There are books that never go where you expect. And then there are books that never go where you want them to.

This book is both of those at different times.

First off the obvious - it's a sequel to a personal favourite story that's arguably one of the best sci fi novels ever. And no, it's not any where near as awesome. (They never are).

If you haven't read that book, this one probably won't make much sense, or even convey how wonderful the original was.

This book is a very different kind of story - the original draws the backdrop the new one plays in front of.

The contrast between the two is striking.

This book is so much smaller in scope. It encompasses only a small portion of a single planet rather than most of the Milky Way. There are only a handful of characters, not dozens of groups scattered all over, and instead of millions of civilizations of billions of people dropping like flies, tragedy here is very small scale and personal.

The biggest tragedy might be the weak ending trying desperately to segue into another (as yet unwritten) sequel.

Chunks of it are adventure tale, chunks of it naive politics, there's even a hint of romance here and there. But it's all one thing, then the next, changing jarringly from section to section. Just as I'd get into it, I'd have the rug yanked out again.

It has potential, and it's moments, but ends up falling short of what it could have been.

If you loved A Fire Upon The Deep, pick this up as a return visit to Tines World to fill in some local colour.

For me it's mostly a miss I had a hard time judging on its own merits. ( )

An ok sequel to "A For Upon The Deep". But just ok.

A good example of why sci-fi authors should stick to sci-fi. Sci-fi might be often gimmicky, but the world building it can address is unparalleled. Take that away, and you often and up with a weak novel. Well, I think that's what happened here.

I wanted to love this book. I really did. It does have some pieces of argument that were ahead of its time. Protagonists have to deal with conspiracy theories perpetrated by a foreign state; state-sponsored surveillance is everywhere; gun culture for "personal protection" is briefly introduced; xenophobia is rampant; shady but lucrative businesses with maniacs is totally ok, ... the list goes on. Sounds familiar? It's not 2020, it's Vernor Vinge writing in 2011.

And yet, the story feels like filler. Characters are mostly one-dimensional, there's plenty of deus ex machina (some completely unnecessary), and the cliffhanger argument from the previous title - impending invasion by alien A.I. - is only used for background noise, and never resolved.

A let down just because I liked the previous title so much, I suppose. ( )

cum prima carte din serie a fost, după gustul meu, compusă dintr-o parte space opera de 2/5 și una first contact de 5 /5, faptul că aceasta este 100% doar cu partea de first contact m-a făcut s-o încep cu așteptări foarte mari.
Șiiiii.... am dat peste 700 de pagini de umplutură, care m-au plictisit considerabil; practic mi-a displăcut să citesc acest volum. Pe deasupra, dacă prima era cumva între public foarte tânăr, tânăr și matur, aceasta este trimisă direct spre țintă adolescentină, cu 90% din personaje (de ambele specii) adolescenți tâmpiți. Din care am fost și eu, dar nu mai sunt de vreo 2 decenii (deci nici în acest public). De altfel, dacă în prima m-a enervat foarte tare că unele personaje acționează orbește și tâmpește, fără să gândească sau să aibă îndoieli elementare, aici această situație este generalizată.
O mare dezamăgire. O carte cam de 5/10, dar sistemul idiot de notare al GR mă face să-i dau 1/5, fiindcă aici înseamnă ”Did not like it”. And i did not.
Off topic: v-am spus că urăsc sistemul de notare GR? Cărți de nota 6-7 după stilul nostru, le dau 2, că înseamnă ok. Cărți de 5-6, adică ok în logica noastră, le dau 1, că înseamnă ”did not like it”. De acum o să le dau și note românești, ca să se înțeleagă: aceasta e de 5 din 10 (are 1, dar se poate cu destule grade mai rău). ( )

This wasn't a bad story, but definitely disappointing compared to the first 2 books. Full disclosure, I read the other books more than 10 years ago so I don't remember a lot, but I do remember them blowing me away with cool concepts and sci-fi gadgetry.

This story is all restricted to one planet so there was less going on, but that did help really focus in on the characters. Without reading the first 2 books and expecting this to be a spacefaring romp with a lot more lasers and aliens, I think I would have thought it was great. ( )

A good read, but not nearly as good as A Fire Upon The Deep. The plot was engaging overall, but it had a lot of unnecessary to start, unresolved plot elements that might be redeemed by a sequel, but were just distracting given the current state of things. I also found the characterization a bit flat overall -- especially the villains. I did like the further exploration of the various aspects of joint consciousness of the Tines. Overall, a worthwhile read, but not spectacular. ( )