What do you think?
Rate this book
Dayworld #3
Dayworld Breakup
William Duncan, the rebel daybreaker, and his lover, Panthea Snick, set out to reveal the dark secrets of Dayworld and the formula for long life and to end the repressive hegemony
366 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1990
16 people are currently reading
353 people want to read
About the author
Philip José Farmer
592 books886 followersPhilip José Farmer was an American author, principally known for his science fiction and fantasy novels and short stories. He was born in Terre Haute, Indiana, but spent much of his life in Peoria, Illinois.
Farmer is best known for his Riverworld series and the earlier World of Tiers series. He is noted for his use of sexual and religious themes in his work, his fascination for and reworking of the lore of legendary pulp heroes, and occasional tongue-in-cheek pseudonymous works written as if by fictional characters.
Farmer is best known for his Riverworld series and the earlier World of Tiers series. He is noted for his use of sexual and religious themes in his work, his fascination for and reworking of the lore of legendary pulp heroes, and occasional tongue-in-cheek pseudonymous works written as if by fictional characters.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
April 8, 2015
Dayworld Breakup (1990) 365 pages by Philip Jose Farmer
This book started with a synopsis by Caird's daughter of the first two volumes of the Dayworld trilogy. So I was thinking, "OK, sometime during this book he'll have a daughter, or we'll learn where she came from." About three quarters the way through Caird meets his daughter, and she was an adult at that time. From what I remember of the first book, Jefferson Caird in his Tuesday persona was an organic (a police officer), and among the things that he was going to do was to go to the bureau of something and apply for a license to have a child, and it would be his first child. That book followed each one of his personae for one day. Later on that week his Tuesday wife was killed by the lunatic immer he was chasing, and none of his other personae had children, and even if they did they would have had a different surname. There wasn't enough time elapsed from the start of the story to when he met her, for her to have grown to an adult.
Forget that, she was a very minor character in the story anyway. The story then picks up with Duncan(Caird) and Snick escaping from Immerman's penthouse, making public the formula for the age slowing factor, and the fact that the world population was 2 billion not 10, and that the need for the day system was no longer necessary.
After destoning the entire population of LA, knocking the power out, escaping to the wilds, he and Snick came back to the city, met with members of the rebellion group, until they worked their way to the top. After some more havoc, they escaped again.
The next part of the story is sort of a turning point and unexpected, so rather than be a spoiler I'll stop exposing any more of the plot. The introduction foreshadowed the breakup of dayworld so I can say there was a bit more with the logistics of trying to create a world to accomodate seven times as many people. There was a definite change of pace.
The Dayworld trilogy is good, in spite of it going from action oriented to more psychological writing for a hundred pages. I guess there had to be some ending and he did kind of try to explain what happened to make Caird the way he was. It didn't get to a point where I had to slog through it. I can still recommend it, and the whole series.
This book started with a synopsis by Caird's daughter of the first two volumes of the Dayworld trilogy. So I was thinking, "OK, sometime during this book he'll have a daughter, or we'll learn where she came from." About three quarters the way through Caird meets his daughter, and she was an adult at that time. From what I remember of the first book, Jefferson Caird in his Tuesday persona was an organic (a police officer), and among the things that he was going to do was to go to the bureau of something and apply for a license to have a child, and it would be his first child. That book followed each one of his personae for one day. Later on that week his Tuesday wife was killed by the lunatic immer he was chasing, and none of his other personae had children, and even if they did they would have had a different surname. There wasn't enough time elapsed from the start of the story to when he met her, for her to have grown to an adult.
Forget that, she was a very minor character in the story anyway. The story then picks up with Duncan(Caird) and Snick escaping from Immerman's penthouse, making public the formula for the age slowing factor, and the fact that the world population was 2 billion not 10, and that the need for the day system was no longer necessary.
After destoning the entire population of LA, knocking the power out, escaping to the wilds, he and Snick came back to the city, met with members of the rebellion group, until they worked their way to the top. After some more havoc, they escaped again.
The next part of the story is sort of a turning point and unexpected, so rather than be a spoiler I'll stop exposing any more of the plot. The introduction foreshadowed the breakup of dayworld so I can say there was a bit more with the logistics of trying to create a world to accomodate seven times as many people. There was a definite change of pace.
The Dayworld trilogy is good, in spite of it going from action oriented to more psychological writing for a hundred pages. I guess there had to be some ending and he did kind of try to explain what happened to make Caird the way he was. It didn't get to a point where I had to slog through it. I can still recommend it, and the whole series.
February 13, 2012
This series started out as a sci-fi cloak and dagger caper, then became a revolutionary tale and ended as a psychological profile of a disturbed man. I don't think that Farmer knew where he was going after the first book. He didn't plan it; it just came out a big confused mess. This series has been compared favorably to the Riverworld books, but isn't really in the same league.
June 1, 2018
2 stars, Metaphorosis Reviews
As with Dayworld Rebel, there's not a great amount of logic to this book. Farmer doesn't worry much about cause, effect, and logical outcomes. Instead, he simply posits a situation, inhabits it for a while, and then tells us that he's moved on.
The series has had an ongoing focus on its protagonist's mental state and powers, and in reading the series, it's evident that Farmer is making it up as he goes along. In this last book of the trilogy, it's clear that he's decided to double down on Caird's multiple personas and his special abilities. Unfortunately, none of those issues is particularly interesting, and while Farmer sets out a number of threads, he doesn't follow them to the end, leaving us with even more of a muddle than we had at the start. While more focused than book 1, and less frenzied than book 2, this third book is unfortunately the dullest of the bunch.
As with Dayworld Rebel, there's not a great amount of logic to this book. Farmer doesn't worry much about cause, effect, and logical outcomes. Instead, he simply posits a situation, inhabits it for a while, and then tells us that he's moved on.
The series has had an ongoing focus on its protagonist's mental state and powers, and in reading the series, it's evident that Farmer is making it up as he goes along. In this last book of the trilogy, it's clear that he's decided to double down on Caird's multiple personas and his special abilities. Unfortunately, none of those issues is particularly interesting, and while Farmer sets out a number of threads, he doesn't follow them to the end, leaving us with even more of a muddle than we had at the start. While more focused than book 1, and less frenzied than book 2, this third book is unfortunately the dullest of the bunch.
July 11, 2017
Dayworld Breakup by Philip Jose Farmer- The finale in the Dayworld trilogy finally reveals many of the hinted secrets and hidden agendas of the first two books. I'm not giving away any secrets when I say there is a lot of thrilling well executed action here adding very little to this overblown plot. Yes, it's still enjoyable to read Farmer's electric prose, but as I've said before in the review of the second book- this would have made a much more satisfying novel rather than a trilogy. Yes, it would have been long, but less padded, more concise, and not so annoying at times. That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it. I just keep editing it in my head and want it to be as perfect as Philip Jose Farmer would want it. You decide.
March 27, 2022
It has been several years since I read the first two in the series but I did not find this concluding novel to be at the same level as the first two (if memory serves me right). Farmer is an excellent writer but this one just seemed to lose direction in its desire to finish off the trilogy.
July 10, 2018
The ending was 4 stars as the mysteries of Caird character are finally revealed, but long periods in the middle seemed to drag on as there was very little action in the last of the trilogy.
November 5, 2018
The last book in the Dayworld Trilogy and it’s a good one. I have never been disappointed in a Farmer novel and this is up there as one of my favorites.
Read
November 21, 2023I found the overall premise of Dayworld fascinating. Dayworld Rebel read like a bridge book to the conclusion of the series Dayworld Breakup. Looking forward to reading it.
February 19, 2024
Great conclusion- if you enjoyed the first two- and an interesting sci-fi setting in future north America, followed by a bit of a ramble in the 2nd half.
December 6, 2009
An interesting premise that starts well, but loses itself about halfway through when it dwells on the psychosis of one main character. Secondary characters fall by the wayside without explanation and the story quickly becomes lost and uneventful. I read on in the hope it might get exciting again, but alas, was met only with disappointment and boredom.
August 18, 2016
I liked Dayworld series quite much as it had some nice futuristic elements depicted in a time when nobody else thought about them (for example virtual reality suits to impersonate other people when making video calls). Also I liked the Orwellian take on politics and problems of the overpopulation is also cleverly solved.
June 17, 2009
Maybe 1 star is harsh. It is not nearly as good as the novel that opened the Dayworld trilogy. Call it 1.5 stars.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews