Hope of Earth

Geodyssey #3

by Piers Anthony

In Isle of Woman and Shame of Man , the firs two volumes of the monumental Geodyssey saga, bestselling author Piers Anthony chronicles the triumphs and tragedies of two remarkable families reborn again and again in some of the most turbulent eras of human history.

Now, with H ope of Earth, Anthony brings us a stirring epic that ranges from our ancient beginnings in Africa's Great Rift Valley to the windswept Andes a century from now, and includes some of history's most fascinating figures--the mysterious "Ice Man" of the Swiss Alps, the decadent King Herod, the British Warrior Queen Boudica, the Mongol Chieftan Tamurlane, and King Louis XIV of France.

Exciting, imaginative, and inspiring, Hope of Earth is the story of a group of heroic men and women, bound by ties of passion, honor, and blood, who struggle to transcend our violent past and forge and new and shinning future.

Genres: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Science Fiction, Historical, Romance, Ebooks

640 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Though he spent the first four years of his life in England, Piers never returned to live in his country of birth after moving to Spain and immigrated to America at age six. After graduating with a B.A. from Goddard College, he married one of his fellow students and and spent fifteen years in an assortment of professions before he began writing fiction full-time.

Piers is a self-proclaimed environmentalist and lives on a tree farm in Florida with his wife. They have two grown daughters.

Reviews

[Ruth Soz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've never been a big fan of science fiction, but this is definitely an exception. Such an interesting concept. Spanning over millions of years, each book involves a theme and a single set of characters living life through several diffent time periods throughout world history. Although very entertaining and enjoyable, I found myself learning a bit too.

[Awallens · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was OK but they're starting to get formulaic. I think I'll wait a bit until I read the next one. Definitely a good series, just don't read them back to back like I did.

[Ande Bewley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series simply amazes me! It just shows what a fantastic storywriter Piers is! His level of research in mind boggling.

[Ben Lund · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping that I would get back into Anthony's work and enjoy it as much as I did when I was in high school, but I think that my best memories of him are all behind me. The storyline is mildly interesting, the history is mildly boring, and the writing is not that great. I think Mr Anthony is just one of those writers that you discover in your high school/middle school library, enjoy everything you can for a little while, but then move on to bigger and better books. I remember reading all of his "Incarnations of Immortality" and "Adept" series and a good piece of "Xanth" and "Mode" as well and loving it...at the time. But the writing just doesn't hold up. When there are writers out their like Brandon Sanderson, Robert Jordan, Neal Stephenson, even Dan Simmons, I want the 4 course dinner. I'm not going to settle for the happy meal.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the story of Sam's family and how it grows and expands and deals with the issues that arise as they are reincarnated through the different time periods. Also the environmental message is as wonderful as ever.

[Terra · Rating 4 out of 5]

in quarta di copertina questa complicata "human odyssey" viene paragonata alla saga del clan dell'orso di jean auel. mi sembra offensivo per anthony, che forse ha avuto meno successo ma mi sembra molto meno superficiale e scontato.

[Divya Pal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read in the Nineties.

[Trudy Roy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Follows a band of siblings through time. Interesting.

[Anastaciaknits · Rating 3 out of 5]

I grew up a huge Piers Anthony fan, and I keep trying to remain one as an adult. I still do consider myself a fan, even though I'm always vastly disappointed when I read one of his books.

This is the 3rd book in the geodyssey saga. I've read all of them before, and this one is a reread. You can read the books in order or as a stand alone.

The premise sounds cool on paper - follow one family through history and see what happens. Anthony picks various events in history, explains a bit of back story and reveals his thoughts behind why he writes each chapter the way he does. The first half of the book I found quite enjoyable, but the latter half I was simply bored with. Not sure if it was because the characters were just not evolving, or because I was bored with the historical events he was talking about, or a combination of other things, but the second half simply dragged. I ended up skipping most of one chapter completely because I could not get interested in the story, at all.

So, what's good about the book? Well, it's an Anthony book and as I already explained, he's got a built in fan in me. I love history, and I enjoy what he's trying to do in this book. I like the fact that the characters all have flaws, though he places way too much emphasis on physical flaws and repeats that emphasis in each and every chapter. I like the fact that the book spans such a huge span of history - including the future (though it's way too Romeo & Juliet for me). I like the fact that it's part of a series.

But I just never get behind any of the characters, though I didn't dislike any of them, either. I think because there are six major characters in the book (all being a major character in a few individual chapters and being a minor character in others), plus husbands, wives, kids, and various enemies, there are just too many people to keep track of.

So all in all, I have mixed feelings about the book. I like it enough that I have to give it 3 stars, but I dislike it enough that I can't rate it any better.

I borrowed this book from my dad, who introduced me to Piers Anthony in the first place.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third in Piers Anthony's Geodyssey series, and the fourth that I've read, and despite minor quibbles, it remains my favorite of his series. Anyone who has read my past reviews of Anthony's work will know that I prefer when he leans more heavily on sci-fi, less heavily on fantasy. In the Geodyssey series he successfully combines history, anthropology, and fictional elements into a fascinating portrait of human development throughout the ages. As in previous volumes, the characters here are seen moving through history: the characters remain the same from chapter to chapter, but they appear in different historical periods and in varying cultures across the globe. Thus, the big picture of human history is painted while, simultaneously, the history of an individual family is detailed. Sometimes this means that Anthony has to stretch his plot a little in order to maintain the thread of the characters' stories, and he tends to re-explain the underlying premises a little too often. In addition, the dialogue is, at times, a bit stilted. But, really, these are minor faults when compared to the provocative conjectures which propel all of these novels along at a thumping pace. And if they lack somewhat in high drama and suspense, they more than make up for it in insights into human nature and its development. Good stuff!

[Chip · Rating 3 out of 5]

Instead of inventing new characters for plot lines across history, what if you used the same characters over and over again? That way the author can spend less time in character development and more time exploring the period involved... kind of a Reader's Digest version of history. That's the basis behind the Geodyssey series, and Anthony has polished the device to near perfection. As a romp through time without time travel and all the paradoxii involved, this book is an okay read. The characters aren't very deep, and I didn't feel invested in them when the book ended. The last chapter, a near-futuristic Quaker vs Survivalist/love vs guns/religious discipline vs military discipline dichotomy didn't seem realistic or believable. I picked up this book because I remembered being impressed by Isle of Woman (although I can't recall any of the plot) about two decades ago. I'm not impressed with Hope of Earth, and don't have much hope for the continuation of the series. I won't be reading any more about it.

[Joey · Rating 5 out of 5]

These books are simply amazing. The concept sounds gimmicky, but it works quite well. The trilogy follows a family through the eons of human development. At the beginning, they are pre-human primates, and each chapter finds them evolving gradually through history and even (by the end of book 3) into our future. The story takes up generally where it left off, although the protagonists are in different times and sometimes places with each new chapter.

The result is a sweeping epic that examines what it means to be human. It's the story of one family, with the story of the whole human race thrown in to boot. If the literary world didn't look down it's nose at anything that could be lumped into a genre like science fiction, fantasy, or horror, these books would be considered classics.

[Thomas Quatrale · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the series, although it took me awhile to finish it.
What I liked:
- the History, which was obviously extensively researched.
- the conservation theme, showing Mankind's lack of concern for it over our history.
What I did not like so much:
- Dialog of the characters. At times, I found it difficult to believe they would speak in the pedantic manner that they did. Especially children in modern times.
- The Sex. I hesitate to mention this, but it is my honest opinion, so here goes: I'm no prude, but at times I found the constant descriptions of women's bodies, particularly those of young girls, a little off-putting.
My overall opinion is that this series was well worth my time reading it.

[Merredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

this is the third book in the geodyssey saga, although you can read it all by itself. I read the first two when i was 16, so i was really happy to come across the next volume. these books follow a set of people as they live their lives, but through a time spanning from the beginning of humans till the near future. In all of this time, these characters only age probably 10 yrs or so. Like the others, it was really really interesting, and i zoomed through the book. I love learning about the history and anthropology of the people through 'real' stories. Definitely check these books out, they're some of my favorites ever!

[Crystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. Actually I like the whole series so far. This one was interesting in that the characters strayed from the "norm" for the society. That made for some intriguing episodes. I also liked how the family chose to stay together as a whole unit. No matter what happened or where they had to go, the family supported each other. I thought that was as important a theme as the history. I would definitely recommend this one, and the series, for anyone who likes historical fantasy / fiction.

[Kristen (belles_bookshelves) · Rating 3 out of 5]

"We all are as we are."

I can't explain how much I adore this series. We combine romance, adventure, reincarnation, history, and myth all into one rolling volume that literally transcends the ages. Boudica, Louis XIV, King Herod - all make appearances here. Plus the amazing tale of reincarnation as a group of individuals are reborn time and time again, meeting each other over and over, in different countries, times, and ranks, always trying to make the world a better place.

[Jeremiah Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is almost no overarching storyline in this book making it just a collection of random chapters. Most of the chapters star a different set of characters than the previous one. This makes for a relatively dull read.
Also, most of the history in this book is sub-par to that in the previous books in the series.

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hope of Earth (Geodyssey, #3)
by Piers Anthony
This book is a dynamic story with detailed scenarios over the breath of humanity into the future.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

In this book there is a character who has Tourette's Syndrome WHO IS CALLED TOURETTE. There's too much of that kind of foolishness for this to be a good book.

[Cerinawithasea · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Hope of Earth" is the third volume in Anthony's sweeping and exciting Geodyssey series, a powerful and passionate epic of human history in the tradition of Jean Auel and James Michener. In a stirring, captivating saga that ranges from our ancient beginnings in Africa's Great Rift Valley to the windswept Andes a century from now, "Hope of Earth" tells the inspiring story of a group of heroic men and women, bound by ties of passion, honor, and blood, who struggle to transcend our violent past to make a new and shining future. Through their eyes we meet some of history's most colorful figures - the mysterious "Ice Man" of the Swiss Alps, the decadent King Herod, the British Warrior Queen Boudica, the Mongol Chieftain Tamurlane, and King Louis XIV of France. And we meet again some of the most memorable characters from the two earlier volumes - Blaze and Ember, Hugh and Anne, and their remarkable descendants. But "Hope of Earth" is more than a gripping tale of tragedy and triumph. It is also Piers Anthony's heartfelt plea for us to change our ways - to break the cycle of violence, avarice, and despair that threatens our future, and transform it into a legacy of compassion and hope for our descendants.