What do you think?
Rate this book
ECLIPSES
This is a big, broad-canvas novel of romance and conflict on a far from Earth, water-starved planet.
When a young anthropologist leaves a dying Earth for Serensunar, she finds more than she bargained for. There are the eclipses that come frequently because Serensunar is one of a double planet system. And there is the volatility of the crust of the planet, which heaves and tosses every few years, knocking down dams and aqueducts the colonists erect.
Yet Serensunar is lush and fertile, mainly because the vision of one man, old Calib the Water Baron. He built a personal Empire by controlling the continent’s main watershed, which insured the continued balance of man and nature on this planet. It is Calib and his heir, Aram, who enable Beth to continue her search for the Lost Expedition despite limited funding. Aram is smitten early on by this young woman who is working alone in the wilderness and feeling lucky to have gotten the chance. And while she is more wary of their budding relationship, it is finally her commitment to Aram in which Beth finds the beginnings of personal peace.
But it’s a peace that is shattered. Both are strong individuals, and peace in their life together begins to seem like an unsustainable dream. Aram has come into his inheritance, the Earth’s social system collapses and more and more colonists arrive, disturbing the delicate ecological balance. Then even more ships arrive from Earth with tales of increasing disasters—and hordes of immigrants. Aram is forced to make the hard decisions about whether to wake the cryogenically sleeping passengers, which would strain the already limited water supply on the planet. Beth, herself a fortunate refugee, wishes to accommodate them all. And Aram's own children side with their mother. Soon, Beth and their children are battling Aram the Water Baron for control of their planet’s destiny.
Felice’s novel combines political, economic, and ecological speculations to explore the nature of power and love.
98,000 words
298 print pages
Praise for ECLIPSES:
Publishers Weekly—(Beth and Aram) are complex personalities, and though the contract between them is simple, their emotions and interactions in the 32 years the story spans are not. Felice does a beautiful job in making these characters real…it makes for a warm and rewarding novel.
Joan Gordon, Science Fiction & Fantasy Book Review— …Its strong characterization and intriguing speculations make it a worthwhile addition…
When a young anthropologist leaves a dying Earth for Serensunar, she finds more than she bargained for. There are the eclipses that come frequently because Serensunar is one of a double planet system. And there is the volatility of the crust of the planet, which heaves and tosses every few years, knocking down dams and aqueducts the colonists erect.
Yet Serensunar is lush and fertile, mainly because the vision of one man, old Calib the Water Baron. He built a personal Empire by controlling the continent’s main watershed, which insured the continued balance of man and nature on this planet. It is Calib and his heir, Aram, who enable Beth to continue her search for the Lost Expedition despite limited funding. Aram is smitten early on by this young woman who is working alone in the wilderness and feeling lucky to have gotten the chance. And while she is more wary of their budding relationship, it is finally her commitment to Aram in which Beth finds the beginnings of personal peace.
But it’s a peace that is shattered. Both are strong individuals, and peace in their life together begins to seem like an unsustainable dream. Aram has come into his inheritance, the Earth’s social system collapses and more and more colonists arrive, disturbing the delicate ecological balance. Then even more ships arrive from Earth with tales of increasing disasters—and hordes of immigrants. Aram is forced to make the hard decisions about whether to wake the cryogenically sleeping passengers, which would strain the already limited water supply on the planet. Beth, herself a fortunate refugee, wishes to accommodate them all. And Aram's own children side with their mother. Soon, Beth and their children are battling Aram the Water Baron for control of their planet’s destiny.
Felice’s novel combines political, economic, and ecological speculations to explore the nature of power and love.
98,000 words
298 print pages
Praise for ECLIPSES:
Publishers Weekly—(Beth and Aram) are complex personalities, and though the contract between them is simple, their emotions and interactions in the 32 years the story spans are not. Felice does a beautiful job in making these characters real…it makes for a warm and rewarding novel.
Joan Gordon, Science Fiction & Fantasy Book Review— …Its strong characterization and intriguing speculations make it a worthwhile addition…
304 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 1983
15 people want to read
About the author
Cynthia Felice
16 books12 followersAn American science fiction writer. Her first novel, Godsfire, and her first short story, "David and Lindy", were published in 1978. She and Connie Willis have co-written three novels that are often considered young adult fiction, according to Willis.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 30, 2010
She had some really good premises and interesting world building, but then the plot was rather disappointing. Basically the book ended up being about Beth's rather stubborn and persistent irrational personal problems, but always approached in an oblique sort of way. I couldn't believe it took her that long to get over such stupid issues, and I couldn't believe she was so irrational in the meantime, but then again I guess real people are like that sometimes- that's what makes life how it is and if we could look at things the way a reader would, maybe we'd recover from our stupidity a lot faster.
There were a lot of elements I really liked, but they weren't put together very smoothly, and there was something that made the characters and their motives hard to accept.
I almost REALLY liked it, but not quite. There was a lot of good stuff there, but... the final package was just not satisfying.
There were a lot of elements I really liked, but they weren't put together very smoothly, and there was something that made the characters and their motives hard to accept.
I almost REALLY liked it, but not quite. There was a lot of good stuff there, but... the final package was just not satisfying.
November 16, 2014
1988 grade B-
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews