Orbus

Spatterjay #3

by Neal Asher

This is a follow-up to The Voyage of the Sable Keech tracing the journey of an Old Captain, Orbus – a sadist in charge of a crew of masochists - to a planetary wasteland called The Graveyard’ lying between the Polity and the Prador Kingdom. An ancient war drone by the name of Sniper has stowed away aboard his spaceship, and the purpose of the journey is not entirely what the captain expected. Also heading in the same direction is the Prador king and the Prador Vrell. Vrell, having been mutated by the Spatterjay virus into something powerful and dangerous, has seized control of a Prador dreadnought, killing much of its crew, and is intent on heading back to the Prador Third Kingdom to exact vengeance on the King of the Prador, who tried to have him killed. All three ships are heading towards a climatic confrontation to The Graveyard, where underlying truths about the virus are revealed and an ancient menace to civilization reappears…

Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera, Fiction, Audiobook, Fantasy, Artificial Intelligence, Adventure

438 pages, Paperback

First published April 9, 2009

About the author

I’ve been an engineer, barman, skip lorry driver, coalman, boat window manufacturer, contract grass cutter and builder. Now I write science fiction books, and am slowly getting over the feeling that someone is going to find me out, and can call myself a writer without wincing and ducking my head. As professions go, I prefer this one: I don’t have to clock-in, change my clothes after work, nor scrub sensitive parts of my body with detergent. I think I’ll hang around.

Source: http://www.blogger.com/profile/139339...

Reviews

[Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

As always, I'm surprised at how much I am eventually able to get into the psychology and biology and all the weirdness of the Prador aliens. I vacillate between annoyance and fascination.

Fortunately, I got into this by the end. Spatterjay's humble beginnings become very clear and the whole ultimate always-alive always-eating neverending replenishing food supply of everything on the planet, alive even as they're digested... or we are all digested, transforming, never dying... becomes clear at last.

No spoilers, but we've met the big bad before. :)

What we have here is a huge throwdown between different Prador factions including a handful of Polity peeps and the absolutely fantastic Sniper, the AI war drone. The interactions going on here made this novel a good deal better than average. :)

BUT, I will say that aside from the great end, the rest of the novel had quite a few dull parts. On the whole, I enjoyed it and the cool end made up for a ton of evils. Solid novel wrapping up Spatterjay. Better than the last, I think, but not quite as good as the first in the trilogy. I'm happy enough. :)

[Veronika Sebechlebská · Rating 5 out of 5]

Toto je kniha, v ktorej obrovské zmutované mimozemské pavúky bojujú proti obrovským zombie zmutovaným mimozemským pavúkom a tiež proti obrovským zombie zmutovaným mimozemským pavúkom, ktoré ďalej mutovali až domutovali do niečoho, z čoho sa i priemernéhému obrovskému zmutovanému mimozemského pavúkovi zježia chlpy na nohách - a takto zmutované, bojujú proti všetkým ostatným mimozemským pavúkom, zombie či nezombie, teda asi, je totiž možné, že niektoré nuansy tohto komplexného a mnohovrstevného príbehu mi predsa len unikli takže si to budem musieť prečítať znovu, na čo sa už teraz nesmierne teším.

[Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to say that I am done with Spatterjay. This one tipped the balance where I no longer care about what happens in this story. It was all a bit too much. I feel like I read a story about one continuous long battle with high tech weaponry. It just didn't take a break and try to develop a story. It felt like it was a battle wrapped around some characters that were exactly the same as the previous books.
So that's me done with Spatterjay.

[Bryan Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well at least it was not pirate ship stories like the other spatterjay novels. This one is back to space where it belongs. I was jolted out by multiple pop culture references that make no sense in context. Otherwise it was a decent read but I’m glad to move on from Spatterjay.

[Chris Berko · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this one, maybe my favorite Spatterjay novel.

[S Stephenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perhaps the last truly excellent book by Neal Asher.

The big negative or criticism I have of his books after this one is that its very samey, in that the plot of his stories are the plan of one AI or entity (spoilers, kind of). This worked once for a series of books he did in the past, and even then everything you read that happened wasn't preordained or planned out by one thing. But since 2010 EVERYTHING is, and that for me spoils the books.

Orbus, however, isn't like that. There are characters that are powerful and intelligent, but they individually have parts of the puzzle, not all of it, so when pieces get put together there are surprises and tension and real stakes in that things could end up in destruction and death for all concerned. The characters are great, Orbus is the main character, and he has a real arc, he grows and changes, which is excellent. Sniper the war drone is back, as quippy and sarcastic as ever. Vrell has a massive part to play and has a great overall arc too. New characters such as the Golgolgoth, and the king of the prador are scary and menacing and though alien there goals and objectives are clear.

The one thing that makes this book for me is the battle, or all out war, that occurs at the end. It is by and far the best space battle I have ever read. It is superbly written and described, Asher doesn't waste page space with boring details, it is visceral, hard hitting, tense. It is that good.

This battle alone tips the book into five star territory. There are one or two lulls in the story before this point, Asher had a habit of going into intricate details about how to solve a problem, or how this character MacGyver's a situation, which is tedious. A couple of characters are just there with no real personality. However, this all leads to this epic battle, which is definitely worth the wait.

A brilliant book.

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 Stars

Orbus, book three in the Spatterjay trilogy is a far fall from the wonders and sheer awesomeness of the first book. I confess that due to my love of the genre that this was more like a 4 star read to me that I get had to take away from my score because it does not compare to the start of the series. I absolutely loved books one and two with the first one being a knock out. The world of Spatterjay is a science fiction and technological dream. The Hoopers are one of the greatest fictional characters ever created...

Orbus is a very narrowly scoped book that really can summed up in just a few sentences. A very large and unkillable man, a sentinent war drone, and a sidekick come to head against two extremely genetically mutated bugs/squids/men/machines in a bad place called the Graveyards. They all find out that their is a really, really,really big bad out there that appears to be coming back. Gun fights ensue. Killings, maiming, and mutilating also occur.

Orbus is an amazing larger than life Hooper that is a great addition to the series. The Old Captains should have many more novels written about them as they are sheer awesomeness. Sniper is back and is just as bad ass and wise cracking as before. The Prador are scary, gross, and really freaking cool.

I love Neal Asher and cannot wait to read more of his books as there are many. The world of Spatterjay is a must read for ALL science fiction lovers. Unfortunately, this one is not necessary to read to appreciate the world that Asher has built.

[Noémie J. Crowley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Conclusion de la trilogie Spatterjay, Orbus suit le capitaine, eh bien, Orbus, un vieil habitant de la planète sujet au virus, voyageant vers le Cimietière, un no man’s land immense entre les frontières de la Polity et du Royaume des Prador, où se rend également le Prador Vrell, muté par le virus et de plus en plus dangereux.

Vous le savez, depuis que j’en parle, mais Neal Asher est criminellement peu discuté en France - au point où le 3e tome de cette trilogie n’a apparemment même pas été traduit en français … Alors que, wow, quelle fin ! Sans conteste le meilleur livre des 3 (suffisamment rare pour le souligner), il offre une conclusion haute en couleurs, nerveuse, et toujours superbement équilibrée entre action et introspection. Bref, du grand space opera, toujours !

[Alexander · Rating 4 out of 5]

She “Or” on my leech till I “Bus”
She Orbus on my leech till I Spatter(jay 3)
She virally infect me until my spermatozoa become vicious infighters (actual plot point)

When prador from the 4th kingdom hit you with that softshell stare 💀

Yeah

[Michael Pryor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Muscular, taut, well-knitted.

[Lady*M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Orbus, an Old Captain from Spatterjay, has left his sadistic ways after the near death experience and decided to change the climate. As a captain of the trade space ship he goes go Graveyard carrying with him the two drone stowaways. Soon, it becomes clear that they we all manipulated by ruling AIs, because the Prador runaway Vrell, mutated by Spatterjay virus has gone in the same direction. Both Prador king and the Polity take the interest in the situation as well as their weapons. The Spatterjay virus has its own secrets and it will take the combine forces of former enemies to stop the danger to all civilized universe.

This was a wild ride through and through. Once the action starts, it continues to the very end. The last part of the book is explosive and had me at the edge of my seat. Did I mentioned before that I like Sniper? But, in this book some of the Prador gained much needed complexity as well and I was very satisfied with the outcome.

Orbus was not as awesome as the first book in trilogy, but it was much better than the second one. Great addition to the series.

[Vít · Rating 4 out of 5]

Třetí díl série se od prvních dvou dost liší - především tím, že se neodehrává na Spatterjay. Za to dám hvězdičku dolů, i když chápu, že o pijavicích atd. se nedá psát donekonečna.
Na druhou stranu, Orbus je zdaleka nejakčnější ze všech tří knih, to tempo je místy šílené. Hodně velký prostor dostal Snajpr (paráda), což napovídá, že se bude hodně střílet, vybuchovat, anihilovat, trhat na cucky, nadávat a na závěr nezůstane zrovna moc věcí pohromadě. Takže vlastně super :)

Edit 27.5.2021:
Přečteno potřetí a nechávám 4 hvězdičky, pořád mě to baví. Kromě explozí tu taky najdete ledacos z historie pradorského království a taky smrtící pozůstatky civilizace Džainů - a tak můžete plynule pokračovat novinkou Voják. Já na to jdu hned :)

[Pippa Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of all the Neal Asher books I've read so far, this is my favourite. The story is fast-paced and full of gloriously grim descriptions. The sardonic interplay between Old Captain Orbus and his disgustingly-named crewmate Drooble are hilarious, as is the strange relationship between the drones Sniper and Thirteen. And over it all looms the mutating Prador Vrell, being hunted by the Prador King and a mythical monster of Prador nightmares, the Golgoloth. Gripping, chilling and entertaining. Not recommended to Asher newcomers but to the seasoned veterans!

[Luke Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great finish to the trilogy. It never sets foot on the planet Spatterjay but the Spatterjay virus is, effectively, the central plot piece that ties everything together. Whilst the plot mechanisations are swiftly dealt with in the first half, it’s later half is a series of ever escalating set pieces that are just enormous.

It’s a testament to how much I enjoy Asher’s work that, even though it wouldn’t feature in my top 3 favourites, it’s still worthy of a 5 star rating. It’s just a blast.

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

The weirdest trilogy I've ever read. This third book is bins off half the characters and world building of the first two, and just becomes a completely different story. At least this one had some plot worth following unlike the second one.

[Loralie · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5*

[Ardent · Rating 4 out of 5]

recenzia niekedy nabuduce :)

[Ben Hatfield · Rating 4 out of 5]

Way better than The Voyage of the Sable Keech, but not up to the level of The Skinner. Really this book is all about following some already established characters, but to say this book is a continuation of the first two books would be misleading. Instead of the wildly exotic Spatterjay environment, we follow an old ship captain, a mutated prador, and a war drone through their struggles in and around various space ships. Really this book is way more about the characters than the environment, where as The Voyage of the SK is a lot about the events on a single large boat on Spatterjay, and The Skinner is all about the various dangers of the planet itself. There actually is a trend to how the series of books has been conceived. I enjoyed following the three main characters, and even the 5 or so important characters around them - action, bloodshed and transformations. Fun to see bitter enemies become unwilling allies, working together out of need. While entertaining, and worth reading - I really pine for content from The Skinner. The brutality and mystery of that environment is really only captured in that book and a short story or two. Part of the mystery of Spatterjay becomes a crucial story element in Orbus, and I didn't like the clear explanation of what the Spatterjay virus is, and why it exists - it's that clear explanation of how it all fits together that I don't like. If there is ancient genetic code with deep secrets from super intelligences... perhaps the pandora's box effect doesn't need to have such a clear explanation - I'd rather the Spatterjay virus had yet unexplained depth, but I don't see how that is possible with how this book explores that content. Just my opinion - and not really a huge hit to this book, but Neal seems to understand the importance of maintaining mystery, so I was surprised how this was handled.

[Jana · Rating 5 out of 5]

One could guess that some plausibly deniable mayhem might ensue.

A really satisfying end to what has been an absolute joy of a trilogy. I've seen quite a few reviews (especially of The Voyage of the Sable Keech) complain about these books getting a bit samey, and they're not wrong. But if you leave a bit of time between reading each, especially between the first two, having more of the same is THE BEST. I love plausibly deniable mayhem.

Orbus is quite different in that it takes us away from Spatterjay, and has a much greater focus on the Prador and the Prador King (who is epic). However, the virus is still at its centre, and it features Sniper, in all his glory, and Vrell, who turns out to be great. Who'd have thought I'd be rooting for a Prador?

Orbus himself is more haunted by his past than the other Old Captains, and for most of this book I was a little puzzled about why it was named for him, since he doesn't actually feature all that much. But I think, in the end, he is the symbol of a lot of themes in the book--a denial of learned behaviour, overcoming prejudices and, as always, an intense will to survive. It would be awesome to read about his and the surviving crew's adventures after the conclusion of this book (I haven't checked, but I suspect we don't revisit them in future novels. What a pity).

Star rating: I dock one star because the technobabble gets a little bit much at times, but add one because the action and huge battles are really well rendered and the book wraps the series up well, making the total five again. Also there weren't any pointless subplots (I'm looking at you, giant whelk).

[Nia Sinjorina · Rating 4 out of 5]

And so we step off of the planet where every drop of ocean water is as likely to eat you as wet you and into a space opera classic: giant capital ships, huge weapons, mega explosions, and lots of sneaking around in between pitched battles.  It's Asher doing what he does best: massive tech on a stellar scale.

Full of twists and turns an electric pace, and moments of comedy, Asher also explores the more rational side of the Prador - some of them anyway - a race it would be easy to paint as monochrome monsters. Of great interest was the development of the Jain side of the universe, just whispers up until now but setting the scenes for more discussions of the older races in the more recent books (I think I'm reading backwards ;-))

An excellent third book that offers a satisfying conclusion and a reluctant farewell to some fabulous characters.

Fleecy Moss, author of the Folio 55 SciFi fantasy series (writing as Nia Sinjorina), End of a Girl, Undon , and 4659 now available on Amazon.

[Marco Paganini · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book tells the story of captain Orbus, a troubled "Old Captain" from planet Spatterjay looking for a new chapter in his life. Seeking new horizons, he leaves planet Spatterjay and becomes the captain of the space cargo hauler Gurnard, but soon realizes there's a bit more to his new job that it seems. He reacquaints himself with some old friends (from the previous books) and some new characters as well (which I won't say here, to avoid spoiling the fun.)

In contrast to the previous books in the series, the story in "Orbus" happens entirely in space. There's a limited (but important) set of well known characters, and a few very unexpected new ones. This book is action-packed from beginning to end and also closes a lot of gaps from previous books in the Polity series.

In my opinion, the best book in the Spatterjay trilogy, and a complete page turner for me.

[Fred · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wasn’t sure this would be a good one since Orbus is not a very exciting character. However I soon realized that this but was not so much about Orbus, as it was about the much cooler characters of Spider the killer AI and Vrell the vicious Prador. In fact I don’t understand why this book was named after Orbus. Vrell would have been a better name. Anyways awesome book about the Prador and the Jain super soldiers. Much better than the 2nd Spatterjay book, and almost better than the 1st Spatterjay book.

[Miki]

More a three-and-a-half-star book. Asher shading into space opera, and doing so in somewhat undistinguished fashion. Lots of Prador history exposition, but with confused results, making them a little more human but inconsistently so. Similarly indeterminate humanization of Orbus himself, with a scattering of psychological vignettes but no real depth. Maybe not three-and-a-half after all.

[Gav]

Orbus is the third book in the Spatterjay series – I know this as William Gaminara reminded me when he started narrating Neal Asher’s return to Sniper and Vrell. This time we the switch in focus to Captain Orbus as he takes us away from the planet Spatterjay and out to the Graveyard, border between the Polity and the Prador Kingdom.

But before we continue I highly recommend reading The Skinner and The Voyage of The Sable Keech first as Orbus is not a good jumping on point, being the last (so far) in this loosely connecting series. I guess you could read it in isolation but you’d miss a lot what makes Orbus a brilliantly imagined book. If you’re continuing to read I’m including spoilers form now on in. So with that in mind…

Spoiler Warning

Asher has been keeping secrets, the virus of Spatterjay isn’t all that it appears. It is so much more. And the evolution to its true nature is one part of what makes Orbus a crackling read.

At the end of the last book Vrell had entered Vrost’s ship but it’s what he does there which causes the viruses true nature to be revealed and causes the Prador King personally to arrive to finish the job that Vrost has so far failed to do. And you can see why a Prador who is infected with the Spatterjay virus shouldn’t be allowed to leave. Asher also introduces us to the Golgoloth, a myth and a story to scare young Prador, and a creature is that is very real.

Together they create a mix and a direction that I wasn’t expecting after the low level storytelling of the first two as this time the stakes could not be higher for King personally as well as the Kingdom and probably the Polity if the virus manages to get loose, which sounds dramatic, and it is.

Asher gets to stretch himself writing a grand space battle which he handles with fineness as he winds back time to see events from different views and plays out smaller dramas along with the big battle.

Orbus, being an old sea captain, infected with virus and very much mentally tainted by the Polity/Prador war on Spatterjay as explained in The Skinner and The Voyage of Sable Keech makes him a darker hero to follow. And his struggle with killing or saving Vrell at several points makes great reading.

Not that Orbus was expecting this mission when he signed up to Captain the trade ship Gurnard but Asher uses this book to demonstrate the the Polity AIs are quite manipulative and forward thinking.

End Spoiler Warning

The thing I like about Asher is that he’s always pushing and exploring his creation (the Polity). For example I’m going to read The Technician as soon as I can and that is supposed to feature a black (as in magician) AI. Now they might feature in his Agent Cormac series, which after The Technician will be the only books in the Polity I’ve not read, but I know it’s generated a sequel, Penny Royal, that he’s writing now.

But back to Orbus and a question: what should science fiction do? In Asher’s case his science fiction tells a great roller-coaster story and explores survival, genetics, societies, technology and other themes should be present in science-focused fiction. And he manages to show deep thinking without derailing the story he’s chosen to tell.

Though the voice telling this tale is that of William Gaminara who also lifted The Skinnerand The Voyage of Sable Keech off the page. It’s staggering to think that not only does Gaminara have to read for 14 hours plus but he also has to keep up with what voices he’s given to each character and it’s so smoothly done that when he slips (and he did only a handful of times) do you realise how effortless his narration feels.

For me Asher is a master craftsman and makes the Polity one of my favourite storytelling environments. It’s a universe that I’d urge any SF fan to explore right now.

[Ola G · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10 stars

My full review on my blog.

The conclusion to the Spatterjay trilogy takes us back to space, far away from the murderously interesting planet Spatterjay, but not away from the root cause of its lethality – and all those fascinated by the ancient Jain should have a field day with Orbus because Asher really pulls out all the stops.

Orbus is a quintessential Asher novel – gory, imaginative, baroquely violent and darkly humorous, mixing a frontier redemption story with high octane space battles, but this time with a surprising twist: the secret ingredient of optimism, so far away from the typical Hobbesian view of sentient life Asher usually presents, unexpectedly warmed my heart. Who would’ve thought Asher would turn out to be such a cuddly Care Bear? Not me, that’s for sure ;).

I had a blast with Orbus, and enjoyed Asher’s conclusion to the Spatterjay trilogy more than I initially thought I would. While I missed the lethal craziness of life on Spatterjay, and the Old Captains I had grown attached to, I still had a handful of characters from previous installments to cheer for – and, let’s be honest, when I realized one of them was the war drone Sniper, I knew I was in for a wild ride.

[...]

While nothing in Orbus (except the aforementioned optimism) was unexpected, and the middle sagged a little, the way the events followed one another and linked together in the end turned out quite satisfying. To put it simply, Asher has a penchant for imaginative, violent, explosive action, and Orbus is full of it. Are the events all logical, or even unavoidable within the limits of the novel? No, of course not. But the ride is wild, and it is fun. My one regret is that Asher slowed down on innovativeness in Orbus, more focused on tying together the disparate strands of the previous two novels than on introducing new concepts – well, maybe except for a surprising but very welcome call for cultural diversity :). It’s not as good as Spatterjay, or as madly entertaining as The Voyage of Sable Keech, but it is still good old Asher having loads of fun.

[Cliff · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this final volume of the Spatterjay trilogy, we are away from the planet. Old Captain Orbus is in charge of a space freighter and is in the Graveyard, an area of space that is a buffer zone between the Prador Empire and the Polity. While we meet the Prador, Vrelle, and (the two best characters of the trilogy), the wardrone, Sniper, and his side kick, Number Thirteen, we meet new characters, the Prador King and a rogue Prador, Golgogoth. The author has chosen to tell the story in this 3rd volume entirely in the present tense, I'm not quite sure why. I do have some difficulty in accepting the Prador generally. I get that their general violence towards each other is a response to their reproductive behaviour and enormous number of births. But my difficulty is in seeing how such a race where younger siblings are in terror of both their elder siblings and their fathers. Would such a race ever realistically have been stable enough to reach an advanced technical level, let alone star flight? And a point that has just occurred to me, but which may have escaped my attention. Are all 1st, 2nd, and 3rd children male? What happens to female off spring? I'm glad I've reached the end of the saga for, at times, it was hard going.

[Mike Gilbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is probably my least favorite of the Spatterjay books. Too much AI (even though Sniper is pretty cool) and too much Jain, all of the things that sort of wore me out of the latest two trilogies.

The story is still good - and it’s cool to continue along with Vrell as a lead character and to even see things from the eye-stalks of a few other Prador.

Maybe I just need a break from oversight of Earth Central...

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great ending to a fantastic series. I felt 100% connected with some of the strangest of "people" - I have to say at the start I was concerned about the use of hate-mongering to build an enemy but the character development ended up the best of the series.
Also, Neal continues with his great attention to detail so that you can see the action happening in your brain eyes. And there is lots of action. And tension. And I need to know what happened moments.

Great read!

[Chris Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great way to start off the new year.

Have recently looked up the best order to read the works of Neal Asher, cause if any author deserves to be reread, and in the right order, it is he.

These books are fascinating on their own, and all stand alone very well. You can also leave a tremendous gap between books and come out none the worse.

I'm a big fan of the Spatterjay series, and am happy to finish the third installement.

[C · Rating 3 out of 5]

With this volume, the Spatterjay trilogy comes to an end. A good end to a good series, though it's over all too fast. We get to see a more interesting side of the Prador, too. Some will probably find bits of it a bit twee, but on the whole it wraps things up while leaving plenty of avenues for future books to explore. As ever, Asher does well at making his universe feel lived in, even when playing with some classic sci-fi tropes.