Mass Market Paperback, 988 pages
English language
Published Nov. 10, 2005 by Del Rey/Ballantine Books.
Critics have compared the engrossing space operas of Peter F. Hamilton to the classic sagas of such sf giants as Isaac Asimov and Frank Herbert. But Hamilton's bestselling fiction--powered by a fearless imagination and world-class storytelling skills--has also earned him comparison to Tolstoy and Dickens. Hugely ambitious, wildly entertaining, philosophically stimulating: the novels of Peter F. Hamilton will change the way you think about science fiction. Now, with Pandora's Star, he begins a new multivolume adventure, one that promises to be his most mind-blowing yet. The year is 2380. The Intersolar Commonwealth, a sphere of stars some four hundred light-years in diameter, contains more than six hundred worlds, interconnected by a web of transport "tunnels" known as wormholes. At the farthest edge of the Commonwealth, astronomer Dudley Bose observes the impossible: Over one thousand light-years away, a star . . . vanishes. It does not go supernova. It does not …
Critics have compared the engrossing space operas of Peter F. Hamilton to the classic sagas of such sf giants as Isaac Asimov and Frank Herbert. But Hamilton's bestselling fiction--powered by a fearless imagination and world-class storytelling skills--has also earned him comparison to Tolstoy and Dickens. Hugely ambitious, wildly entertaining, philosophically stimulating: the novels of Peter F. Hamilton will change the way you think about science fiction. Now, with Pandora's Star, he begins a new multivolume adventure, one that promises to be his most mind-blowing yet. The year is 2380. The Intersolar Commonwealth, a sphere of stars some four hundred light-years in diameter, contains more than six hundred worlds, interconnected by a web of transport "tunnels" known as wormholes. At the farthest edge of the Commonwealth, astronomer Dudley Bose observes the impossible: Over one thousand light-years away, a star . . . vanishes. It does not go supernova. It does not collapse into a black hole. It simply disappears. Since the location is too distant to reach by wormhole, a faster-than-light starship, the Second Chance, is dispatched to learn what has occurred and whether it represents a threat. In command is Wilson Kime, a five-time rejuvenated ex-NASA pilot whose glory days are centuries behind him.Opposed to the mission are the Guardians of Selfhood, a cult that believes the human race is being manipulated by an alien entity they call the Starflyer. Bradley Johansson, leader of the Guardians, warns of sabotage, fearing the Starflyer means to use the starship's mission for its own ends,.Pursued by a Commonwealth special agent convinced the Guardians are crazy but dangerous, Johansson flees. But the danger is not averted. Aboard the Second Chance, Kime wonders if his crew has been infiltrated. Soon enough, he will have other worries. A thousand light-years away, something truly incredible is waiting: a deadly discovery whose unleashing will threaten to destroy the Commonwealth . . . and humanity itself. Could it be that Johansson was right?From the Hardcover edition.
Second time I've read this, and it was still as good as I remembered. It is long, and maybe a lot fat could be cut from it, but this was the first big space opera type book I had read and I still liked it a lot.
The tale has a few interesting elements, but this is in the end a DNF for me. The plot feels to slowed down through pointless density for me to sense actively engaged in what is going on. i am positive this is a stellar hit for a few people
It's funny how memory works... before this re-read, I would have talked highly of Pandora's Star. I would have said I was especially impressed with the detailed alien world-building of the main protagonist. In my memory, this was a major component of the story...
Well, memory isn't always to be trusted, because this book is not that story.
True, it does have the interesting alien world-building, but it is such a minor part of it. In fact, the alien protagonist isn't revealed until over 60% of the way into the book. You get a few tens of pages of development... and then it goes away for most of the rest of the book until the very final part.
What comes before is pure soap-opera. Not the riveting "Den and Angie" type soap build-up; more like Eldorado. Countless characters;flat dialogue; disconnected, convoluted plot-lines that may at some point in the future …
It's funny how memory works... before this re-read, I would have talked highly of Pandora's Star. I would have said I was especially impressed with the detailed alien world-building of the main protagonist. In my memory, this was a major component of the story...
Well, memory isn't always to be trusted, because this book is not that story.
True, it does have the interesting alien world-building, but it is such a minor part of it. In fact, the alien protagonist isn't revealed until over 60% of the way into the book. You get a few tens of pages of development... and then it goes away for most of the rest of the book until the very final part.
What comes before is pure soap-opera. Not the riveting "Den and Angie" type soap build-up; more like Eldorado. Countless characters;flat dialogue; disconnected, convoluted plot-lines that may at some point in the future join together... I'm a sucker for a good build-up, but there's a limit, you know?
Like the Nights Dawn trilogy by the same author, this needed a good editing. That interesting alien world-building and protagonist would have worked really well in a 400-500 page book.
As it is, this just feels needlessly long.
The story has some intriguing elements, but this is ultimately a DNF for me. The plot feels to bogged down via unnecessary density for me to feel actively engaged in what is going on. I'm sure this is a stellar hit for some people, but definitely not for me. For reference, I stopped reading at about 330 pages in
I really loved this book and its sequel “Judas Unchained”. The books are part of the Commonwealth saga of Peter F. Hamilton and contain everything the SciFi heart longs for: Aliens, space ships, space action, different worlds, world hopping, cyborg stuff to name just a few. I also really like Hamiltons style of writing, it’s a good read even for a non native speaker like me. A Must read for every SciFi fan!
I wanted to like this book but it was entirely too long with too many distractions and it didn't finish the story. Introducing the antagonist 61% of the way in to a 1000 page book…cmon! Rather than a half dozen plot lines it should have stuck to one or two and told more of the story. Parallel books in the same universe would have been a better approach. I honestly feel cheated by the ending and disinclined to start the next volume.
Space opera with mystery and variously disinterested aliens, really well done with many layers. But this is just half the book, so plan on reading another 800 pages.
I can't remember where I saw the recommendation for this book, possibly on twitter. This book is really long, which is something I actually like and it is oh.so.good. The huge cast of characters,aliens, and cool tech what more could I want?
I finished this book and went straight to book 2.
Quoting Sara King;
"Hard science fiction, a.k.a. technobabble, is the dry stuff that reminds you of college physics textbooks explaining cool new ideas in a very logical way. I mean, it’s neat, but you can forget the main character’s name in a couple days."
And that's pretty much how I found this book. Dry. And really long-winded with forgettable characters. I really didn't care whether or not any of the characters in Pandora's Star made it or not. So, unfortunately, I quit this book.
Quoting Sara King;
"Hard science fiction, a.k.a. technobabble, is the dry stuff that reminds you of college physics textbooks explaining cool new ideas in a very logical way. I mean, it’s neat, but you can forget the main character’s name in a couple days."And that's pretty much how I found this book. Dry. And really long-winded with forgettable characters. I really didn't care whether or not any of the characters in Pandora's Star made it or not. So, unfortunately, I quit this book.
First sci-fi I've read, mind=blown. Literal cliffhanger though. Which just means that the two books (this and Judas Unchained) are basically 1 very large book divided into two large books.
Entertaining space opera. Doesn't really end and has sequel.
I found this at our local used book store, and wowza. Granted I'm a sci-fi nut, but Hamilton surprised me, with how deep his universe goes and how well he lays it all out.
My only gripe, and this isn't a Hamilton problem, but I had no idea it was a two parter, until I was 7/8s done and the story wasn't resolving, a quick flip to the back page, and low and behold, a second part.
If you're into the deeper sci-fi stories that have real people and lots of them, this two book series is a must. I'm reading the second part right now.
Epic. Good story, though it takes a few hundred pages to really get going.
