December 2nd, 2023
"I discovered Canadian Sci-Fi author Phyllis Gotlieb in the early 2000's. Over the course of her life, she wrote 12 novels, including the Starcats trilogy, the Dahlgren duology and the Flesh and Gold trilogy, plus standalones. Since that time I've enjoyed the Starcats very much and O Master Caliban, the first of Dahlgren, plus Sunburst. Gotlieb has a unique Sci-Fi vision and I love how she tells a story. I only recently discovered that O Master Caliban had a sequel, Heart of Red Iron.
It's been over 10 years since I read O Master Caliban so it took me a bit to get into the characters and the flow of the story but once I did, I enjoyed it very much. Sven Dahlgren returns to planet Barrazin V with his wife, Ardagh, his robot 'clone' Mod Sven, a group of scientists led by Sir Frederick Havergal (married to Sven's mother), two groups of colonists for other alien worlds, the Meshar and the Yefni, plus other scientists and technical staff.
Sven was born (created more correctly) by his father on Barrazin V many years before. Sven is human but also has 4 arms. He and Ardagh escaped Barrazin V when the Erds (sentient robots) went berserk and killed the humans trying to colonize the planet. Now Sven returns as part of a scientific group to see if the planet is suitable for colonization by the Meshar and Yefni. Sir Frederic also has ulterior motives for coming to the planet.
Besides these people, there are other aspects to this rich story. A group of crystalloids, led by Prima, have crash landed on the planet and are stuck in a lava field. They are only able to communicate with a brain-damaged girl. Besides them are a rogue group of Erds, seeking to join humanity.
It's a complex plot with neat characters, an uninviting planet and lots of action. The story focuses on many of the characters. The more the story develops, the more tension there is. I enjoyed how the plot built and the characters grew. It was a fascinating Sci-Fi story and a very satisfactory ending to a duology. I highly recommend. (4.0 stars)"
Enjoy your weekend.
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