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Three Kings #3
Kaspar's Box
THE SECRET OF THE THREE KINGS--REVEALED AT LAST
For centuries, interstellar prospectors had searched for the fabled Worlds of the Three Kings, the lost El Dorado of the galaxy. But if any found it, they were never heard from again. The mad cyborg Prophet, Ishmael Hand, discovered the mysterious system, with artifacts indicating a superhuman technology, and he had refused to reveal its location before vanishing forever into history.
Two more recent expeditions have found the Three Kings. A starfaring evangelist--Doctor Karl Woodward, preacher and leader of the starship The Mountain--followed a clue and found it, but never returned. Then a spacegoing salvage team followed Woodward's trail, and also vanished.
Now a chance encounter between what's left of the once-mighty human military with an inexplicable alien force has brought an armed expedition to the third planet of the Three Kings, Kaspar. They will join forces with the survivors of the first two expeditions, who have been marooned both by alien powers and by human treachery, as they at last encounter the alien minds behind the mysterious triple planetary system--and face a decision that may determine the fate of the entire human race!
For centuries, interstellar prospectors had searched for the fabled Worlds of the Three Kings, the lost El Dorado of the galaxy. But if any found it, they were never heard from again. The mad cyborg Prophet, Ishmael Hand, discovered the mysterious system, with artifacts indicating a superhuman technology, and he had refused to reveal its location before vanishing forever into history.
Two more recent expeditions have found the Three Kings. A starfaring evangelist--Doctor Karl Woodward, preacher and leader of the starship The Mountain--followed a clue and found it, but never returned. Then a spacegoing salvage team followed Woodward's trail, and also vanished.
Now a chance encounter between what's left of the once-mighty human military with an inexplicable alien force has brought an armed expedition to the third planet of the Three Kings, Kaspar. They will join forces with the survivors of the first two expeditions, who have been marooned both by alien powers and by human treachery, as they at last encounter the alien minds behind the mysterious triple planetary system--and face a decision that may determine the fate of the entire human race!
- GenresScience FictionFiction
320 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2003
1 person is currently reading
93 people want to read
About the author
Jack L. Chalker
132 books356 followersBesides being a science fiction author, Jack Laurence Chalker was a Baltimore City Schools history teacher in Maryland for a time, a member of the Washington Science Fiction Association, and was involved in the founding of the Baltimore Science Fiction Society. Some of his books said that he was born in Norfolk, Virginia although he later claimed that was a mistake.
He attended all but one of the World Science Fiction Conventions from 1965 until 2004. He published an amateur SF journal, Mirage, from 1960 to 1971 (a Hugo nominee in 1963 for Best Fanzine).
Chalker was married in 1978 and had two sons.
His stated hobbies included esoteric audio, travel, and working on science-fiction convention committees. He had a great interest in ferryboats, and, at his wife's suggestion, their marriage was performed on the Roaring Bull Ferry.
Chalker's awards included the Daedalus Award (1983), The Gold Medal of the West Coast Review of Books (1984), Skylark Award (1985), Hamilton-Brackett Memorial Award (1979), as well as others of varying prestige. He was a nominee for the John W. Campbell Award twice and for the Hugo Award twice. He was posthumously awarded the Phoenix Award by the Southern Fandom Confederation on April 9, 2005.
On September 18, 2003, during Hurricane Isabel, Chalker passed out and was rushed to the hospital with a diagnosis of a heart attack. He was later released, but was severely weakened. On December 6, 2004, he was again rushed to hospital with breathing problems and disorientation, and was diagnosed with congestive heart failure and a collapsed lung. Chalker was hospitalized in critical condition, then upgraded to stable on December 9, though he didn't regain consciousness until December 15. After several more weeks in deteriorating condition and in a persistent vegetative state, with several transfers to different hospitals, he died on February 11, 2005 of kidney failure and sepsis in Bon Secours of Baltimore, Maryland.
Chalker is perhaps best known for his Well World series of novels, the first of which is Midnight at the Well of Souls (Well World, #1).
He attended all but one of the World Science Fiction Conventions from 1965 until 2004. He published an amateur SF journal, Mirage, from 1960 to 1971 (a Hugo nominee in 1963 for Best Fanzine).
Chalker was married in 1978 and had two sons.
His stated hobbies included esoteric audio, travel, and working on science-fiction convention committees. He had a great interest in ferryboats, and, at his wife's suggestion, their marriage was performed on the Roaring Bull Ferry.
Chalker's awards included the Daedalus Award (1983), The Gold Medal of the West Coast Review of Books (1984), Skylark Award (1985), Hamilton-Brackett Memorial Award (1979), as well as others of varying prestige. He was a nominee for the John W. Campbell Award twice and for the Hugo Award twice. He was posthumously awarded the Phoenix Award by the Southern Fandom Confederation on April 9, 2005.
On September 18, 2003, during Hurricane Isabel, Chalker passed out and was rushed to the hospital with a diagnosis of a heart attack. He was later released, but was severely weakened. On December 6, 2004, he was again rushed to hospital with breathing problems and disorientation, and was diagnosed with congestive heart failure and a collapsed lung. Chalker was hospitalized in critical condition, then upgraded to stable on December 9, though he didn't regain consciousness until December 15. After several more weeks in deteriorating condition and in a persistent vegetative state, with several transfers to different hospitals, he died on February 11, 2005 of kidney failure and sepsis in Bon Secours of Baltimore, Maryland.
Chalker is perhaps best known for his Well World series of novels, the first of which is Midnight at the Well of Souls (Well World, #1).
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
April 13, 2020
Apt conclusion to the weakest series Chalker ever wrote. I am amazed that all of this signature themes/devices are missing here; maybe he was trying for something new, but it did not really work. Another book, another cast of characters that will get involved in the Three Kings. This time, it is an old smuggler carrying three women and the 'navy' that nabs him for back 'taxes'.
September 4, 2017
Kaspar’s Box is the final novel in the trilogy based on the traditional names of the three magi who brought gifts to the Baby Jesus. In each novel, the protagonists take a precarious journey through an unpredictable wormhole in order to reach the legendary “three kings.” The “three kings” are supposed to be lush planets with tremendous treasure in their natural resources. In each of the books, the characters end up on different planet-sized moons and deal with different crises.
And, religion plays a major role in this series. In the first volume, Belshazzar’s Serpent, there is one theme where a character named Eve ends up on a moon that is, essentially, a lush garden of Eden. The only problem is that there is no way out and things are so easy that life becomes tedious. This couldn’t help but remind me of Genesis 3 and that God mercifully set a perimeter around the Tree of Life after Adam (whose name means “humankind”) and Eve (whose name means “Living”) were exiled from the garden. Living forever with human limitations? Not really Paradise! Residents don’t quite attain immortality on this moon, but it seems so for a time.
The second volume, Melchior’s Fire, begins with the idea of greed and leads the protagonists to a moon which is rich with the crystals they seek, but it a hot, volcanic environment that suggests the opposite of the “Paradise” encountered in Belshazzar’s Serpent. Things seem to be running rather smoothly for the crew harvesting crystals for fun and profit until a dizzying event and foreshadowing of future events (including the climax in Kaspar’s Box) takes place. And, as a result of betrayal, the characters discover that they are quarantined into the misery of this less-than ideal planet. If Belshazzar is “paradise,” Melchior is “inferno.”
For much of Kaspar’s Box, one wonders what the relationship is between this story and the previous stories. At least, there doesn’t seem to be much overlap other than the existence of the crystals and a suggestion of their power. That suggestion turns the galaxy upside-down such that covert action becomes necessary. During that action (pretty interesting with its use of gadgets and speculative limitations!), the reader is introduced to the threat of the occult and discovers a tie with the dark moon, Kaspar. Naturally, this will entail (and I don’t think it would be a spoiler) a trip to Melchior and, along the way to the climax, some of the loose ends from the other books are tied together.
Chalker demonstrates in Kaspar’s Box that everyone worships something. But, some beliefs are potentially more beneficial than others (I’ll let you discover that for yourself!) and some individuals are willing to accept an equanimity that others are not. Kaspar’s Box features a lot of familiar Chalker themes like hive minds, intriguing aliens, and telepathy. The ending does seem somewhat hurried, but the journey to it is, after all, more than half the fun. The more I read of Chalker’s work, the more I think I’m going to miss it when I complete the late author’s oeuvre. Kaspar’s Box would be perfect were it not for the hurried ending.
And, religion plays a major role in this series. In the first volume, Belshazzar’s Serpent, there is one theme where a character named Eve ends up on a moon that is, essentially, a lush garden of Eden. The only problem is that there is no way out and things are so easy that life becomes tedious. This couldn’t help but remind me of Genesis 3 and that God mercifully set a perimeter around the Tree of Life after Adam (whose name means “humankind”) and Eve (whose name means “Living”) were exiled from the garden. Living forever with human limitations? Not really Paradise! Residents don’t quite attain immortality on this moon, but it seems so for a time.
The second volume, Melchior’s Fire, begins with the idea of greed and leads the protagonists to a moon which is rich with the crystals they seek, but it a hot, volcanic environment that suggests the opposite of the “Paradise” encountered in Belshazzar’s Serpent. Things seem to be running rather smoothly for the crew harvesting crystals for fun and profit until a dizzying event and foreshadowing of future events (including the climax in Kaspar’s Box) takes place. And, as a result of betrayal, the characters discover that they are quarantined into the misery of this less-than ideal planet. If Belshazzar is “paradise,” Melchior is “inferno.”
For much of Kaspar’s Box, one wonders what the relationship is between this story and the previous stories. At least, there doesn’t seem to be much overlap other than the existence of the crystals and a suggestion of their power. That suggestion turns the galaxy upside-down such that covert action becomes necessary. During that action (pretty interesting with its use of gadgets and speculative limitations!), the reader is introduced to the threat of the occult and discovers a tie with the dark moon, Kaspar. Naturally, this will entail (and I don’t think it would be a spoiler) a trip to Melchior and, along the way to the climax, some of the loose ends from the other books are tied together.
Chalker demonstrates in Kaspar’s Box that everyone worships something. But, some beliefs are potentially more beneficial than others (I’ll let you discover that for yourself!) and some individuals are willing to accept an equanimity that others are not. Kaspar’s Box features a lot of familiar Chalker themes like hive minds, intriguing aliens, and telepathy. The ending does seem somewhat hurried, but the journey to it is, after all, more than half the fun. The more I read of Chalker’s work, the more I think I’m going to miss it when I complete the late author’s oeuvre. Kaspar’s Box would be perfect were it not for the hurried ending.
May 5, 2012
Unlike the first two books in this series, there is some character development in this one and a couple of likeable characters. There are other issues, though. The repeated premise that humanity is dependent on salvage makes little sense. Humans here are portrayed has being competent, educated, and technologically sophisticated, at least on many colonial worlds. Certainly they could reverse engineer those things they could no longer import. Up until the final chapter, this was looking like a strong three-star book, but the ending was not satisfying and, in fact, pages of it were cut-and-paste from scenes from the second book.
June 16, 2015
Sigh. Not one of his better efforts. This series started out strong but quickly wore itself out with the second book, and the third got a bit tiresome to read.
I can't help feeling this wasn't an idea he came up with--either he was just losing it overall, or this was something that a friend or colleague suggested.
The ending of the third book, especially, felt rushed and incoherent.
Pity: this whole series really feels more like the setup to another series, that we'll now never see.
I can't help feeling this wasn't an idea he came up with--either he was just losing it overall, or this was something that a friend or colleague suggested.
The ending of the third book, especially, felt rushed and incoherent.
Pity: this whole series really feels more like the setup to another series, that we'll now never see.
October 7, 2012
Interesting, but the ultimate solution to the mystery was kind of a let down for me. Like the Quintara Marathan, the whole story climaxes in a few pages at the very end, after a lot of filler getting you there.
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January 9, 2010baen ebook
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews