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Chan Dalton #2
The Spheres of Heaven
LOSE THE STARS-
OR LOSE EVERYTHING!
Spacer Chan Dalton is torn between two masters. The pacifist aliens who hold Earth under Quarantine want him to find out why their starships have been disappearing in the Geyser Swirl, the Bermuda Triangle of the galaxy. Earth's military, which has secretly discovered a way to break the quarantine, assumes that someone out there is making ships vanish, including Earth's, and wants Dalton to find the culprits and hopefully stop them -- with extreme prejudice, if necessary.
The trouble is, the aliens hold the taking of intelligent life, even in selfdefense, to be the greatest of sins. It was Earth's violent ways (in defense of the damned pacifist aliens!) that led to the quarantine in the first place -- and if Dalton is forced to fight, it will unveil, and so destroy, Earth's final chance to reach for the stars again.
So when Dalton does indeed discover the hostile invaders responsible for the lost starships, he is faced with an impossible decision: Fight and lose access to space forever; or allow a rapacious enemy to run riot over all that he holds dear...
544 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published March 1, 1988
About the author
Charles Sheffield
225 books177 followersCharles A. Sheffield (June 25, 1935 – November 2, 2002), was an English-born mathematician, physicist and science fiction author. He had been a President of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America and of the American Astronomical Society.
His novel The Web Between the Worlds, featuring the construction of a space elevator, was published almost simultaneously with Arthur C. Clarke's novel about that very same subject, The Fountains of Paradise, a coincidence that amused them both.
For some years he was the chief scientist of Earth Satellite Corporation, a company analysing remote sensing satellite data. This resulted in many technical papers and two popular non-fiction books, Earthwatch and Man on Earth, both collections of false colour and enhanced images of Earth from space.
He won the Nebula and Hugo awards for his novelette "Georgia on My Mind" and the 1992 John W. Campbell Memorial Award for his novel Brother to Dragons.
Sheffield was Toastmaster at BucConeer, the 1998 World Science Fiction Convention in Baltimore.
He had been writing a column for the Baen Books web site; his last column concerned the discovery of the brain tumour that led to his death.
He was married to writer Nancy Kress.
His novel The Web Between the Worlds, featuring the construction of a space elevator, was published almost simultaneously with Arthur C. Clarke's novel about that very same subject, The Fountains of Paradise, a coincidence that amused them both.
For some years he was the chief scientist of Earth Satellite Corporation, a company analysing remote sensing satellite data. This resulted in many technical papers and two popular non-fiction books, Earthwatch and Man on Earth, both collections of false colour and enhanced images of Earth from space.
He won the Nebula and Hugo awards for his novelette "Georgia on My Mind" and the 1992 John W. Campbell Memorial Award for his novel Brother to Dragons.
Sheffield was Toastmaster at BucConeer, the 1998 World Science Fiction Convention in Baltimore.
He had been writing a column for the Baen Books web site; his last column concerned the discovery of the brain tumour that led to his death.
He was married to writer Nancy Kress.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
May 8, 2021
The Spheres of Heaven is something of a sequel to The Mind Pool, but it's not necessary to have read that in order to appreciate this. It's a bit longer and more philosophic than Sheffield's earlier novels, with politics taking precedence over science. The aliens are quite interesting, and their interaction with the human characters is handled well. It's not among my favorites, but a pretty good read.
March 18, 2022
Humans have been quarantined within a light-year of Sol by the other alien intelligences - Pipe-Rillas, Tinkers and Angels - but are asked to launch a mission to a previously unknown Link point in a distant gas cloud. They are informed that two previous missions by the incredibly safety-conscious Angels and Pipe-Rillas have failed to return and only humans are considered reckless enough to risk on a third mission. Chan Dalton is called on to get a team together he puts his old team together, despite some serious hostility toward him. Upon reaching the Geyser Swirl, they find they have landed in ocean, not space, and the parameters of the planet defy possibility in their Universe. It becomes clear that they are no longer in their Universe, and that there is alien life on the planet! Of more concern however, is that one of the alien inhabitants is as much a visitor as the human-led mission. The crustacean-like aliens are space-faring, militant and hell-bent on finding out where the humans came from and want to take over their Universe… Charles Sheffield has given us a very readable adventure tale which takes us into alternate physics and the wider Multiverse. The desperate attempt to return to Earth and thwart the Mallies is gripping and entertaining.
April 10, 2022
The Spheres of Heaven is hard science fiction that’s easy to read. Sheffield doesn’t feel the need to club us over the head with how smart he is or how much he knows.
The story is set in the same multiverse as The Mind Pool. We’re well into the future. Space travel is routine, and we’d even made it to the stars and met some cool aliens: The Stellar Group. Interstellar travel is accomplished through Links – essentially instantaneous travel through constructed gates linking two points. Humanity gets teased with trips to the stars, meets three new species, and then gets cut off from the Interstellar Link system.
It turns out that the Stellar Group has decided humans are violent and has imposed a Quarantine on our solar system. Limited travel in and out by anyone but us. We’re stuck. Then a new Link point is discovered in a nebula called the Geyser Swirl. This Link is not Quarantined, and the Stellar Group needs our help because: 1) They didn’t build it and 2) They’ve sent three expeditions and none have come back.
I enjoyed the story. The ending surprised me and made me say, “ooohhh, that’s brilliant.” Some of the relationships between characters were a little stereotypical, but they worked. The aliens Sheffield created were unique and interesting.
On the Feral Scale, the story came in at a strong 8, and the science came in at a 9. I’m not going to pick nits with a guy with degrees in mathematics and physics who consulted with NASA and served as Chief Scientist for the Earth Satellite Corporation. My biggest gripe was that I wanted more of Sheffield’s thoughts and explanations on how some of his proposed tech would work, and he left a few minor storylines dangling.
I learned some stuff along the way. Lots of info about heavy water and deuterium that ends up being critical to the story in a very ingenious way. I also learned that I need to read more of Sheffield’s work.
Sadly, Sheffield passed away shortly after The Spheres of Heaven was published. It didn’t need a sequel, but I’d certainly have bought one.
The story is set in the same multiverse as The Mind Pool. We’re well into the future. Space travel is routine, and we’d even made it to the stars and met some cool aliens: The Stellar Group. Interstellar travel is accomplished through Links – essentially instantaneous travel through constructed gates linking two points. Humanity gets teased with trips to the stars, meets three new species, and then gets cut off from the Interstellar Link system.
It turns out that the Stellar Group has decided humans are violent and has imposed a Quarantine on our solar system. Limited travel in and out by anyone but us. We’re stuck. Then a new Link point is discovered in a nebula called the Geyser Swirl. This Link is not Quarantined, and the Stellar Group needs our help because: 1) They didn’t build it and 2) They’ve sent three expeditions and none have come back.
I enjoyed the story. The ending surprised me and made me say, “ooohhh, that’s brilliant.” Some of the relationships between characters were a little stereotypical, but they worked. The aliens Sheffield created were unique and interesting.
On the Feral Scale, the story came in at a strong 8, and the science came in at a 9. I’m not going to pick nits with a guy with degrees in mathematics and physics who consulted with NASA and served as Chief Scientist for the Earth Satellite Corporation. My biggest gripe was that I wanted more of Sheffield’s thoughts and explanations on how some of his proposed tech would work, and he left a few minor storylines dangling.
I learned some stuff along the way. Lots of info about heavy water and deuterium that ends up being critical to the story in a very ingenious way. I also learned that I need to read more of Sheffield’s work.
Sadly, Sheffield passed away shortly after The Spheres of Heaven was published. It didn’t need a sequel, but I’d certainly have bought one.
December 9, 2014
The sequel to 'The Mind Pool' is set much later. Humanity has been forbidden to travel into alien space via the network of wormholes controlled by a Federation of three alien races. This is because humans are deemed to be a violent and volatile species.
The novel begins with a Government official tracking down Chan Dalton to offer him a special assignment.
It would appear that a wormhole gateway has appeared which is unconnected to the alien network and is also accessible by humans.
Ships have been sent through to investigate but none have returned. Would Chan Dalton to be willing to reassemble his old crew and investigate?
What follows is an adventure in another universe where the humans have to deal with both inimical lobster-like aliens and the fundamentalist pacifist beliefs of their own alien crew. In truth, Sheffield could have made more of this internal battle of ideologies but that is a minor flaw. The only other problem with this book is the title, which has no relevance to anything in the text.
Like most of Sheffield's work, this is highly readable, highly entertaining space opera which contains some excellent characterisation and some complex and interesting aliens, if a tad anthropomorphic. In its way, Sheffield's work is very traditional, albeit with a modern gloss. It falls very much into the Romantic camp although Sheffield doesn't shirk on the physics and it never falls into the trough of Star Trek technobollocks. There's a themic thread of addiction which covers both the humans that have been addicted to various substances and Friday Indigo who becomes a slave to the lobster-folk who can stimulate his pleasure centres directly.
Sheffield left enough open for a sequel here but sadly it would appear that never transpired.
The novel begins with a Government official tracking down Chan Dalton to offer him a special assignment.
It would appear that a wormhole gateway has appeared which is unconnected to the alien network and is also accessible by humans.
Ships have been sent through to investigate but none have returned. Would Chan Dalton to be willing to reassemble his old crew and investigate?
What follows is an adventure in another universe where the humans have to deal with both inimical lobster-like aliens and the fundamentalist pacifist beliefs of their own alien crew. In truth, Sheffield could have made more of this internal battle of ideologies but that is a minor flaw. The only other problem with this book is the title, which has no relevance to anything in the text.
Like most of Sheffield's work, this is highly readable, highly entertaining space opera which contains some excellent characterisation and some complex and interesting aliens, if a tad anthropomorphic. In its way, Sheffield's work is very traditional, albeit with a modern gloss. It falls very much into the Romantic camp although Sheffield doesn't shirk on the physics and it never falls into the trough of Star Trek technobollocks. There's a themic thread of addiction which covers both the humans that have been addicted to various substances and Friday Indigo who becomes a slave to the lobster-folk who can stimulate his pleasure centres directly.
Sheffield left enough open for a sequel here but sadly it would appear that never transpired.
September 1, 2024
Lu en anglais
Les humains sont en quarantaine dans le système solaire. Les trois espèces extraterrestres très pacifiques ne supportent pas la moindre violence et ont donc bloqué, pour les humains, les zones de transfert rapides conduisant à l'extérieur du système solaire. Mais voilà que les extraterrestres demandent à Chan Dalton, un humain, de les aider car ils ont perdu des vaisseaux spatiaux. L'enjeu est énorme : Ouvrir à nouveau aux humains la route des étoiles, mais toute violence est interdite. Et bientôt Chan découvre que des extraterrestres inconnus et hostiles sont la cause des disparitions. Quel dilemme !
L'histoire est très prometteuse mais ne livre pas la marchandise. Malgré tout, Sheffield nous présente un univers complètement différent avec ses règles physiques particulières, une équipe soudée et dotée de multiples talents et des extraterrestres vraiment originaux. On a aussi droit à des antagonistes sans le moindre scrupule moral,
J'ai aimé les personnages et les idées scientifiques, mais pour l'histoire, je m'attendais à beaucoup plus de la part de Sheffield.
Les humains sont en quarantaine dans le système solaire. Les trois espèces extraterrestres très pacifiques ne supportent pas la moindre violence et ont donc bloqué, pour les humains, les zones de transfert rapides conduisant à l'extérieur du système solaire. Mais voilà que les extraterrestres demandent à Chan Dalton, un humain, de les aider car ils ont perdu des vaisseaux spatiaux. L'enjeu est énorme : Ouvrir à nouveau aux humains la route des étoiles, mais toute violence est interdite. Et bientôt Chan découvre que des extraterrestres inconnus et hostiles sont la cause des disparitions. Quel dilemme !
L'histoire est très prometteuse mais ne livre pas la marchandise. Malgré tout, Sheffield nous présente un univers complètement différent avec ses règles physiques particulières, une équipe soudée et dotée de multiples talents et des extraterrestres vraiment originaux. On a aussi droit à des antagonistes sans le moindre scrupule moral,
J'ai aimé les personnages et les idées scientifiques, mais pour l'histoire, je m'attendais à beaucoup plus de la part de Sheffield.
July 3, 2017
Summary: Some good ideas, and an interesting premise. The multi-verse extension to the link idea is very clever, the 4th alien species a bit weird (so really good)
Plotline: Nicely thought out but unnecessarily complicated and too many holes left dangling
Premise: Interesting, and workable - a lot more could be done with this.
Writing: Simple effective, but let down by the poor human characters - the non-humans are excellent
Ending: Predictable ... ready for the next in the series which I don't think was ever written
Pace: Never a dull moment!
Plotline: Nicely thought out but unnecessarily complicated and too many holes left dangling
Premise: Interesting, and workable - a lot more could be done with this.
Writing: Simple effective, but let down by the poor human characters - the non-humans are excellent
Ending: Predictable ... ready for the next in the series which I don't think was ever written
Pace: Never a dull moment!
December 31, 2019
Spaceship discovers multiverse and evil aliens
November 14, 2022
What a pleasure. Real science fiction not Syfy
February 2, 2016
This book is an odd mix of done-rights and done-wrongs. One one hand, I really like some of the characters. I wish I could have spent more time with them. (I didn't even know there was a book before this one, though I did suspect if halfway into this one.) The science is decent, as The design of the aliens was excellent. I've never read such unique and interesting alien beings.
However, it was those aliens who were also my biggest gripe. Although unique on the outside, they were utterly bland on the inside. They had one personality: obsessively pacifist. Their culture was not looked at at all, with one of the species even going so far as to regurgitate every human proverb it ever heard. Why they (it's apparently something the whole species does) do that is beyond me as apparently they hate the violent ways of human culture. Other problems include a lack of time to develop characters more and a short and anti-climactic ending.
Overall, an ok book.
12/7/20: I picked up this book in my local library, read it, and came to goodreads to write a review. What do I find? I'd already read it and completely forgotten. I liked the book a lot less the (unintentional) second time, probably because I've read a lot more sci-fi and Spheres of Heaven seems a lot less unique to me now. I've downgraded it from three stars to two.
However, it was those aliens who were also my biggest gripe. Although unique on the outside, they were utterly bland on the inside. They had one personality: obsessively pacifist. Their culture was not looked at at all, with one of the species even going so far as to regurgitate every human proverb it ever heard. Why they (it's apparently something the whole species does) do that is beyond me as apparently they hate the violent ways of human culture. Other problems include a lack of time to develop characters more and a short and anti-climactic ending.
Overall, an ok book.
12/7/20: I picked up this book in my local library, read it, and came to goodreads to write a review. What do I find? I'd already read it and completely forgotten. I liked the book a lot less the (unintentional) second time, probably because I've read a lot more sci-fi and Spheres of Heaven seems a lot less unique to me now. I've downgraded it from three stars to two.
April 18, 2010
Ok it should be 2.5 stars. Spheres is not a bad book in that it has a number of very interesting ideas - most of which are trappings and not fully explored. You can always count on Forward for the good ideas and as a scientist they will at least be plausible and usually well explained. Unfortunately the infodumping gets a little much including characters you really wouldn't expect it from. I did find his aliens very interesting and would gladly read another book featuring them. While I look at Dragon's Egg and Rocheworld as Forward's best, Spheres just doesn't live up to its potential. It takes a long time to establish the team of characters, who for all of their unique talents are given limited opportunities to exercise them. For 500+ pages the book is so long in gaining moment that it feels like the ending comes all at once and even then its not completely satisfying.
August 7, 2012
Not having read The Mind Pool, I came into the second of this two book series (permanently completed due to the author's death a year later) a little flat-footed. But it was easy to get up to speed. I'm just sorry I didn't really detect much of the special skills supposedly possessed by the characters. I may have to read the first book someday to complete my immersion. As it is, the story of a team of humans travelling to another universe to investigate the disappearance of two other ships while being prohibited from using deadly force against any hostiles encountered is interesting. I found the characters to be somewhat two dimensional, but the story flowed well and the suspense involved with solving the dilemma of dealing with unfriendly beings made for a satisfying read.
April 14, 2015
This reads more like a graphic novel, in that its characters are caricatures. A multiverse concept is superficially inserted into the story with the least possible result. The story is simply full of holes, and emersion be damned. It is cute, in a cartoonish way. If taken lightly, its not entirely unpleasant to read.
September 23, 2010
A good, but ultimately unsatisfying read....
The final chapters were transparently a setup for a sequel...
As an exercise in how to write science fiction without physical conflict this kind of works.
The final chapters were transparently a setup for a sequel...
As an exercise in how to write science fiction without physical conflict this kind of works.
June 12, 2013
The jacket was very promising, the delivery somewhat lacking. It took most of the book to gain momentum, certain promising story elements were not completed—it felt like the author was rushed to slap an ending on. Still, I enjoyed the journey enough to finish the book.
August 9, 2011
This was a bit goofy even though it incorporated quite a bit of science. I like this series I have this author but it wasn't even as close to good. Quite a bit of swearing, though it was mild.
January 22, 2012
This book is slow getting started, but after the preliminaries it's a fun read.
December 25, 2015
This loose sequel to The Mind Pool is more unified than the first book.
April 11, 2017
Made you think. Too bad there was never a sequel.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews