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Plague of Angels #3
Fish Tails
In her 35th novel, science fiction master Sheri S. Tepper boldly weaves together the storylines of eleven of her previous works-from King's Blood Four (1983) to The Waters Rising (2010)
In Fish Tails, two of Tepper's beloved characters-Abasio and Xulai (A Plague of Angels and The Waters Rising)-and their children travel from village to village scattered across the sparsely populated land of Tingawa. They are searching for others who might be interested in adopting their sea-dwelling lifestyle.
Along their journey they encounter strange visitors from the far-off world of Lom, characters from Tepper's nine-book "True Game" series of novels-Mavin Manyshaped, Jinian Star-eye, and Silkhands the Healer-all of whom have been gathered up by an interfering, time-traveling, rule-breaking do-gooder to do one last good deed on earth before its metamorphosis is complete. For the waters are rising and will soon engulf the entire planet, transforming it utterly and irrevocably.
In Fish Tails, two of Tepper's beloved characters-Abasio and Xulai (A Plague of Angels and The Waters Rising)-and their children travel from village to village scattered across the sparsely populated land of Tingawa. They are searching for others who might be interested in adopting their sea-dwelling lifestyle.
Along their journey they encounter strange visitors from the far-off world of Lom, characters from Tepper's nine-book "True Game" series of novels-Mavin Manyshaped, Jinian Star-eye, and Silkhands the Healer-all of whom have been gathered up by an interfering, time-traveling, rule-breaking do-gooder to do one last good deed on earth before its metamorphosis is complete. For the waters are rising and will soon engulf the entire planet, transforming it utterly and irrevocably.
512 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 21, 2014
33 people are currently reading
498 people want to read
About the author
Sheri S. Tepper
74 books1,083 followersSheri Stewart Tepper was a prolific American author of science fiction, horror and mystery novels; she was 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 Gene Tepper. She operated a guest ranch in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
She wrote under several pseudonyms, including A.J. Orde, E.E. Horlak, and B.J. Oliphant. Her early work was published under the name Sheri S. Eberhart.
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 Gene Tepper. She operated a guest ranch in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
She wrote under several pseudonyms, including A.J. Orde, E.E. Horlak, and B.J. Oliphant. Her early work was published under the name Sheri S. Eberhart.
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September 24, 2016
1.5 stars - Metaphorosis Reviews
With the world slowly flooding, Abasio, his wife Xulai, and their two amphibian children travel the world promoting preparation for eventual submersion. They encounter both enemies and friends from unexpected places - including another Tepper series.
Fish Tails comes with an Author's Note, to be read after digesting the 600+ pages of the book. It's a mildly interesting Note, in that it clearly delineates the sequence and links between the True Game and Plague of Angels series. What surprised me most about the Note, though, is what it doesn't do, which is to give any indication at all that this book was written by someone other than Sheri Tepper. By page 300, I'd have put money on that idea.
I'm a big fan of Tepper's work. She's heavy-handed with her philosophy, and monotonous in her politics, but I agree with a lot of what she says, and the rest is at least interesting. Her books are low on humor, but intelligent. She's such a good writer that, despite their drawbacks, the books are usually very good - The Revenants and the Awakener series are exceptions. Sadly, the entire Plague of Angels series has been another exception, and this book tops (bottoms?) the lot.
First, this is one of Tepper's most unabashedly message-driven books. For the uninitiated, here's a primer on the Tepperian outlook:
Humans are screwing up the world very badly because they are foolish and lack foresight.
Religion is foolish.
a. Men are inherently violent and led by their genitals , but can be redeemed.
b. Women are inherently gentle and thoughtful, but can be corrupted.
Don't worry if you don't commit the concepts to memory right away. If you read this book, you'll be hit over the head with them several times per chapter - usually at length, and most often repeating comments made earlier - several times.
The philosophy is (in my view) often correct, but also inconsistent - for example, it's important to take the long view, to consider consequences, and to adapt to the environment, but a key 'good' character at one point paves a road by mistake, and essentially says 'oh well', completely disregarding the impact on the environment; also, religion is essentially a delusion perpetuated by men, but there is a Creator indifferent to humans, and we should just take that on faith; men should respect and share equally with women, and should restrain their coarse and brutish impulses, but infant boys need 'more masculine' clothing than girls; when a community has done evil, we can assume the men have done it, and the women should be rescued; evil is essentially genetic - eugenics is a good thing; evil people cannot create beauty; and, drawing on a scene in Plague of Angels referenced in this book, rape is a disgusting crime, but use drugs to do it to a man, and ... eh.
Repetition is a problem with the book as a whole. The book starts with a long prologue that is, in essence, an alternate historical excerpt from a later chapter. There's no rhyme or reason for repeating so very much of the text, or for the fact that the excerpt differs in small details from the later text. I hoped against hope that this would at least be made clear at the end, but [anti-spoiler] it's not. Another scene from Chapter 11 is repeated word for word in Chapter 12. This pattern recurs throughout the book - not at such length, thank goodness, but the amount of repetition her is both incredible and basically indigestible, especially because so much of the book is focused on such small details. Repetition of the message is one thing - that seems to be the book's raison d'etre. However, there's barely a camp-making move our protagonists make that isn't described in detail, and then described to other characters in detail, so that they can describe it to other characters in detail. At some points, it felt to me less a novel than a travelogue with folk tales. That worked for Robert Silverberg; it doesn't work here.
The repetition problem is exacerbated by careless (perhaps no?) editing. Sometimes logistics just don't make sense. Characters who've never met are fast friends, or hint at relationships that never existed. There are a lot of characters; it's not surprising that there's a little confusion - but usually it's the reader who's confused, not the author. That's what editing is for.
Tepper introduces all-powerful magic (in the form of)advanced technology not once, but three times, but fails to explain even once why the characters don't just wave their magic wands to solve all ills.
I've always seen Tepper as a feminist with a twist (her distrust of relations between men and women). But feminism to me is about equal rights - it's the opposite of sexism. Here, Tepper stakes out very different ground. In the world of the book, at least, not only are men and women best off apart, it's because of innate features that affect not only phenotype, but their basic outlook. In other word, sexism at its most pernicious. While I'm on board with some of Tepper's ideas, I can't go along with this one, and it pervades the book without (as in The Gate to Women's Country) being a core theme or plot point. After a while, it moves from curious to intensely irritating.
The writing is often awkward, convoluted, or tedious. The logic is poor. The plot and actions are both repetitive and inconsistent. The point of view shifts unpredictably and without warning. The sequencing is confusing for no particular reason. Characters tell long stories that appear to exist only to use up Tepper's stock of ideas. While Tepper's books are usually near humor-free, this book abounds in puns (e.g., reference to an Oracle database) - so much so that it has the feel of a Sheri Tepper-Piers Anthony collaboration - and not in a good way.
This book is heavily reliant on A Plague of Angels, but inconsistent with it. Plague's main problem, though, was that it simply failed to answer a number of key questions. Fish Tails poses and answers a number of new questions, but not many of the old ones - specifically, who/what the thrones were.
The tie-in to the True Game series is entirely gratuitous, and risks cheapening that very good series. Perhaps Tepper simply wanted to revisit old characters, or link to her earliest books. I wish she hadn't.
Just in case you missed it, let me follow Tepper's lead and repeat my point explicitly. I didn't like this book. It's a bad book by a good author. It's so bad that I suggest you not read it even if - especially if - you're a Tepper fan. The book has so many problems that it's clear it wasn't properly edited. Maybe there was a deadline. Maybe the editor was afraid of upsetting Ms. Tepper. Maybe the wrong draft got published. Whatever the reason, this is not the book it could and should have been. It's a case study in the need for serious and thorough review before publishing. This feels like a very early draft - perhaps the first complete draft. I suggest you pass it by, and come back in a few years when they issue a revised (read 'edited') version.
With the world slowly flooding, Abasio, his wife Xulai, and their two amphibian children travel the world promoting preparation for eventual submersion. They encounter both enemies and friends from unexpected places - including another Tepper series.
Fish Tails comes with an Author's Note, to be read after digesting the 600+ pages of the book. It's a mildly interesting Note, in that it clearly delineates the sequence and links between the True Game and Plague of Angels series. What surprised me most about the Note, though, is what it doesn't do, which is to give any indication at all that this book was written by someone other than Sheri Tepper. By page 300, I'd have put money on that idea.
I'm a big fan of Tepper's work. She's heavy-handed with her philosophy, and monotonous in her politics, but I agree with a lot of what she says, and the rest is at least interesting. Her books are low on humor, but intelligent. She's such a good writer that, despite their drawbacks, the books are usually very good - The Revenants and the Awakener series are exceptions. Sadly, the entire Plague of Angels series has been another exception, and this book tops (bottoms?) the lot.
First, this is one of Tepper's most unabashedly message-driven books. For the uninitiated, here's a primer on the Tepperian outlook:
Humans are screwing up the world very badly because they are foolish and lack foresight.
Religion is foolish.
a. Men are inherently violent and led by their genitals , but can be redeemed.
b. Women are inherently gentle and thoughtful, but can be corrupted.
Don't worry if you don't commit the concepts to memory right away. If you read this book, you'll be hit over the head with them several times per chapter - usually at length, and most often repeating comments made earlier - several times.
The philosophy is (in my view) often correct, but also inconsistent - for example, it's important to take the long view, to consider consequences, and to adapt to the environment, but a key 'good' character at one point paves a road by mistake, and essentially says 'oh well', completely disregarding the impact on the environment; also, religion is essentially a delusion perpetuated by men, but there is a Creator indifferent to humans, and we should just take that on faith; men should respect and share equally with women, and should restrain their coarse and brutish impulses, but infant boys need 'more masculine' clothing than girls; when a community has done evil, we can assume the men have done it, and the women should be rescued; evil is essentially genetic - eugenics is a good thing; evil people cannot create beauty; and, drawing on a scene in Plague of Angels referenced in this book, rape is a disgusting crime, but use drugs to do it to a man, and ... eh.
Repetition is a problem with the book as a whole. The book starts with a long prologue that is, in essence, an alternate historical excerpt from a later chapter. There's no rhyme or reason for repeating so very much of the text, or for the fact that the excerpt differs in small details from the later text. I hoped against hope that this would at least be made clear at the end, but [anti-spoiler] it's not. Another scene from Chapter 11 is repeated word for word in Chapter 12. This pattern recurs throughout the book - not at such length, thank goodness, but the amount of repetition her is both incredible and basically indigestible, especially because so much of the book is focused on such small details. Repetition of the message is one thing - that seems to be the book's raison d'etre. However, there's barely a camp-making move our protagonists make that isn't described in detail, and then described to other characters in detail, so that they can describe it to other characters in detail. At some points, it felt to me less a novel than a travelogue with folk tales. That worked for Robert Silverberg; it doesn't work here.
The repetition problem is exacerbated by careless (perhaps no?) editing. Sometimes logistics just don't make sense. Characters who've never met are fast friends, or hint at relationships that never existed. There are a lot of characters; it's not surprising that there's a little confusion - but usually it's the reader who's confused, not the author. That's what editing is for.
Tepper introduces all-powerful magic (in the form of)advanced technology not once, but three times, but fails to explain even once why the characters don't just wave their magic wands to solve all ills.
I've always seen Tepper as a feminist with a twist (her distrust of relations between men and women). But feminism to me is about equal rights - it's the opposite of sexism. Here, Tepper stakes out very different ground. In the world of the book, at least, not only are men and women best off apart, it's because of innate features that affect not only phenotype, but their basic outlook. In other word, sexism at its most pernicious. While I'm on board with some of Tepper's ideas, I can't go along with this one, and it pervades the book without (as in The Gate to Women's Country) being a core theme or plot point. After a while, it moves from curious to intensely irritating.
The writing is often awkward, convoluted, or tedious. The logic is poor. The plot and actions are both repetitive and inconsistent. The point of view shifts unpredictably and without warning. The sequencing is confusing for no particular reason. Characters tell long stories that appear to exist only to use up Tepper's stock of ideas. While Tepper's books are usually near humor-free, this book abounds in puns (e.g., reference to an Oracle database) - so much so that it has the feel of a Sheri Tepper-Piers Anthony collaboration - and not in a good way.
This book is heavily reliant on A Plague of Angels, but inconsistent with it. Plague's main problem, though, was that it simply failed to answer a number of key questions. Fish Tails poses and answers a number of new questions, but not many of the old ones - specifically, who/what the thrones were.
The tie-in to the True Game series is entirely gratuitous, and risks cheapening that very good series. Perhaps Tepper simply wanted to revisit old characters, or link to her earliest books. I wish she hadn't.
Just in case you missed it, let me follow Tepper's lead and repeat my point explicitly. I didn't like this book. It's a bad book by a good author. It's so bad that I suggest you not read it even if - especially if - you're a Tepper fan. The book has so many problems that it's clear it wasn't properly edited. Maybe there was a deadline. Maybe the editor was afraid of upsetting Ms. Tepper. Maybe the wrong draft got published. Whatever the reason, this is not the book it could and should have been. It's a case study in the need for serious and thorough review before publishing. This feels like a very early draft - perhaps the first complete draft. I suggest you pass it by, and come back in a few years when they issue a revised (read 'edited') version.
December 26, 2014
This is sad. Sheri Tepper remains one of my favorite writers. Raising the Stones, Grass, and the True Game series are stellar, amazing fantasy. But this book is labored and didactic and not where anyone should start with Tepper. I'm heart-broken, because this is possibly her last book and it's not a good way to end an amazing career.
Whoever edited this book should be fired. As other reviewers have noticed, the Prologue is repeated in the early chapters, and it is not a printer's error. After the word-for-word repetition the same story is continued with changes: obviously the manuscript was never actually read with attention by a competent editor before publication. The implication is the publisher did not care enough to spend time or money on the book.
What Tepper is attempting is clear. She wanted to tie two of her main series together as a grand finale and resolution of the character's arcs because the thematic elements and her concerns are the same. But the message is beaten to death by repetitive speeches, aimless plotting, and the telegraphed arrival of the deus ex machina ending. I can't recommend this book, but for Tepper at her best, try Raising the Stones, the Gate into Women's Country, Grass, the Jinian sub-series of the True Game, or the Revenants. Don't judge her by this.
Whoever edited this book should be fired. As other reviewers have noticed, the Prologue is repeated in the early chapters, and it is not a printer's error. After the word-for-word repetition the same story is continued with changes: obviously the manuscript was never actually read with attention by a competent editor before publication. The implication is the publisher did not care enough to spend time or money on the book.
What Tepper is attempting is clear. She wanted to tie two of her main series together as a grand finale and resolution of the character's arcs because the thematic elements and her concerns are the same. But the message is beaten to death by repetitive speeches, aimless plotting, and the telegraphed arrival of the deus ex machina ending. I can't recommend this book, but for Tepper at her best, try Raising the Stones, the Gate into Women's Country, Grass, the Jinian sub-series of the True Game, or the Revenants. Don't judge her by this.
December 21, 2014
I cannot believe I am giving a Sheri Tepper book a one star review, but this book is a horrid mess.
Plot: sequel to Water Rising...the entire Earth is flooding, the good guys have a plan to basically turn people into mermaids, the bad guys have some other plan to do something else maybe sort of....blech.
You see, the book doesn't even really have good guys and bad guys and a plot. Not in a good way, like people are ambiguous and might be good or bad, oh no, there's no nuance here.
It doesn't really have good guys. The book has a ton of characters but they are mostly just milling around, waiting for a scene to have a childish didactic discussion about how selfish people are evil, stupid people are evil, foolish people are evil, anti-science people are evil, and then go back to milling about some more. And when I say childish discussion I don't merely mean unsubtle, I mean suddenly the book sounds like it is written for an 8 year old.
It doesn't really have bad guys. Since there has to be some conflict, occasionally cardboard cutouts of bad guys are set up so the protagonists can knock them down again. There is nothing to these characters. Calling them cardboard is giving them more depth and texture than they actually have. Every single one of them is the same: selfish, violent, ignorant, misogynistic. Period.
It doesn't really have a plot. That is a slight overstatement, but really the plot comes down to "people mill around until a near omnipotent alien named Fixit visits and sorts out everything." This isn't even a surprise deus ex machina ending. The reader is told early in the book that an alien name Fixit is aware of the problems on Earth and going to be coming.
Then there are the outright errors. In what might be a major printing mistake, several pages of the prologue are repeated in chapter 2. On multiple occasions characters forget information they already knew when they encounter it a second time. There are times one character is ascribed to dialogue from someone else.
I am a big fan of Tepper's work pre-1995, unexcited by the last 10 years, and saddened by this book. Occasionally some of Tepper's distinctive creativity style comes through, but I can't stand this book and I hate that some will read this first and be turned off of Tepper completely.
Recommendations:
The very earliest Tepper has only a minimal amount of the politics that underlies her later writing. The True Game series starts as a fairly standard fantasy that grows more and more unique as the series progresses.
Beauty is a Locus awards winner.
The Gate to Women's Country is a straight forward gender politics story.
Raising the Stones is one of my favorites, a strong blend of plot, character, and Tepper's unique imagination.
Plot: sequel to Water Rising...the entire Earth is flooding, the good guys have a plan to basically turn people into mermaids, the bad guys have some other plan to do something else maybe sort of....blech.
You see, the book doesn't even really have good guys and bad guys and a plot. Not in a good way, like people are ambiguous and might be good or bad, oh no, there's no nuance here.
It doesn't really have good guys. The book has a ton of characters but they are mostly just milling around, waiting for a scene to have a childish didactic discussion about how selfish people are evil, stupid people are evil, foolish people are evil, anti-science people are evil, and then go back to milling about some more. And when I say childish discussion I don't merely mean unsubtle, I mean suddenly the book sounds like it is written for an 8 year old.
It doesn't really have bad guys. Since there has to be some conflict, occasionally cardboard cutouts of bad guys are set up so the protagonists can knock them down again. There is nothing to these characters. Calling them cardboard is giving them more depth and texture than they actually have. Every single one of them is the same: selfish, violent, ignorant, misogynistic. Period.
It doesn't really have a plot. That is a slight overstatement, but really the plot comes down to "people mill around until a near omnipotent alien named Fixit visits and sorts out everything." This isn't even a surprise deus ex machina ending. The reader is told early in the book that an alien name Fixit is aware of the problems on Earth and going to be coming.
Then there are the outright errors. In what might be a major printing mistake, several pages of the prologue are repeated in chapter 2. On multiple occasions characters forget information they already knew when they encounter it a second time. There are times one character is ascribed to dialogue from someone else.
I am a big fan of Tepper's work pre-1995, unexcited by the last 10 years, and saddened by this book. Occasionally some of Tepper's distinctive creativity style comes through, but I can't stand this book and I hate that some will read this first and be turned off of Tepper completely.
Recommendations:
The very earliest Tepper has only a minimal amount of the politics that underlies her later writing. The True Game series starts as a fairly standard fantasy that grows more and more unique as the series progresses.
Beauty is a Locus awards winner.
The Gate to Women's Country is a straight forward gender politics story.
Raising the Stones is one of my favorites, a strong blend of plot, character, and Tepper's unique imagination.
July 18, 2015
Really just 2.5★ I really wanted to love this. Tepper is one of my favorite authors and I have read many of her books multiple times.
Unfortunately, it is in need of a better editor which became apparent quite early when Chapter 2 had large sections identical to the prologue, read only 50 pages or so before. That plus small errors (such as calling Bertram the tailor "Bernard") were irritating but not very important. What I found more disturbing was problems in continuity, as they call it in the film industry. Various comments or plot elements which were contrary to the world as it had been portrayed previously (either previously in this book or in the other books in the series). One example was in Chapter 11, when Coyote Precious Wind is now apparently "like a sister" to Xulai both in age & relationship -- odd for a woman who helped to raise her & had been her teacher.
I was also disturbed by the much increased use of machines -- by the Artemesians in particular as it seemed contrary to the philosophy they espoused in A Plague of Angels. And Xulai & Abasio's ul xaolat's internal dialogue appeared to me to be indicative of walker mentality, a problem which is never explored but struck me as ironic in the extreme.
But the main reason I was disappointed in this novel was
I did like the short story that I discovered after the Author's Note called "The Story of the Kindly Teacher". Very well done with a similar message as one of the themes in the Grass trilogy (esp. in the second book) about the Baidee.
Unfortunately, it is in need of a better editor which became apparent quite early when Chapter 2 had large sections identical to the prologue, read only 50 pages or so before. That plus small errors (such as calling Bertram the tailor "Bernard") were irritating but not very important. What I found more disturbing was problems in continuity, as they call it in the film industry. Various comments or plot elements which were contrary to the world as it had been portrayed previously (either previously in this book or in the other books in the series). One example was in Chapter 11, when Coyote Precious Wind is now apparently "like a sister" to Xulai both in age & relationship -- odd for a woman who helped to raise her & had been her teacher.
I was also disturbed by the much increased use of machines -- by the Artemesians in particular as it seemed contrary to the philosophy they espoused in A Plague of Angels. And Xulai & Abasio's ul xaolat's internal dialogue appeared to me to be indicative of walker mentality, a problem which is never explored but struck me as ironic in the extreme.
But the main reason I was disappointed in this novel was
I did like the short story that I discovered after the Author's Note called "The Story of the Kindly Teacher". Very well done with a similar message as one of the themes in the Grass trilogy (esp. in the second book) about the Baidee.
August 10, 2016
Sheri Tepper has written some of my all time favourite books and shaped the person I am and so it is a little disappointing that all I can summon up for Fish Tails is a vague meh. The editing could have been better also, the prologue is repeated verbatim a few pages in and there are lengthy dream sequences which are very repetitious. I'm also not entirely sure why Jinian, Mavin and Silkhands are required, they don't do too much and I didn't even notice them go.
December 30, 2014
Political, environmental and social commentary is always expected from Ms. Tepper. In Fish Tails, she delivers with a knockout punch. For those who have not read the books in this series, it is still okay to read this one as a standalone. It is going to be easiest for those who have read Ms. Tepper books previously and those who enjoy fantasy. For those who have never read a Ms. Tepper book or read much fantasy, you will be lost.
The names of the characters in this book may be hard to remember, but their personalities are memorable. Ms. Tepper does a good job of building each character to be individual voices with their own style of talking, behaving and thinking. This book is filled with several different players and it's easy to keep them straight because of their uniqueness. There are also subplots within plots. This is a trademark of Ms. Tepper which makes her book a bit meatier to read. In this latest one, I'm not sure if it is because I'm older and more jaded, but her social commentary came across more heavy handed. Whilst I understand where she's going with her agenda, I can't say that I'm completely on board.
In this particular book, she once again provides extremes and weaves a tale of comeuppance to misogynist, a mysterious force righting the wrongs and animals trying to survive despite humanity's destructive nature. What I liked about this story is how it stays in line with her views of sexism and how many patriarchal groups within society are damaging. Whilst there are some redeemable males, they are few and far between. Ms. Tepper labels the majority of males as MOBWOW - "monkey-brain willy wagger" (loc. 1000-1001). In this dystopic world, the evil technology fiends have torn the world apart with their weapons of mass destruction and continue to do so. Aliens are trying to help the world heal itself by ridding the plague. The plague and sickness equates to human beings. This nod towards Ms. Tepper's view environmental issues is also consistent with many of her previous books, including the ones not in this series. Basically, this story is conglomeration of Gate to Women's Country and The Family Tree. Both books were pivotal for me as it explores how humans treat women and animals. One could theorize that Ms. Tepper is a male-hating tree hugger. This is not a bad thing if the reader feels the same.
Her descriptions are vivid and each place pops into high definition. The storyline may be confusing unless one is used to Ms. Tepper's tendency to hop back and forth between timelines and subplots. It is like reading several books at the same time. This makes it interesting for me because each piece is a puzzle to the larger picture. When it all comes together, it makes sense. Ms. Tepper leaves no thread loose on its own. All the questions are answered and the higher purpose for the common good is revealed. Is this a bit of a lecture? Perhaps. It's still an enjoyable adventure. Could there be scenes that should be been cut out? This is hard to say. Because the story did drag at times. However, if some of these scenes which dragged were left it, it would have made the story harder to follow in the end. Could this have been edited down to a tighter story? Possibly, but I'm not a good enough editor or writer to begin to recommend to author of Ms. Tepper's level of writing talent. Overall, this is a good if a bit arduous of a read. Recommended for those who enjoy fantasy with unmistakable feminist leanings.
*provided by Edelweiss
The names of the characters in this book may be hard to remember, but their personalities are memorable. Ms. Tepper does a good job of building each character to be individual voices with their own style of talking, behaving and thinking. This book is filled with several different players and it's easy to keep them straight because of their uniqueness. There are also subplots within plots. This is a trademark of Ms. Tepper which makes her book a bit meatier to read. In this latest one, I'm not sure if it is because I'm older and more jaded, but her social commentary came across more heavy handed. Whilst I understand where she's going with her agenda, I can't say that I'm completely on board.
In this particular book, she once again provides extremes and weaves a tale of comeuppance to misogynist, a mysterious force righting the wrongs and animals trying to survive despite humanity's destructive nature. What I liked about this story is how it stays in line with her views of sexism and how many patriarchal groups within society are damaging. Whilst there are some redeemable males, they are few and far between. Ms. Tepper labels the majority of males as MOBWOW - "monkey-brain willy wagger" (loc. 1000-1001). In this dystopic world, the evil technology fiends have torn the world apart with their weapons of mass destruction and continue to do so. Aliens are trying to help the world heal itself by ridding the plague. The plague and sickness equates to human beings. This nod towards Ms. Tepper's view environmental issues is also consistent with many of her previous books, including the ones not in this series. Basically, this story is conglomeration of Gate to Women's Country and The Family Tree. Both books were pivotal for me as it explores how humans treat women and animals. One could theorize that Ms. Tepper is a male-hating tree hugger. This is not a bad thing if the reader feels the same.
Her descriptions are vivid and each place pops into high definition. The storyline may be confusing unless one is used to Ms. Tepper's tendency to hop back and forth between timelines and subplots. It is like reading several books at the same time. This makes it interesting for me because each piece is a puzzle to the larger picture. When it all comes together, it makes sense. Ms. Tepper leaves no thread loose on its own. All the questions are answered and the higher purpose for the common good is revealed. Is this a bit of a lecture? Perhaps. It's still an enjoyable adventure. Could there be scenes that should be been cut out? This is hard to say. Because the story did drag at times. However, if some of these scenes which dragged were left it, it would have made the story harder to follow in the end. Could this have been edited down to a tighter story? Possibly, but I'm not a good enough editor or writer to begin to recommend to author of Ms. Tepper's level of writing talent. Overall, this is a good if a bit arduous of a read. Recommended for those who enjoy fantasy with unmistakable feminist leanings.
*provided by Edelweiss
September 13, 2021
https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3755399.html
Very very long book, following up the story from The Waters Rising (and also tying in with characters from a lot of her earlier works), a future humanity doomed to imminent environmental disaster and blighted by societal collapse, which gives her an opportunity to make many of her favourite points about how things are and how they should be. Enjoyable enough, but good god, over 700 pages!
Very very long book, following up the story from The Waters Rising (and also tying in with characters from a lot of her earlier works), a future humanity doomed to imminent environmental disaster and blighted by societal collapse, which gives her an opportunity to make many of her favourite points about how things are and how they should be. Enjoyable enough, but good god, over 700 pages!
November 17, 2014
Originally published at "The Nameless Zine". Check it out for more reviews.
Sheri S. Tepper is hailed as a giant among sci-fi and fantasy writers – a staunch feminist and eco-champion known for her witty novels. Fish Tails is her 35th novel and serves as a sort of capstone to her career, tying her recent “Plague of Angels” trilogy with her first novels, the “True Game” series.
I admit I have not read her work previously, but Tepper has a respectable pedigree, with Hugo, Clarke and Campbell nominations, as well as a Locus Award for her 1991 novel “Beauty.” So I went in with high expectations -which were immediately dashed.
Fish Tails is a “Dying Earth” pastiche – reminiscent of Jack Vance without the picaresque anti-heroes and sexism. Or the humor.
The novel follows Abasio and Xulai from the “Plague of Angels” books as they journey the Earth warning of a coming flood which will destroy humanity. Abasio and Xulai have two children who have adapted to water life, essentially evolving into merfolk, and they seek to encourage the people they meet to adapt to a seagoing life for their children in order to survive the coming apocalypse.
Fish Tails was overly didactic and hamfisted with its feminist and environmentalist messages — so much so that I found myself almost offended by positions that I would normally be sympathetic to.
The lengthy novel is filled with episodes showing how much humanity has descended to barbarism — highlighting the folly of man in ignoring the environment and showcasing overbearing examples of misogyny. Abasio and Xulai come along, and convince people to follow them, or flee from religious fanatics offended by their mer-children.
I did like some of her descriptions and there are some vivid, beautiful and stark passages in the novel, but I also found the writing overly excitable with far too many exclamation points peppered throughout the text.
And in the end Mavin Manyshaped, Jinian Star-eye, and Silkhands the Healer from her earlier novels show up for no particularly good reason.
If this is a typical example of Tepper’s work I’m not really interested in exploring further.
Sheri S. Tepper is hailed as a giant among sci-fi and fantasy writers – a staunch feminist and eco-champion known for her witty novels. Fish Tails is her 35th novel and serves as a sort of capstone to her career, tying her recent “Plague of Angels” trilogy with her first novels, the “True Game” series.
I admit I have not read her work previously, but Tepper has a respectable pedigree, with Hugo, Clarke and Campbell nominations, as well as a Locus Award for her 1991 novel “Beauty.” So I went in with high expectations -which were immediately dashed.
Fish Tails is a “Dying Earth” pastiche – reminiscent of Jack Vance without the picaresque anti-heroes and sexism. Or the humor.
The novel follows Abasio and Xulai from the “Plague of Angels” books as they journey the Earth warning of a coming flood which will destroy humanity. Abasio and Xulai have two children who have adapted to water life, essentially evolving into merfolk, and they seek to encourage the people they meet to adapt to a seagoing life for their children in order to survive the coming apocalypse.
Fish Tails was overly didactic and hamfisted with its feminist and environmentalist messages — so much so that I found myself almost offended by positions that I would normally be sympathetic to.
The lengthy novel is filled with episodes showing how much humanity has descended to barbarism — highlighting the folly of man in ignoring the environment and showcasing overbearing examples of misogyny. Abasio and Xulai come along, and convince people to follow them, or flee from religious fanatics offended by their mer-children.
I did like some of her descriptions and there are some vivid, beautiful and stark passages in the novel, but I also found the writing overly excitable with far too many exclamation points peppered throughout the text.
And in the end Mavin Manyshaped, Jinian Star-eye, and Silkhands the Healer from her earlier novels show up for no particularly good reason.
If this is a typical example of Tepper’s work I’m not really interested in exploring further.
January 1, 2015
This is a strange book, a weird book. A very well-written book. A analytical book. A philosophical book. A book about the environment, social order, and just about the stupidity of men. We really are a stupid race.
The book had so many lovely quotes, I'd love to write down all of them but that would be one long review:
They were talking about old religions
"I am not joking. While millions of children were starving at various places on the earth, some religions were still insisting that it was sinful to prevent excess births. I am fascinated by the religions of that time. Without exception they simply denied reality. They were completely myth-driven. Self-inflicting pain was a common religious practice..."
"If a man seeks to make his faith a law, this action alone disproves his faith, for the law cannot define kindness."
"If a man seeks to kill others who believe otherwise, this action alone disproves his faith, for those who kill are not kind."
It was a long time since I went quote crazy, but she just tells it so well, so clever. About every subject.
This is a sci-fi book. It takes place in the future where we have killed the earth, then we invented machines that went on killing us. Those left live in a strange medieval world mixed with some tech at times. And people are still stupid and do stupid things. But some are trying to save the human race as the waters are rising and soon we will all drown.
I would not recommend this book without having read earlier books. Sure it is strange, so for that reason I am sure you could jump right in and still understand, but to really grasp it you really must start at book 1.
The main characters of Abasio and Xulai, Needly and her grandma, are all fascinating. And truth be told, i can't really tell you much. Because as I have said before, Tepper writes strange books. You have to be in the zone. To read about them discuss monkey-brain willy-waggers, the future of the earth. To see them meet new people and strange things man have created. There is a lot of talking going on, and I found myself nodding my head and agreeing.
I do recommend this series, just, take your time with it.
The book had so many lovely quotes, I'd love to write down all of them but that would be one long review:
They were talking about old religions
"I am not joking. While millions of children were starving at various places on the earth, some religions were still insisting that it was sinful to prevent excess births. I am fascinated by the religions of that time. Without exception they simply denied reality. They were completely myth-driven. Self-inflicting pain was a common religious practice..."
"If a man seeks to make his faith a law, this action alone disproves his faith, for the law cannot define kindness."
"If a man seeks to kill others who believe otherwise, this action alone disproves his faith, for those who kill are not kind."
It was a long time since I went quote crazy, but she just tells it so well, so clever. About every subject.
This is a sci-fi book. It takes place in the future where we have killed the earth, then we invented machines that went on killing us. Those left live in a strange medieval world mixed with some tech at times. And people are still stupid and do stupid things. But some are trying to save the human race as the waters are rising and soon we will all drown.
I would not recommend this book without having read earlier books. Sure it is strange, so for that reason I am sure you could jump right in and still understand, but to really grasp it you really must start at book 1.
The main characters of Abasio and Xulai, Needly and her grandma, are all fascinating. And truth be told, i can't really tell you much. Because as I have said before, Tepper writes strange books. You have to be in the zone. To read about them discuss monkey-brain willy-waggers, the future of the earth. To see them meet new people and strange things man have created. There is a lot of talking going on, and I found myself nodding my head and agreeing.
I do recommend this series, just, take your time with it.
December 13, 2014
It's fitting—and a little weird—that Fish Tails, Sheri S. Tepper's thirty-fifth novel, features a handful of major characters from her very first novels published over thirty years ago. Weird, because the connection between her The True Game series and the books in her most recent Plague of Angels trilogy seems tenuous at best. Fitting, because the interplay between the two knits together both ends of Tepper's career as a writer, and highlights the fact that for most of her career she's shown an unflagging passion for one central theme: bringing mindfulness to the human race's relationship to the planet and the diverse ecosystems of which it's a part.
Fish Tails is a picaresque escapade of sorts that follows the protagonists of The Waters Rising as they travel through their world to spread warnings of an impending watery apocalypse. Read as an exercise in world-building, it's an impressive feat; Tepper can go on at considerable length about the aerodynamic makeup of a griffin wing, for example, or the intimate details and mating habits of extra-planetary cultures. (And she does.) The book's garrulous characters spend so much time explaining their cultures, however, or acting as the orators of Tepper's ecofeminist brand, that the book is actually fairly free of Tepper's multi-threaded plots. Readers looking for a tense read with strong antagonists, as in Raising the Stones or her Marianne series, or any of the books from the height of her career, are likely to remain unmoved.
It's rare to encounter authors who, over the course of several decades, remain uncompromising and so focused upon a single message. Tepper's often faulted for being preachy. It's tough, however, to claim she's not right.
Fish Tails is a picaresque escapade of sorts that follows the protagonists of The Waters Rising as they travel through their world to spread warnings of an impending watery apocalypse. Read as an exercise in world-building, it's an impressive feat; Tepper can go on at considerable length about the aerodynamic makeup of a griffin wing, for example, or the intimate details and mating habits of extra-planetary cultures. (And she does.) The book's garrulous characters spend so much time explaining their cultures, however, or acting as the orators of Tepper's ecofeminist brand, that the book is actually fairly free of Tepper's multi-threaded plots. Readers looking for a tense read with strong antagonists, as in Raising the Stones or her Marianne series, or any of the books from the height of her career, are likely to remain unmoved.
It's rare to encounter authors who, over the course of several decades, remain uncompromising and so focused upon a single message. Tepper's often faulted for being preachy. It's tough, however, to claim she's not right.
January 2, 2018
Like the world and characters, BUT too much talking, not enough doing.
I'll be interested to see what other reviewers think.
Upon rereading (2017) 2.5 stars:
Whew! That took forever. There could have been a pretty good book here but it is buried in words, words, words, and endless repetition. This needed editing badly. There's lots of interesting ideas-- but several rewrites, excisions, organizations, etc.--along with authorial AND external editing would have much improved the story. As it is, it's nearly unreadable.
I have to assume, due to the dedication, that this was finished or signed off as finished by someone else? I know Tepper passed away either shortly before or after this book's publication. It's not up to her standard, but that's understandable if so.
Another problem for Tepper's newer (younger) readers is that this book alludes frequently to two of her older series (Mavin and Jinian's). Both of these series were out of print or reach by the time I started reading Tepper, which was when Grass came out in 1989.
In spite of all my library juju, I've never been able to lay my hands on, let alone read the Mavin or the Jinian books. It does little good for this book to refer back to characters and plots that are far out of reach to most current Tepper readers. Particularly, since those books seem to have been VERY different from everything she wrote in the last 27 +/- years.
Bummer! As a long-time Tepper fan, I feel frustratingly that I'm missing the key to make sense of a good part of this book.
I'll be interested to see what other reviewers think.
Upon rereading (2017) 2.5 stars:
Whew! That took forever. There could have been a pretty good book here but it is buried in words, words, words, and endless repetition. This needed editing badly. There's lots of interesting ideas-- but several rewrites, excisions, organizations, etc.--along with authorial AND external editing would have much improved the story. As it is, it's nearly unreadable.
I have to assume, due to the dedication, that this was finished or signed off as finished by someone else? I know Tepper passed away either shortly before or after this book's publication. It's not up to her standard, but that's understandable if so.
Another problem for Tepper's newer (younger) readers is that this book alludes frequently to two of her older series (Mavin and Jinian's). Both of these series were out of print or reach by the time I started reading Tepper, which was when Grass came out in 1989.
In spite of all my library juju, I've never been able to lay my hands on, let alone read the Mavin or the Jinian books. It does little good for this book to refer back to characters and plots that are far out of reach to most current Tepper readers. Particularly, since those books seem to have been VERY different from everything she wrote in the last 27 +/- years.
Bummer! As a long-time Tepper fan, I feel frustratingly that I'm missing the key to make sense of a good part of this book.
March 19, 2017
I will say it again, I will read anything this lady writes.
That being said, she needs an editor who actually reads her stuff.
It started slow, but that was okay with me, because I needed to remind myself of all the players in what seems to be the longest running non-related series ever! There are also some characters that I have not read, yet, Jinian and Silkhands, but I am looking forward to reading some day.
About half way through, though, it was all Sheri adding her thought provoking life tidbits.
I enjoyed Needly and Grandma. I cried when a friend's life was stopped. I laughed at the Universe's response to our human ridiculousness. I tried to make the story last; it did take me over two months to read, but I read other things in between. Abasio and Xulai. Mavin. Fixit. The babies. Bear, coyote, Blue. The Griffens. Wide Mountain Mother. I will miss them all.
That being said, she needs an editor who actually reads her stuff.
It started slow, but that was okay with me, because I needed to remind myself of all the players in what seems to be the longest running non-related series ever! There are also some characters that I have not read, yet, Jinian and Silkhands, but I am looking forward to reading some day.
About half way through, though, it was all Sheri adding her thought provoking life tidbits.
I enjoyed Needly and Grandma. I cried when a friend's life was stopped. I laughed at the Universe's response to our human ridiculousness. I tried to make the story last; it did take me over two months to read, but I read other things in between. Abasio and Xulai. Mavin. Fixit. The babies. Bear, coyote, Blue. The Griffens. Wide Mountain Mother. I will miss them all.
November 20, 2014
I am conflicted. I enjoyed a lot of things about the story, but in the end wish that Tepper had not tried to set these last two books in the same world as A Plague of Angels. It cheapens what to me was a very good story.
Also, in the end, the way things were wrapped up so neatly with an 'effin bow on top was just too convenient and easy. This will not be in my list of favorites with The Revenants, Grass, and The Gate to Women's Country.
Also, in the end, the way things were wrapped up so neatly with an 'effin bow on top was just too convenient and easy. This will not be in my list of favorites with The Revenants, Grass, and The Gate to Women's Country.
November 4, 2016
Very good, if a little long. The culmination of many series' of SST so very satisfying, and now I've read every book she's written! Yay.
May 6, 2017
For creativity and imagination I would give this story and plot five stars, but for readability, I can only give it three stars. Sheri Tepper has a brilliant yet bizarre imagination which I guess is what makes her an outstanding sci-fi writer. However, I think she is losing her edge, a pun if you've read this book and know about 'the edgers'. Many aspects of this book have too much of an 'old lady', fussy voice. Worries about the magnificent griffins getting cold or thirsty and so much attention to detail almost drove me mad reading this. Who ate what and who peed when, and would 'the babies' be kept dry enough with their new aquatic breeches was pretty ridiculous. The 12-year-old genius, Needly, acts and thinks through the voice of an 'old woman', and sure she has wisdom but that aspect is lost because 'the voice' in which her character is written is all wrong. And some of the characters are downright petulant and unconvincing. Some parts hung together well, but the flow of the story and the excitement was lost in the descriptive 'muck' some of which I would gladly have seen catapulted into the mire.....how some of the characters in the book ended up.
The book goes on and on in unnecessary detail but I persevered because who doesn't finish a Sheri Tepper book. Everything was tied up at the end but with far too many balls of string and wax wrapping up all the loose ends, and plugging any holes. It was a relief to finally finish this long, sometimes tedious and yet strangely intriguing, far-fetched and yet believable and philosophical tome. This is a loud and long shout at humankind and the mess being made of the earth through what Sheri calls willy waggling, monkey brains and people with a lack of bao. Worth a read alright but settle in for the winter with this one.
The book goes on and on in unnecessary detail but I persevered because who doesn't finish a Sheri Tepper book. Everything was tied up at the end but with far too many balls of string and wax wrapping up all the loose ends, and plugging any holes. It was a relief to finally finish this long, sometimes tedious and yet strangely intriguing, far-fetched and yet believable and philosophical tome. This is a loud and long shout at humankind and the mess being made of the earth through what Sheri calls willy waggling, monkey brains and people with a lack of bao. Worth a read alright but settle in for the winter with this one.
January 2, 2019
I had a lot of trouble with this book. It had moments, but one of the largest issues for me is the deus ex machina. Sometimes literally. Someone saying this is men is awful women is good is also not accurate, in my opinion. Abasio is great. He's really, really great. Xulai is a bit of a harpy and often blind to other people. The alien Fixit is fussing about Earth humans, but hey there's an alien race led by the males with the largest gonads, who viciously will damage everyone else unless they're always kept stoned. The female spirits of the worlds are careless and need counselling. The male spirits of the worlds are dramatic and on the sane side. Earth is now under Neptune. The humans who have bao apparently were so few, that Fixit went to a great deal of trouble to BREED them. The general philosophy was to allow everyone to do as they darned well pleased while building groups that could defend themselves. But hey, we'll leave the children to suffer horrible abuse and women to be kidnapped and tormented. The Griffins? They were wonderful. Except the insane one and his three daughters. Well, we don't have to worry about that because Fixit had stored a nice, sane Griffin.
Effectively, the answer to this was gods. Gods who just are not the god humans made to put their men as the lords of creation.
Effectively, the answer to this was gods. Gods who just are not the god humans made to put their men as the lords of creation.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 28, 2024
Sheri Tepper is one of my favorite writers, so I was looking forward to reading her last book. What a shame.
There is a very good 250 page story wallowing around inside this 700 page bloated whale of a novel.
Overly long occurrences, explanations and side trips made this a very hard slog. Some examples:
- we are treated to a several page long explanation of an alien's reproductive process when one tight sentence would have sufficed.
- A early scene that was several pages long is repeated nearly verbatim later in the book.
- A town's socioeconomic structure was outlined in minute detail.
- Intricate establishment of characters who never set foot in the immediate scenes go on for pages and pages.
An aggressive editor would have helped turn this into nice tight little story about why the Earth is slowly flooding, by what means humans are trying adapt to the changing world, and how a Galactic Mr. Fixit is helping things along.
There is a very good 250 page story wallowing around inside this 700 page bloated whale of a novel.
Overly long occurrences, explanations and side trips made this a very hard slog. Some examples:
- we are treated to a several page long explanation of an alien's reproductive process when one tight sentence would have sufficed.
- A early scene that was several pages long is repeated nearly verbatim later in the book.
- A town's socioeconomic structure was outlined in minute detail.
- Intricate establishment of characters who never set foot in the immediate scenes go on for pages and pages.
An aggressive editor would have helped turn this into nice tight little story about why the Earth is slowly flooding, by what means humans are trying adapt to the changing world, and how a Galactic Mr. Fixit is helping things along.
July 16, 2017
I have been reading Tepper's work for 25 years or more and am sad to learn that this is the last of her "new" work as she died in October of 2016. Here's a link to an interesting interview done in 2008.
The novel is a rather neat closure to the True Game series and Plague of Angels. Revisiting "old" characters and linking everyone up in a definite way was gratifying. Still preachy and sometimes annoyingly so, the woman could certainly spin an amazing story. I will miss Tepper's insights, even if I don't always agree with her proposed solutions. Discovered a few titles that I haven't read that came out in the last 15 years or so that I'll want to pick up.
The novel is a rather neat closure to the True Game series and Plague of Angels. Revisiting "old" characters and linking everyone up in a definite way was gratifying. Still preachy and sometimes annoyingly so, the woman could certainly spin an amazing story. I will miss Tepper's insights, even if I don't always agree with her proposed solutions. Discovered a few titles that I haven't read that came out in the last 15 years or so that I'll want to pick up.
October 28, 2020
Tepper was such a thoughtful, powerful, needed voice in speculative fiction. I love the way this work weaves together threads from some earlier works, and stays completely relevant to our times and the issues our world faces. After over 30 years of reading her works, I am sad to not have more of her books to look forward to. But I'm also thankful she was so prolific. This particular novel feels a bit slow at times (like the early, long scene where Xulai and Abasio are so weary and dirty and hungry for so many pages when they meet the tailor/volumetarian). But the sort of wandering, complex plot is full of poignant observations about human nature and cultures, compelling characters and scenes, and she pulls ambitious themes and concepts together in the end.
January 21, 2023
(2.5 stars) This is the third book in the trilogy and the final publication prior to the author’s death. This book continues the story from The Waters Rising, following Abasio and Xulai as they travel with their children across the land looking for recruits to bear children that can survive the coming flood waters. The author brings back characters from several of her prior novels. There was great potential and some very interesting characters and situations. Sadly, the book suffers from its length, poor editing, and from a concluding section that relies heavily on deus ex machina in the form of an alien. I think I need to go back to a few of her books that I love to renew my enjoyment in her writing.
December 3, 2019
I read this just after "The Overstory" and find that the themes are similar. In particular on page 613 the author writes: "Bao is the acceptance that mankind is part of the fabric of the universe, not the purpose of it. Humanity is meant to live as part of creation, not as the owner of it or to make war against it."
It's an adventure story that sometimes reads like a kid's novel. And it's sometimes too wordy and repetitive.
It's an adventure story that sometimes reads like a kid's novel. And it's sometimes too wordy and repetitive.
October 22, 2018
It’s a long, long book! I would have enjoyed it more if it had been divided into two books. It’s also the third book in a series, but the author gives plenty of background and explanations throughout the book so it can be read as a stand-alone. I enjoyed the idea of the remaining people on earth realizing they needed to adapt themselves to the earth rather than make the earth adapt to them.
September 4, 2019
What a wondrous imagination Ms Tepper has. I wasn't sure how I would get on with this book which is quite long and also it is part of a series and I hadn't read the earlier volumes. However, I needn't have worried as my interest was kept all the way through and not having any knowledge of earlier novels wasn't a problem. My favourite part though was when the children were helping the Griffin.
May 26, 2018
This book works just fine as a stand-alone novel. The story line(s) were interesting--the characters multi-faceted, and there were some truly funny and poignant passages. One of my favorite writers has done it again.
December 19, 2017
This was an entertaining tie up of threads from many of Tepper's other books. Overly long in my opinion and also in need of a good proof-reader, but still highly readable and enjoyable.
March 31, 2020
I loved the themes and the way big concepts were explained in this book. I just found it very repetitive - over explaining things that had already been covered.
January 31, 2021
Could have used a bit more editing but I love the story.
March 7, 2020
I was interested in this because I liked the first two books in the series but the second half of this book was so very slow and uninteresting. Some major editing might have saved this book but I can't recommend it even for fans of Sheri S Tepper.
July 15, 2024
I found this volume long, repetitive, and drawn-out. Not a favorite although I am a fan of Tepper's work.
February 8, 2017
Xulai and Abasio begin/continue their journey spreading knowledge of the rising waters that will inevitably consume all of Earth’s land masses, and their sea children who have been specially born and bred to survive in their inevitable aquatic future, to receptive communities. The sea children, who are twins, Bailai and Gailai present some difficulties in transport as their bodies – particularly their aquatic feet – must be kept moist. Along the way the travelers pick up a couple of children – Willum and Needly who become important to their mission as well. Needly is part of another breeding program meant to benefit humans (and select for bao, a characteristic many lack) unbeknownst to the Tingawans (whose program has produced Xulai and Abasio) and Willum is a stubborn young man eager to see more of the world than his backwater community can offer. They also meet and befriend some Griffins, who want assurances that they, too, will be transformed to survive the coming age. Meddling in all of this is an intergalactic agent of a long-lived alien race who has been working to save/destroy the Earth’s human plague. Its machinations and interferences are many and complex. While this is a fascinating continuation/culmination of many of Sheri S. Tepper’s stories, it also clocks in at a hefty 700 pages, and there are many repetitious passages and long-winded speeches that could have been tightened up. Fans of her stories will see it through to the end, and her message is important. While humanity may not be under alien supervision and a death order (that we know of), we’re certainly well on our way to self-destruction in a similar manner as Tepper’s “Big Kill” event.
For those who want to read about the different characters’ origins/stories, Tepper provides a list of the tales in chronological order of the evolving story (not publication order):
The Song of Mavin Manyshaped
The Flight of Mavin Manyshaped
The Search of Mavin Manyshaped
King’s Blood Four
Necromancer Nine
Wizard’s Eleven
Jinian Footseer
Dervish Daughter
Jinian Star-Eye
Plague of Angels
Waters Rising
Fish Tails
For those who want to read about the different characters’ origins/stories, Tepper provides a list of the tales in chronological order of the evolving story (not publication order):
The Song of Mavin Manyshaped
The Flight of Mavin Manyshaped
The Search of Mavin Manyshaped
King’s Blood Four
Necromancer Nine
Wizard’s Eleven
Jinian Footseer
Dervish Daughter
Jinian Star-Eye
Plague of Angels
Waters Rising
Fish Tails
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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