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Berserker #7
The Berserker Throne
The Empress of the Eight Worlds has been assassinated. Prince Harivarman, exiled on the Templar Radiant, suspects that he will be the next victim. Help is scarce: Anne Blenheim, the fortress' clear-eyed, fair Commander, is favorably disposed toward the Prince, but her first responsibility is to the Templar High Command. And Chen Shizuoka, a Templar recruit sympathetic to Harivarman's cause, is being stalked by planetary security forces. When Prince Harivarman discovers an operable Berserker–one of the asteroid-sized, spacefaring war machines that once destroyed their makers and all other life in their path–his first instinct is to turn it in. But then he finds an ancient code that will either allow him to control the dreaded machine or lead him–and everyone else on the Templar Radiant–to certain death.
320 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published May 1, 1985
7 people are currently reading
455 people want to read
About the author
Fred Saberhagen
335 books495 followersFred Saberhagen was an American science fiction and fantasy author most famous for his ''Beserker'' and Dracula stories.
Saberhagen also wrote a series of a series of post-apocalyptic mytho-magical novels beginning with his popular ''Empire of the East'' and continuing through a long series of ''Swords'' and ''Lost Swords'' novels. Saberhagen died of cancer, in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Saberhagen was born in and grew up in the area of Chicago, Illinois. Saberhagen served in the [[U.S. Air Force]] during the Korean War while he was in his early twenties. Back in civilian life, Saberhagen worked as an It was while he was working for Motorola (after his military service) that Saberhagen started writing fiction seriously at the age of about 30. "Fortress Ship", his first "Berserker" short shory, was published in 1963. Then, in 1964, Saberhagen saw the publication of his first novel, ''The Golden People''.
From 1967 to 1973, he worked as an editor for the Chemistry articles in the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' as well as writing its article on science fiction. He then quit and took up writing full-time. In 1975, he moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico.
He married fellow writer Joan Spicci in 1968. They had two sons and a daughter.
Saberhagen also wrote a series of a series of post-apocalyptic mytho-magical novels beginning with his popular ''Empire of the East'' and continuing through a long series of ''Swords'' and ''Lost Swords'' novels. Saberhagen died of cancer, in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Saberhagen was born in and grew up in the area of Chicago, Illinois. Saberhagen served in the [[U.S. Air Force]] during the Korean War while he was in his early twenties. Back in civilian life, Saberhagen worked as an It was while he was working for Motorola (after his military service) that Saberhagen started writing fiction seriously at the age of about 30. "Fortress Ship", his first "Berserker" short shory, was published in 1963. Then, in 1964, Saberhagen saw the publication of his first novel, ''The Golden People''.
From 1967 to 1973, he worked as an editor for the Chemistry articles in the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' as well as writing its article on science fiction. He then quit and took up writing full-time. In 1975, he moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico.
He married fellow writer Joan Spicci in 1968. They had two sons and a daughter.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
November 6, 2014
Even though the characterization was a little thin I liked this book until the end. Then the protagonist came riding in as a hero and we were treated to a quick summary of what had happened behind the scenes to get to that point. Until then his sanity, trustworthiness and likability were all questionable so it felt a bit deus ex machina.
February 16, 2022
I really like the Berserker series, and I enjoyed this novel. I would give it 3.5 stars, but chose not to round up. I liked how characters and events from earlier in the series get cameo roles in this novel, and that the Templar Radiant is re-visited. I am glad that the series has a mixture of styles, books that have a number of free standing short stories, as well as stand alone novels. The stand alone novels have a different feel than the collections of stories, and add to the magic of the Berserker Universe. This stand alone novel is definitely worth reading as part of the series.
December 30, 2023
A novel-length expansion of "Some Events at the Temple Radiant" from The Ultimate Enemy short story collection. That was one of the better stories in that collection, and this is a decent story, but it doesn't wow me in the way some of Saberhagen's best work does. To be fair, it does bring new elements and not just a repeat of the premise, but every previous entry in the series has been so completely different from what came before that even a good book pales when facing up to great expectations.
May 28, 2021
A solid entry in the Berserker series. I generally prefer the short story collections in this series, but this novel is set on the Templar Radiant, one of the more interesting settings that Saberhagen created for this series. The plot revolves around a plot to assassinate the Empress of the Eight Worlds that involved the Berserkers and goodlife and badlife humans. A solid SF military adventure novel.
September 19, 2022
I was pleasantly surprised to find that this book focused less on military conflict and more on the inner lives of the characters. There was a plot twist at the end, which was gratifying, but the final resolution felt rushed, as it was crammed into a 5-page epilogue. More time could have been spent wrapping things up and explaining what really happened, while less could have been spent on action sequences that didn't really contribute to the plot.
January 2, 2024
Politics and survival, all on the boardgames of stratagem. An exiled Prince, an assassination of an Empress, the wheels grinding out the chain of ascension under the threat of assumed ancient berzerkers found in ruins on The Fortress Radian. A treaty too good to be true, but who actually possesses the greater leverage?
January 4, 2018
I think the book is difficult to read, because of its writing style and one of the main characters is mostly pointless, as he doesn't do anything interesting, and i couldn't connect with any character, but I liked the plot twist.
February 23, 2018
Been a while since I'd read any Berserker books, and they weren't my favorite Saberhagen, but this was a freebie. The plot was a bit muddled but the setting was interesting and so was the basic concept of man vs machine.
June 22, 2018
Old school sci fi novel. I liked it's storyline. Characterizations isn't something extraordinary, but it serves it's purpose of telling a story.
It was nice picking the book from the library shelf, without knowing anything about it and letting go its storyline and characters to evolve.
It was nice picking the book from the library shelf, without knowing anything about it and letting go its storyline and characters to evolve.
May 18, 2024
DNF about halfway through, just the dullest. This is the second Saberhagen book in a row I couldn't bear to finish, so maybe he just isn't my bag apart from the Empire of the East books.
August 3, 2025
Great science fiction book and series great narrator, loved it!
November 6, 2010
Berserker Throne was one of the free eBooks available on the Baen website. I didn’t recognize the title from a couple of decades ago when I was reading Fred Saberhagen regularly, so I nabbed a copy of this one and read it on the train. It took longer than usual because I kept breaking off and reading something else. Is that because it’s a bad book? It is not. However, I have admitted my prejudice in the past. I like to be invested in at least one or more characters throughout a novel and, even if the author chooses to tell portions of the story from other points of view, I like to have enough “meanwhile back at the ranch” moments to keep events synchronized in my mind and keep the investment in characters bearing interest.
Fred Saberhagen unveils one of the most brilliant prologues to a novel I’ve ever read. A scientist is investigating the nature of a berserker (the killing machines that want to destroy all life units in the universe) when said scientist (and his significant other, a singer/exotic dancer) are accused of being “goodlife,” consorting with the mechanical enemies. A conspiracy is uncovered and things do not go well for the scientist.
After captivating the reader with this detailed and intriguing prologue, we are jerked into the mind of a student protestor on another planet. Things don’t work too well for this individual either, but the conspiracy that spins its web around this individual isn’t anywhere near as interesting as the events of the prologue. Consider this a big gap in my reading of this book.
Some weeks later, I came back to the book and forced myself through this section, hoping Saberhagen would return to something of the same feel as the prologue. After too much political set-up, he does so, BUT guess what? It takes so long that I set the book aside for another few weeks, wondering why a favored writer from my younger days was writing in such a schizophrenic style. I couldn’t believe that I wasn’t giving the author a fair shake, so I returned to the book and discovered that there was another section as interesting as the prologue.
I started reading faster and discovered that the author was, indeed, deftly pulling the strands of the web together and almost like Bela Legosi’s character in Ed Wood, he could say, “I am the Puppetmaster. I pull the strings.” The political intrigue and the interesting adventures surrounding the berserker machines (both the prologue and the portion surrounding the exiled noble, Prince Harivarman, who should have been the protagonist throughout the novel) came together with great impact. The student activist shows up in the midst of this, too, but nowhere is the student given more than a few cardboard lines and actions. I just couldn’t warm up to this character in spite of having gone to college in the midst of the decade of student demonstrations.
What can I say? Portions of this book are masterful; portions seem like they were written by another hand than the famous creator of this series (and the excellent fantasies revolving around magical swords). If the entire book had lived up to the prologue, I would have given it four stars. Unfortunately, the dead spaces in the book force me to give a rating I never thought I’d offer to a Saberhagen novel, the dreaded “double star.”
Fred Saberhagen unveils one of the most brilliant prologues to a novel I’ve ever read. A scientist is investigating the nature of a berserker (the killing machines that want to destroy all life units in the universe) when said scientist (and his significant other, a singer/exotic dancer) are accused of being “goodlife,” consorting with the mechanical enemies. A conspiracy is uncovered and things do not go well for the scientist.
After captivating the reader with this detailed and intriguing prologue, we are jerked into the mind of a student protestor on another planet. Things don’t work too well for this individual either, but the conspiracy that spins its web around this individual isn’t anywhere near as interesting as the events of the prologue. Consider this a big gap in my reading of this book.
Some weeks later, I came back to the book and forced myself through this section, hoping Saberhagen would return to something of the same feel as the prologue. After too much political set-up, he does so, BUT guess what? It takes so long that I set the book aside for another few weeks, wondering why a favored writer from my younger days was writing in such a schizophrenic style. I couldn’t believe that I wasn’t giving the author a fair shake, so I returned to the book and discovered that there was another section as interesting as the prologue.
I started reading faster and discovered that the author was, indeed, deftly pulling the strands of the web together and almost like Bela Legosi’s character in Ed Wood, he could say, “I am the Puppetmaster. I pull the strings.” The political intrigue and the interesting adventures surrounding the berserker machines (both the prologue and the portion surrounding the exiled noble, Prince Harivarman, who should have been the protagonist throughout the novel) came together with great impact. The student activist shows up in the midst of this, too, but nowhere is the student given more than a few cardboard lines and actions. I just couldn’t warm up to this character in spite of having gone to college in the midst of the decade of student demonstrations.
What can I say? Portions of this book are masterful; portions seem like they were written by another hand than the famous creator of this series (and the excellent fantasies revolving around magical swords). If the entire book had lived up to the prologue, I would have given it four stars. Unfortunately, the dead spaces in the book force me to give a rating I never thought I’d offer to a Saberhagen novel, the dreaded “double star.”
January 6, 2008
Berserker Throne
by Fred Saberhagen
Published
SKU: 0671558366
Ebook Price: $5.00
Baen Free Library Book
The time is the distant future, and humanity's war with the Berserker machines still rages. When an assassination touches off a power struggle in the Empire of the Eight Worlds, Prince Harivarman, who has been unwillingly exiled to a space fortress known as the Templar Radiant, senses that his political enemies are moving against him and that his life is in imminent danger. He needs to escape his prison, but since he has no access to an interstellar spaceship and his Templar jailers seem unwilling to help him in his plight, things look desperate. Until, that is, he makes a surprising discovery: a Berserker war machine, damaged but still operable, hidden and forgotten in the Fortress's outer reaches. Then, most startlingly, he finds a way to control it. And so, a plan for escape begins to form. But can a human truly control a machine bent on destroying humanity, once it has been unleashed?
The novel is sort of a cross between a political thriller and space opera. Prince Harivarman is actually a pretty likable main character, even though he knows he is taking a big risk and perhaps jeopardizing the lives of everyone around him. The writing here is very well done; Saberhagen keeps the story tight and flowing, with few distractions, and as a result the book is actually something of a quick read. The only real minus (and its a small one) is that Saberhagen does spend an awful long time setting things up, but once the action starts and Harivarman's plan is set in motion, the book becomes a page turner that you will not want to put down. This one would make a great movie.
by Fred Saberhagen
Published
SKU: 0671558366
Ebook Price: $5.00
Baen Free Library Book
The time is the distant future, and humanity's war with the Berserker machines still rages. When an assassination touches off a power struggle in the Empire of the Eight Worlds, Prince Harivarman, who has been unwillingly exiled to a space fortress known as the Templar Radiant, senses that his political enemies are moving against him and that his life is in imminent danger. He needs to escape his prison, but since he has no access to an interstellar spaceship and his Templar jailers seem unwilling to help him in his plight, things look desperate. Until, that is, he makes a surprising discovery: a Berserker war machine, damaged but still operable, hidden and forgotten in the Fortress's outer reaches. Then, most startlingly, he finds a way to control it. And so, a plan for escape begins to form. But can a human truly control a machine bent on destroying humanity, once it has been unleashed?
The novel is sort of a cross between a political thriller and space opera. Prince Harivarman is actually a pretty likable main character, even though he knows he is taking a big risk and perhaps jeopardizing the lives of everyone around him. The writing here is very well done; Saberhagen keeps the story tight and flowing, with few distractions, and as a result the book is actually something of a quick read. The only real minus (and its a small one) is that Saberhagen does spend an awful long time setting things up, but once the action starts and Harivarman's plan is set in motion, the book becomes a page turner that you will not want to put down. This one would make a great movie.
March 7, 2008
re-read this book
classic Sci-fi
a good read but a little thin on plot and character development
classic Sci-fi
a good read but a little thin on plot and character development
April 22, 2008
A solid expansion of the berserker world.
Read
August 22, 2008Berserker Throne by Fred Saberhagen (2000)
January 18, 2009
I read this as a free download from Baen Books. It had a bit of a slow start, but got really good in the middle and end. T
Want to read
December 29, 2009Herbert and Zelazny gave rave cover blurbs. No apparatus--can't find its place in Berserker series. (12/2009).
January 19, 2010
Sci-Fi Rel. 1985, house copy, like Terminators,
August 13, 2010
An interesting book -- rather better than I had expected, with a nicely twisty plot.
July 21, 2011
Gripping story, superb plot twists and very original ideas. Great storytelling style with multiple angles and first person perspectives.
September 3, 2011
Solid story with some nice twists. Decent (but not spectacular) characterization.
December 20, 2012
Twists of fate that twist about -- while trying to survive berserkers? Complex and thoughtful. And a frighteningly accurate assessment of mankind.
February 12, 2014
Berserker books can be hit-or-miss, but this one was definitely a hit. Fully-fleshed characters, political intrigue, and an exotic locale.
June 8, 2015
A quick easy read, a good addition to the berserker series. More of a political intrigue in the end than a warring between species, but a enjoyable hard to put down read.
Read
May 27, 2016read some time in 1987
February 4, 2017
I cut
My SCI-fi teeth on Berzerker when I was 12. Been a long time since I've gone back to this world. And I loved it.
My SCI-fi teeth on Berzerker when I was 12. Been a long time since I've gone back to this world. And I loved it.
March 12, 2018
Another good installment in the Berserker series. This is a relatively short novel that moves along at a good pace. Interesting political intrigue and a fun ending. 3.5 stars.
October 3, 2024
Pretty decent. It was a re-read from teenage years so it started to click as I went along but still fun.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews