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Kyreol Duology #2
The Moon and the Face
Kyreol's mission to another planet and Terje's trip to observe their old river home both meet with unexpected dangers and an eventual melding of very different cultures
146 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1985
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About the author
Patricia A. McKillip
94 books2,918 followersPatricia Anne McKillip was an American author of fantasy and science fiction. She wrote predominantly standalone fantasy novels and has been called "one of the most accomplished prose stylists in the fantasy genre". Her work won many awards, including the World Fantasy Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2008.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
April 5, 2021
[7/10]
“I want to go to Xtal. As long as there’s a place with a name that I haven’t been to, I’ll be curious about it.”
The second part of the Kyreol duology, about a childwoman who goes on a quest from an isolated village and discovers a big and complex and wonderful world out there. Her curiosity is still unquenched, her mind is still swarming like a beehive with questions but inside the futuristic metropolis called Dome, she might get answers.
Her trusted companion Terje hears the home village calling him back and prepares to return there, disguised as a hunter, while Kyreol prepares to embark on a spaceship that will take her on an exploration mission to a distant planet. The two young people separate just as they tentatively discover that they have feelings for each other.
>>><<<>>><<<
In the beginning, I thought a sequel to Moon-Flash was unnecessary, with the first episode coming to a satisfying conclusion and the history of technology and curiosity well set down. On the other hand, I believe Patricia McKillip is incapable of writing a bad story, so I decided to give it a try, especially since the duology usually can be found packaged into a single volume.
So what’s this second book about? The title says it best: the Moon stands for the future, progress, technology while the Face (the wall of stone that encloses the Riverworld and keeps it isolated) stands for turning the eye inward and trying to find the answers to the nature of the universe through meditation and dreams.
“You understand this world so well. This tiny, peculiar Riverworld.”
Terje nodded absently. “It’s easy to understand. You sit quietly, listening to the River, and after a while everything in the Riverworld – even death – becomes part of everything else. Everything changes, nothing changes. You see it – through the dream.”
It’s the age old dilemma between the head and the heart (to quote Chris de Bourgh) that pits Western style philosophy of action and conquest against Oriental contemplative meditation.
Kyreol goes to space and pushes the borders of human knowledge further and further into space. Terje returns home to find out why the Riverworld and its dreams are so important.
This business of us sneaking around in feathers while people from the Riverworld are flying around in space and dreaming of the Dome is getting a little incongruous.
Regny, the partner and supervisor from the Dome for Terje, is aware of the limitations and moral problems posed by a backward culture kept from contact with a more advanced civilization, in particular for the case of the Riverworld Healer, who is dying and could be saved with the Dome’s medical know-how. But intervention runs the risk of altering the heritage of Riverworld since the Healer, the village shaman and preserver of traditions, is considered untouchable. ( “The world dreams, and the Dream is the World. You will know – all that you need to know.” ) If you take the contemplation away from the people of the Riverworld, maybe the whole world will be poorer in spirit.
Kyreol faces her own problems, first as technology fails her in a space accident, later as she comes in contact with true-blue-green aliens.
In the end, maybe there will be a way for the two philosophies of Life to coexist, even for the two young people to find their way back together, despite their different priorities.
She gazed at him, speechless, and wondered which of them was right. Was the complexity of the world what kept her, from moment to moment, always on the edge of wonder? Or was the wonder that it was simple, that she could turn across space and time, and there would be Terje? Terje kissed her open mouth, left her without argument.
For me, the answer is to read fantasy and science-fiction (I don’t care what particular label you attach to the series) in order to rediscover your sense of wonder at the world we are living in, and to do something to preserve it for future generations.
“I want to go to Xtal. As long as there’s a place with a name that I haven’t been to, I’ll be curious about it.”
The second part of the Kyreol duology, about a childwoman who goes on a quest from an isolated village and discovers a big and complex and wonderful world out there. Her curiosity is still unquenched, her mind is still swarming like a beehive with questions but inside the futuristic metropolis called Dome, she might get answers.
Her trusted companion Terje hears the home village calling him back and prepares to return there, disguised as a hunter, while Kyreol prepares to embark on a spaceship that will take her on an exploration mission to a distant planet. The two young people separate just as they tentatively discover that they have feelings for each other.
>>><<<>>><<<
In the beginning, I thought a sequel to Moon-Flash was unnecessary, with the first episode coming to a satisfying conclusion and the history of technology and curiosity well set down. On the other hand, I believe Patricia McKillip is incapable of writing a bad story, so I decided to give it a try, especially since the duology usually can be found packaged into a single volume.
So what’s this second book about? The title says it best: the Moon stands for the future, progress, technology while the Face (the wall of stone that encloses the Riverworld and keeps it isolated) stands for turning the eye inward and trying to find the answers to the nature of the universe through meditation and dreams.
“You understand this world so well. This tiny, peculiar Riverworld.”
Terje nodded absently. “It’s easy to understand. You sit quietly, listening to the River, and after a while everything in the Riverworld – even death – becomes part of everything else. Everything changes, nothing changes. You see it – through the dream.”
It’s the age old dilemma between the head and the heart (to quote Chris de Bourgh) that pits Western style philosophy of action and conquest against Oriental contemplative meditation.
Kyreol goes to space and pushes the borders of human knowledge further and further into space. Terje returns home to find out why the Riverworld and its dreams are so important.
This business of us sneaking around in feathers while people from the Riverworld are flying around in space and dreaming of the Dome is getting a little incongruous.
Regny, the partner and supervisor from the Dome for Terje, is aware of the limitations and moral problems posed by a backward culture kept from contact with a more advanced civilization, in particular for the case of the Riverworld Healer, who is dying and could be saved with the Dome’s medical know-how. But intervention runs the risk of altering the heritage of Riverworld since the Healer, the village shaman and preserver of traditions, is considered untouchable. ( “The world dreams, and the Dream is the World. You will know – all that you need to know.” ) If you take the contemplation away from the people of the Riverworld, maybe the whole world will be poorer in spirit.
Kyreol faces her own problems, first as technology fails her in a space accident, later as she comes in contact with true-blue-green aliens.
In the end, maybe there will be a way for the two philosophies of Life to coexist, even for the two young people to find their way back together, despite their different priorities.
She gazed at him, speechless, and wondered which of them was right. Was the complexity of the world what kept her, from moment to moment, always on the edge of wonder? Or was the wonder that it was simple, that she could turn across space and time, and there would be Terje? Terje kissed her open mouth, left her without argument.
For me, the answer is to read fantasy and science-fiction (I don’t care what particular label you attach to the series) in order to rediscover your sense of wonder at the world we are living in, and to do something to preserve it for future generations.
January 31, 2012
What I like most about this story and the one before it (Moon-Flash) is that it give me hope that people can learn to understand each other. It's about being afraid of a new world or a new way of looking at things, but also seeing that new world and that new thing with wonder.
Both of these books are slim volumes (and I do so love a big thick book!) but I don't think more would be better. Each one tells a story, for each of the individuals in them, of discovery and the wonder of learning something new, while still feeling wonder at what's familiar.
Both of these books are slim volumes (and I do so love a big thick book!) but I don't think more would be better. Each one tells a story, for each of the individuals in them, of discovery and the wonder of learning something new, while still feeling wonder at what's familiar.
April 8, 2021
What a wonderful ending! I love how McKillip can make Science Fiction such an emotional and personal journey.
August 22, 2017
I loved Moonflash so I'm not surprised I loved this follow up! It is short but sweet (I'd have loved to know more about the abandoned city and the sea civilization on Niade but that's not really this author's style).
August 10, 2017
A nice poetically written science fiction. Rather than being stark it was emotional and eloquent.
January 6, 2022
The change of pace was interesting at first, but I did have to force myself to finish it. This little duology had an interesting concept but was simply underdeveloped. There was no complexity to the plot or the characters. It was just very one dimensional. Oh well, not McKillip’s finest work, I have loved other books by her.
July 24, 2024
McKillip basically writes an Andre Norton story here, and I really liked it.
September 28, 2013
I love Patricia McKillip's writing, however, I regretfully have to admit that I was not very impressed by this book.
It's a sequel to 'Moon-Flash' - which I haven't read, so that could be the problem. But it seemed like the events of this novel are merely a coda to whatever happened in the previous book. It's extremely short, and it's obvious that the author expects you to already be familiar with the characters, their relationships, and their world - so none of these are very fleshed out.
Also, in less than 200 pages, McKillip really attempts to tell two stories. A young man, Terje, goes back to the primitive village of his birth as an anthropological observer, as he has now been educated in a more advanced civilisation (details aren't given).
Meanwhile, his girlfriend, Kyreol, goes on a mission to another planet, but crash-lands on an abandoned moon on the way, and has an unexpected alien encounter. (it's not very believable).
Both must deal with issues of self-perception and identity - this is where McKillip excels, and her insights are emotionally touching - but still, I can't say that this is her best book.
It's a sequel to 'Moon-Flash' - which I haven't read, so that could be the problem. But it seemed like the events of this novel are merely a coda to whatever happened in the previous book. It's extremely short, and it's obvious that the author expects you to already be familiar with the characters, their relationships, and their world - so none of these are very fleshed out.
Also, in less than 200 pages, McKillip really attempts to tell two stories. A young man, Terje, goes back to the primitive village of his birth as an anthropological observer, as he has now been educated in a more advanced civilisation (details aren't given).
Meanwhile, his girlfriend, Kyreol, goes on a mission to another planet, but crash-lands on an abandoned moon on the way, and has an unexpected alien encounter. (it's not very believable).
Both must deal with issues of self-perception and identity - this is where McKillip excels, and her insights are emotionally touching - but still, I can't say that this is her best book.
August 23, 2008
This is the sequel to Moon-Flash. Kyreol grew up in a world where the River was the world - Riverworld. Her people's lives are steeped in ritual and have the power of foretelling through dreams. In the first book her world ended where the River did - past a waterfall, but that changed when she discovered that the universe is much much bigger than she thought. Now she lives away from her people because she knows too much and wants to protect them from losing their ability to dream. In the sequel Kyreol will go offworld to another planet, while her friend Terje keeps observing their people's rituals. Both their enterprises cause her mother some concern and a foreshadowing of a problem. Terje and Kyreol may be very far from each other, but they find that both their stories are interlinked. This is an early McKillip novel, and the style is a little less dreamlike than her later works. There is a sci fi meets fantasy element to it as well.
December 27, 2025
Young Adult
Four years after the events in Moon-Flash, Terje and Kyreol are setting out on separate missions. Terje is going to secretly observe the rituals of the Riverworld; Kyreol is going to explore an alien species on another planet. Things do not go as planned for either of them. Kyreol’s ship crashes on an unexplored moon, and Icrane, the healer, knows Terje is there. Kyreol’s story of survival and alien interaction is fairly basic. Terje’s attempt to straddle the sacred dreaming world of his childhood and his current technologically advanced world, however, is complicated and well done.
This is the second book in a duology.
Four years after the events in Moon-Flash, Terje and Kyreol are setting out on separate missions. Terje is going to secretly observe the rituals of the Riverworld; Kyreol is going to explore an alien species on another planet. Things do not go as planned for either of them. Kyreol’s ship crashes on an unexplored moon, and Icrane, the healer, knows Terje is there. Kyreol’s story of survival and alien interaction is fairly basic. Terje’s attempt to straddle the sacred dreaming world of his childhood and his current technologically advanced world, however, is complicated and well done.
This is the second book in a duology.
May 22, 2024
(2.5 Stars)
This was a fine book, but I don't think I really understood it in terms of the first book. The first book is about how you can't go home again. It's pretty direct. This book is about the characters going home again.
It did remind me of one of my favorite quotes: Home is where, when you have to go there, they have to let you in (Thurber, The Death of the Hired Man).
Anyway, this was fine, and it had some moderately interesting adventure, but there weren't a lot of reveals or surprises, and this book is almost a mirror image of the first (the characters are apart the whole time instead of together, they return instead of go out). It was just fine.
This was a fine book, but I don't think I really understood it in terms of the first book. The first book is about how you can't go home again. It's pretty direct. This book is about the characters going home again.
It did remind me of one of my favorite quotes: Home is where, when you have to go there, they have to let you in (Thurber, The Death of the Hired Man).
Anyway, this was fine, and it had some moderately interesting adventure, but there weren't a lot of reveals or surprises, and this book is almost a mirror image of the first (the characters are apart the whole time instead of together, they return instead of go out). It was just fine.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 5, 2012
REREAD #1: 7/10 (4 October 2006 - 4 October 2006)
The Moon and the Face by Patricia A. McKillip (7/10)
YA SF. Sequel to Moon Flash and published as a single edition. Again I enjoyed the reread, but the world building issue remained and I think the first book had a stronger story. McKillip's strength lies in fantasy more than SF I think, although these are still well worth a read.
[Copied across from Library Thing; 5 November 2012]
The Moon and the Face by Patricia A. McKillip (7/10)
YA SF. Sequel to Moon Flash and published as a single edition. Again I enjoyed the reread, but the world building issue remained and I think the first book had a stronger story. McKillip's strength lies in fantasy more than SF I think, although these are still well worth a read.
[Copied across from Library Thing; 5 November 2012]
October 4, 2011
A sci-fi ish two book series by Patricia McKillip. Interesting but probably not my favorite books by her. [Dec. 2008]
December 11, 2009
Very good! I was surprised, I didn't expect much. I liked the scifi and older world twist. This is a two book set.
May 15, 2013
Loved it. It is poetry science fiction. Beautiful, mythic, emotional and lovely.
September 14, 2013
I was enthralled by the language which is now somewhat archaic! The story held my interest until the end!
October 10, 2012
Such a sweet story. I wish it had been longer
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews