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The Sinful Stars: Tales of the Fading Suns
It is the dawn of the sixth millennium and the stars are seen to fade...
Humans reached the stars long ago, building a Republic of high technology and universal emancipation--and then squandered it, fought over it, and finally lost it. A New Dark Age has descended on humanity, for the greatest of civilizations has fallen and even the stars die. Now, feudal lords rule the Known Worlds, vying for power with fanatic priests and scheming guilds.
The FADING SUNS universe is revealed in the tales of its people: nobles, priests, guildsmembers, aliens and peasants. Among the 18 stories collected here:
* espionage entangles a poet who must shatter a noble alliance with a dark entity
* a priest seeks absolution from his tortured sins in the storms of Pentateuch, the Planet of Mysteries
* a scientist studying nanotech resurrects an evil from the time of the Second Republic
* a Brother Battle monk dares to trespass on Vau lands, to reclaim a holy relic
* the mythic past haunts an Ukar searching for an ancient crown that warps time
* a morality play reveals how demons tempt mortal souls with the lure of high technology and riches from the stars
Humans reached the stars long ago, building a Republic of high technology and universal emancipation--and then squandered it, fought over it, and finally lost it. A New Dark Age has descended on humanity, for the greatest of civilizations has fallen and even the stars die. Now, feudal lords rule the Known Worlds, vying for power with fanatic priests and scheming guilds.
The FADING SUNS universe is revealed in the tales of its people: nobles, priests, guildsmembers, aliens and peasants. Among the 18 stories collected here:
* espionage entangles a poet who must shatter a noble alliance with a dark entity
* a priest seeks absolution from his tortured sins in the storms of Pentateuch, the Planet of Mysteries
* a scientist studying nanotech resurrects an evil from the time of the Second Republic
* a Brother Battle monk dares to trespass on Vau lands, to reclaim a holy relic
* the mythic past haunts an Ukar searching for an ancient crown that warps time
* a morality play reveals how demons tempt mortal souls with the lure of high technology and riches from the stars
394 pages, ebook
First published January 1, 1998
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About the author
Bill Bridges
124 books57 followersBill Bridges is a writer and game designer, most known for developing White Wolf’s World of Darkness setting and the Fading Suns science-fiction universe.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
April 18, 2012
My initial reaction, especially after reading the introduction, was that the setting felt somewhat synthetic, even for something based upon a game product. When broken down, the factions felt designed for game balance, to maximize interesting points of contention. Fortunately the stories themselves were more nuanced.
Reading revealed a melange (so to speak) of influences: the Dune series (I dare you to read of the Hawkwoods and Decados without thinking of two prominent noble families from there), a hint of Warhammer 40k (in the notion of constant conflict and outre outerplanar threats), and a heaping spoonful of European medieval society (the Big Three: nobility / merchant league / Church). I was not expecting such a strong medieval-slash-Dark Age component to the culture, and thought that it would be more baroque.
The setting itself is extremely broad in scope, and this made it difficult to pinpoint a common mood or tone for the stories. In particular, the level of technology available and the general attitude toward it fluctuated from story to story. This feature is explained within the setting itself--different areas culturally have different attitudes--but a consistent stamp would have cemented it overall.
The proofreading errors tended to stick out--three, perhaps four, on the back cover alone--and once noticed they became an OCD distraction hampering immersion in the actual stories.
Reading revealed a melange (so to speak) of influences: the Dune series (I dare you to read of the Hawkwoods and Decados without thinking of two prominent noble families from there), a hint of Warhammer 40k (in the notion of constant conflict and outre outerplanar threats), and a heaping spoonful of European medieval society (the Big Three: nobility / merchant league / Church). I was not expecting such a strong medieval-slash-Dark Age component to the culture, and thought that it would be more baroque.
The setting itself is extremely broad in scope, and this made it difficult to pinpoint a common mood or tone for the stories. In particular, the level of technology available and the general attitude toward it fluctuated from story to story. This feature is explained within the setting itself--different areas culturally have different attitudes--but a consistent stamp would have cemented it overall.
The proofreading errors tended to stick out--three, perhaps four, on the back cover alone--and once noticed they became an OCD distraction hampering immersion in the actual stories.
November 1, 2007
Absolutely AWESOME set of short stories set in the Fading Suns RPG universe. A Rare find, but worth the search and the read!
January 3, 2011
A good collection of short stories set in a fantastic setting where the stars are fading and humanity is recovering from a new Dark Ages.
December 19, 2021
Un recueil de nouvelles se déroulant dans l'univers du jeu de rôles Fading Suns. J'ai mis beaucoup de temps à le lire, enchainant parfois deux ou trois nouvelles avant de mettre de côté le livre pendant plusieurs semaines. C'est peut-être un signe que certains textes sont meilleurs que d'autres, et encouragent plus ou moins à poursuivre la lecture. L'ensemble est tout de même plaisant à lire et inspirant quand on aime, comme moi, l'univers si particulier de Fading Suns, avec son mélange de science-fiction et d'ambiance médiévale.
May 23, 2023
As with all short story collections, it tends to have some duds here and there, but the overall quality is good and will definitely provide an enjoyable read for fans of the Fading Suns setting.
November 9, 2020
As with any collection of stories from different authors, the quality varies. However, there are some truly excellent stories in here, and most of the others are at the least agreeable to read. It gives a nice overview of several archetypes in the Fading Suns universe, and is an excellent starting point to get to know the ins and outs of this roleplay setting.
March 4, 2010
Love this setting!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews