together the world almost takes a greater role than the actual plot of the story. With Plague of Angels, the world seems to be our own, but one set in a far distant future after some...more
I think that where she hooks the reader is by throwing him into an unfamiliar world where the desire to piece together the world almost takes a greater role than the actual plot of the story. With Plague of Angels, the world seems to be our own, but one set in a far distant future after some...more
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May 01, 2012
Amy
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
nook-or-tablet,
utopia-dystopia
Not sure about this yet. It's not grabbing me like Gate to Women's Country did...
Political intrigue in one plotline, young woman struggling to find her indentity and way in the world... yet a third plotline with a young man who is aimlessly living a crime filled life, although he seems to only be stuck in it because he doesn't have any good way out... so far this still seems like three different books. Not just three plotlines that I'm waiting on to converge... but really three different books.
....more
Political intrigue in one plotline, young woman struggling to find her indentity and way in the world... yet a third plotline with a young man who is aimlessly living a crime filled life, although he seems to only be stuck in it because he doesn't have any good way out... so far this still seems like three different books. Not just three plotlines that I'm waiting on to converge... but really three different books.
....more
I like books that take time to read. This one was one one of them.
I found it brilliant; there's so much happening. There are twisty bits of plot and secrets and hints about what might be happening. And I think it's making fun of fantasy novels that are about the characters you'd find in one of the Archetypal Villages. Reading about the Heroes gave me something to snicker over.
I really enjoyed this book. It's sort of like Diana Wynne Jones for adults, which I like.
I found it brilliant; there's so much happening. There are twisty bits of plot and secrets and hints about what might be happening. And I think it's making fun of fantasy novels that are about the characters you'd find in one of the Archetypal Villages. Reading about the Heroes gave me something to snicker over.
I really enjoyed this book. It's sort of like Diana Wynne Jones for adults, which I like.
Takes Navajo and Christian mythology, a post-apocalyptic world, fairy tale archetypes and plays hell with them, in a very fun way. Interesting story, not very well-drawn characters, too much Jesus imagery at the end. I'm really tired of the theme of self-sacrifice, especially when it feels contrived. Still, Tepper's world is believable, even if the characters aren't, and her ideas are challenging as always.
Sheri S. Tepper never ceases to amaze me with the vast variety of stories she creates. Each and every book is so completely different from the last one I read by her, it's almost like having several dozen favorite authors with the same name. Her stories are always thought provoking, intelligent, and creative. They take me completely away from this world to another world that I would never have thought of were it not for Sheri.
A Plague of Angels is one of those worlds and although I didn't parti...more
A Plague of Angels is one of those worlds and although I didn't parti...more
Sometimes I think the world is headed in this direction. Cities are getting larger, more crowded and more violent. Drugs are used to get up, get down, not feel bad, feel good. War is breaking out all over. We fight and war on our neighbors and most of the people who get killed don't have any idea why the war is and what it's all about. Diseases are more virulent and spread faster...at the speed of flight. There are so many mouths to feed and farmland and farmers are disappearing - people are hun...more
I describe this as my favourite book of all time, which is strange because it isn't Tepper's best work and there are a lot of flaws to talk about - large sections that make very little sense, the usual overly preachy themes, and so on. Tepper is a fantastic writer who can somehow just bring words to life, and I really like that in this book she has managed to create a vibrant and strong female main character without reducing the males in the book to complete idiocy. I suspect there is a lot of n...more
Can someone tell me if this is the Sherri Tepper novel in which a time traveling woman with a dragon companion warn people not to "let them mess with your head.". And the people ate so impressed they make a religion which forbids haircuts. I'm trying to hunt down a reference.
An amazing and interesting book with so many turns and twists. While it might confuse at some points, overall the author blends typical fantasy elements into a sci-fi background. It is worth reading to the end and I still go back every so often to read it!
Sep 03, 2011
Andrew
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Fantasy fans
Recommended to Andrew by:
No one
I found this book ages ago when I was much younger. At the time, the breadth and scope of Tepper's imagination took my breath away. Even though that holds true today, I find as I've grown I've come to appreciate her writing style more and more.
One of my favourite Teppers. A feisty heroine with a destiny, a well-realised fantasy world with an eco message, an evil villainess, and a bitter-sweet ending. Read this and don't bother over much with the 'sequel' Waters Rising.
I have now read all of Tepper's novels (except the E E Horlak) under all pseudonyms & I really liked this (a 3.5 star really) but I think her editor must have been on vacation. About 100 pages could have been cut; it took far too long to get where it was going. The last twenty or so pages saved it for me.
I think Tepper is the greatest worldbuilder of her generation & still hasn't gotten the recognition she deserves. The world here was no exception and I am looking forward to the sequel o...more
I think Tepper is the greatest worldbuilder of her generation & still hasn't gotten the recognition she deserves. The world here was no exception and I am looking forward to the sequel o...more
Futuristic Earth, but a primitive people--after men went to the stars, the earth regressed.A lot of political things incorporated--the role and treatment of women, how technology is used, drugs, sex etc etc. Went on and on and on.
The Visitor is the same story thematically, but more engaging. A good book for die-hard Tepper fans (I've read it twice), but others might choose a different option.
Science fiction book that takes a while to get into and understand about the world after a nuclear attack. The suprise ending makes it worth the read.
I may not like all Sheri Tepper's but they alway make me think, often about themes too dark to enjoy. This one was good but not awesome.
This is described as science fiction on the back cover, but it has DRAGONS! Dragons are fantasy in my world :-)
This was my introduction Tepper - I now eagerly devour anything and everything that she writes
Jan 13, 2009
Corvidae
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
random-books-from-used-book-stores
Kind of strange, it dances around thematically, but I still enjoyed it.
The story with the archetypes! Yeah. This one was pretty cool.
This is one of my favorite books by one of my favorite authors!
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Sheri Stewart Tepper is a prolific American author of science fiction, horror and mystery novels; she is particularly known as a feminist science fiction writer, often with an ecofeminist slant.
Born near Littleton, Colorado, for most of her career (1962-1986) she worked for Rocky Mountain Planned Parenthood, where she eventually became Executive Director. She has two children and is married to Gen...more
More about Sheri S. Tepper...
Born near Littleton, Colorado, for most of her career (1962-1986) she worked for Rocky Mountain Planned Parenthood, where she eventually became Executive Director. She has two children and is married to Gen...more
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“As vocabulary is reduced , so are the number of feelings you can express, the number of events you can describe, the number of the things you can identify! Not only understanding is limited, but also experience. Man grows by language. Whenever he limits language he retrogresses!”
—
14 people liked it
“We'll tell him his mother waits for him in heaven, I suppose."
"Is that a lie?"
"It's what we tell fools and children." She sighed. "Postulating a heaven gives man an out for having been unable to retain the paradise he was given here on earth.”
—
6 people liked it
More quotes…
"Is that a lie?"
"It's what we tell fools and children." She sighed. "Postulating a heaven gives man an out for having been unable to retain the paradise he was given here on earth.”
Nov 01, 2011 12:37pm