Ancestor's World

StarBridge #6

by A.C. Crispin, T. Jackson King

In this spectacular new Starbridge novel, Ambassador Burroughs and archaeologist Gordon Mitchell become the targets of a radical faction that will do anything to gain the power of more advanced species--even kill.

Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera, Fiction, Audiobook, Science Fiction Fantasy

320 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published July 1, 1996

About the author

Ann Carol Crispin (1950-2013) was an American science fiction writer, the author of over twenty published novels. She wrote professionally since 1983. She wrote several Star Trek and Star Wars novels, and created her own original science fiction series called Starbridge.

Crispin also served as Eastern Regional Director, and then Vice President, of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. With Victoria Strauss, she founded Writer Beware, a "watchdog" group that is part of SFWA that warns aspiring writers about the dangers of scam agents, editors, and publishers. Writer Beware was founded in 1998, and has assisted law enforcement and civil authorities in tracking and shutting down writing scams.

Crispin, who also wrote a prequel providing the back story for the popular Pirates of the Caribbean movie series, died on September 6th, 2013 at the Hospice of Charles County in Waldorf, aged 63.

She was married to science fiction author Michael Capobianco.

Reviews

[David H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Along with StarBridge (see my review), Ancestor's World had been--up until this month--the only other StarBridge novel I've read, and even when I read it, I didn't realize there was a connection between the two. Now that I've just read it, it's crazy how much it calls back to previous characters and incidents, so it was nice to slot it into the space in my brain devoted solely to StarBridge facts.

The only thing I had remembered from my previous reading was that the alien society was based on Ancient Egypt, they were blue (see the original cover of this book here), and the aliens had female priests serving the male gods, and male priests serving the female gods. I had completely forgotten it was a murder mystery. Whoops!

The aliens here (the Na-Dina) were really well done, and I loved the detective character, Krillen of the Law. The archeological background to the plot was really fun, and I liked getting not only a bit of archeology (thanks to co-author T. Jackson King's background as a field archeologist) but seeing the potential impact on the "modern day" politics of the planet. I did wish I got to see a bit more of Etsane the Iconographer's translation process for the ancient hieroglyphics.

As a murder mystery, it isn't too much a mystery since we find out who did it about 30% of the way into the book, so we're waiting for Krillen and Mahree to discover what's going on.

Side note: I really didn't like the main romantic relationship that got developed here--it's pretty thin and happens very quickly, and I felt like the general relationship of one of the couple was retconned from the previous 5 books. But then again, I'm not reading these for their romances, am I?

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Crispin, A. C., and T. Jackson King. Ancestor’s World. Starbridge No. 6. Ace, 1996.
An archeologist-diplomat on an ancestor-worshipping planet is murdered. A human-alien team sets out to find who done it. If some of the characters did not have scales and tails, I would swear we were in late 19th-century Egypt exploring gravesites with Elizabeth Peters’ Amelia Peabody. Maybe I will reread some of those now.

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good entry in the StarBridge series. I love how Crispin is able to write so many different alien cultures and make them believable. They really do well in showing how the different alien societies would interact and all of the pitfalls that go along with it. But what I love the most is how hopeful these interactions are. All in all a good book. I've read the next one (and it is my favorite of the series) but it has been awhile so it may be time for a reread.

[AmbushPredator · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another murder mystery with more than a touch of 'Indiana Jones' grown in, this book sees the return of Mahree Burroughs and Kuharrk' in a very Egyptian -alike planet. Full of ancient mystery, greedy corporations and intrigue, this would be one of the more 'cinematic' books, should they ever be adapted for the screen.

[Lavender · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good chapter in this series. I like how characters from previous books show up here and there in different settings, but the story is cohesive within the book, so the books can be read stand alone or as a set.

[Shelby · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book 6 continues the change to a more violent plot / universe, and the testosterone imparted by the new co-author is clear in the character development. I'm not sure what someone who liked first few books in the series would latch on to in this installment.

[Sandy Carmichael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good story in this series---set on a planet based on the worship of ancient dead ancestors.

[Mai · Rating 3 out of 5]

3++. Good addition to the series. Interesting characters.

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wasn't drawn into the story or the characters. Couldn't wait to finish and be done with this Starbridge #6

[T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hi folks. This is T. Jackson King, co-author with A.C. Crispin of Ancestor's World. My other scifi novel is Retread Shop, which you can find on Goodreads. For more info on me, check my web page at or my Facebook page under T. Jackson King. Thanks for the good words on AW! Tom.

[JHG Hendriks · Rating 1 out of 5]

By far the worst of the series.
Full of DXM events, plot holes and nonsensical things.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't like this one as much. A lot of the relationship drama made me uncomfortable as well.