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243rd out of 1,113 books
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Split Infinity (Apprentice Adept #1)
On the technological, decadent world of Proton, someone was trying to destroy Stile, serf and master Gamesman. His only escape lay in Phaze, a world totally ruled by magic. Soon he learned that his alternate self had already been murdered, and that he was next. On Proton, his fate depended on winning the great Games. On Phaze, he must master magic to survive. And if he use...more
Paperback, 368 pages
Published
October 12th 1987
by Del Rey
(first published 1980)
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This was another novel concept by Anthony. The first book or two were great, but he took the series further than I wanted. This one is definitely re-readable, the 2d & 3d are OK, but after that I couldn't get into them any more.
The world is in the far future, but one man finds he can slip from his ultra modern world into a nearby fantasy world since the death of his counterpart in the other dimension. He winds up dealing with all the problems two people have all by himself. Fun...more
The world is in the far future, but one man finds he can slip from his ultra modern world into a nearby fantasy world since the death of his counterpart in the other dimension. He winds up dealing with all the problems two people have all by himself. Fun...more
The best part is the author bio in the back, but there are a few worthwhile parts in the middle. Not enough to recommend the book, but enough to keep me entertained on my international flight. I did appreciate that all of the interesting world elements had a justification for existing, and likewise Stile had good reason to be physically, musically, and magically up to all the tasks. It's sometimes annoying when the main character is good at everything, but Stile was supposed to be--he'd practice...more
As with most Piers Anthony series I liked this one too.
In this one Anthony creates two parallel universes in which the main character Stile suddenly finds himself being drawn into both. In his original world of Proton, Stile is a simple serf, who enters the great games, hoping to win the championship and most importantly, the grand prize, becoming a citizen and leaving serfdom behind. But someone is out to thwart Stile in games.
Unexpectedly drawn into the magic world of...more
In this one Anthony creates two parallel universes in which the main character Stile suddenly finds himself being drawn into both. In his original world of Proton, Stile is a simple serf, who enters the great games, hoping to win the championship and most importantly, the grand prize, becoming a citizen and leaving serfdom behind. But someone is out to thwart Stile in games.
Unexpectedly drawn into the magic world of...more
This book, and the series as well, is good and not in pretty equal measures.
It retains one of those bizarre amalgamations of fantasy and sci-fi worlds. One of technology, one of magic, yeah, we've seen that before.
The story is relatively interesting, the characters, while a bit shallow, aren't terrible by any means. Some of the technology and explanations of magic is quite interesting. In the sci-fi world, the main character is a slave who plays the "Game," whic...more
It retains one of those bizarre amalgamations of fantasy and sci-fi worlds. One of technology, one of magic, yeah, we've seen that before.
The story is relatively interesting, the characters, while a bit shallow, aren't terrible by any means. Some of the technology and explanations of magic is quite interesting. In the sci-fi world, the main character is a slave who plays the "Game," whic...more
The Apprentice Adept is the first book in a seven-book fantasy and science fiction series by Piers Anthony. This novel takes place on two planets called Phaze and Proton, which are two worlds in parallel universes. Phaze is a magical planet where as Proton is a wasteland for mining. Within the book, each person born on Phaze has an alternate self on Proton. Stiles is the master gamesman, born and raised on Proton and is also the main character. Stiles becomes a citizen as well as a professional ...more
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11. 3/19/09: Split Infinity of the Apprentice Adept series, by Piers Anthony. A few notes on this book:
* I read this whole series probably when I was about 10 or 11, and reread it countless times.
* Unlike Anthony's Xanth series, the Adept books really hold up into adulthood. I still love Xanth and have often pulled out an older one to reread a couple of times a year, but I would be way too embarrassed to admit to someone else over the age of about 13 that I do so.
* Piers Anthon...more
* I read this whole series probably when I was about 10 or 11, and reread it countless times.
* Unlike Anthony's Xanth series, the Adept books really hold up into adulthood. I still love Xanth and have often pulled out an older one to reread a couple of times a year, but I would be way too embarrassed to admit to someone else over the age of about 13 that I do so.
* Piers Anthon...more
Large number of people running around conducting their daily activities while wearing less clothing than might be seen at a European beach? Check. Intimate scenes in which one of the participants is an anatomically correct robot? Check. Bestiality with a magical mythical creature? Check. Yup, this must be a Piers Anthony novel. After all, he is the same author to have written a book named "The Color of Her Panties". Now I do not want to sound prudish. Well placed and well written sex...more
Stile is a serf on the world of Proton, where technology is rampant and overused, causing nature to suffer. Serfs are allowed to participate in a game called the Tourney, a varied and unpredictable game that contains many different facets. In one match, competitors might be playing a duet on the harmonica; in another, they may wrestle or run a marathon. As a serf, Stile serves his affluent Citizen master as a jockey; as a Tourney player, he is one of the best competitors. However, his world begi...more
I bought this trilogy while I was at University (a fabulous second hand bookshop where you could return other books to count towards new purchases) and I remembered enjoying them at the time. In the intervening years the trilogy has grown somewhat - Piers Anthony has a tendency to keep extending series beyond his original intent.
A great idea, well constructed. Both a science fiction universe and a fantasy universe in the same book. They overlap and some people can even move between the...more
A great idea, well constructed. Both a science fiction universe and a fantasy universe in the same book. They overlap and some people can even move between the...more
This is a man's book, written by a man for men. If you are a man, a lover of horses, or a nudist you may enjoy it. I'm none of the above, so how did I make it through? (There was an entire chapter on manure!) It was quite by accident that my Ipod started me out in the middle on the magical planet and it took me a while to figure out what had happened and to go back to the beginning. On the magical planet, they wear clothes. On the techno planet, the "serfs" (common people)aren't ...more
The Apprentice Adept series is hard for me to rate. These books are Piers Anthony's effort to present two parallel universes, one sci-fi and one fantasy. The sci-fi universe, Proton, is, in my opinion, very well realized with an interesting take on the future and a very entertaining Game. The fantasy universe, Phaze, is, in my opinion, poorly presented with too much focus on people talking in thee's and thou's and the main character's magic depending on rhymes which are pretty bad. I like the sc...more
Hate to badmouth it, but...: This idea that Piers Anthony gives is great. Two worlds - one magic and one technological - is brilliant. The moment a friend told me about it, I went out and grabbed it. The book was also well written. I just couldn't stand the multiple-page long monologues Stile gives frequently. It seemed that every chapter Stile was giving some speech or another about morality or about how great he was at one thing or another. That's another thing that's not so great. I like havi...more
So after talking up Piers Anthony so much as of late I figured why not start a series I haven't gotten around to reading yet? This guy is so readable I finished this book in record time. Refreshing as I haven't had much luck getting thru too much else, I keep falling asleep - dang it. Although I found this title enjoyable it didn't live up to other tomes of memory. Maybe because it was obviously meant to be the first of a series and felt incomplete. I also noticed that Anthony has a predilection...more
It's pleasant enough for a quick read, but you can tell it's very dated. A typical Piers Anthony offering that doesn't stand out much.
The premise is good - a planet existing in two 'frames', one of magic, the other of science, where people and events are duplicated between the two - but the writing exposes Anthony's typical obsessions with sex and nudity; too much time is spent in flashbacks; and things are over-explained with the feeling of morality lecture overhanging everything. Y...more
The premise is good - a planet existing in two 'frames', one of magic, the other of science, where people and events are duplicated between the two - but the writing exposes Anthony's typical obsessions with sex and nudity; too much time is spent in flashbacks; and things are over-explained with the feeling of morality lecture overhanging everything. Y...more
The first book in the Blue Adept series. Two worlds, Proton, based on science and logic. The other, Phase, based on magic. On Proton lives Stile, who discovers by accident how to cross between the two worlds. But what should Stile do when he has someone trying to kill him on both worlds? His only means of survival are his skills as a master gamesman, which Stile discovers is how he will work magic. On Proton he has only one friend, a humanoid robot named Sheen. On Phase, Stile has a unicorn and...more
Stile lives on Proton, a futuristic world where everything is ruled by science. Proton is controlled by Citizens, the few individuals who own absolutely everything- serfs included. Stile is a serf, though a highly respected serf. Stile is a jockey for 'his' Citizen, or at least he is until a mysterious enemy lasers his knees ending his career riding horses. This leads Stile on a series of events that simultaneously force Stile to join The Tournament (the only way he can stay on Proton withou...more
This is the first book in a series title the "apprentice adept" series. I read this during my young adult years. A story about Stiles who is caught in two world of science and fantasy. Parallel universes filled with magic. Stiles becomes a political figure in a fantasy world and meets many characters along the way that are part of "the game" which he has to play in order to save himself and his world. (sort of a fantasy/science fiction "24") This is definately ...more
In this reading there is a meeting of two worlds that are far from the one we know today. In one science has reached its pinnacle and in the other magic rules. Our guide is Stile who is able to travel between tow worlds only because his double in the alternate dimension has died. So now he goes back and forth trying to survive in the one and stay successful in the other. What I like best about this writing is the dual worlds that intersect in this one person. He is our guide and as he is learnin...more
I never realized how hard it would be to read a popular book when you've talked to the author in a capacity other than writing books.
I mean, I don't know him really well, but I've met him (via online sources) and he's talked to me. He talks to most of his fans, but he introduced me to a girl he had helped in the late 80's. She was hit by a drunk driver when she was 12. She's 34 now and has never walked, but the person who did it has never even apologized for what he did.
She became a ch...more
I mean, I don't know him really well, but I've met him (via online sources) and he's talked to me. He talks to most of his fans, but he introduced me to a girl he had helped in the late 80's. She was hit by a drunk driver when she was 12. She's 34 now and has never walked, but the person who did it has never even apologized for what he did.
She became a ch...more
I haven't read a ton by Piers Anthony yet but what I have read I have enjoyed. Split Infinity is a very interesting start to what I hope will be a very interesting series in which the author blends traditional fantasy and sci-fi into one very intriguing story. It is well written, witty, and amusing 'til the very end and I very much look forward to reading the next two books in the set.
For those wondering what on Earth the book is even about - here's a quick and hopefullly vague s...more
For those wondering what on Earth the book is even about - here's a quick and hopefullly vague s...more
A great start to a really clever series! Might be a bit too dry and analytical for some people, but I think he did the mix of worlds really well (without it sliding into a rehash of other cyberpunk novels)
I can't quite remember whether the ensuing books were as good, but this first one is definitely worth a read. I've never come a cross a book that pulled off this kind of plot with such flair. (there is a fair bit of corniness, but that's just Piers Anthony style)
I can't quite remember whether the ensuing books were as good, but this first one is definitely worth a read. I've never come a cross a book that pulled off this kind of plot with such flair. (there is a fair bit of corniness, but that's just Piers Anthony style)
While browsing the library shelves as a kid, this book caught my eye because of the unicorn on the cover. I've always loved unicorns, so I checked it out and read it. Since luckily happening upon that book, I've read A LOT of Piers Anthony books. It's crazy to think of the worlds I never would have experienced if it hadn't been for that unicorn! lol This book is awesome...the perfect blend of fantasy and sci-fi. Read it!
Nice idea, mixing sci fi and fantasy and Piers Morgan does it very well. There is a lot of ground that has been covered before by others, such as "can robots/computers ever really be people" but it's approached well and the story is a good enough with a very likeable hero.
I guess the author made Stiles so short because otherwise he'd be a superman (he seems to be able to do everything) but other than that gripe it's good
I guess the author made Stiles so short because otherwise he'd be a superman (he seems to be able to do everything) but other than that gripe it's good
Lavender Ironside
rated it
Thin and ultimately silly, as all Anthony's stuff is, I give this book one more star than it deserves because I read it in eighth grade and actually enjoyed it then, when I was a kid who would find something to like in any fantasy novel and who still harbored a secret passion for magical horsies. An attempt to re-read it had me rolling my eyes by the middle of the first chapter.
Will fill the gullet if you crave the fluffiest of fluff. Not destined to be a classic of the genre.
Will fill the gullet if you crave the fluffiest of fluff. Not destined to be a classic of the genre.
I have come to expect the odd from Piers Anthony. His apprentice adept series delivers the odd in copious amounts following Stile, born of Proton discovering that he is the counterpart to the Blue Adept in Phaze. With Split Infinity, the reader starts to see the duality of Phaze and Proton, along with the start of Stile's quest to become the new Blue Adept and eventually save both worlds. I find Piers Anthony's use of the quest or journey type of storyline inspirational, he is able to apply i...more
I read several of the Apprentice Adept series after discovering Anthony in Jr High and High School. I found this series to be more interesting than the Xanth series although I would sometimes get the two worlds mixed. The book is divided between both a scientific dimension where there are atmospheric domes and desolate outer landscapes and a fantasy dimension where mythical creatures rule. The two worlds are intertwined in various aspects including everyone has an alternate self in each world...more
Piers Anthony, you did it to me again. You start off with an fascinating premise, you start to develop an interesting story, and then the middle becomes ordinary, and by the end, I don't even care anymore. My advice to readers: Read the first half of any Piers Anthony story and you will get an interesting worthwhile reading experience. Then stop reading. Sure, you may not be satisfied with not having an ending, but you will probably be happier. 2.9 stars.
I picked up this book knowing nothing about Piers Anthony, the Blue Adebt series, or Xanth. I was on my way to Costa Rica, and needed a book for the airport. I believe my parents had this in their house, and after seeing "an elf fencing with a unicorn" and reading the synopsis on the back, I figured it would be a good read.
The story if a quality mix between sci-fi and fantasy, with a big helping of mystery. The situations are thrilling, but unfortunately, it's a book in ...more
The story if a quality mix between sci-fi and fantasy, with a big helping of mystery. The situations are thrilling, but unfortunately, it's a book in ...more
I hadn't read this book in ages... probably since high school. I absolutely loved this book when I was a teenager (I think I was 12 the first time I read it) and have a lot of fond memories of it, so I approached it this time with a bit of trepidation. It was nowhere near as good as I remembered it, but much MUCH better than I'd feared it would be!
One of Piers Anthony's better books, when he was still able to crank the occasional original idea. Quite a lot of fun. Unfortunately, subsequent sequels show off his superb skill at taking a fresh, interesting idea, and beating it over and over to death, into absolute genre mush. If you read this one, take it as a singleton and skip all the sequels.
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Though he spent the first four years of his life in England, Piers never returned to live in his country of birth after moving to Spain and immigrated to America at age six. After graduating with a B.A. from Goddard College, he married one of his fellow students and and spent fifteen years in an assortment of professions before he began writing fiction full-time.
Piers is a self-proclai...more
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