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Title: Dying of the Light by George R. R. Martin ISBN: 0-671-22861-7 Publisher: Pocket Books Pub. Date: June, 1982 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $10.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (12 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Great interplanetary romance, the best SF novel ever!
Comment: 4 me, the best science fiction novel EVER. DYING OF THE LIGHT (originally called AFTER THE FESTIVAL in its 1st appearance in 1977 in Analog magazine) echoes many of George R.R. Martin's early themes -- lost love, devotion, romantic fantasy vs. grim reality, dark & moody settings, finding heroism within yrself, etc. DOTL also shares the same setting & background of many of Martin's early short stories, which will add 2 Njoyment of the novel 4 his fans. Wonderful setting, marvelous characters, great hand-to-hand combat & fierce emotions among believable characters, & a gorgeous heroic ending. George shoulda kept writing like this. Other great early stuff by Martin: WINDHAVEN (with Lisa Tuttle), the short-story collections SANDKINGS, A SONG FOR LYA, SONGS OF STARS AND SHADOWS and NIGHTFLYERS, and parts of THE ARMAGGEDDON RAG. I wish he'd written a couple more SF novels B4 moving 2 TV & what he calls "the big fat fantasy novels" he's writing now. I've bn a Martin fan since '74 -- glad some other folks finally caught on. But I find his early stuff has a romantic sense of mood, vision & soul that his newer work lacks....
Rating: 3
Summary: Comments on G.R.R. Martin's First Novel
Comment: "Dying of the Light" was George R.R. Martin's first novel, and it certainly shows. He is very ambitious in this initial attempt and the results are mixed. The book is usually catalogued as Science Fiction, but it hardly feels like it. Sure, there is a glimpse of a history of human expansion into other galaxies and even 'Old Terra' is mentioned, but it is a mere background to set the story, not a relevant ingredient. Even when Martin uses scientific aspects ( technological applications ) throughout the book it is in a rather superficial and somehow 'pulp' way; Martin is more interested in the landscapes and in his characters.
As I said, the book feels over ambitious, the length being to short to be able to develop in a proper way the complex cornucopia of names, places, languages and customs that Martin set to create. The drive of the plot depends entirely in the amusing planet Worlorn, a once bright world where for a decade a 'Festival Of the Worlds' was held, but which now is turning dark, little by little leaving the sun than once brightened it. Worlorn is now almost unpopulated but the past glory of its cities still remains and is the stage for a story which moves around a past romance and the traditions of war-like people called Kavalar.
Martin tries hard to make his characters be as 'flesh and bone' as possible but in my opinion he only partially achieves it: At the end of book the Kavalar characters seem much more interesting than the main ones, Dirk and Gwen (although probably that was all along Martin's final intention).
Don't expect a fast paced adventure; Sometimes the story drags with seemingly no apparent direction but Martin is building tension towards a quite philosophical finale when the experiences on this planet have transformed the main character's views on life
It is in the impressive set of vistas from Worlorn that we get the best parts of the novel. The exquisite description of each abandoned city and its secrets already shows the magnificent talent that Martin will develop fully in his most successful saga: 'The Song of Ice and Fire'.
Rating: 5
Summary: A Classic SF romance novel
Comment: This is a novel that I get the urge to read about every five years. A previous reviewer compared this to the classic Casablanca, and I really think it is a fair comparsion. Instead of the Nazis, the main squeeze in this novel is the fact the action takes place on a rouge planet. A rouge which belongs to no planetary system that is briefly made habitable.
As the time grow shorts on this quickly dying planet a reunion of old lovers takes place. However, all is not smooth as different characters with their own agendas mesh to a fiery conclusion that leaves you sad and thrilled with equal measure.
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Title: Tuf Voyaging by George R. R. Martin ISBN: 1592220053 Publisher: Meisha Merlin Publishing Pub. Date: August, 2003 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
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Title: Nightflyers by George R. R. Martin ISBN: 0312943326 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: December, 1985 List Price(USD): $8.95 |
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Title: Fevre Dream by George R. R. Martin ISBN: 0671431854 Publisher: Pocket Books Pub. Date: 01 November, 1983 List Price(USD): $3.95 |
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Title: A Song for Lya: And Other Stories by George R. R. Martin ISBN: 1930235119 Publisher: Babbage Press Pub. Date: December, 2001 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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Title: The Armageddon Rag by George R. R. Martin ISBN: 0671532537 Publisher: Pocket Books Pub. Date: January, 1985 List Price(USD): $3.95 |
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