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Timegod's World #1

The Fires of Paratime

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Drawing on Norse legend, these books follow the story of the time-traveling Immortals of Query & their two greatest heroes--who both save & doom their people:
The Fires of Paratime (1982)
Timediver's Dawn (1992)
The Timegod (1993) (republication of The Fires of Paratime)
Timegod's World (2001) Omnibus.
Lovi, a young timediver, becomes a full-fledged member of the Temporal Guard of the planet Query, but he soon rebels against the parasitic culture in which he lives.

216 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 1982

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About the author

L.E. Modesitt Jr.

191 books2,590 followers
L. E. (Leland Exton) Modesitt, Jr. is an author of science fiction and fantasy novels. He is best known for the fantasy series The Saga of Recluce. He graduated from Williams College in Massachusetts, lived in Washington, D.C. for 20 years, then moved to New Hampshire in 1989 where he met his wife. They relocated to Cedar City, Utah in 1993.

He has worked as a Navy pilot, lifeguard, delivery boy, unpaid radio disc jockey, real estate agent, market research analyst, director of research for a political campaign, legislative assistant for a Congressman, Director of Legislation and Congressional Relations for the United States Environmental Protection Agency, a consultant on environmental, regulatory, and communications issues, and a college lecturer and writer in residence.
In addition to his novels, Mr. Modesitt has published technical studies and articles, columns, poetry, and a number of science fiction stories. His first short story, "The Great American Economy", was published in 1973 in Analog Science Fiction and Science Fact.

-Wikipedia

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5 stars
245 (38%)
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220 (34%)
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134 (20%)
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31 (4%)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
Profile Image for Jim.
Author 7 books2,089 followers
October 23, 2014
Time travel stories have been done to death in SF, but this one shines. It has a unique blend of fantasy to it - not because of any supernatural elements, but because it is the progenitor of much of our mythology. Loki, Hera, Odin-Thor, & many others are regular people, except they can slip through time & change history. Their culture is based on this ability.

This book follows Loki from early on into his time in the Time Guard. It's written in Modesitt's usual, understated style. A lot goes on between the lines, but it's still a quick read & a fun one. Poses a lot of interesting questions about polite barbarians, too. Something to think about since we are or at least are rapidly approaching that point. We have no idea how most of the devices we use & rely on daily actually work, couldn't fix them if they broke, or create a new one.

This was the first book I read by Modesitt & didn't find another for years. It was originally published by TimeScape, the edition I read this time, & later re-issued by Tor as The Timegod. He then wrote Timediver's Dawn which fills in a story told in this book.

I really like his style of writing & the way he watches his economics - not necessarily money, but the ability of the society to support standards of living. Apparently he did economics for a living & this theme shows through in all his books, both SF & fantasy. It was great, a perfect comfort re-read when work is so busy & confusing.
Profile Image for Tom.
Author 19 books9 followers
August 9, 2012
The Fires of Paratime is a beautifully written short novel that explores the idea of a society ruled by time travelers who steal everything they need from other cultures and brutally stamp out any other race that show similar abilities.

Loki is a throwback to an earlier age when time divers were more powerful and he slowly learns of the terrible stagnation and corruption within the ranks of his fellow officers. As he becomes enlightened he must fend off internal and external enemies in an attempt to bring freedom to the people of his world.

When I read this as a boy I didn’t see the underlying political themes but as an adult I find this to be one book I can read repeatedly. What happens when a society can get everything it needs from a machine, when individual effort is no longer necessary, when the only goal is a desperate and genocidal attempt to cling to power?

The Fires of Paratime, as a Libertarian novelist myself, I cannot recommend it enough.
Profile Image for Peter Tillman.
4,038 reviews476 followers
July 1, 2019
A good science-fantasy action-adventure, that was (I believe) Modesitt's first novel. Here's Jim's review, that led me to read it: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... -- and which you should read now, since I won't be writing a real review. Thanks, Jim. I missed reading this one, back in the day. Better late than never!

Note that there are some definite first-novel rough spots, and, like all time-travel stories, you can't expect the tale to always make sense. But it moves right along, and I'm glad I read it.

This was an impressive debut novel for the author. Besides the Norse mythology stuff, the book has a number of references to the time-winds or change-winds, that I think are nods to Fritz Leiber's classic "The Big Time" (1958) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Big..., that I'm almost certain Modesitt had read. And which you should read, too, if you missed it.
529 reviews3 followers
July 28, 2023
Reading this book is a bit of a full-circle moment for me since L. E. Modesitt Jr.'s novel *Haze* was the second adult science fiction novel that I discovered while becoming a *real* reader, and it was the first one that I discovered outside of school (I'd found Michael Chrichton's *Prey* in my reading teacher's personal classroom library). Therefore, Modesitt holds a special place in my heart, even if the other science fiction novel of his that I've read - *Solar Express* - was a bloated drag. When one of my favorite book YouTubers was auctioning off part of his collection online and displayed this book, I figured I had to buy Modesitt's first novel, just as *Haze* was kind of my first. Is this as poetic as I probably led you to believe? I doubt it. Is it still a good story? I hope so. Now for the question you're all here for: Is *The Fires of Paratime* a good story?

The answer to that is a bit all over the place, so before we tackle that in all its folds, I'll give a quick recap of the book.

*The Fires of Paratime* begins with a child named Loki, born as an immortal Queryans and the grandson of the hallowed warrior Odinthor. His parents realize that he is an extremely powerful time diver (basically a natural and biological form of time travel). Despite their anti-establishment influence on him, he tests into and joins the Temporal Guard. He goes through training with a handful of other children and instantly becomes known as a skilled time-diver; he's even tasked with taking a much more senior Guard member back in time to steal a power generator from an alien world. This excursion unveils the principle flaw of Queryan culture: they don't make things themselves; their technology is not their own. They steal from the cultures whose growth they simultaneously stunt in order to insulate themselves from another temporal war like the far-reaching one that they fought with the frost giants thousands of years ago. They also don't have very many members of the Guard who can work on advanced technology, which is why Loki (after a couple other seemingly random adventures which may or may not end with the sterilization of strands of certain cultures), is assigned to work in Mechanics under Buldur when he graduates from his training.

Spoilers now for the back half of the book, so skip to the next paragraph if you're worried about these dreadful, criminal strands we call spoilers: Shortly after his assignment to Mechanics, Loki is called upon to travel through time and save the lover of Heimdall (a Senior Guard, if I recall correctly). Sadly, Loki fails, and this seems to be the inciting incident of the multiple attempts on Loki's life coordinated by some of Heimdall's men. Loki does try to blow up Heimdall in return, which gets him a sentence with the torturous birds while being chained to a rock on the planet of Hell, but that doesn't slow Heimdall's ambitions for long, especially not when people start theorizing that he's on the track to become of the three most powerful members of Query's society. Other strange and inexplicable and cloak-and-dagger happenings occur which lead Loki to think he's being manipulated by someone, and at the end, it's revealed that a man and a woman who were two of the original founders of their society who have now rewritten their whole past, were the ones screwing with his life. Then, for some reason, Loki travels throughout time and space to manipulate his culture into... not being regressive and parasitic? Being able to stand on its own two feet? Something like that; he was really just zipping around random planets before having an "epic confrontation" with Fredya (both his and his grandfather's lover). It's a bit of an anticlimactic ending, but - hey - it's an ending. Let's circle around back to that, but first, let's tackle some of the easier elements of fiction.

How is L. E. Modesitt Jr.'s prose? Well, it's solid. It handles the potentially heady concepts of time-diving and whatnot with a bluntness that makes the work easily digestible without slipping into shallow blockbuster prose. That's not to say that his slightly simple and straightforward prose was deep, but there was a slight bit of flair there. Perhaps I give Modesitt a little too much credit in this regard, but I never thought that it was boring or insulting to read.

The characters, on the other hand, did feel a bit boring, if not quite insulting. Most characters in this book are thin with murky motivations (like Heimdall, for example). The worst instance of this is our main character of Loki, who spends a not-insignificant amount of time in this book being called selfish and self-righteous without ever really displaying signs of either affliction. The only windows we seem to have to his soul, despite the book being in first-person, are a couple of female characters telling us how self-absorbed he is. But we don't see any of that, and we feel even less (if you're like me and always correct, at least). This is really a shame because giving him a well-rounded persona would've helped him have a cool character arc that would've made the book's ending stick better, but I suppose it could've been worse.

Whereas with the characters I don't care if they fall a bit flat as long as they don't hurt the experience (which arguably Loki did), I believe that a cool world is crucial for a science fiction novel like this one. And at first, this book doesn't disappoint; you've got planets based off Midgard, Heaven, and Hell, and there's a lost city of Atlantis on Earth. There are cool societies we get glimpses of that pertain to human mythology and beyond, but the problem is that nothing is ever really *done* with this. If there's a planet called Terra, did the Terrans have any contact with Hell or Heaven IV in the early years of their culture? I just feel like there were really cool possibilities that Modesitt just ignores (kind of like Loki's parents and other assorted characters, as this is a relatively forgetful plot that leaves parts of it hanging around).

The plot was a fast yet reasonably-paced mosaic of random yet sequential events for the large majority of the book. I liked these parts. I thought that tying one's biological clock with their planet of origin when time diving (i.e. if you leave your homeworld at 6:00 and spend four hours offworld, you can't arrive back home at any time before 10:00) was a good way to streamline the story telling into something more manageable without copping out of time travel. I just think that the story really got messy at the end, with a weird twist or two that didn't do much for me. Still, aside from the ending and the things he seemed to forget about - which was actually a good part of the book now that I think about it- I thought Modesitt constructed his debut novel pretty well, especially for a *debut*.

I don't know what else to cover in this review except for the fact that *The Fires of Paratime* could've gone longer. We could have gotten actual character development from Loki and his contemporaries, a bit more time to digest more action, and of course, some meaningful way to tie in the Terran-culture-inspired planets into the already somewhat confusing narrative. There is a republished and perhaps expanded version from the 90s(?) out there. The information is here on Goodreads if you want to check it out, which I might have to, because I think this story would be exponentially better with a bit more meat on its bones.

As occasionally happens with a book which I want to like (such as this one, which I really do want to adore), I found that talking about this book actually made its rating go down, this time by as much as a full point. *The Fires of Paratime* is now a borderline... 6/10. It's a fun book with some enjoyable time travel and some cool ideas and scenes that will stick with me for a while, but the final sequence of the novel and its forgetful plot and the main character's blandness irk me. I might read more in this little world after I research what exactly Modesitt did for the differently titled version, but I think that until then, the next Modesitt I'll experience is a reread of *Haze*. Hopefully it holds up! Even if it doesn't, though, I'll still have some other quality SF to cling on to, so all shall be okay, as it is meant to be. If you're reading this in the future there's a chance you can find my *Haze* review here on Goodreads, but if you can't (or, frankly, don't give a crap), thanks for sticking with me throughout this Modesitt review. Here's hoping that our little sliver of galactic space is a little more benign and safe from temporal interference than Loki's; if it isn't, at least I have a feeling that Questyr's government will be a little more agreeable nowadays...
Profile Image for Jim.
Author 7 books2,089 followers
October 23, 2014
The first book of his I ever read was "The Fires of Paratime" published by Timescape. This is basically a reprint by Tor & I was upset when it came out because it was supposed to be changed enough to warrant a new title. It wasn't. Excellent book, though.
238 reviews2 followers
June 8, 2019
Much better than TimeDiver's Dawn. Sammis and Dr. Relorn appear in the book, the author still hasn't said where Dr. Relorn comes from. While the book deals with time traveling, it is more of a fantasy novel than science fiction. And with that said, it's has more in common with a soap opera than your typical fantasy book. It's fun, holds the reader's interest, and it reads fast. I recommend giving it a try. (Hint: you do not need to read TimeDiver's Dawn first, in fact, you don 't need to read it at all, this is a stand alone book. TimeDiver's Dawn is really Sammis's story; the only contribution it makes, if it makes one at all, is that the reader knows who Sammis is, where he comes from, and it gives him an air of respect. So is Sammis the TimeGod? Or is Loki? For that anwer, you will have to read the books.)
Profile Image for Lori Peterson.
1,207 reviews37 followers
August 4, 2021
a audio review copy from NetGalley; narrated by Gilbert Jackson, this is an honest review. This is a rather interesting time travel story and its the central character- Loki- earning his place among the time guards. While Loki shows the innate ability to time slip around his home world, he discovers that you play around to travel through time can be a double edge sword... with a thrilling adventure. Listening to audio version of this book was okay in experience but the narrator didn't provide the immersive journey that should have happened. He had a good, even voice but just didn't work out for myself.
Profile Image for Beth.
68 reviews
May 21, 2018
This was the first science fiction book I ever read and I absolutely loved it.
Most books that I can’t get enough of, I ultimately get the audio version, and the e-book edition as well... can’t do that with this one as the original, book club edition, aren’t available in any format other than hard to find print.
33 reviews
June 25, 2018
Olthough an early book, great

I Have read , with two exceptions, every Modesitt book, twice, even thrice. I cannot exaggerate the feeling that every time you read a Modesitt book you find deeper, more relevant meanings. I delayed reading his latest Recluse novel to read this pair of books.
Profile Image for Gail Morris.
419 reviews4 followers
April 7, 2018
What a great story of Loki and the gods of Asgard but with a sci-fi twist.
Profile Image for Nick.
218 reviews
April 12, 2020
This was a pretty interesting sci-fi concept. I liked the ideas that the author built into the story, but i felt like the author jumped around a lot and it was difficult to follow sometimes.
1,386 reviews2 followers
November 20, 2023
i enjoy LEM's works. I know this is part of his repertoire but this is different from what i have read from him (recluce, Imager, corean)... i will get the other book for completeness.
Profile Image for Michael Hall.
151 reviews6 followers
December 10, 2012
This was a thought provoking story of a time traveling culture with loose, very loose, references to Norse mythology. Modesitt really makes you think, especially of ethics and the exercise of power. The hero is somewhat arrogant, unthinking, and petulant. He often seems to react with childlike rage to the petty intrigue that surrounds him and demonstrates why you shouldn't provoke a power that is stronger than you are. You are left with the moral question of if the terrible revenge that he exacted was fitting and necessary. When force defines you and is used to solve a problem, in the case using time travel to rewrite the history of other star systems, even greater force must be used the next time. This is a theme that Modesitt repeats and solidifies in his later Recluse novels, but it sure is great to see the beginnings of his moral philosophy in such an interesting setting.

Profile Image for Angie.
25 reviews4 followers
January 30, 2014
Despite taking forever to finish this book due to being so busy, I did find some of the time travel concepts difficult to wrap my head around without further thought. I really enjoyed this book and it had a very different concept of time travel. I found some things hard to visualize, though after some discussion with my father, who recommended the book, I found my personal visualizations of things in the book to not be too far off from his. In short, it was a good but difficult read.
Profile Image for Lisa.
359 reviews2 followers
March 31, 2012
I really enjoyed the book and more than I expected. I was intreged by the concept of undertime. I've already started the next one in the series. As one of the earliest books he wrote i can see quite a few patterns that he later sticks to. I actually enjoyed these earlier books more because they seemed a bit rougher and unfinished. It let my imagination take over.
Profile Image for Kati.
108 reviews7 followers
May 23, 2016
I just could not get into this. 3/4 of the story is told like the narrator is reminiscing on a past with as little description as possible. The last quarter of the book gets a little better, but there are these leaps to conclusions that just don't make sense. Very annoying to read, but it gets 2 stars for the unique approach on time travel.
Profile Image for Dann Todd.
253 reviews7 followers
November 13, 2013
I read The Fires of Paratime via the SF Book Club back in the 1980s. It is one of those books that I keep in my collection precisely because it is such an enjoyable read.

Now that I know that it was expanded and used on the Timegod series, I will certainly read that as well.
Profile Image for Dionne.
Author 3 books12 followers
May 7, 2016
This was an interesting. Yeah right interesting, I'd say it was awesome! story. I loved the setting and the main character was perfect for this type of story. I truly enjoyed reading it and it will be in my kindle so that there will be a time when I read it again. Kudos to the writer!
Profile Image for David.
102 reviews
Read
March 12, 2009
The Fires of Paratime by L. E. Modesitt Jr. (1982)
Profile Image for Erik Graff.
5,167 reviews1,451 followers
September 14, 2011
I probably picked up this volume because of its reliance on motifs of Norse mythology, me being Norwegian and all. Unfortunately, I really don't have more than a vague memory of it.
Profile Image for Lee.
13 reviews
November 27, 2013
I Loved this book. It's one of the books that turned me on to Modesitt oh so many years ago.
Profile Image for Vader.
3,821 reviews35 followers
May 2, 2021
5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
Profile Image for Little Timmy.
7,390 reviews59 followers
March 11, 2016
Quick read but only an ok book. Never could seem to get into the storyline. Not recommended
106 reviews
March 31, 2016
Wow! Big finish! I love time travel books.
Profile Image for Nadia Mcgowan.
55 reviews4 followers
May 3, 2016
I'm enjoying the surveilance dictatorship system and the concept of a society needing to understand how things work to avoid reverting to barbarism.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews

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