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Ports of Call #2
De lokkende verte
Het langverwachte vervolg op De wilde vaart!
De jonge Myron, die droomt van een grote toekomst in de ruimtevaart, is met zijn excentrieke tante Hester op zoek naar de planeet waar zich naar verluid de bron van de eeuwige jeugd bevindt. Maar na een hevige ruzie ontheft ze Myron uit zijn functie en wordt hij zonder pardon het schip uitgezet. Myron is gestrand en ziet maar één uitweg: aanmonsteren op het vrachtschip Glicca.
De Glicca heeft een even efficiënte als vreemde bemanning en zodra Myron zijn kajuit heeft betrokken, begint een opwindende tocht. Ze trekken langs talloze ruimtehavens op vreemde planeten, worden opgejaagd door ruimtepiraten en krijgen te maken met passagiers die niet zo vreedzaam zijn als ze wel lijken.
Maar na verloop van tijd wordt Myron onrustig en besluit hij dat het tijd is om op zoek te gaan naar zijn tante Hester. Kapitein Maloof heeft een persoonlijke missie van vergelijkbare aard. Myron en Maloof besluiten hun krachten te bundelen en reizen met de Glicca af naar de planeet Fluter.
‘Jack Vance is de beste nog levende SF-schrijver. Maar pas op: Vance lezen is verslavend!’ — George R.R. Martin
‘Een kleurrijk schelmenavontuur van een echte meesterverteller.’ — Kirkus Reviews
De jonge Myron, die droomt van een grote toekomst in de ruimtevaart, is met zijn excentrieke tante Hester op zoek naar de planeet waar zich naar verluid de bron van de eeuwige jeugd bevindt. Maar na een hevige ruzie ontheft ze Myron uit zijn functie en wordt hij zonder pardon het schip uitgezet. Myron is gestrand en ziet maar één uitweg: aanmonsteren op het vrachtschip Glicca.
De Glicca heeft een even efficiënte als vreemde bemanning en zodra Myron zijn kajuit heeft betrokken, begint een opwindende tocht. Ze trekken langs talloze ruimtehavens op vreemde planeten, worden opgejaagd door ruimtepiraten en krijgen te maken met passagiers die niet zo vreedzaam zijn als ze wel lijken.
Maar na verloop van tijd wordt Myron onrustig en besluit hij dat het tijd is om op zoek te gaan naar zijn tante Hester. Kapitein Maloof heeft een persoonlijke missie van vergelijkbare aard. Myron en Maloof besluiten hun krachten te bundelen en reizen met de Glicca af naar de planeet Fluter.
‘Jack Vance is de beste nog levende SF-schrijver. Maar pas op: Vance lezen is verslavend!’ — George R.R. Martin
‘Een kleurrijk schelmenavontuur van een echte meesterverteller.’ — Kirkus Reviews
222 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
12 people are currently reading
254 people want to read
About the author
Jack Vance
778 books1,588 followersAka John Holbrook Vance, Peter Held, John Holbrook, Ellery Queen, John van See, Alan Wade.
The author was born in 1916 and educated at the University of California, first as a mining engineer, then majoring in physics and finally in journalism. During the 1940s and 1950s, he contributed widely to science fiction and fantasy magazines. His first novel, The Dying Earth , was published in 1950 to great acclaim. He won both of science fiction's most coveted trophies, the Hugo and Nebula awards. He also won an Edgar Award for his mystery novel The Man in the Cage . He lived in Oakland, California in a house he designed.
The author was born in 1916 and educated at the University of California, first as a mining engineer, then majoring in physics and finally in journalism. During the 1940s and 1950s, he contributed widely to science fiction and fantasy magazines. His first novel, The Dying Earth , was published in 1950 to great acclaim. He won both of science fiction's most coveted trophies, the Hugo and Nebula awards. He also won an Edgar Award for his mystery novel The Man in the Cage . He lived in Oakland, California in a house he designed.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
January 27, 2021
it seems so long ago that i read this, my first and so far only book finished this month. it was a pleasant, hopeful, rather lovely way to start out 2021.
what is this "lurulu" of the book title?
this is my favorite author jack vance's last book. it has little in the way of a driving narrative. its central characters are low-key, well-differentiated but not ostentatiously over the top nor erratic; they have a quiet affection for each other that has a sturdy foundation of loyalty and is generously topped off with a teasing humor. ideal traveling companions for each other and for the reader. they have various adventures, they eventually find a restful home, they realize they are not done living a life of curiosity, they set out again. the novel is sequel to the equally charming, ocassionally dark Ports of Call and coda to the author's career. it ends as it is about to start again. in many ways it is an ideal last story: relaxed, gracious, ironic, humorous, hopeful, wistful, dreamy yet real; a summing up but also an open door.
synopsis: a young man and his friends travel here and there, learning about life.
what is this "lurulu" of the book title?
"If you recall, we were speaking of lurulu. At the risk of banality, I will point out that 'fate', 'destiny', and 'lurulu' are not synonymous. 'Fate' is dark and ponderous; 'destiny' is more like a beautiful sunset. In speaking of 'lurulu', however, language of this kind is not useful. Lurulu is personal; it is like hope, or a wistful longing, more real than a dream.""lurulu" was a pleasing way to envision a new year, after 2020. of course, after finishing this book, real world events soon occurred that were quite less than pleasing. and so my interest in reading fiction suddenly evaporated while an unhealthy obsession with watching the so-called news all day & all night came into being. happily, that wretched fever has passed and i am feeling a slow settling back into my preferred ways. i may now even be able to summon up the energy to reply to emails that have been for many weeks unanswered. and in time, may even start making plans!
this is my favorite author jack vance's last book. it has little in the way of a driving narrative. its central characters are low-key, well-differentiated but not ostentatiously over the top nor erratic; they have a quiet affection for each other that has a sturdy foundation of loyalty and is generously topped off with a teasing humor. ideal traveling companions for each other and for the reader. they have various adventures, they eventually find a restful home, they realize they are not done living a life of curiosity, they set out again. the novel is sequel to the equally charming, ocassionally dark Ports of Call and coda to the author's career. it ends as it is about to start again. in many ways it is an ideal last story: relaxed, gracious, ironic, humorous, hopeful, wistful, dreamy yet real; a summing up but also an open door.
synopsis: a young man and his friends travel here and there, learning about life.
January 22, 2025
Vance's last novel reads more like an addendum to Ports of Call, continuing the adventures/travels of Myron Tany and crew, but more philosophical, centering on the concept of Lurulu. What is Lurulu? An abstract concept something like kismit, karma, and shangri-la all wrapped into one. Another way of trying to define it would be along the lines of an existential meaning of life, e.g., what drives your actions and motivates them. In any case, it involves deep personal discovery and the idea of lurulu haunts the crew of the decrepit freighter as they make their way along the 'Reach.
This really does feel incomplete, with one big adventure on a planet, and then several others hastily tacked on before the denouement. Vance still possessed his world-building skills here for sure, but the book lacks focus except for the idea of lurulu, and that breaches the surface in fits and starts. Vance published this in 2004 when he was in his late 80s and perhaps he was pondering the meaning of life at the time. In any case, probably not the best introduction to his work, but pretty much a must if you are a Vance completist. 3 wistful stars.
This really does feel incomplete, with one big adventure on a planet, and then several others hastily tacked on before the denouement. Vance still possessed his world-building skills here for sure, but the book lacks focus except for the idea of lurulu, and that breaches the surface in fits and starts. Vance published this in 2004 when he was in his late 80s and perhaps he was pondering the meaning of life at the time. In any case, probably not the best introduction to his work, but pretty much a must if you are a Vance completist. 3 wistful stars.
November 11, 2013
As a standalone book, Lurulu isn't a great success. It's short, and it depends heavily on what went before. (Though there is a nice summary of Ports of Call, which is well worth reading, as it describes that book in even more colorful terms than the book itself.)
As a sequel, or considered as the final part of a single volume inexplicably split by some editor into two parts, it's quite good. It continues the story, wrapping up a number of loose (and even new) threads in a satisfying manner, all with the characteristic Vance flair.
But it's as the coda to an astounding writing career that the story (both books taken together) really satisfies. It's not Vance's strongest plot, and it doesn't have his weirdest settings, or his most inventive machinations. But it does encapsulate nicely a lot of the things I love about Vance.
The story is an unabashed travelogue in the finest Vance tradition. It showcases his never-ending, inventive flow of the weird and wonderful, of bizarre natural beauty and equally bizarre human venality. It describes customs irrational and cruel, habits set in stone, all seen from the eyes of one of Vance's most sympathetic protagonists, and an unusually large and well developed supporting cast. Emotions simmer and stir without ever overflowing. There are philosophical speculations galore, deceptively deep but cast as casual considerations and throwaway curiosities.
If the concept of 'lurulu', introduced at the end of Ports of Call is never fully exploited, its very ineffable nature as a vague sort of yearning is a fitting cap to a career of genius cataloging and trying to satisfy exactly that need. Whatever 'lurulu' is, , it's what brings me back to Vance over and over again - the feeling that whatever it is we're all looking for, Vance once stood on the hilltop and saw it, one valley over, obscured by mist, but real, and still out there waiting to be found.
CVIE VI
As a sequel, or considered as the final part of a single volume inexplicably split by some editor into two parts, it's quite good. It continues the story, wrapping up a number of loose (and even new) threads in a satisfying manner, all with the characteristic Vance flair.
But it's as the coda to an astounding writing career that the story (both books taken together) really satisfies. It's not Vance's strongest plot, and it doesn't have his weirdest settings, or his most inventive machinations. But it does encapsulate nicely a lot of the things I love about Vance.
The story is an unabashed travelogue in the finest Vance tradition. It showcases his never-ending, inventive flow of the weird and wonderful, of bizarre natural beauty and equally bizarre human venality. It describes customs irrational and cruel, habits set in stone, all seen from the eyes of one of Vance's most sympathetic protagonists, and an unusually large and well developed supporting cast. Emotions simmer and stir without ever overflowing. There are philosophical speculations galore, deceptively deep but cast as casual considerations and throwaway curiosities.
If the concept of 'lurulu', introduced at the end of Ports of Call is never fully exploited, its very ineffable nature as a vague sort of yearning is a fitting cap to a career of genius cataloging and trying to satisfy exactly that need. Whatever 'lurulu' is, , it's what brings me back to Vance over and over again - the feeling that whatever it is we're all looking for, Vance once stood on the hilltop and saw it, one valley over, obscured by mist, but real, and still out there waiting to be found.
CVIE VI
May 22, 2020
"This apparently is Jack Vance's final book. It is a nice sequel to "Ports of call" and pretty good for an author who is now in his nineties. There is no plot as such. The spaceship Glicca visits several planets and what happens to the crew or passengers on the various planets is told in the book. I love Jack Vance's descriptions and dialogue and I own about 50 of his books and collections of stories so I suppose that makes me a fan. This is a satisfying book and while it is by no means one of his best I have no doubt that I will read it several more times." was what I wrote on 3 October 2009.
I am surprised that this is only the second time I have read it. I think my earlier review still stands.
I am surprised that this is only the second time I have read it. I think my earlier review still stands.
February 29, 2016
This rating will need commenting. Review to come.
September 4, 2025
Lurulu was the last novel Jack Vance published and was released in 2004. It appears to be currently in print in hardcover, paperback and Kindle editions. My out of print hardcover copy has 167 pages of text. Lurulu is a continuation of the novel Ports of Call that was first published six years earlier. This is the second time I've read the book in recent years and continue to rate it a 3. Lurulu is recommended to Vance fans who are familiar with his writing.
For the most recent review and other Vance reviews please see:
https://vancealotjackvanceinreview.bl...
Lurulu is a word from myths and legends that represents a mysterious search or yearning for something meaningful, a wistful longing for a real reason for living. The first two chapters (17 pages) of the novel summarize what happened in the novel Ports of Call that ended suddenly in mid flight. At the end of that novel our main character, Myron Tany, was on the spaceship Glicca with three other crew members and some passengers and were on their way to the spaceport of Coro-coro on the planet Fluter. The Glicca is a cargo ship that flies from planet to planet stopping at ports to pick up or deliver cargo and sometimes passengers. At each port the crew and passengers have a new experience and encounter different cultures and people.
In Lurulu we learn about Captain Maloff's history and that he is searching for his mother who left her home planet of Traven just a few days after her husband died in a suspicious boating accident. She had some dementia and seemed to need constant entertainment so had taken up with a much younger man who called himself Loy Tremaine. She was infatuated with him acting "like a moonstruck girl." Her family noted that while Tremaine was with her he "made no effort to hide his boredom." Maloff suspects that this younger man wanted his mother's money and that he might even have been involved with the death of Maloff's father. His only lead was that Tremaine had an unusual tattoo and had mentioned to others that he was originally from the most beautiful planet in the Gaean Reach. Maloff consulted with an expert and was told this planet was most likely the planet of Flaut. Maloff visited Flaut once but officials were very uncooperative with him and he could find no leads. Maloff wants to visit the planet again to do a more intensive search and Myron asks to assist him. This leads to three more chapters of a fascinating search and rescue effort.
Adventures continue when the Glicca arrives in Port Palactus to drop off some freight. The people on the planet are famous for their handmade rugs (the main export of the planet) and even have the custom that if a man openly admires a woman's rug he makes a commitment to marry her. The adhesive that binds the rugs is called Schmeer and is highly valued on the planet. The cargo being delivered by the Glicca is Kasic one of the ingredients that is required to make Schmeer. Their cargo is therefore very valuable. But no one is available to unload the cargo or to transport it to its final destination. A crew is on its way to pick it up the Kasic and to deliver handmade rugs as cargo for the Glicca so the crew needs to wait for a few more days. But they will also need to be wary of the tribes of thieves called Lallankars who roam the area and often try to steal cargo. The Lallankars present another encounter and adventure.
There are other adventures including a great business opportunity selling rugs, encounters with hairy, wild acrobats called Futin Putos and a search for Myron's great aunt who was on her way to the planet Naharius to visit a rejuvenation clinic. All of these are fairly interesting and, unlike in the novel Ports of Call, in Lurulu we eventually have some resolution and a real ending.
Lurulu is not one of Vance's really great science fiction novels. (I've read every one of them at least once, including all of his short stories, novelettes and novellas.) Lurulu is a novel that should appeal mostly to Vance fans or those who are very familiar with his writings. But it needs to be read after Ports of Call. Readers who are new to reading Jack Vance are advised to begin elsewhere. I've read this novel three times so far and rate it a low 4.
For the most recent review and other Vance reviews please see:
https://vancealotjackvanceinreview.bl...
Lurulu is a word from myths and legends that represents a mysterious search or yearning for something meaningful, a wistful longing for a real reason for living. The first two chapters (17 pages) of the novel summarize what happened in the novel Ports of Call that ended suddenly in mid flight. At the end of that novel our main character, Myron Tany, was on the spaceship Glicca with three other crew members and some passengers and were on their way to the spaceport of Coro-coro on the planet Fluter. The Glicca is a cargo ship that flies from planet to planet stopping at ports to pick up or deliver cargo and sometimes passengers. At each port the crew and passengers have a new experience and encounter different cultures and people.
In Lurulu we learn about Captain Maloff's history and that he is searching for his mother who left her home planet of Traven just a few days after her husband died in a suspicious boating accident. She had some dementia and seemed to need constant entertainment so had taken up with a much younger man who called himself Loy Tremaine. She was infatuated with him acting "like a moonstruck girl." Her family noted that while Tremaine was with her he "made no effort to hide his boredom." Maloff suspects that this younger man wanted his mother's money and that he might even have been involved with the death of Maloff's father. His only lead was that Tremaine had an unusual tattoo and had mentioned to others that he was originally from the most beautiful planet in the Gaean Reach. Maloff consulted with an expert and was told this planet was most likely the planet of Flaut. Maloff visited Flaut once but officials were very uncooperative with him and he could find no leads. Maloff wants to visit the planet again to do a more intensive search and Myron asks to assist him. This leads to three more chapters of a fascinating search and rescue effort.
Adventures continue when the Glicca arrives in Port Palactus to drop off some freight. The people on the planet are famous for their handmade rugs (the main export of the planet) and even have the custom that if a man openly admires a woman's rug he makes a commitment to marry her. The adhesive that binds the rugs is called Schmeer and is highly valued on the planet. The cargo being delivered by the Glicca is Kasic one of the ingredients that is required to make Schmeer. Their cargo is therefore very valuable. But no one is available to unload the cargo or to transport it to its final destination. A crew is on its way to pick it up the Kasic and to deliver handmade rugs as cargo for the Glicca so the crew needs to wait for a few more days. But they will also need to be wary of the tribes of thieves called Lallankars who roam the area and often try to steal cargo. The Lallankars present another encounter and adventure.
There are other adventures including a great business opportunity selling rugs, encounters with hairy, wild acrobats called Futin Putos and a search for Myron's great aunt who was on her way to the planet Naharius to visit a rejuvenation clinic. All of these are fairly interesting and, unlike in the novel Ports of Call, in Lurulu we eventually have some resolution and a real ending.
Lurulu is not one of Vance's really great science fiction novels. (I've read every one of them at least once, including all of his short stories, novelettes and novellas.) Lurulu is a novel that should appeal mostly to Vance fans or those who are very familiar with his writings. But it needs to be read after Ports of Call. Readers who are new to reading Jack Vance are advised to begin elsewhere. I've read this novel three times so far and rate it a low 4.
October 12, 2020
Lurulu was Jack Vance's last novel, written when he was almost 90 and totally blind. It is a coda to Ports of Call.
I appreciate Vance's later work more and more over time. Jack Vance aged in the best possible way. Instead of growing calcified, dogmatic or crankish as many do, he mellowed. Old Vance became increasingly wise and thoughtful and left behind political questions and clashes between good and evil.
Lurulu is Vance freed from the need to plot out action-adventure to appeal to the pulp magazine editors. He was no longer required to create a square-jawed hero for his readers to project themselves onto.
Instead Vance focuses on his own fascinations. Lurulu is a space travelogue in Vance's Gaean Reach setting. A tramp freighter crew travels around delivering cargo. That's it. Lurulu has wonderful fictional societies, crabby innkeepers and a harridan aunt. Art is discovered, created in the distant past by people of uncertain motivations and tastes. It has characters who are charming, but whose motivations are obscure, personal and often difficult to understand. It lacks a driving plot or a villain. Instead, we're treated to a series of vignettes, each of which is a thoughtful meditation of ambiguous import. Each seems to contain at least some shadow of Vance's thoughts about a life well lived. As the book ends, the crew is both satisfied and restless. I like to think Vance enjoyed these sorts of talks in the twilight of his life:
I appreciate Vance's later work more and more over time. Jack Vance aged in the best possible way. Instead of growing calcified, dogmatic or crankish as many do, he mellowed. Old Vance became increasingly wise and thoughtful and left behind political questions and clashes between good and evil.
Lurulu is Vance freed from the need to plot out action-adventure to appeal to the pulp magazine editors. He was no longer required to create a square-jawed hero for his readers to project themselves onto.
Instead Vance focuses on his own fascinations. Lurulu is a space travelogue in Vance's Gaean Reach setting. A tramp freighter crew travels around delivering cargo. That's it. Lurulu has wonderful fictional societies, crabby innkeepers and a harridan aunt. Art is discovered, created in the distant past by people of uncertain motivations and tastes. It has characters who are charming, but whose motivations are obscure, personal and often difficult to understand. It lacks a driving plot or a villain. Instead, we're treated to a series of vignettes, each of which is a thoughtful meditation of ambiguous import. Each seems to contain at least some shadow of Vance's thoughts about a life well lived. As the book ends, the crew is both satisfied and restless. I like to think Vance enjoyed these sorts of talks in the twilight of his life:
Conversation touched upon many topics and often continued into the late hours. Persons of recent acquaintance were discussed, and their attributes analyzed; or the talk might wander to remote ports of call and the odd folk who dwelt in far places. Profundities sometimes entered the conversation, usually in response to Wingo’s predilection for abstruse philosophy.
Occasionally the word ‘lurulu’ was mentioned, and it developed that each of the four invested the word with a different significance. During such discussions Maloof had little to say, and Myron even less, but Schwatzendale enlivened the discourse with fanciful conjectures, which Wingo felt compelled to qualify or refute before resuming his own remarks. “If you recall, we were speaking of lurulu. At the risk of banality, I will point out that ‘fate’, ‘destiny’ and ‘lurulu’ are not synonymous. ‘Fate’ is dark and ponderous; ‘destiny’ is more like a beautiful sunset. In speaking of ‘lurulu’, however, language of this kind is not useful; lurulu is personal, it is like hope, or a wistful longing, more real than a dream.”
“Bah,” grumbled Schwatzendale. “Wingo has become a poet; he decorates the air with verbal finery in the same way that he frosts his pastry with fine icing.”
Wingo sighed. “My purposes are not ignoble; I believe the cosmos to be a thing of many complexities, most of which have no linkage with the words of our language, and can only be addressed through the use of allusion.”
“Bah!” said Schwatzendale again. “Balderdash, of the purest stripe! The language serves us very well; why turn it inside out to describe something which isn’t there in the first place?”
November 14, 2018
There are better Jack Vance novels, but I can't imagine a better book to be the final novel of a career.
Join the crew of the good ship Glicca as they trade among the minor planets of the Gaean Reach, with a few adventures on the side. Enjoy Wingo's pastries, the lemon tarts are excellent. Put up with the antics of the performing troupe who are long-term passengers, Moncrief's Mouse-riders. At the end, sail off to new adventures.
All in all, it is a slightly wistful tour to end a superb career in science fiction and fantasy. With Vance's amused observations, of course.
Join the crew of the good ship Glicca as they trade among the minor planets of the Gaean Reach, with a few adventures on the side. Enjoy Wingo's pastries, the lemon tarts are excellent. Put up with the antics of the performing troupe who are long-term passengers, Moncrief's Mouse-riders. At the end, sail off to new adventures.
All in all, it is a slightly wistful tour to end a superb career in science fiction and fantasy. With Vance's amused observations, of course.
November 4, 2018
Vance is a bit like R. Crumb for me. I like their work and value their achievements, but can't really recommend it. I'd be curious if there are people from more marginalized groups who can champion Vance and be inspired by his work the way Alison Bechdel talks about R. Crumb's influence.
Anywho... at one point in this book the crew of the tramp space freighter Glicca lands on a planet and goes to take in a show at the local theater, at which point we, the readers, are treated to a longish episode detailing this weird society's version of vaudeville including a clown act about a country bumpkin obsessed with his pooter, which may or may not be some kind of sweet potato.
Needless to say this part of the book will haunt me until the day I die.
Anywho... at one point in this book the crew of the tramp space freighter Glicca lands on a planet and goes to take in a show at the local theater, at which point we, the readers, are treated to a longish episode detailing this weird society's version of vaudeville including a clown act about a country bumpkin obsessed with his pooter, which may or may not be some kind of sweet potato.
Needless to say this part of the book will haunt me until the day I die.
August 20, 2019
Over the last few years I’ve worked my way through everything by Jack Vance, pretty much in chronological order, and so finally come to his last published novel Lurulu. I have to give it 5 stars just like almost everything else he produced. It’s a remarkable body of work, incredibly consistent, always beautifully rendered, and also quite unusual in that there was never a drop in quality right up to the last. A wonderful writer, unique and inspiring. I will probably end up going back and reading a whole load of his books again. It’s just a shame that I’ve come to the end.
February 13, 2025
Much like the first book, it's not his best in terms of plot, but it's a wonderfully soothing series of eclectic adventures that acts as the perfect bookend to his career in terms of style, subject and imagination.
Once again, we see the colourful crew of the Glicca visit various worlds across The Gaean Reach, overcoming minor problems, drinking local ales and admiring the resident cultures and philosophies. Mostly everyone gets their "lurulu" (an approximation of life fulfillment) and although the last quarter is a little truncated, it at least avoids the trap of overstaying its welcome that many books seem to fall into far too often these days. It also has some of his finest, sardonic wit on show which characterises his style, with the duology almost a feeling like Firefly reimagined by P G Wodehouse.
A pleasant read full of wondrous settings that likely will only appeal to the dedicated Jack Vance fan, but the fact he could still write this beautifully and with so much wonder in his nineties should be an inspiration to us all.
Once again, we see the colourful crew of the Glicca visit various worlds across The Gaean Reach, overcoming minor problems, drinking local ales and admiring the resident cultures and philosophies. Mostly everyone gets their "lurulu" (an approximation of life fulfillment) and although the last quarter is a little truncated, it at least avoids the trap of overstaying its welcome that many books seem to fall into far too often these days. It also has some of his finest, sardonic wit on show which characterises his style, with the duology almost a feeling like Firefly reimagined by P G Wodehouse.
A pleasant read full of wondrous settings that likely will only appeal to the dedicated Jack Vance fan, but the fact he could still write this beautifully and with so much wonder in his nineties should be an inspiration to us all.
May 26, 2024
Like the first book in the series a bit too episodic. Very abrupt end, I'd love to have read more of their adventures.
June 23, 2024
Vance’s last book (apart from his biography) is written in the style I like best. Protagonists on a quest. Many worlds visited with interesting developed races and many eloquent conversations. He must have known it would be his last book because of the many philosophical discussions about Lurulu and life in general. Five stars of course because I also play a minor part in it.
September 23, 2016
This is not a sequel of Ports of Call, but its continuation. Ports of Call did not "end", but simply stopped at a certain and arbitrary point (whatever strange that might seems) and here Vance resumes the story. It is just single book split in two.
As in Ports of Call, it seems a strange story, as it is a sequence of societies, showing new or strange traditions of the different cultures that mottles the Gaean Reach while being visited by the interesting Glicca's crew .
Certainly, the main plots introduced in the first book are here addressed and solved.
However, what surprises me its that those plots are not the core of the book(s). At least, I feel that way. What these books are aimed to, is precisely to explore all the almost infinity variations of the human society in a sequence of never-ending of frog like jumps through the Reach. And it is peopled by the always charming set of Vance's characters, descriptions and wonderful writing.
As I can see it, it is the paradigmatic example of the pleasure of the voyage as an end in itself.
Perfect.
As in Ports of Call, it seems a strange story, as it is a sequence of societies, showing new or strange traditions of the different cultures that mottles the Gaean Reach while being visited by the interesting Glicca's crew .
Certainly, the main plots introduced in the first book are here addressed and solved.
However, what surprises me its that those plots are not the core of the book(s). At least, I feel that way. What these books are aimed to, is precisely to explore all the almost infinity variations of the human society in a sequence of never-ending of frog like jumps through the Reach. And it is peopled by the always charming set of Vance's characters, descriptions and wonderful writing.
As I can see it, it is the paradigmatic example of the pleasure of the voyage as an end in itself.
Perfect.
April 15, 2010
I picked this up because it was at the library and I was out of stuff to read. I think I've heard the name Jack Vance, but I'm not sure I'd ever read him before. Honestly? I'm not sure I will again.
This was such a strange book. It starts out in a quaint voice, almost steampunkish. Things happen. And then more things happen. Except...it only has that one voice, which grows tiresome; the characters appear to have no particular motivation; there's no particular tension - they go to strange places, ask for stuff, and the natives pretty much always oblige.
I finished it out of curiosity - would any of the things tie in? Would the (to my mind) Obviously Dangling Plot Threads pop back up? But, no. Nothing particularly connects to anything else. There's less inner life than your average Scooby Doo cartoon. The gun in Act One does *not* go off in Act Three. This book must appeal to someone, but ... I am not that person.
This was such a strange book. It starts out in a quaint voice, almost steampunkish. Things happen. And then more things happen. Except...it only has that one voice, which grows tiresome; the characters appear to have no particular motivation; there's no particular tension - they go to strange places, ask for stuff, and the natives pretty much always oblige.
I finished it out of curiosity - would any of the things tie in? Would the (to my mind) Obviously Dangling Plot Threads pop back up? But, no. Nothing particularly connects to anything else. There's less inner life than your average Scooby Doo cartoon. The gun in Act One does *not* go off in Act Three. This book must appeal to someone, but ... I am not that person.
January 30, 2016
Fluff, but what fluff.
Probably Vance's last work.
Grab your dictionary and a good drink, relax and enjoy.
Our heroes hop from planet to planet, meeting in every case a new group of bureaucrats, bartenders and innkeepers. Nothing of importance happens, but the badinage is as good as anything that isn't Wodehouse. An example of what happens: one character meets a port director who appears to be rigid and rule-bound, but after a quick and clever exchange we see that an appropriate bribe or business opportunity changes everything. If anything, our characters are very good at dodging trouble on worlds where doing so would be easy for most of us.
As you have seen, it's hard to explain. If you want blasters and bombs, go read something else. If you've read Vance before, you'll like this. Or if you have read of, say, Retief or Dominic Flandry.
Probably Vance's last work.
Grab your dictionary and a good drink, relax and enjoy.
Our heroes hop from planet to planet, meeting in every case a new group of bureaucrats, bartenders and innkeepers. Nothing of importance happens, but the badinage is as good as anything that isn't Wodehouse. An example of what happens: one character meets a port director who appears to be rigid and rule-bound, but after a quick and clever exchange we see that an appropriate bribe or business opportunity changes everything. If anything, our characters are very good at dodging trouble on worlds where doing so would be easy for most of us.
As you have seen, it's hard to explain. If you want blasters and bombs, go read something else. If you've read Vance before, you'll like this. Or if you have read of, say, Retief or Dominic Flandry.
January 13, 2019
I approached this book with eagerness. I’d heard many positive remarks about Vance’s descriptive prowess and originality in thinking up concepts and creative names for all the worlds he creates. A master of the science fiction genre and a writer with his own style. Yes, these are all true but 50 pages into this short novel, I realized that’s all it is – great descriptions, great ideas, cool exposition, a thin plot running through… Monotonous. What about character? I had zero attachment to the characters and that never bodes well with me.
It would be unfair though to no longer read Vance after this single experience, especially since his more famous books are highly praised. Therefore, I’ll reserve judgment until I read one of those books first. As for Lurulu, I dumped it.
It would be unfair though to no longer read Vance after this single experience, especially since his more famous books are highly praised. Therefore, I’ll reserve judgment until I read one of those books first. As for Lurulu, I dumped it.
April 20, 2020
El último libro de Vance, que en realidad forma una unidad con PORTS OF CALL. Se puede encontrar la típica exuberancia creadora de mundos ficticios y su humor irónico, pero ambos poco afilados en este caso. Son unas novelas demasiado naif, aún para un converso de Vance como yo.
May 20, 2025
Basically unfinished. Vance seemed to give up halfway through, with the crew traveling from planet to planet but nothing interesting happening anymore. The plot threads from Ports of Call which had been left waiting are all resolved in a few pages with no payoff.
At one point, this lends itself to a sort of a sick joke at the expense of Vance's fans: as the novel enters its final quarter, the crew attempt to offload a shipment of space-Persian rugs through an apparently lazy and corrupt customs officer. A planetary mega-corporation has a monopoly on the import of these rugs. There are several pages explaining the negotiations and the officer's cut for brokering the deal. Bids come in. Then, the monopolist company learns of the deal, and offers the highest price for the rugs... subject to inspection. This is a classic Vance setup for an interesting mare's nest. So what happens? Nothing. The crew get their money with no issue at all and leave for the next planet, where nothing happens again, and again, for the rest of the book.
At one point, this lends itself to a sort of a sick joke at the expense of Vance's fans: as the novel enters its final quarter, the crew attempt to offload a shipment of space-Persian rugs through an apparently lazy and corrupt customs officer. A planetary mega-corporation has a monopoly on the import of these rugs. There are several pages explaining the negotiations and the officer's cut for brokering the deal. Bids come in. Then, the monopolist company learns of the deal, and offers the highest price for the rugs... subject to inspection. This is a classic Vance setup for an interesting mare's nest. So what happens? Nothing. The crew get their money with no issue at all and leave for the next planet, where nothing happens again, and again, for the rest of the book.
June 27, 2025
I libri consta di due racconti di cui considero valido solo il primo. "I vandali dello spazio" è un racconto del 1953 ancora immaturo nei contenuti e soprattutto privo dell'epica narrativa successiva.
"Myron Tany" al contrario è un condensato di tutto quello che amo di Vance cioè l'esplorazione della Dominazione Gaenica. Qui abbiamo Myron Tany imbarcato su una nave commerciale che connette mondi fino al limitare della Dominazione. Viaggio come occasione di analizzare (come solo Vance sa fare) culture e popolazioni dai costumi assolutamente particolari, evolutisi nei millenni dopo l'espansione terrestre nello spazio. La trama in sé conta qui poco ma quello che conta (come direbbe qualcuno) è il viaggio
"Myron Tany" al contrario è un condensato di tutto quello che amo di Vance cioè l'esplorazione della Dominazione Gaenica. Qui abbiamo Myron Tany imbarcato su una nave commerciale che connette mondi fino al limitare della Dominazione. Viaggio come occasione di analizzare (come solo Vance sa fare) culture e popolazioni dai costumi assolutamente particolari, evolutisi nei millenni dopo l'espansione terrestre nello spazio. La trama in sé conta qui poco ma quello che conta (come direbbe qualcuno) è il viaggio
August 4, 2022
As others have written, as a standalone novel this is probably only a 3-star book; there are a few too many sequences which aren't properly resolved, and a few too many scenes which are played merely for laughs. But it is a beautifully fitting end to Vance's writing career - a graceful, gentle, affectionate reprise of everything that is great about the Gaean Reach books and their key themes - and a wonderful achievement in its own right when one considers that he was in his 90s and more or less totally blind when he wrote it.
March 9, 2021
Neanderthal as I may be, I consider this a book for guys. Colorful action, but halfway through I still couldn't discern a plot (other than, "spaceship stops at lots of planets"), nor could I discern character development other than what Vance tells us outright: "This guy is a scalawag and this guy is serious but a bit mysterious," sort of thing. Not my cuppa, even though people whose reviews I enjoy loved it. Quit halfway through -- plus the last few pages.
November 2, 2023
[Rating 3.5/4.0]
Oddly structured book where the second half is the continuation of the humorous aimless space travel started in Ports of Call, but the first half is a focused mission involving only two members of the crew. It felt like reading two novellas with vastly different tone. As always, Vance's prose is a joy to read. This is his last book and the denouement (really the last 10-15% of the book) serves as a poignant coda to his work, even if the novel as a whole isn't his best. Worth a read for Vance fans.
Oddly structured book where the second half is the continuation of the humorous aimless space travel started in Ports of Call, but the first half is a focused mission involving only two members of the crew. It felt like reading two novellas with vastly different tone. As always, Vance's prose is a joy to read. This is his last book and the denouement (really the last 10-15% of the book) serves as a poignant coda to his work, even if the novel as a whole isn't his best. Worth a read for Vance fans.
December 10, 2024
Really shit but good. Happy to have a conclusion to ports of call, and I cried at the end.
This sequel is not for everyone. The author himself admitted he didn't know when or how to continue and this book results from scrapping a bunch of notes together, but the story is true to itself.
I have no regrets.
This sequel is not for everyone. The author himself admitted he didn't know when or how to continue and this book results from scrapping a bunch of notes together, but the story is true to itself.
I have no regrets.
March 12, 2023
Vance at his most peripatetic. Come here after most everything else, including especially the Cugel tales and other, more cohesive stories such as Night Lamp.
July 21, 2022
Desultory end to an uninspiring final dyad from Vance. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/200...
June 29, 2025
Excellent finish to a 2 part book.
September 15, 2023
A nice capper on the career of Jack Vance. This book has a philosophical bent which is a little wider in scope than most of his other books, and it serves the story well.
January 22, 2025
I love Vance, but these two Port of Call books show off his unique style to a somewhat baroque degree, without telling the great stories of his best books.
May 28, 2024
Lurulu was the last novel Jack Vance published. It was first published in 2004. My out of print hardcover copy has 167 pages of text. Lurulu is a continuation of the novel Ports of Call that was first published six years earlier.
For the most recent review and other Vance reviews please see:
https://vancealotjackvanceinreview.bl...
Lurulu is a word from myths and legends that represents a mysterious search or yearning for something meaningful, a wistful longing for a real reason for living. The first two chapters (17 pages) of the novel summarize what happened in the novel Ports of Call which ended suddenly in mid flight. At the end of Ports of Call our main character, Myron Tany, was on the spaceship Glicca with three other crew members and some passengers and were on their way to the spaceport of Coro-coro on the planet Fluter. The Glicca is a cargo ship that flies from planet to planet stopping at ports to pick up or deliver cargo and sometimes passengers. At each port the crew and passengers have a new experience and encounter different cultures and people.
In Lurulu we learn about Captain Maloff's history and that he is searching for his mother who left her home planet of Traven just a few days after her husband died in a suspicious boating accident. She had some dementia and seemed to need constant entertainment so had taken up with a much younger man who called himself Loy Tremaine with whom she was infatuated. Her family noted that while Tremaine was with her he "made no effort to hide his boredom." Maloff suspects that this younger man wanted his mother's money and that he might even have been involved with the death of Maloff's father. His only lead was that Tremaine had an unusual tattoo and had mentioned to others that he was originally from the most beautiful planet in the Gaean Reach. Maloff consulted with an expert and was told this planet was most likely the planet of Flaut. Maloff visited Flaut once but officials were very uncooperative with him and he could find no leads. Maloff wants to visit the planet again to conduct a more intensive search and Myron asks to assist him. This leads to three more chapters of a fascinating search and rescue effort.
Adventures continue when the spaceship the Glicca arrives in Port Palactus to drop off some freight. The people on the planet are famous for their handmade rugs (the main export of the planet) and even have the custom that if a man openly admires a woman's rug he makes a commitment to marry her. The adhesive that binds the rugs is called Schmeer and is highly valued on the planet. The cargo being delivered by the Glicca is Kasic one of the ingredients that is required to make Schmeer. Their cargo is therefore very valuable. But no one is available to unload the cargo or to transport it to its final destination. A crew is on its way to pick it up the Kasic and to deliver handmade rugs as cargo for the Glicca so the crew needs to wait for a few more days. But they will also need to be wary of the tribes of thieves called Lallankars who roam the area and often try to steal cargo. The Lallankars present another encounter and adventure.
There are other adventures including a great business opportunity selling rugs, encounters with hairy, wild acrobats called Futin Putos and a search for Myron's great aunt who was on her way to the planet Naharius to visit a rejuvenation clinic. All of these are fairly interesting and, unlike the novel Ports of Call, in Lurulu we eventually have some plot resolution and a real ending. I’ve read it twice so far and rated it a 3 “Liked it.”
For the most recent review and other Vance reviews please see:
https://vancealotjackvanceinreview.bl...
Lurulu is a word from myths and legends that represents a mysterious search or yearning for something meaningful, a wistful longing for a real reason for living. The first two chapters (17 pages) of the novel summarize what happened in the novel Ports of Call which ended suddenly in mid flight. At the end of Ports of Call our main character, Myron Tany, was on the spaceship Glicca with three other crew members and some passengers and were on their way to the spaceport of Coro-coro on the planet Fluter. The Glicca is a cargo ship that flies from planet to planet stopping at ports to pick up or deliver cargo and sometimes passengers. At each port the crew and passengers have a new experience and encounter different cultures and people.
In Lurulu we learn about Captain Maloff's history and that he is searching for his mother who left her home planet of Traven just a few days after her husband died in a suspicious boating accident. She had some dementia and seemed to need constant entertainment so had taken up with a much younger man who called himself Loy Tremaine with whom she was infatuated. Her family noted that while Tremaine was with her he "made no effort to hide his boredom." Maloff suspects that this younger man wanted his mother's money and that he might even have been involved with the death of Maloff's father. His only lead was that Tremaine had an unusual tattoo and had mentioned to others that he was originally from the most beautiful planet in the Gaean Reach. Maloff consulted with an expert and was told this planet was most likely the planet of Flaut. Maloff visited Flaut once but officials were very uncooperative with him and he could find no leads. Maloff wants to visit the planet again to conduct a more intensive search and Myron asks to assist him. This leads to three more chapters of a fascinating search and rescue effort.
Adventures continue when the spaceship the Glicca arrives in Port Palactus to drop off some freight. The people on the planet are famous for their handmade rugs (the main export of the planet) and even have the custom that if a man openly admires a woman's rug he makes a commitment to marry her. The adhesive that binds the rugs is called Schmeer and is highly valued on the planet. The cargo being delivered by the Glicca is Kasic one of the ingredients that is required to make Schmeer. Their cargo is therefore very valuable. But no one is available to unload the cargo or to transport it to its final destination. A crew is on its way to pick it up the Kasic and to deliver handmade rugs as cargo for the Glicca so the crew needs to wait for a few more days. But they will also need to be wary of the tribes of thieves called Lallankars who roam the area and often try to steal cargo. The Lallankars present another encounter and adventure.
There are other adventures including a great business opportunity selling rugs, encounters with hairy, wild acrobats called Futin Putos and a search for Myron's great aunt who was on her way to the planet Naharius to visit a rejuvenation clinic. All of these are fairly interesting and, unlike the novel Ports of Call, in Lurulu we eventually have some plot resolution and a real ending. I’ve read it twice so far and rated it a 3 “Liked it.”
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