Powers of Two

by Tim Powers

Omnibus edition of The Skies Discrowned (1976) and An Epitaph in Rust (1976).

Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Fiction

302 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Timothy Thomas Powers is an American science fiction and fantasy author. Powers has won the World Fantasy Award twice for his critically acclaimed novels Last Call and Declare.

Most of Powers's novels are "secret histories": he uses actual, documented historical events featuring famous people, but shows another view of them in which occult or supernatural factors heavily influence the motivations and actions of the characters.


Powers was born in Buffalo, New York, and grew up in California, where his Roman Catholic family moved in 1959.

He studied English Literature at Cal State Fullerton, where he first met James Blaylock and K.W. Jeter, both of whom remained close friends and occasional collaborators; the trio have half-seriously referred to themselves as "steampunks" in contrast to the prevailing cyberpunk genre of the 1980s. Powers and Blaylock invented the poet William Ashbless while they were at Cal State Fullerton.

Another friend Powers first met during this period was noted science fiction writer Philip K. Dick; the character named "David" in Dick's novel VALIS is based on Powers and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (Blade Runner) is dedicated to him.

Powers's first major novel was The Drawing of the Dark (1979), but the novel that earned him wide praise was The Anubis Gates, which won the Philip K. Dick Award, and has since been published in many other languages.

Powers also teaches part-time in his role as Writer in Residence for the Orange County High School of the Arts where his friend, Blaylock, is Director of the Creative Writing Department. Powers and his wife, Serena, currently live in Muscoy, California. He has frequently served as a mentor author as part of the Clarion science fiction/fantasy writer's workshop.

He also taught part time at the University of Redlands.

Excerpted from Wikipedia.

Reviews

[Stephen Dorneman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Tim Powers, and typically give almost anything he writes five stars, but this reprint of Powers's first two publications (from Laser Books, Harlequin's failed attempt at an SF line) is only interesting as a historical relic. There are some flashes of what the future writer will be, particularly in the action sequences, but the world-building is sketchy at best, characters do the damnedest things for no good reason, and there are plot holes a plenty in both of the stories. Read everything and anything else published by Powers first.

[Bill Ramsell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting early works.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting read for me - it contains two books which represent the early (if not first) publications of Tim Powers. I have read both of these books in their reprinted format (not the Laser Edition that Mr Powers felt so disappointed about) as Skies Discrowned & Epitaph in Rust. It was not till quite recently I was able to get a copy of the NESA print of Powers of Two which contain the almost complete and final versions of the two stories. I must admit that even though I still remember the versions of the books reading them here in this one volume even though they were not majorly changed - they still felt new and fresh enough that I was able to read through them at a pace.
The books do not show the complexity of later Powers books (such as Declare) but they do have the pace and sheer storyline inertia that you find in the Anubis Gates or Drawing of the Dark.
The books to me not only reminded me of the originals but also the elation I felt and enjoyment I had of finding them in the first place and reading the first time around. So partial being biased with nostalgia and partially from the joy of reading them again I have given them this high rating although they are not as good as the later Anubis Gates or Drawing of the Dark - they are still impressive books and show why I think Powers is one of my all time favourite writers.

[Benjamin Espen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a lot of fun! This contains the last Tim Powers novel I hadn't yet read, an Epitaph in Rust. The story was strange, but laugh out loud funny in many places. What isn't funnier than methane-bloated grass-eating android policemen? I am also glad I hadn't managed to find copies of the original stories, since the first publisher Powers found, Laser Books, heavily edited his first two books. Each is printed here in a corrected edition.

This is the second book I have read recently that was published by the New England Science Fiction Association. I've been really happy with their work, and I hope they keep it up.

[Fraser · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tim Power's first two published works republished in a corrected form. Two enjoyable stories, both quite different but with some subtle similarities

[Mark Rzeszutek · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was awesome. Bought it at Boskone and read it through in three days. Both short novels are accessible and feel original, fresh, and uncliched even at 40 years old. A good dose of fun, too.

[Steve Clark]

Edition: First Edition