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Sten #7
Vortex
The Eternal Emperor had returned at last from the dead to pick up the pieces of his crumbling Empire. But even that great leader could not halt the Empire’s decline alone. And so Sten—master spy, military strategist, and assassin—found himself appointed Ambassador Plenipotentiary to the Altaic Cluster, where a brewing civil war threatened the stability of the Empire itself. Quelling a civil war is nothing new for Sten, but as the war intensifies, he begins to suspect that he is up against more than a mere local disturbance. Someone operating in deep-cover and seemingly backed by the highest authorities is working behind the scenes to manipulate events and escalate disaster. And that someone wants nothing more than to see Sten dead.
416 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1992
22 people are currently reading
207 people want to read
About the author
Chris Bunch
86 books130 followersChristopher R. "Chris" Bunch was an American science fiction, fantasy and television writer, who wrote and co-wrote about thirty novels.
Born in Fresno, California, he collaborated with Allan Cole on a series of books involving a hero named Sten in a galactic empire. (Cole married Bunch's sister, Kathryn.) He served in Vietnam as a patrol leader. He also wrote for Rolling Stone and was a correspondent for Stars and Stripes. He died in his hometown of Ilwaco, Washington, after a long battle with a lung ailment.
Born in Fresno, California, he collaborated with Allan Cole on a series of books involving a hero named Sten in a galactic empire. (Cole married Bunch's sister, Kathryn.) He served in Vietnam as a patrol leader. He also wrote for Rolling Stone and was a correspondent for Stars and Stripes. He died in his hometown of Ilwaco, Washington, after a long battle with a lung ailment.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
December 29, 2024
In this seventh book of the series, the war with the Tahn is over, and the Eternal Emperor has come back after more than six years. Sten, who had been kicking back on his planet, is roped into being the Ambassador to a very hostile system. The system has four main ethic groups/races and they have been in conflict for ages. Worse, before Sten arrives, the dictator of the system dies of a heart attack!
We delve deeply into the system and its factions as Sten tries to get a grip of what is going on, and how to keep the peace. While the Emperor is back, he is definitely not the same, and starts making some dubious calls...
This is really just a lead in to the final volume, where we will have our final denouncement, and bogs down a bit with all the local politics and intrigues. If you made it this far in the series, you will likely keep going. 3.5 stars.
We delve deeply into the system and its factions as Sten tries to get a grip of what is going on, and how to keep the peace. While the Emperor is back, he is definitely not the same, and starts making some dubious calls...
This is really just a lead in to the final volume, where we will have our final denouncement, and bogs down a bit with all the local politics and intrigues. If you made it this far in the series, you will likely keep going. 3.5 stars.
October 29, 2015
This book was totally ruined for me by the authors insistance in trying to write in a scotish accent. I simply can not work out what hes trying to say. its just indecipherable gibberish to me. It was annoying in the earlier books but not that often so could be ignored. In this one though alex does a lot of talking and it is obviously pivotal to the plots and story lines. End result is most of the time i have no idea whats being done or why as I can not decipher the supposedly scottish accent. Had the author used english Im sure this would have been as good as the others. I even annoyed friends and family constantly asking if they could work out what was meant by the gibberish. Sometimes between us after 5 or ten minutes we managed to work out roughly what it might mean then two sentences later be doing it again. Most often though we failed and i had to skip the scottish, which became harder and harder to do as it was obvious what Alex had said was really important or had been the "plan" etc. In the end I literally threw this book in the trash through shear frustration at the stupid incomprehensible attempt at a scottish accent without being able to finish the book!
If you can not read gobbledygook avoid this book. It creates stress frustration and anger by the boat load. Worse I have invested a lot in this series, I really enjoyed this series, and now I will never know how it eventually turns out. And thats very frustrating
If you can not read gobbledygook avoid this book. It creates stress frustration and anger by the boat load. Worse I have invested a lot in this series, I really enjoyed this series, and now I will never know how it eventually turns out. And thats very frustrating
February 19, 2013
I started to read this book series quite a long time ago. I read the first book around Christmas 2011 and I am only now at the 7th book which is the second from the end. It is not due to me having to wait for them to be published since all 8 books were already published when I started reading the first one. I have always had a bit of a split relationship towards this series. On one hand they are very good books but on the other hand they are not 100% my style of books. Having said that I have still found them generally enjoyable to read even though I have taken quite long pauses, reading other books, between each book in the series.
In this book Sten has to deal with a explosive, and that is putting it mildly, situation in the Altaic Cluster. He has to deal with dumbass politicians, dumbass military officers and various inhabitants of the cluster that are mostly interested in cutting each other’s throats. This book is, without a doubt, as good as the other ones in the series. Sten and his heavyworlder buddy Lord Kilghour is roaming around leaving a trail of temporarily or permanently (most frequently the latter) incapacitated beings in their usual style with a lot of bantering between them. I still find that dialect of Kilghour incredibly annoying and next to impossible to read. Maybe it is easier for a native English (or Gaelic) speaking person but for me it is really disturbing my reading.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with the book…if you like intrigue, vendettas and backstabbing that is. I do not. What is troubling me the most however is the fact that this book is much more depressing and downwards spiraling than the other books. In all of the other books it was always a struggle upwards. When not being out bashing the bad guys Sten was among friends. He had the emperors backing and the emperor himself was a likable and colorful character. In this book it is clear that things are going down the toilet. The emperor is going insane and he is not the only one of the old friends that follows the vortex down the toilet.
Even though it, technically, is a good book I cannot bring myself to really appreciate it.
In this book Sten has to deal with a explosive, and that is putting it mildly, situation in the Altaic Cluster. He has to deal with dumbass politicians, dumbass military officers and various inhabitants of the cluster that are mostly interested in cutting each other’s throats. This book is, without a doubt, as good as the other ones in the series. Sten and his heavyworlder buddy Lord Kilghour is roaming around leaving a trail of temporarily or permanently (most frequently the latter) incapacitated beings in their usual style with a lot of bantering between them. I still find that dialect of Kilghour incredibly annoying and next to impossible to read. Maybe it is easier for a native English (or Gaelic) speaking person but for me it is really disturbing my reading.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with the book…if you like intrigue, vendettas and backstabbing that is. I do not. What is troubling me the most however is the fact that this book is much more depressing and downwards spiraling than the other books. In all of the other books it was always a struggle upwards. When not being out bashing the bad guys Sten was among friends. He had the emperors backing and the emperor himself was a likable and colorful character. In this book it is clear that things are going down the toilet. The emperor is going insane and he is not the only one of the old friends that follows the vortex down the toilet.
Even though it, technically, is a good book I cannot bring myself to really appreciate it.
May 11, 2016
Whoa, I figured at this point in the series it would just be more of the same, but the authors decided to really move the plot! Even though it's pretty consistently downhill for Sten, I enjoyed watching it happen. Of course, you just know he's going to pull out of it in the next and last entry. That guy always comes out on top.
It's funny how each book in the series now has to have a scene in Oregon. There's no point to it now, but it's become a thing. Otherwise, most of the story takes place on a planet with four different racial groups (two are alien) and the situation destabilizes from a situation that already wasn't a utopia. This one doesn't suffer from the dry descriptions of character motivation that haunted the last two or three volumes. While I admit that the storytelling style is kind of flat, it works when it's used to cover action instead of elaborate on someone's attitudes.
The cover of my edition is wretched. The artwork is bad, the faces have been placed on obviously fake bodies, and we all know by this one that Sten is not as young as portrayed on the cover. I tried not to let it poison how I imagine the story, and fortunately I succeeded :)
On the other hand, bonus points for references to Asimov's Foundation series, Thomas Paine's Common Sense and Fahrenheit 451. And also a certain turn of phrase from the Gilbert & Sullivan comic opera Pirates of Penzance.
It's funny how each book in the series now has to have a scene in Oregon. There's no point to it now, but it's become a thing. Otherwise, most of the story takes place on a planet with four different racial groups (two are alien) and the situation destabilizes from a situation that already wasn't a utopia. This one doesn't suffer from the dry descriptions of character motivation that haunted the last two or three volumes. While I admit that the storytelling style is kind of flat, it works when it's used to cover action instead of elaborate on someone's attitudes.
The cover of my edition is wretched. The artwork is bad, the faces have been placed on obviously fake bodies, and we all know by this one that Sten is not as young as portrayed on the cover. I tried not to let it poison how I imagine the story, and fortunately I succeeded :)
On the other hand, bonus points for references to Asimov's Foundation series, Thomas Paine's Common Sense and Fahrenheit 451. And also a certain turn of phrase from the Gilbert & Sullivan comic opera Pirates of Penzance.
June 22, 2014
Vortex is the 7th book in the Sten series, and it's a decent addition to the tale. It has all of the normal elements such as fantastic creatures and inescapable situations in a universe that only makes sense if you don't question it too hard. Like all the other books, it's best enjoyed as a "shut your brain off" joy ride.
There are a couple differences from the other books. The first is that there tends to be a lot less action in this book. There's plenty of political intrigue and back-stabbing, but so few of the all-out battles that Sten normally fights through with his companions.
The second difference is that while all the other books tend to stand on their own with a few flashbacks and the like, this book appears to exist almost entirely to set up the final installment. It's not necessarily a bad thing, but I just noticed it.
There are a couple differences from the other books. The first is that there tends to be a lot less action in this book. There's plenty of political intrigue and back-stabbing, but so few of the all-out battles that Sten normally fights through with his companions.
The second difference is that while all the other books tend to stand on their own with a few flashbacks and the like, this book appears to exist almost entirely to set up the final installment. It's not necessarily a bad thing, but I just noticed it.
August 3, 2018
Sten is given a crappy ambassador assignment that puts him in between 4 warring races, all trying to dominate the same cluster of worlds. He's in the drakh pretty fast and the Emperor is no help.
He does get to take Kilgour, some Bohr, and some Gurkhas with him. He's also got the Emperor's personal luxury battle cruiser. And there's a new love interest for him, who's also a kick-ass warrior.
It's a good Sten adventure, but with a twist or two to keep it interesting.
My one complaint: it ends with a cliff-hanger. I prefer stories that are complete in one volume.
He does get to take Kilgour, some Bohr, and some Gurkhas with him. He's also got the Emperor's personal luxury battle cruiser. And there's a new love interest for him, who's also a kick-ass warrior.
It's a good Sten adventure, but with a twist or two to keep it interesting.
My one complaint: it ends with a cliff-hanger. I prefer stories that are complete in one volume.
August 7, 2023
I wish that I could say something nice about this book, but the truth is that it took me ages to finish it. The story didn't interest me, and going through the chapters was a long and tiresome process. I've already forgotten the beginning, and I don't think it will take me long to forget the end as well.
December 5, 2017
Great series of books to read.
You want a GOOD YARN to read,read these books. Can't beat a great way to pass time on a rainy day or snowy day for that matter.
You want a GOOD YARN to read,read these books. Can't beat a great way to pass time on a rainy day or snowy day for that matter.
July 13, 2018
Best Space Opera EVER. Reread for the 4th time since original purchase.
The only one in the series that a bit of a downer...necessary to the overall story arc but still. Bleh.
The only one in the series that a bit of a downer...necessary to the overall story arc but still. Bleh.
March 20, 2023
Books 4-6 drifted a bit from the action that drew me in on books 1-3. Now we’re back on track.
December 7, 2020
Our hero, Sten, has become the Emperor's prized ambassador, being sent from one trouble spot to another, as he tries to hold things together after the devastation of the war with the Tahn's and the privy council's incompetence have begun the slow descent into division and barbarism. Sten's new assignment is the Altaic Cluster, with the capital world of Rurik.
In creating the Altaics, Cole and Bunch draw from fairly contemporary history of Asia and the Middle East. The parallels to India's multicultural and often warring factions are mentioned, but one can also see glimpses of Iran and Iraq in the latter half of the twentieth century, as in the Khaqan's (ruler of the cluster) incessant and obsessive building of monuments to himself "from a grateful people", to the Emperor's choice of successor to the Khaqan, Dr. Iskra, a scholar in exile - think of Reza Pahlavi and Ayatollah Khomenei. Oh, don't forget the violent supression of student riots, as in Tianamen Square.
Wherever they got all their sources of information, the cluster has traditionally been ruled with an iron fist to keep the four major races and factions from acting up too much, and when the Khaqan passes away suddenly, most beings hope that a new era is at hand, without the oppression, for a change. Alas, it is not to be. Dr. Iskra turns out to be an even more ruthless tyrant than his predecessor, and Sten must try to put a good face on things for public consumption back in the Empire, while simultaneously letting his boss know the truth of matters on Rurik.
A great quote from one of the rioting students, that almost perfectly sums up the attitude of progressive scholars,
"Most beings - meaning the, well, uneducated classes - want to be told what to do", He leaned forward, impassioned, "They feel...uncomfortable with weighty decisions. They want structure in their lives. It makes them...."
"Comfortable?" Sten helped.
"How astute of you, Sr Ambassador. That's the word exactly. Comfortable. And happy, as well."
"Educated ones know best." Nirsky said.
Unfortunately for all concerned, the returned Emperor is slipping rapidly into megalomaniacal paranoia. The controls placed on his incarnations by the ship beyond the veil of the alternate universe are slipping, and he and his ally, Poyndex, take further steps to keep that control from returning. Sten and Alex and Mahoney are left trying to mitigate the damage and chaos from the Altaics.
This one has some biting political commentary, leavening the usual spying, treachery and adventure.
In creating the Altaics, Cole and Bunch draw from fairly contemporary history of Asia and the Middle East. The parallels to India's multicultural and often warring factions are mentioned, but one can also see glimpses of Iran and Iraq in the latter half of the twentieth century, as in the Khaqan's (ruler of the cluster) incessant and obsessive building of monuments to himself "from a grateful people", to the Emperor's choice of successor to the Khaqan, Dr. Iskra, a scholar in exile - think of Reza Pahlavi and Ayatollah Khomenei. Oh, don't forget the violent supression of student riots, as in Tianamen Square.
Wherever they got all their sources of information, the cluster has traditionally been ruled with an iron fist to keep the four major races and factions from acting up too much, and when the Khaqan passes away suddenly, most beings hope that a new era is at hand, without the oppression, for a change. Alas, it is not to be. Dr. Iskra turns out to be an even more ruthless tyrant than his predecessor, and Sten must try to put a good face on things for public consumption back in the Empire, while simultaneously letting his boss know the truth of matters on Rurik.
A great quote from one of the rioting students, that almost perfectly sums up the attitude of progressive scholars,
"Most beings - meaning the, well, uneducated classes - want to be told what to do", He leaned forward, impassioned, "They feel...uncomfortable with weighty decisions. They want structure in their lives. It makes them...."
"Comfortable?" Sten helped.
"How astute of you, Sr Ambassador. That's the word exactly. Comfortable. And happy, as well."
"Educated ones know best." Nirsky said.
Unfortunately for all concerned, the returned Emperor is slipping rapidly into megalomaniacal paranoia. The controls placed on his incarnations by the ship beyond the veil of the alternate universe are slipping, and he and his ally, Poyndex, take further steps to keep that control from returning. Sten and Alex and Mahoney are left trying to mitigate the damage and chaos from the Altaics.
This one has some biting political commentary, leavening the usual spying, treachery and adventure.
March 16, 2021
Nov 2015
And, finally, Sten gets his last skill set upgrade: diplomat and bureaucrat (with a still a bit of spycraft and space warrior on the side). In the meantime, Sten is busy losing two father figures that have kept him steady since his earliest days: former spymaster Mahoney and the increasingly erratic Eternal Emperor.
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PREVIOUS (Oct 2012)
With the return of the Eternal Emperor, Sten enters service as diplomat plenipotentiary, trying to help keep the Empire together, even in the intrinsically fractious Altaic Cluster. But there's rottenness both in the Imperial chosen leaders and in the core of the Empire itself, putting Sten between a moral rock and a genocidal hard place.
Good combo of SF military fantasy, guerrilla/revolutionary fiction, and continuing the narrative of what makes for an eternal empire ... and what can bring it down.
And, finally, Sten gets his last skill set upgrade: diplomat and bureaucrat (with a still a bit of spycraft and space warrior on the side). In the meantime, Sten is busy losing two father figures that have kept him steady since his earliest days: former spymaster Mahoney and the increasingly erratic Eternal Emperor.
------------------------
PREVIOUS (Oct 2012)
With the return of the Eternal Emperor, Sten enters service as diplomat plenipotentiary, trying to help keep the Empire together, even in the intrinsically fractious Altaic Cluster. But there's rottenness both in the Imperial chosen leaders and in the core of the Empire itself, putting Sten between a moral rock and a genocidal hard place.
Good combo of SF military fantasy, guerrilla/revolutionary fiction, and continuing the narrative of what makes for an eternal empire ... and what can bring it down.
July 13, 2010
The empire is steadily drawn into a vortex of madness death and civil war as the repercussions of the Eternal Emperor's disappearance and return continue to be felt.
June 22, 2012
Another re-read for me. While good not quite as good as the earlier volumes in the series.
June 10, 2022
Retroactive Review (9 Jun 2022): Please see my review of the series
here
under the first volume.
October 19, 2015
Another good oldie.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews