A Forest of Stars by Kevin J. Anderson

Mar 29, 2012 Adam rated it it was ok

Did you ever read a book where you wanted to know what happened in the overall story, but frequently got bored reading the book? Well, that's exactly how I felt about A Forest of Stars, and the first Saga of Seven Suns book, Hidden Empire. There are WAY too many characters, and at least a thousand too many unimportant plot threads in the first two books. It got to the point where I was relieved to have finished this book so that I wouldn't have to read about some of the truly despicable characte ...more

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Nov 05, 2019 D Dyer rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2019-reads, owned, science-fiction

3.5 stars.
This epic space opera definitely reads more like fantasy than hard SF. Science in the series is presented in at best broad strokes. But the story is lots of fun, a big cast of complex characters many of whom get their own POV chapters and a complex world made this quite an enjoyable read. With the world now basically established, though there are definitely complications and expansions in this entry, there is more room for action in the second book of the series. Found it interesting t ...more

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Jun 23, 2017 Greg rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Fans of Kevin J Anderson who finished the very famous and equally controversial) book one would have gone straight onto book two. I must admit that i did, but I found myself more than a little worried about how the book was shaping up. The first half was very slow, very, very political, and not very actiony. Nor was it very science-y.

But kept the faith, i did, and I kept reading. And as soon as i reached the half way mark of A FOREST OF STARS, the action picked up, the chapter ending cliff hang Fans of Kevin J Anderson who finished the very famous and equally controversial) book one would have gone straight onto book two. I must admit that i did, but I found myself more than a little worried about how the book was shaping up. The first half was very slow, very, very political, and not very actiony. Nor was it very science-y.

But kept the faith, i did, and I kept reading. And as soon as i reached the half way mark of A FOREST OF STARS, the action picked up, the chapter ending cliff hangers returned, and massive plot twists began to appear out of nowhere that changed the course of the story line forever, and as an added bonus, gave the reader a cascading series of goose bumps and memories that will not only stay with you for years, but will make you a fan of Mr Anderson for ever.

I said at the end of book one that the reader is not completely sure that the Hydrogues are the story’s true bad guys. Up to that point, they had acted entirely in self defence, albeit with no demonstrable intent to communicate toward the aim of a truce. New evidence and information has since come to the surface that the Hydrogues and the Ancient Forest on Theroc played out an ancient war thousands of years ago. New players in that war have since been discovered (or, re-discovered) and with this information came the book’s principle “sense of wonder” moment. The Wentals. Damn, i love me those Wentals... But yet again, we know little of their true intent.

And those damn fools who lead and control the Hanseatic League, who jump at the first glimpse of an advantage, no matter how small minded and desperate it makes them appear to be. And yet love remains a demonstrable force in this book, principally for King Peter and his lovely Queen Estarra, but for others, the chance for true happiness and contentment has gone, for ever.

I compared THE SAGA OF THE SEVEN SUNS to GAME OF THRONES and STAR WARS in my review of book one, but having finished book two only a few moments ago, i dont think this claim is fair to Mr Anderson. Reading SOTSS i get a feeling that the story itself is infinite, just like the genre he is writing in. GAME OF THRONES is fantastic, dont get me wrong, but its set in a universe where we all know the boundaries. They say that in space, no one can hear you scream, but in Kevin J Anderson’s exquisite universe, no one can hear it when you inhale a giant lung full of air as you encounter and try to absorb a story defining moment. And that no one can see you cry as you come across a chapter so beautifully written describnig two souls whose love for each other is as infinite as the universe itself.

Four stars for this book. I cant wait to start book three.

Now, do you see.... sci fi isnt just for geeks, its for romantics, too. ...more

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Aug 03, 2009 Moses rated it it was ok

Yawn. I made it through the first, but...

I brought the second with me on a trans-pacific flight for entertainment during the 15 hours in the air. I was so uninterested in the story and characters that I gave up on it after a few hours. I haven't touched the book since and will donate this to the local library.

Kevin J. Anderson seems to be a fantasy writer in a scifi world and doesn't know how to make an interesting story (by this, I refer to the seeming inability of fantasy writers to write wit Yawn. I made it through the first, but...

I brought the second with me on a trans-pacific flight for entertainment during the 15 hours in the air. I was so uninterested in the story and characters that I gave up on it after a few hours. I haven't touched the book since and will donate this to the local library.

Kevin J. Anderson seems to be a fantasy writer in a scifi world and doesn't know how to make an interesting story (by this, I refer to the seeming inability of fantasy writers to write without going into painful detail about everything). After several chapters into the second of an N-book series, I only know that the premise for the main plot line is bogus and that I cannot remember any character from chapter to chapter. None of them are compelling.

Anderson resorts to magic to accomplish instantaneous communication and provides a silly mechanism for fueling faster-than-light travel. I expect my scifi authors to either understand their technology and science or not to mention the mechanisms with any more detail than broad brush strokes; not every person understands how something as ubiquitous as a computer or an airplane works now, so why would everyone understand how FTL travel works far into the future?

Anyway, my big problem with Anderson's Saga is that it's boring; the cycling through character stories as chapters means that even with the endless repetition for the first several pages of each chapter, I could not bring myself to remember or care about any of the characters. I was frustrated with the plot devices; Anderson doesn't know science, technology, or engineering, so he makes up crap based on crap he read in a non-science magazine. Yes, I know he worked at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, but as a technical writer, not as a scientist. He apparently doesn't do science/technical/engineering research for his books, so I am unwilling to include him in the genre of scifi.

Meh. I read another of his book and have no plans to read any more; 2.5 is more than enough. ...more

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Aug 18, 2010 Mike (the Paladin) rated it liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, military-science-fiction, space-opera

Again a pretty good book. The story continues to advance, though the political machinations are getting more convoluted also. The more "alien" of the aliens humans have come in contact with are lining up in a war where humans mostly need to keep their heads down...and human traits, the ones we've always had, are still there.

The book/story seems to be bogging down a bit in this volume but not excessively so. The ending, opening new "lines of inquiry" and not really giving a final answer to any o ...more

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Jun 23, 2017 Greg rated it really liked it

Fans of Kevin J Anderson who finished the very famous and equally controversial) book one would have gone straight onto book two. I must admit that i did, but I found myself more than a little worried about how the book was shaping up. The first half was very slow, very, very political, and not very actiony. Nor was it very science-y.

But kept the faith, i did, and I kept reading. And as soon as i reached the half way mark of A FOREST OF STARS, the action picked up, the chapter ending cliff hang Fans of Kevin J Anderson who finished the very famous and equally controversial) book one would have gone straight onto book two. I must admit that i did, but I found myself more than a little worried about how the book was shaping up. The first half was very slow, very, very political, and not very actiony. Nor was it very science-y.

But kept the faith, i did, and I kept reading. And as soon as i reached the half way mark of A FOREST OF STARS, the action picked up, the chapter ending cliff hangers returned, and massive plot twists began to appear out of nowhere that changed the course of the story line forever, and as an added bonus, gave the reader a cascading series of goose bumps and memories that will not only stay with you for years, but will make you a fan of Mr Anderson for ever.

I said at the end of book one that the reader is not completely sure that the Hydrogues are the story’s true bad guys. Up to that point, they had acted entirely in self defence, albeit with no demonstrable intent to communicate toward the aim of a truce. New evidence and information has since come to the surface that the Hydrogues and the Ancient Forest on Theroc played out an ancient war thousands of years ago. New players in that war have since been discovered (or, re-discovered) and with this information came the book’s principle “sense of wonder” moment. The Wentals. Damn, i love me those Wentals... But yet again, we know little of their true intent.

And those damn fools who lead and control the Hanseatic League, who jump at the first glimpse of an advantage, no matter how small minded and desperate it makes them appear to be. And yet love remains a demonstrable force in this book, principally for King Peter and his lovely Queen Estarra, but for others, the chance for true happiness and contentment has gone, for ever.

I compared THE SAGA OF THE SEVEN SUNS to GAME OF THRONES and STAR WARS in my review of book one, but having finished book two only a few moments ago, i dont think this claim is fair to Mr Anderson. Reading SOTSS i get a feeling that the story itself is infinite, just like the genre he is writing in. GAME OF THRONES is fantastic, dont get me wrong, but its set in a universe where we all know the boundaries. They say that in space, no one can hear you scream, but in Kevin J Anderson’s exquisite universe, no one can hear it when you inhale a giant lung full of air as you encounter and try to absorb a story defining moment. And that no one can see you cry as you come across a chapter so beautifully written describnig two souls whose love for each other is as infinite as the universe itself.

Four stars for this book. I cant wait to start book three.

Now, do you see.... sci fi isnt just for geeks, its for romantics, too. ...more

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Mar 26, 2013 Heather rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2010-booklist, science-fiction, owned, print

Set five years after Hidden Empire, A Forest of Stars continues the Saga of Seven Suns with the hydrogues raising the stakes for the whole Spiral Arm. Gas giants are declared off limits to humans and Ildrians, which leaves both civilizations with a dangerously low supply of stardrive fuel. Desperate for any advantage, the Terran Hanseatic League blindly grasps for any alliance. Through their blind faith, they have accepted a terrible threat to all humans into the Earth Defense Forces.

The plot is ...more

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Nov 18, 2011 Eric Braun rated it really liked it

This book is pretty good. Anderson begins to really focus in on his characters here, even adding a few new ones. Yet he thickens the plot by changing some of the main characters in a unique yet for-seable way. The first two books could probably have been condensed down to one, but if it were, I feel that the characters wouldn't be as strong. So far, this is one of the best examples of character development I've seen in a while. The tense seems to shift ever so slightly, but it's not hard to adju ...more

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Feb 25, 2013 Aidan Hamill rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fictional-science, soapy-space

Fantastic. Background story is more massive than I'd thought from Hidden Empire. Still after another entire book there's so much left to find out about the history never mind what's to come. ...more

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Nov 06, 2013 Nathaniel Turner rated it liked it

With this book, I am doing something that I have never before done (at least not for a work of fiction): I'm reviewing it without finishing it.

With that caveat in mind, let me begin by saying that I actually had no particular problems with this book. I did not leave it unfinished because I hated it, or because it had detestable writing, or because it was poorly formulated or characterized--it was none of those things. Rather, I did not finish reading it because it did not excite me.

Part of the p With this book, I am doing something that I have never before done (at least not for a work of fiction): I'm reviewing it without finishing it.

With that caveat in mind, let me begin by saying that I actually had no particular problems with this book. I did not leave it unfinished because I hated it, or because it had detestable writing, or because it was poorly formulated or characterized--it was none of those things. Rather, I did not finish reading it because it did not excite me.

Part of the problem is that I'm not reading this contemporaneously with its writing. That is to say, I know for a fact that there are seven books in this series. I also know that at least two books in the series follow the same set of characters, and more than likely, the others do as well. Sure, some characters die and others are introduced, but for the most part, we're going to stick with the same folks throughout, I imagine. The upside of this is continuity and familiarity; the downside is that a lot of the questions that are posed in early books will not be answered until the last book of the series.

I like the book, but I do not like it so much that I am willing to suffer through unanswered questions for five more tomes. Mr. Anderson does an excellent job of keeping up with a large number of characters, with the side effect that these books are relatively long; they are pleasant enough, but they are not so pleasant that the idea of reading five more was enticing to me. As I was reading through this one, he introduced so many new questions, on top of the questions left unanswered from the first book, that I felt overwhelmed with a desire to know more--while simultaneously being unwilling to trudge through the emotional and relational problems of these characters just to solve the mystery.

Other factors that led to my putting this book down for good include an expansion of my complaints from the first book. The sexual content hinted at in the first book is expounded upon in this one. While still far short of actual pornography, the sexual content is more explicit and more pronounced than it was previously. Once again, you may think that it adds realism to the characters, but I'd simply prefer to limit the characters' sexual conduct to implication.

It's not a bad book. I imagine the series continues to thrive and is enjoyable to the end. I just don't have the stamina for it, not when there are so many other things on my reading list that are so much more entertaining. ...more

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Aug 21, 2017 Alex rated it it was ok

Disclaimer: still at 80%

First, the good: the book has enough intrigue to keep me interested, and it has a few memorable chapters.

The not good: criticism in most other reviews is accurate. The constant retelling is wearisome to the extreme. This is the first time that I can remember that I feel no qualms about skipping liberally, honing on dialogue. It usually goes like this: read the beginning of a paragraph, realize it's re-exposition, skip to the next and verify I have missed nothing new.

Next Disclaimer: still at 80%

First, the good: the book has enough intrigue to keep me interested, and it has a few memorable chapters.

The not good: criticism in most other reviews is accurate. The constant retelling is wearisome to the extreme. This is the first time that I can remember that I feel no qualms about skipping liberally, honing on dialogue. It usually goes like this: read the beginning of a paragraph, realize it's re-exposition, skip to the next and verify I have missed nothing new.

Next time I read "innovative" I'm gonna hurl the book through a window. Or this could be the basis for a drinking game.

You may ask: why continue reading then? Even after giving only 2 stars? Well, as I said, the book has some page-turner qualities when the fat is trimmed off. And I'm a hopeless completionist. A book should be utter rubbish for me not to finish the saga at this point, after having read almost two books.

Spoilers follow.

I could rate it higher if it weren't for two nagging plot points I cannot gloss over: firstly (and I understand this is an author's choice), the repeated raping of a character. Seriously? Is this the best way to "experiment" on someone? If, as stated, the goal is to have as many hybrids as possible, they surely have heard of this "in-vitro" thing? That was plain disgusting without need. I've no close experiences with abuse but the general reactions of everyone involved don't seem very realistic either. Yet this is my reaction, not a plot hole. Also, can someone "reluctantly" rape another? I guess Ildirans come with an on/off switch.

Second, and unless this is explained in what I have left to read, this would be as ridiculous as the "why would they attack us? we did nothing! (besides turning a planet into hell? hello?)" of the 1st book, and much more nonsensical:

So the Hidrogue are blindingly looking for the Worldforest, because they don't know better. And the Klikiss robots are their allies. And the latter have infiltrated human society for years. Hence knowing, presumably, where Theroc is. Yet somehow these clever robots fail to deliver this intelligence... Yeah sure. But then the war would be over in one week. There's even an interview scene between Hidrogue and Klikiss, so the meetings are happening. Yawn.

Well, go figure. This was addressed at the 89% mark ;-)

That said, this is not really SF. It's fantasy in a space setting. Being a hard SF fan I'm clearly not the intended audience, so YMMV. ...more

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May 17, 2016 Clay rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Five years after the first volume and things are going pretty much as we expect. The Hansa still think they can beat the Hydrogues if they can find a bigger stick, the Ildirans continue to plot and keep the Empire running, and the Roamers are trying new techniques to harvest the critical ekti.

Anderson built the "world" in "Hidden Empire" and this book continues the plot threads started there. We get more details about the initial conflict with the hydrogues from 10000 years ago and discover the ...more

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Feb 19, 2010 Faz rated it did not like it

I have heard a lot of glowing reviews for Mr. Anderson's works, and figured I would start with the Saga of Seven Suns anthology since the premise was right up my SciFi alley. I was severely disappointed. While the basis of the stories was interesting and held great promise, the excruciating details of people, conversations and relationships turned me off. When there was action to be had, it was limited to very little writings, and had none of the depth as in the rest of the book. I 'read' this a ...more

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Dec 24, 2013 Andrew rated it liked it · review of another edition

The plot certainly moves a lot faster in A Forest of Stars than it does in its predecessor, but the story suffers for the same reasons - two-dimensional characters and constant retelling of information. In a series where worldbuilding and plot are the main selling points I can understand the writer wanting to really drive in the exposition, but I've heard about the hardiness of Roamers that many times that it's starting to feel like filler.

There's nice development of the plot and many things goi ...more

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Sep 12, 2013 Nia Dragin rated it really liked it · review of another edition

The Forest of Stars is the second book of the Saga of the Seven Suns series. Taking place after 5 years, the writer has thrown us into a world where the humans are struggling for survival trying to fight a war that is more than just about the decimation of their gaseous planet. Now this has exploded events into that of an elemental war were beings of fire, water and earth are fighting the Hydrogues, beings of ice and lighting. That’s just amazing...

Full Review here:

https://cynsworkshop.wordpress ...more

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May 28, 2019 Clayton Pring rated it really liked it

Shelves: science-fiction

Really enjoyed my second read of this book.... The characters and the story really opened up for me. It is fast paced, the chapters again are short so kind of adds to the one more chapter before sleep factor.

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Aug 04, 2009 John Cook rated it it was amazing

Another satisfying chapter in the Saga of Seven Suns epic. But the ending of the book was not nearly as compelling as Hidden Empire.

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Apr 06, 2018 Apashchuk rated it it was amazing

I seriously do not understand how these books do not get higher ratings!!!!

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Dec 12, 2016 A~ rated it really liked it

Shelves: owned, pdf

Spoilers Ahead

Short Summary: Trees want to grow, Roamers want to trade, Hydrogues want to kill everything and Faeros just want to set the world on fire. And if your plan to survive an apocalypse depends on breeding a five year old super psychic you are probably boned.

For this review most of it will be contained in the list of characters, once you see the list you will see why. Also part of my review is copied from my review of the previous installment. If the author can do it then I can as well. ...more

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Apr 12, 2020 Dave Cairns rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Okay so this was the second read of the second novel for me (Read originally maybe ten or more years ago). It showed how poor my memory is, I remembered small details but my memory on what happened to certain characters is poor. This lead for a pleasant experience with all of the major shocks towards the end of the read giving me the surprise intended by the author! This included my favourite character meeting his end.

As a lot of reviews have covered, the first half is fairly political, focussin ...more

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Jul 18, 2018 Mjab rated it liked it

Shelves: scifi

The second book in the series is still entertaining, but it gets pretty dark. It feels darker than the first book, even though both are about a galactic war. (view spoiler) ...more

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Feb 21, 2020 Cliff rated it it was ok

I picked up this book again and have finished it in a couple of days. My previous comments relating g to the first in the saga still apply. I cannot understand how the Idrians became a space faring culture when their home world is lit by 7 suns and it never gets dark. How did they discover there was a whole galaxy out there? I can't buy the fact that Terrans have, centuries on have returned to a monarchical society. The ancient races, the Hydrogues, the Wentles and the Faeries are unbelievable t ...more

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May 14, 2017 Jorge rated it liked it

Audio Book

Uff. Each character repeats the same things endlessly. You can start the book in chapter 50 and you will not miss a beat. All explanation will be repeated two, three, five, eight or eleven times. The plot advances and it is interesting (some things are just illogical/ nonsense and some characters behave like st...... well, illogically) but, all in all, the plot has interesting turns.

But it is slow. And the book hammers you once, and again , and again with the same explanations.

And ag ...more

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Jan 27, 2018 Laura rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi, 2018-reads

Set five years after the first book, A Forest of Stars continues in much a similar fashion. We revisit some characters from last book, meet some new ones & continue to see how alliances, beliefs and societies shift and change in times of war. Of particular favourite is that of Adar Kori'nh and his fascination with Earth History which is the least spoilerish thing I can say about this book. Honestly I really enjoyed it - there's a bit more momentum than last book and it's easier to follow the c ...more

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Jun 03, 2019 Paca Sad rated it really liked it

Wow, after my four stars for the first installment I saw some of the disparaging remarks regarding that same book, and had a rethink, but no, I stick by my review, this is a saga, hence the name, of course there needs to be some character development and many characters, worlds, entities, backgrounds and politics
And the rewards are bountiful in this second story, many plot twists and turns and some interesting new developments in this epic tale

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May 28, 2017 Marc Diepstraten rated it really liked it

A very hard time obtaining a paperback, it seems it is out of print. The story continues seamlessly from Part 1. I really like the set-up of world building with a lot of characters in a lot of places adding layers to the saga. After 640 pages or so I wanted to keep on reading, so there is definitely something there, at least for me. On to Part 3. Highly recommended space opera.

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Oct 31, 2018 Kayleigh rated it liked it · review of another edition

A lot of repetition of things I already knew from the previous book and even from previous chapters, including the overuse of the word corpulent again. Despite this, the action was gripping, and the politics intriguing (and often infuriating, I'm looking at you Basil) and I will be continuing with the series ...more

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Aug 28, 2017 Dan rated it liked it

This was much better than the first book as tangents resolved themselves into story arcs. the first book opened and "closed" stories with no hint to importance or further development. I am interested to see what develops further in the conflicts. ...more

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Feb 04, 2020 Nicholas rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobooks, science-fiction

While the plot is pretty good, the writing is poor. The science is weak or just bad. The characters are unrealistic, as is the way politics are played. I keep thinking, "Why wouldn't he just do x?" But somehow, I still need to know what is going to happen. ...more

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