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Deathstalker #2
Deathstalker Rebellion
New York Times bestselling author Simon R. Green continues his compelling space opera with the second novel in the Deathstalker series.
Owen Deathstalker--outlawed, with a price on his head and the blood of a mighty warrior lineage in his veins--had no choice but to embrace a dangerous destiny. With nothing to lose, only he had the courage to take up arms against Queen Lionstone XIV.
Now as he gathers his unlikely allies--the legendary washed-up hero Jack Random, the beautiful pirate Hazel d'Arc, the original Deathstalker long since presumed dead, and the alien Hadenmen whose purposes no human can discern--the eyes of the downtrodden are upon him while the freedom of a galaxy hangs in the balance...
Owen Deathstalker--outlawed, with a price on his head and the blood of a mighty warrior lineage in his veins--had no choice but to embrace a dangerous destiny. With nothing to lose, only he had the courage to take up arms against Queen Lionstone XIV.
Now as he gathers his unlikely allies--the legendary washed-up hero Jack Random, the beautiful pirate Hazel d'Arc, the original Deathstalker long since presumed dead, and the alien Hadenmen whose purposes no human can discern--the eyes of the downtrodden are upon him while the freedom of a galaxy hangs in the balance...
512 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 1, 1996
107 people are currently reading
914 people want to read
About the author
Simon R. Green
312 books3,209 followersSimon Richard Green is a British science fiction and fantasy-author. He holds a degree in Modern English and American Literature from the University of Leicester. His first publication was in 1979.
His Deathstalker series is partly a parody of the usual space-opera of the 1950s, told with sovereign disregard of the rules of probability, while being at the same time extremely bloodthirsty.
Excerpted from Wikipedia.
His Deathstalker series is partly a parody of the usual space-opera of the 1950s, told with sovereign disregard of the rules of probability, while being at the same time extremely bloodthirsty.
Excerpted from Wikipedia.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 92 reviews
August 1, 2017
This second instalment of the Deathstalker series was similar in quality to the first. No one is ever going to claim this is thought provoking sci-fi but it is a ton of fun to read. It is an action packed space opera that feels a bit like a cross between Star Wars and Game of Thrones.
This was a book of two parts. The first part focused on the noble families in court scheming for position and the squabble for position within the leaders of the rebellion. Owen and his allies try to combine their forces with those of the regular rebellion and underground. The rebellion leaders identify four key planets that have to be taken if they are to seize control of the Empire. The second half of the book focuses on the battle for the first of those planets. Owen's maze buddies have split so only Jack Random and Ruby Journey head to the first key planet. Despite that we find a bunch of familiar faces as it is the planet the younger Wolf siblings have been sent to to deal with production of the Empresses new star-drive.
Silence and Frost featured prominently again and had a few more missions to complete for the Empress. Despite being on the wrong team they remain enjoyable characters to read about!
All in all the story was a lot of fun. The high stake scheming between the nobles continued to be both exciting and entertaining as was the jostling for position between the various factions within the rebellion. We got small examples of how the maze has started to change Owen and his companions and we got a few more encounters with various aliens!
Looking forward to the next instalment of the series.
Rating: 4 stars.
Audio Note: This was another production by Listen & Live Audio. They were the company that eventually became Graphic Audio and this was done in a similar style with multiple narrators used and some music and sound effects added. I actually think this is even better than a lot of the regular Graphic Audio productions I've listened to!
This was a book of two parts. The first part focused on the noble families in court scheming for position and the squabble for position within the leaders of the rebellion. Owen and his allies try to combine their forces with those of the regular rebellion and underground. The rebellion leaders identify four key planets that have to be taken if they are to seize control of the Empire. The second half of the book focuses on the battle for the first of those planets. Owen's maze buddies have split so only Jack Random and Ruby Journey head to the first key planet. Despite that we find a bunch of familiar faces as it is the planet the younger Wolf siblings have been sent to to deal with production of the Empresses new star-drive.
Silence and Frost featured prominently again and had a few more missions to complete for the Empress. Despite being on the wrong team they remain enjoyable characters to read about!
All in all the story was a lot of fun. The high stake scheming between the nobles continued to be both exciting and entertaining as was the jostling for position between the various factions within the rebellion. We got small examples of how the maze has started to change Owen and his companions and we got a few more encounters with various aliens!
Looking forward to the next instalment of the series.
Rating: 4 stars.
Audio Note: This was another production by Listen & Live Audio. They were the company that eventually became Graphic Audio and this was done in a similar style with multiple narrators used and some music and sound effects added. I actually think this is even better than a lot of the regular Graphic Audio productions I've listened to!
February 5, 2020
And that was when the roof fell in.
What a load of tosh! ...or is it?
What a peculiar reading experience. On an intellectual level, every fibre screams to put this down, but like a train without brakes you just keep going. And going. And going.
It’s been ages since I read Deathstalker, and I apparently enjoyed it (I rated it 4). If ever a series fit the bill of “Fantasy in Space”, or “Sword and Laser”, it’s this one. Deathstalker Rebellion is a weird bastard of a book, filled withcontradictions inconsistencies, coincidences, unsubtlety and unintentional hilarity. Or, to put it differently, reading this goes accompanied by much rolling of eyes.
But Simon R. Green might just be the biggest magician of them all, since he is still able to pull the wool over the reader’s eyes. Let’s be brutally honest: this is the schlock fest of the century, like a head-on collision between Star Wars and Warhammer 40K which sort of damaged all the good parts of both. Expect bedlam, mayhem and other synonyms as well. Expect total sensory overload and a cavalier disregard for good taste and common sense…. and yet…
Not so much a review as a random collection of thoughts
Everything in here is cranked to eleven. Almost every character is an overblown caricature of sorts. (Quite literally, just about every other character is described as “one of the most dangerous men/women in the empire” or some such). The way everybody tries to out-bad-ass one another is, frankly, exhausting. One of the many things I found hard to swallow (and this in a genre that requires suspension of disbelief) was how the author used the Madness Maze of the previous book to conveniently explain all kinds of ludicrousness away; this doesn’t make it any less Deus Ex Machina! Oh, so a character has suddenly manifested superhuman powers, conveniently suited to the situation at hand? Really?
With all the bucketloads of stuff happening in this novel, some of it is bound to be good though. Weird thing is, Owen Deathstalker himself doesn’t actually feature that much at all, which is arguably just as well (I enjoyed the sequences with the “supporting cast”, like Silence and Frost much more, for the most part). The concept of the Darkvoid is quite cool. The bit with the derelict ship Champion showed real promise. There are some really interesting locations, such as the industrial wasteland of Technos III. And, finally, the author does, on occasion, get the humour right.
The silliness is juxtaposed against a surprising level of violence, which has an unsettling effect. The book, frankly, gets quite grim and dark on occasion. The second half of the novel is the stronger half, so if you can make it past the halfway mark you’re golden (but as with everything else here, that is a rather loose concept).
I’m not sure how much of this is satire / parody? The question is: should you care?
Despite all my griping, the book does have its moments. I can imagine that this series is extremely polarizing, but it will certainly appeal to some people. It all depends on how serious you want your Sci-Fi / fantasy to be, and how much you like your guilty pleasures. This is the literary equivalent of cheap booze mixed with sugary soda, or a bottom dollar prostitute, but whatever gets you there.
If nothing else, the novel kept me curious. I didn’t particularly have to enjoy proceedings all that much to want to know what happened next. I’ll give Deathstalker War a try, since it apparently concludes the first story arc, but unless it holds together better than this instalment, I can’t really see myself continuing any further with the series.
“Can I go now, please? I was on my way to the toilet, and if anything, my need is even worse now than it was."
What a load of tosh! ...or is it?
What a peculiar reading experience. On an intellectual level, every fibre screams to put this down, but like a train without brakes you just keep going. And going. And going.
It’s been ages since I read Deathstalker, and I apparently enjoyed it (I rated it 4). If ever a series fit the bill of “Fantasy in Space”, or “Sword and Laser”, it’s this one. Deathstalker Rebellion is a weird bastard of a book, filled with
But Simon R. Green might just be the biggest magician of them all, since he is still able to pull the wool over the reader’s eyes. Let’s be brutally honest: this is the schlock fest of the century, like a head-on collision between Star Wars and Warhammer 40K which sort of damaged all the good parts of both. Expect bedlam, mayhem and other synonyms as well. Expect total sensory overload and a cavalier disregard for good taste and common sense…. and yet…
Not so much a review as a random collection of thoughts
Everything in here is cranked to eleven. Almost every character is an overblown caricature of sorts. (Quite literally, just about every other character is described as “one of the most dangerous men/women in the empire” or some such). The way everybody tries to out-bad-ass one another is, frankly, exhausting. One of the many things I found hard to swallow (and this in a genre that requires suspension of disbelief) was how the author used the Madness Maze of the previous book to conveniently explain all kinds of ludicrousness away; this doesn’t make it any less Deus Ex Machina! Oh, so a character has suddenly manifested superhuman powers, conveniently suited to the situation at hand? Really?
With all the bucketloads of stuff happening in this novel, some of it is bound to be good though. Weird thing is, Owen Deathstalker himself doesn’t actually feature that much at all, which is arguably just as well (I enjoyed the sequences with the “supporting cast”, like Silence and Frost much more, for the most part). The concept of the Darkvoid is quite cool. The bit with the derelict ship Champion showed real promise. There are some really interesting locations, such as the industrial wasteland of Technos III. And, finally, the author does, on occasion, get the humour right.
The silliness is juxtaposed against a surprising level of violence, which has an unsettling effect. The book, frankly, gets quite grim and dark on occasion. The second half of the novel is the stronger half, so if you can make it past the halfway mark you’re golden (but as with everything else here, that is a rather loose concept).
I’m not sure how much of this is satire / parody? The question is: should you care?
Despite all my griping, the book does have its moments. I can imagine that this series is extremely polarizing, but it will certainly appeal to some people. It all depends on how serious you want your Sci-Fi / fantasy to be, and how much you like your guilty pleasures. This is the literary equivalent of cheap booze mixed with sugary soda, or a bottom dollar prostitute, but whatever gets you there.
If nothing else, the novel kept me curious. I didn’t particularly have to enjoy proceedings all that much to want to know what happened next. I’ll give Deathstalker War a try, since it apparently concludes the first story arc, but unless it holds together better than this instalment, I can’t really see myself continuing any further with the series.
“Can I go now, please? I was on my way to the toilet, and if anything, my need is even worse now than it was."
November 25, 2023
4.0 Stars
This was such an enjoyable sequel that managed to be even better than the first. I loved reading the politics of the rebellion. This is an entertaining series but I'm pleased to find more depth and complexity than I first expected.
This was such an enjoyable sequel that managed to be even better than the first. I loved reading the politics of the rebellion. This is an entertaining series but I'm pleased to find more depth and complexity than I first expected.
May 16, 2025
*** 3.36 ***
It was fun. I don't find it deep or very thought provoking, but it's fine for entertainment value. The characters are dynamic and a lot of things are happening, but if you are looking for character development, this really isn't it. However, if you are looking for a lot of action, you should give it a try 🙂
It was fun. I don't find it deep or very thought provoking, but it's fine for entertainment value. The characters are dynamic and a lot of things are happening, but if you are looking for character development, this really isn't it. However, if you are looking for a lot of action, you should give it a try 🙂
May 29, 2012
This series of books is sort of like scifi crack - it's not really any good for you, but you can't stop reading it once you've had a taste. I rather enjoy the plotting and the grand-scale space-opera arcs of the Deathstalker universe, but the writing itself is just so-so, and the omniscient narration bugs me (especially when it inconsistently bounces from omniscient to semi-omniscient depending on how many characters are in the scene). In spite of that though, the characters are interesting (if a little wooden) and the worlds, aliens, and technology Green incorporates into the universe (including a mix of laser blasters and swords that quite appeals to the scifi-swashbuckler in me) keeps me reading on.
Although this series purports to revolve around the character of Owen Deathstalker, he actually appears in very few chapters of this book in the series. Based on the tacked-on "Stay Tuned for Scenes from Our Next Episode" ending, it appears that's not going to change much in the next novel, either. I tell myself I'm going to stay away, but you and I already know I'm going to get my hands on book #3 in the series and take another hit of this series - the only question is when.
Although this series purports to revolve around the character of Owen Deathstalker, he actually appears in very few chapters of this book in the series. Based on the tacked-on "Stay Tuned for Scenes from Our Next Episode" ending, it appears that's not going to change much in the next novel, either. I tell myself I'm going to stay away, but you and I already know I'm going to get my hands on book #3 in the series and take another hit of this series - the only question is when.
December 7, 2022
4.75 stars
RTC
RTC
April 5, 2018
Fun stuff!
February 9, 2019
*Need to Review
Even more fun than the first book. Somewhat abrupt ending.
Even more fun than the first book. Somewhat abrupt ending.
May 13, 2014
Unfortunately, I've been asked by my publisher not to continue with my Deathstalker Retrospective, which is why I haven't posted the next review in it for a few months now. One of my editors hates Simon R. Green with a passion, and refuses to work on anything that paints his work in a positive light, sooooo, oh well. I, the lowly writer, must bend to the whims of the all powerful editor and find something else to review.
Here's a really barebones review of this book if anyone cares. Maybe I'll get around to writing out a full review of it sometime, but for the time being I really don't have that much time to spend on writing a review I'm not going to be paid for.
Some of the good points are, again, the humor. I love the humor in these books. The characters are so entertaining, and say the most hilarious things to one another that it really does make up for the fact that the book is not really all that well written.
Some of the bad points are that Simon R. Green is not a very good writer. He's great with characters, dialog, humor, and story, but when it comes to writing it all out, he does fall a little short. I would rather read an entertaining story that isn't written very well than a well written story that isn't entertaining *cough*The Wise Man's Fear*cough*. But it is nice to have both once in a while. And for a book called Deathstalker Rebellion, in a series called Deathstalker, Owen Deathstalker is barely in the book for a small part at the very beginning. The rest of it followed other characters after they split up to start rebellion in different parts of the Empire. Which is fine, I suppose. I still found it entertaining, but this makes two books now in a series called Deathstalker where the titular Deathstalker has barely made an appearance at all.
If you enjoyed the first book, you'll likely enjoy this one. It's more of the same sort of thing. If you didn't like the first book for whatever reason, and were hoping things get better in the second, you'll probably be a bit disappointed.
Anyway, I'll be back with a brand new Retrospective series that is Editor approved this time within the next couple of weeks. Next up is the Green Rider series by Kristen Britain.
Here's a really barebones review of this book if anyone cares. Maybe I'll get around to writing out a full review of it sometime, but for the time being I really don't have that much time to spend on writing a review I'm not going to be paid for.
Some of the good points are, again, the humor. I love the humor in these books. The characters are so entertaining, and say the most hilarious things to one another that it really does make up for the fact that the book is not really all that well written.
Some of the bad points are that Simon R. Green is not a very good writer. He's great with characters, dialog, humor, and story, but when it comes to writing it all out, he does fall a little short. I would rather read an entertaining story that isn't written very well than a well written story that isn't entertaining *cough*The Wise Man's Fear*cough*. But it is nice to have both once in a while. And for a book called Deathstalker Rebellion, in a series called Deathstalker, Owen Deathstalker is barely in the book for a small part at the very beginning. The rest of it followed other characters after they split up to start rebellion in different parts of the Empire. Which is fine, I suppose. I still found it entertaining, but this makes two books now in a series called Deathstalker where the titular Deathstalker has barely made an appearance at all.
If you enjoyed the first book, you'll likely enjoy this one. It's more of the same sort of thing. If you didn't like the first book for whatever reason, and were hoping things get better in the second, you'll probably be a bit disappointed.
Anyway, I'll be back with a brand new Retrospective series that is Editor approved this time within the next couple of weeks. Next up is the Green Rider series by Kristen Britain.
February 7, 2019
عکس جلد کتاب اشتباهه توی گودریدز ولی خب مهم نیست
همه ی اون چیزی که از سیمون آر گرین انتظار میرفت توی این کتاب وجود داشت. روابط نامعقول و بی خدایی که توی تمام آثار گرین وجود داره و آدم باید اونا رو در نظر نگیره و از فانتزی عمیق و طنز عالی لذت ببره.
گرین عاشق تعریف و تاکید روی ماجرای زندگی شخصیت هاست و تا جایی که بتونه اون قسمت هایی که بخواد تکرار میکنه.
بی صبرانه منتظر خوندن جلد سوم هستم و حالا حالاها قرار نیست از نثر گرین خسته بشم.
تاکید مجددی که دارم اینه که افراد تاثیر پذیر نباید این کتابا رو بخونن. مخصوصا نوجوان ها. هرچند سری کتاب دث استاکر جزو مجموعه نوجوانان نشر ویدا هست و توش همه جور روابط از پدر و دختر بگیر تا خواهر و برادر وجود داره.
همه ی اون چیزی که از سیمون آر گرین انتظار میرفت توی این کتاب وجود داشت. روابط نامعقول و بی خدایی که توی تمام آثار گرین وجود داره و آدم باید اونا رو در نظر نگیره و از فانتزی عمیق و طنز عالی لذت ببره.
گرین عاشق تعریف و تاکید روی ماجرای زندگی شخصیت هاست و تا جایی که بتونه اون قسمت هایی که بخواد تکرار میکنه.
بی صبرانه منتظر خوندن جلد سوم هستم و حالا حالاها قرار نیست از نثر گرین خسته بشم.
تاکید مجددی که دارم اینه که افراد تاثیر پذیر نباید این کتابا رو بخونن. مخصوصا نوجوان ها. هرچند سری کتاب دث استاکر جزو مجموعه نوجوانان نشر ویدا هست و توش همه جور روابط از پدر و دختر بگیر تا خواهر و برادر وجود داره.
August 16, 2009
Having recently finished Deathstalker, I immediately went on to book #2, Death stalker Rebellion.
It was ok; but not as good as book one. It introduced one really interesting character--Half a Man---and much of the rest was routine.
Still, a competent job of space opera and derring-do, with lots to offer fans of science fiction adventure fans. You do need to read the series in order, or book 2 will not make a lot of sense to you.
It was ok; but not as good as book one. It introduced one really interesting character--Half a Man---and much of the rest was routine.
Still, a competent job of space opera and derring-do, with lots to offer fans of science fiction adventure fans. You do need to read the series in order, or book 2 will not make a lot of sense to you.
May 7, 2021
Here's my review of the first novel in this series (I insert it here because it says exactly what I want to say about this one too):
This first novel in the Deathstalker series started out as a pure 5-star read. Lots of good pulpy space opera fun and action right off the bat. But then it devolved into a myriad of characters and a few too many over-the-top sub plots. The author threw in everything plus the kitchen sink.
Still, it kept me interested and overall I guess I "liked" it. But I think the novel would have been much better if it had been cut by ~150 pages and come in as a leaner story. I am hopeful that the many side characters (those that weren't slaughtered) will play significant roles in future installments.
Owen Deathstalker is supposed to be the leader of the rebellion but he gets very little screen time in this second novel. I would estimate less than 25% is devoted to what he is doing and even when he is part of the plot, he doesn't seem to play a very big role. Instead, those honors go to Jack Random whose comeback from being the once-great rebel leader is coming back full circle. Most of the book is devoted to what all of the other characters are doing. I guess that's OK, and I still did enjoy reading this volume, but I feel like it could easily have been edited down by at least a third and been a much better novel. At least my hopes from book one about the side characters assuming large roles has come to fruition.
I get the feeling the author is just writing by the seat of his pants and is as surprised as we readers are at what comes next. Again, that can be fine, but it all seems a little haphazard to me. I'll see what the next book brings when I get around to it.
This first novel in the Deathstalker series started out as a pure 5-star read. Lots of good pulpy space opera fun and action right off the bat. But then it devolved into a myriad of characters and a few too many over-the-top sub plots. The author threw in everything plus the kitchen sink.
Still, it kept me interested and overall I guess I "liked" it. But I think the novel would have been much better if it had been cut by ~150 pages and come in as a leaner story. I am hopeful that the many side characters (those that weren't slaughtered) will play significant roles in future installments.
Owen Deathstalker is supposed to be the leader of the rebellion but he gets very little screen time in this second novel. I would estimate less than 25% is devoted to what he is doing and even when he is part of the plot, he doesn't seem to play a very big role. Instead, those honors go to Jack Random whose comeback from being the once-great rebel leader is coming back full circle. Most of the book is devoted to what all of the other characters are doing. I guess that's OK, and I still did enjoy reading this volume, but I feel like it could easily have been edited down by at least a third and been a much better novel. At least my hopes from book one about the side characters assuming large roles has come to fruition.
I get the feeling the author is just writing by the seat of his pants and is as surprised as we readers are at what comes next. Again, that can be fine, but it all seems a little haphazard to me. I'll see what the next book brings when I get around to it.
August 22, 2018
Well, what can I say? I thought it was amazing. To be honest, this book is one of those that you think "Man, I'm not getting anywhere!" because it's so long, and then you get lost in it, and eventually look up and see how much you have read. There is literally always action, always something happening. This book has the same flaws as the first in the series, and the rest - overly-repeated phrases, small mistakes in things such as naming, all of that... but as I've said before in my review of the first Deathstalker book, that stuff really never bothered me. I still absolutely love the new worlds, inventive new aliens we get to meet, the suspense, the characters, and the friendly banter that I so enjoy.
Perhaps my favourite new characters that are introduced in this book are Toby Shreck - Gregor Shrecks nephew, and PR flack for Clan Shreck before he was, well, kind of fired. So he was sent to Technos III (a hell-hole factory planet which we meet in the last part of the book), as a reporter, with his camera-man Flynn, who is...interesting, to say the least, but I'm not giving anything away. In any case, both are entertaining, endearing characters. Cardinal Kasser and the Wolfe's make an appearance on Technos III also, as despicable as ever. In fact, Cardinal Kasser is extremely amusing - especially the part where he blows up the main aerial two days before the Empire-wide broadcast of a ceremony. PWND. Not to mention the numerous high-profile screw-ups he has being transmitted live to the Empire. Heeheehee.
We also meet some other new characters, including Michael and Lily Wolfe (spouses of Stephanie and Daniel respectively). It's a curious thing, but I liked Lily much less reading the book than I did listening to the audio-version... for the simple reason that the audio version, which did allude to Lily wearing wigs, did not allude to the fact that these wigs were not worn over her natural hair, but instead a shaven skull. Ugh! Anyways, rant over. Another new character we meet is the "new" Jack Random - who, for the record, I hate for two reasons: 1. he is sickeningly (literally) perfect - all handsome and daring and golden - and 2. because of the pain and uncertainty he puts "old" Jack Random through. It is painful to see "old Jack" start to come into his own, only to be cut down by this new golden version of himself. That would totally screw my mind over, if it was me.
Another new character we get introduced to is the legendary Half-a-Man. Abducted by aliens, he was eventually sent back to Humanity - but only half of him was sent back. The other side of him is an energy field, making him immortal. Half-a-Man is also the creator of the Investigators - so of course from the beginning, you know he's going to be a hard son-of-a-bitch. But surprisingly, I found myself feeling obscurely sorry for him, especially when he confides to one of his Investigators that he is afraid of losing his Humanity. His is just another sad story in a cruel Empire, and you get a sense of how he used to be a normal man, and even now perhaps he's still trying to make sense of what destiny has shaped him into.
There are many secondary (kind of) characters from the first Deathstalker that make a repeat appearance in Deathstalker Rebellion. Valentine Wolfe, is of course, as wonderfully entertaining as ever - even more so, if that is possible. And of course completely and utterly disturbing, as always. Beatrice Christiana also makes a repeat appearance in Deathstalker Rebellion - though not at all in the way you would expect for a dyed-in-the-blood aristocrat. In fact, some of Beatrice's parts of the book were the most touching and emotional of the entire book.
The book starts of rather slowly to be perfectly honest, with Hazel and Owen (with a new, golden, Hadenman hand) spending far too much time (in Owen's case) in the toilet, and repeating themselves in heated arguments over political rhetoric and debate. I won't say much more about the plot of the book - only that I commend Green for how utterly creepy he managed to make the parts of the book pertaining to Captain Silence, Investigator Cross and Security Officer Stelmach. Suffice it to say, DO NOT read those parts of the book late at night if you are anything like me. Although I must say throughout the book I was struck with the fact that listening to the audio-book, although slowing down a little Green's fast-paced action, does allow (along with the sound effects and music) for a far increased sense of drama, fear, tragedy, etc. etc. I just had to imagine those parts of the book in my head like they were in the audio-book. But once again I recommend both versions, as they both have their merits.
As usual, Green's unusual but wonderful, funny, bantering way of writing is amazing and always fun. Although, as previously stated, although the fast pace is a wonderful ride, it does also seem to make those emotion-charged and action-filled parts of the narrative to go, well, rather fast. But I personally am certainly able to deal with that.
Once again, if you are anything like me, this book will, at times, have you crying, laughing, your heart pounding, aching with sympathy or at times burning with hatred. It is a wonderful, long, emotional journey through the ever wondrous Deathstalker Universe, and despite it's flaws I highly recommend it to lovers of good fantasy or science-fiction lovers who aren't too picky.
Perhaps my favourite new characters that are introduced in this book are Toby Shreck - Gregor Shrecks nephew, and PR flack for Clan Shreck before he was, well, kind of fired. So he was sent to Technos III (a hell-hole factory planet which we meet in the last part of the book), as a reporter, with his camera-man Flynn, who is...interesting, to say the least, but I'm not giving anything away. In any case, both are entertaining, endearing characters. Cardinal Kasser and the Wolfe's make an appearance on Technos III also, as despicable as ever. In fact, Cardinal Kasser is extremely amusing - especially the part where he blows up the main aerial two days before the Empire-wide broadcast of a ceremony. PWND. Not to mention the numerous high-profile screw-ups he has being transmitted live to the Empire. Heeheehee.
We also meet some other new characters, including Michael and Lily Wolfe (spouses of Stephanie and Daniel respectively). It's a curious thing, but I liked Lily much less reading the book than I did listening to the audio-version... for the simple reason that the audio version, which did allude to Lily wearing wigs, did not allude to the fact that these wigs were not worn over her natural hair, but instead a shaven skull. Ugh! Anyways, rant over. Another new character we meet is the "new" Jack Random - who, for the record, I hate for two reasons: 1. he is sickeningly (literally) perfect - all handsome and daring and golden - and 2. because of the pain and uncertainty he puts "old" Jack Random through. It is painful to see "old Jack" start to come into his own, only to be cut down by this new golden version of himself. That would totally screw my mind over, if it was me.
Another new character we get introduced to is the legendary Half-a-Man. Abducted by aliens, he was eventually sent back to Humanity - but only half of him was sent back. The other side of him is an energy field, making him immortal. Half-a-Man is also the creator of the Investigators - so of course from the beginning, you know he's going to be a hard son-of-a-bitch. But surprisingly, I found myself feeling obscurely sorry for him, especially when he confides to one of his Investigators that he is afraid of losing his Humanity. His is just another sad story in a cruel Empire, and you get a sense of how he used to be a normal man, and even now perhaps he's still trying to make sense of what destiny has shaped him into.
There are many secondary (kind of) characters from the first Deathstalker that make a repeat appearance in Deathstalker Rebellion. Valentine Wolfe, is of course, as wonderfully entertaining as ever - even more so, if that is possible. And of course completely and utterly disturbing, as always. Beatrice Christiana also makes a repeat appearance in Deathstalker Rebellion - though not at all in the way you would expect for a dyed-in-the-blood aristocrat. In fact, some of Beatrice's parts of the book were the most touching and emotional of the entire book.
The book starts of rather slowly to be perfectly honest, with Hazel and Owen (with a new, golden, Hadenman hand) spending far too much time (in Owen's case) in the toilet, and repeating themselves in heated arguments over political rhetoric and debate. I won't say much more about the plot of the book - only that I commend Green for how utterly creepy he managed to make the parts of the book pertaining to Captain Silence, Investigator Cross and Security Officer Stelmach. Suffice it to say, DO NOT read those parts of the book late at night if you are anything like me. Although I must say throughout the book I was struck with the fact that listening to the audio-book, although slowing down a little Green's fast-paced action, does allow (along with the sound effects and music) for a far increased sense of drama, fear, tragedy, etc. etc. I just had to imagine those parts of the book in my head like they were in the audio-book. But once again I recommend both versions, as they both have their merits.
As usual, Green's unusual but wonderful, funny, bantering way of writing is amazing and always fun. Although, as previously stated, although the fast pace is a wonderful ride, it does also seem to make those emotion-charged and action-filled parts of the narrative to go, well, rather fast. But I personally am certainly able to deal with that.
Once again, if you are anything like me, this book will, at times, have you crying, laughing, your heart pounding, aching with sympathy or at times burning with hatred. It is a wonderful, long, emotional journey through the ever wondrous Deathstalker Universe, and despite it's flaws I highly recommend it to lovers of good fantasy or science-fiction lovers who aren't too picky.
September 1, 2024
Probably 3.5 rounded up. Introduced way too many new characters. Felt like GoT but in space.
August 1, 2008
#2 Deathstalker Sci Fi series
Re: Confusing series order
Author's note on title page:
"Deathstalker Rebellion
Being the Second Part of the Life and Times of Owen Deathstalker"
Looks like "Deathstalker Legacy" series follows the "Deathstalker" series (??)
Simon R. Green's urban fantasy series "The Nightside" is #2 on my all time fav PUF books (following J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood). (Those books are quite short compared to the 500 pages in this sci fi series.)
Green's "space opera" is a 500 page roller coaster ride of adventure, derring do, fast action -- kinda Star Wars-like, but with a dizzying array of subplots, political skullduggery, hidden alliances, secret deals, betrayals and so on.
Green is a genius with a huge cast of colorful characters, too -- Half A Man, the Ghost Warriors, Ruby Journey, Jack Random, Captain Silence. His superb talent as a writer keeps the characters and plot lines very clear in your mind, despite the complexity and frequent plot upheavals. I liked the occasional bolt of humor too :-)
I didn't see so much as one paragraph that dragged! Will definitely continue with this exciting & fun series. Can't wait to see what happens next!
Re: Confusing series order
Author's note on title page:
"Deathstalker Rebellion
Being the Second Part of the Life and Times of Owen Deathstalker"
Looks like "Deathstalker Legacy" series follows the "Deathstalker" series (??)
Simon R. Green's urban fantasy series "The Nightside" is #2 on my all time fav PUF books (following J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood). (Those books are quite short compared to the 500 pages in this sci fi series.)
Green's "space opera" is a 500 page roller coaster ride of adventure, derring do, fast action -- kinda Star Wars-like, but with a dizzying array of subplots, political skullduggery, hidden alliances, secret deals, betrayals and so on.
Green is a genius with a huge cast of colorful characters, too -- Half A Man, the Ghost Warriors, Ruby Journey, Jack Random, Captain Silence. His superb talent as a writer keeps the characters and plot lines very clear in your mind, despite the complexity and frequent plot upheavals. I liked the occasional bolt of humor too :-)
I didn't see so much as one paragraph that dragged! Will definitely continue with this exciting & fun series. Can't wait to see what happens next!
June 24, 2013
Utter dreck. In many ways, even worse than the first in the series. Like the first one, repetitive ad nauseum. One dimensional characters who all speak in the same voice. Egregious hyperbole (just how many MOST devastatingly horrible/vicious/evil/dangerous creatures in existence can there be in any one universe, anyway?). Ridiculously long monologues and soliloquies with no point to them. What compounds all these faults is that rather than learning from past mistakes, the author repeats them and and then surpasses them by contradicting himself over and over and over again. Sometimes the contradiction would come a chapter or two after a statement was made, sometimes after a few pages, and some even within the same paragraph. I couldn't finish the thing; was proud for enduring through 400 pages of the monstrosity. It's rare that I feel cheated for paying for a book; but this time I don't simply want compensatory remuneration, I want punitive damages from both the author and the publisher.
November 25, 2018
Okay, the main characters are tremendously over-powered, and the language is at times very repetitive, and I kind of loathe Simon R. Green at present, but...I did like this book. It's like fantasy in space, with all of the intrigue that I can't help but love. There are a few characters that I completely love, some I'm still not sure about, and many that I freaking hate. But at least I'm not indifferent to everyone. If I hate characters, it's usually because they're especially terrible people.
So, what I loved most was the multiple perspectives, with every character having their own outlook on the events happening, and having their own responses. Most of the characters didn't feel like stock characters that could be replaced in another series, renamed, and never noticed to be anything different. Valentine, seriously.
So, what I loved most was the multiple perspectives, with every character having their own outlook on the events happening, and having their own responses. Most of the characters didn't feel like stock characters that could be replaced in another series, renamed, and never noticed to be anything different. Valentine, seriously.
October 1, 2017
This is my first one star review. I am wondering if the publisher demanded a 10+ book series, and SRG's response was to keep writing in a constant stream of new characters in gratuitous detail only to never see them again? Meanwhile forcing the reader to wait long stretches between appearances of what we thought were the main characters, only SRG seems to have lost all interest in them? Thank god I figured it out on book 2, instead of agonizing and hoping until book 5, like I did with Game of Thrones- I have never wanted to burn a book before in my life, but GoT book 5 came close.
Really disappointing. Although I do like some of SRG's other work.
Really disappointing. Although I do like some of SRG's other work.
July 1, 2013
Seriously. I wish I hadn't wasted my time on these. Bleh.
February 8, 2017
Not very original, predictable, most parts of the plots are useless or come out of nowhere, characters are cliché.
May 10, 2019
Onto the second book...My review of the first book in this series, Deathstalker, speaks to how much of other series this author "borrows" for this series. Here's some more:
- The Borg (Star Trek), also known as Hadenmen in this series, even to the point of them wanting to change all of humanity to Hadenmen (Resistance is Futile!).
- Vampires/Stalkers (from Mortal Engines) (Wampir) a person who was killed and remade in a way that makes them stronger, faster, harder to kill (sounds familiar).
- The Fremen (from Dune), the Rejects on Techno 3, genetically engineered to live on a planet that has extremely harsh weather conditions fighting a rebellion against their overlords.
- The blood feud between two houses (Dune: Atreides and Harkonnen), the Wolfs take over Techno 3, the crest of the Campbells is still visible, and there are still booby-traps from the Campbells...sounds a lot like how Dune was when the Harkonnens left and the Atreides took over.
- The Bene Gesserit, also known as Investigators in this series, this one is a stretch, but the Investigators are seemingly unstoppable killers that everyone is extremely scared of. Bene Gesserit are similar, extremely skilled fighters that everyone is scared of.
- AI mastermind (Omnius from Dune books by Brian Herbert...yuck), meet Shub, the ENEMY OF HUMANITY, the evil rogue AI that is bent on the utter destruction of humanity, who also uses dead human bodies to make Ghost Warriors, aka Inferi (Harry Potter)/Zombies, unstoppable killing machines that only our superheroes can kill.
- Bug Aliens (Xeelee from Enterprise/Buggers from Enders Game), yucky insect type aliens that have a hive mind queen that controls these horrific bugs, EEK! Definitely would make me have nightmares.
Other aspects of the story that are silly but fun:
- Rebels turned Superheroes by the MADNESS MAZE! Our heroes from the last book are now bonafide superheroes, able to kill just about anybody that crosses them, and get cool new powers at each new obstacle, not to mention actually getting younger.
- Silly rebellion jibber jabber. All the blab blab blab about the rebellion and the back and forth among the characters is annoying and a waste of time. Interesting in that most other rebellion stories rarely dive this deep into what makes a rebellion tick.
- Utterly crazy religious figures. This author must really despise Christianity, or at least Catholicism (not rare in the sci-fi genre). The Church of Christ the Warrior seems to be a twisted form of Christianity that glorifies death, destruction, and corruption. Probably this author's commentary on religion (ugh, tired of authors pontificating).
- Crazy plotting by every major character of the series to somehow remove another character.
- Saintly Mother Superior character, who is also super badass by the way, who really drives home the moral issues of this empire (using clones as slave labor).
What I didn't like about this book:
- silly jibber jabber and back and forth during the rebellion meeting was an utter waste of time, only useful to explain how our superheroes get to their next destinations.
- sub-plots within sub-plots gets a bit tiresome to hear all the aristos plotting to kill each other, fun to watch it all happen in the end though.
- Hazel turning back to a previous vice from the previous book and basically being a bitchy character in this book, we don't see much of her, and what we do, she's really annoying.
- the overly optimistic approach this author takes with our superheroes (maybe except Hazel in this book, we don't see much good with her here), but every other aspect of this universe is overly disgusting and over the top evil
- the author's political ranting against corruption and abuse of power...blah blah blah. A tired story that is part of every single rebellion story ever written. Just get to the good parts :)
- After the first part of the book, we don't see Hazel and Owen again :(. Owen is my favorite character and his story must continue in the next book.
What I did like about this book:
- Seeing Ruby Journey start to grow as a human being
- Seeing Jack Random come out of his morose shell and start living again
- Toby Shrek and Flynn
- Adrianna Campbell, totally corrupt "Real Housewife of House Campbell" becomes totally badass
- Evangeline Shrek gets her own life finally
- Certain character's demises :)
- Seeing the cool new powers our superheroes get to have as they face new obstacles
- More action (at least once we get to Technos 3)
- The Borg (Star Trek), also known as Hadenmen in this series, even to the point of them wanting to change all of humanity to Hadenmen (Resistance is Futile!).
- Vampires/Stalkers (from Mortal Engines) (Wampir) a person who was killed and remade in a way that makes them stronger, faster, harder to kill (sounds familiar).
- The Fremen (from Dune), the Rejects on Techno 3, genetically engineered to live on a planet that has extremely harsh weather conditions fighting a rebellion against their overlords.
- The blood feud between two houses (Dune: Atreides and Harkonnen), the Wolfs take over Techno 3, the crest of the Campbells is still visible, and there are still booby-traps from the Campbells...sounds a lot like how Dune was when the Harkonnens left and the Atreides took over.
- The Bene Gesserit, also known as Investigators in this series, this one is a stretch, but the Investigators are seemingly unstoppable killers that everyone is extremely scared of. Bene Gesserit are similar, extremely skilled fighters that everyone is scared of.
- AI mastermind (Omnius from Dune books by Brian Herbert...yuck), meet Shub, the ENEMY OF HUMANITY, the evil rogue AI that is bent on the utter destruction of humanity, who also uses dead human bodies to make Ghost Warriors, aka Inferi (Harry Potter)/Zombies, unstoppable killing machines that only our superheroes can kill.
- Bug Aliens (Xeelee from Enterprise/Buggers from Enders Game), yucky insect type aliens that have a hive mind queen that controls these horrific bugs, EEK! Definitely would make me have nightmares.
Other aspects of the story that are silly but fun:
- Rebels turned Superheroes by the MADNESS MAZE! Our heroes from the last book are now bonafide superheroes, able to kill just about anybody that crosses them, and get cool new powers at each new obstacle, not to mention actually getting younger.
- Silly rebellion jibber jabber. All the blab blab blab about the rebellion and the back and forth among the characters is annoying and a waste of time. Interesting in that most other rebellion stories rarely dive this deep into what makes a rebellion tick.
- Utterly crazy religious figures. This author must really despise Christianity, or at least Catholicism (not rare in the sci-fi genre). The Church of Christ the Warrior seems to be a twisted form of Christianity that glorifies death, destruction, and corruption. Probably this author's commentary on religion (ugh, tired of authors pontificating).
- Crazy plotting by every major character of the series to somehow remove another character.
- Saintly Mother Superior character, who is also super badass by the way, who really drives home the moral issues of this empire (using clones as slave labor).
What I didn't like about this book:
- silly jibber jabber and back and forth during the rebellion meeting was an utter waste of time, only useful to explain how our superheroes get to their next destinations.
- sub-plots within sub-plots gets a bit tiresome to hear all the aristos plotting to kill each other, fun to watch it all happen in the end though.
- Hazel turning back to a previous vice from the previous book and basically being a bitchy character in this book, we don't see much of her, and what we do, she's really annoying.
- the overly optimistic approach this author takes with our superheroes (maybe except Hazel in this book, we don't see much good with her here), but every other aspect of this universe is overly disgusting and over the top evil
- the author's political ranting against corruption and abuse of power...blah blah blah. A tired story that is part of every single rebellion story ever written. Just get to the good parts :)
- After the first part of the book, we don't see Hazel and Owen again :(. Owen is my favorite character and his story must continue in the next book.
What I did like about this book:
- Seeing Ruby Journey start to grow as a human being
- Seeing Jack Random come out of his morose shell and start living again
- Toby Shrek and Flynn
- Adrianna Campbell, totally corrupt "Real Housewife of House Campbell" becomes totally badass
- Evangeline Shrek gets her own life finally
- Certain character's demises :)
- Seeing the cool new powers our superheroes get to have as they face new obstacles
- More action (at least once we get to Technos 3)
July 12, 2025
Simon Green's sophomore entry in the Deathstalker series maintains many of the flaws of the first book, but somehow manages to remain an enjoyable read throughout. "Over the top" is the modus operandi of these books, so I suppose by the second novel, I had gotten used to it. I find Green's prose to be repetitive and his characters often lack a distinct voice, all of them using the same, matter of fact tone (even the Empress), but he manages to make up for these short-comings with a surprisingly diverse selection of protagonists, spread out what is almost an anthology of short stories/novellas under the "Deathstalker Rebellion" title.
Of them all, it is Silence and Frost's stories that are by far the most interesting to me. Perhaps it's because they're the closest that the story has to an everyman perspective (though they are anything but), or because their stories tone back the bombastic and eye-rolling elements. While they certainly have their fair share of comically evil enemies and unserious dialogue, there are also no characters named "Throat-slitter Mary," which is exactly the kind of bewildering naming that characterizes a lot of Green's creations, and symbolizes the Deathstalker universe well. Then again, I'm reading a book named "Deathstalker," so I can stand to be a little less surprised when the names appear.
Green also does himself a favor by sticking largely with characters introduced in his last book. Needing only a cursory refamiliarization with the protagonists keeps things moving at a fast clip, despite the copious amounts of exposition he includes anyway, and while not quite on the level of GRRM's Westerosi politics, I would say that Green nevertheless manages to introduce some interesting, if not completely compelling, court intrigue that informs the latter half of the plot. The plethora of characters and Green's willingness to abuse them also keeps the plot interesting, though undermined a little by the Frost fake-out death (which is followed up by a great sequence, to be fair).
Aside from Silence, Frost, and Stelmach, the Toby Shreck subplot was a highlight, and I even came around to enjoying Jack Random's storyline, despite my preference for Silence over most of the rebels. I'm excited to see how Random's character arc continues in the third book. Green is aware that he's writing a series and isn't afraid to set up plot arcs with little to no payoff in the same book.
I give Rebellion two stars because, despite my enjoyment of some chapters, the prose and overall flavor of the universe is simply not for me, and those make up such a large part of the story. Green's inventiveness and effort on display in the book, however, is commendable.
Of them all, it is Silence and Frost's stories that are by far the most interesting to me. Perhaps it's because they're the closest that the story has to an everyman perspective (though they are anything but), or because their stories tone back the bombastic and eye-rolling elements. While they certainly have their fair share of comically evil enemies and unserious dialogue, there are also no characters named "Throat-slitter Mary," which is exactly the kind of bewildering naming that characterizes a lot of Green's creations, and symbolizes the Deathstalker universe well. Then again, I'm reading a book named "Deathstalker," so I can stand to be a little less surprised when the names appear.
Green also does himself a favor by sticking largely with characters introduced in his last book. Needing only a cursory refamiliarization with the protagonists keeps things moving at a fast clip, despite the copious amounts of exposition he includes anyway, and while not quite on the level of GRRM's Westerosi politics, I would say that Green nevertheless manages to introduce some interesting, if not completely compelling, court intrigue that informs the latter half of the plot. The plethora of characters and Green's willingness to abuse them also keeps the plot interesting, though undermined a little by the Frost fake-out death (which is followed up by a great sequence, to be fair).
Aside from Silence, Frost, and Stelmach, the Toby Shreck subplot was a highlight, and I even came around to enjoying Jack Random's storyline, despite my preference for Silence over most of the rebels. I'm excited to see how Random's character arc continues in the third book. Green is aware that he's writing a series and isn't afraid to set up plot arcs with little to no payoff in the same book.
I give Rebellion two stars because, despite my enjoyment of some chapters, the prose and overall flavor of the universe is simply not for me, and those make up such a large part of the story. Green's inventiveness and effort on display in the book, however, is commendable.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 29, 2019
In certain parts of this book - mainly at the start of each insanely overlong chapter - Simon R. Green seems to be throwing his hat into the same sci-fantasy arena as Terry Pratchett, complete with wink-and-nudge insight into the characters' psyches. In others, he delivers straightforward pulp sci-fi, in the vein of a Heinlein or Silverberg. In yet others, his story inexplicably delves into the sort of ultra-pulp sword-and-sorcery that would make Robert E. Howard blush. And then, of course, his main plot, with everybody double-crossing everybody else and aristocratic siblings sleeping with each other, is straight out of George R. R. Martin's 'Song of Ice and Fire'.
The difference is, Martin at least knew how to make his boring bits mildly interesting. Green lacks that ability, and as a result, the majority of this book is a painful, mind-numbing slog in search of the next good passage or chapter. Much like in 'Ice and Fire', every Arya Stark or Jon Snow chapter was separated by 200 pages of barely-relevant characters plotting against one another, here too, the interesting portions are too few and far between. As riveting as Captain Silence's adventures in space are, and as endearing of a character as the roguish Finlay Campbell is, they give far too much of the book over to the Five Kings...sorry, the *Families*, and their endless, deathly-dull political intriguing. The result is an uneven, outrageously overlong mess of world-building failures and tonal inconsistencies, which is somehow engaging enough to dodge an openly negative rating, but nowhere near of a good enough standard to earn a passing mark - a testament, if ever there was one, of why Goodreads needs half-stars. It could be that this scribe is just too old for sci-fi anymore, but - as someone who was bored stupid by 'Lord of the Rings' at the appropriate age, and as a massive fan of the films - one cannot help but feel he would not have liked this 15 or 20 years ago, either.
Snore.
2.5/5
The difference is, Martin at least knew how to make his boring bits mildly interesting. Green lacks that ability, and as a result, the majority of this book is a painful, mind-numbing slog in search of the next good passage or chapter. Much like in 'Ice and Fire', every Arya Stark or Jon Snow chapter was separated by 200 pages of barely-relevant characters plotting against one another, here too, the interesting portions are too few and far between. As riveting as Captain Silence's adventures in space are, and as endearing of a character as the roguish Finlay Campbell is, they give far too much of the book over to the Five Kings...sorry, the *Families*, and their endless, deathly-dull political intriguing. The result is an uneven, outrageously overlong mess of world-building failures and tonal inconsistencies, which is somehow engaging enough to dodge an openly negative rating, but nowhere near of a good enough standard to earn a passing mark - a testament, if ever there was one, of why Goodreads needs half-stars. It could be that this scribe is just too old for sci-fi anymore, but - as someone who was bored stupid by 'Lord of the Rings' at the appropriate age, and as a massive fan of the films - one cannot help but feel he would not have liked this 15 or 20 years ago, either.
Snore.
2.5/5
December 28, 2018
This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart
Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I was excited, since I'd be over the first book issues of figuring out the world and knowing the characters. But Deathstalker Rebellion was still a long, long, long, book with an overwhelming amount of details. Thankfully, there is humor, and I care about some characters or I'd give up.
The beginning has Lionstone meeting with her court and all the families are trying to put themselves in the best position. She's demanding more of them, in the guise of protecting them from the aliens. We get the arrogant and entitled stream of consciousness from those like Valentine Wolfe, Gregor Shreck, Lord High Dram, and more. There's the tenuous situation of Adrienne Campbell, along with the unhappy Finlay and Evangeline.
The rebels make their first strike at the Empire, really just Owen and Hazel, and are successful. A big meeting is held with our group of rebels, along with the Golgatha Underground and a few others. I am shocked by a couple of the attendees. They determine they can't agree on a final form of government but that rebellion is necessary. The best plan made is to separate our group into 4 teams to go to 4 planets with a goal to achieve.
There is also the Dauntless with Silence and Frost, loyal to the Empire but in trouble for not stopping Owen originally. They are sent to check the planets on the outer rim to learn about aliens. It's a death sentence really. They are on the wrong side here (IMO) but I like their loyalty and character. They were also changed by the maze in book one.
Religion and the church play a bigger role in Deathstalker Rebellion and I can't say I enjoy them any more than I do in any other situation. Religion at best plays a role of social grouping and at worst, a controlling. political body. The latter is what we get here.
Then finally we head off with Jack and Ruby, to the first planet. Technos is where the new stardrive is being built and everyone wants it. It is being built by clones as slaves in the worst possible conditions. They connect up with the local rebels to try to bring down the factory and free the clones and rebels. The Jesuits, Wolfe security forces and a team of investigators from the Empire are all hoping to end the distraction of the rebels.
The next in the t he Deathstalker series is Deathstalker War. I thought it would be about the war with the aliens after the rebellion had ended but now I realize it is the next phase of the rebellion. The blurb indicates the fight heads to Golgotha, the home planet for the Empire and Lionstone.
Narration:
I continue to enjoy Gildart Jackson who does well with all the voices and makes these long books more entertaining. I am happy I can listen at 1.5x speed.
Listen to a clip:
https://soundcloud.com/user-149056452...
Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I was excited, since I'd be over the first book issues of figuring out the world and knowing the characters. But Deathstalker Rebellion was still a long, long, long, book with an overwhelming amount of details. Thankfully, there is humor, and I care about some characters or I'd give up.
The beginning has Lionstone meeting with her court and all the families are trying to put themselves in the best position. She's demanding more of them, in the guise of protecting them from the aliens. We get the arrogant and entitled stream of consciousness from those like Valentine Wolfe, Gregor Shreck, Lord High Dram, and more. There's the tenuous situation of Adrienne Campbell, along with the unhappy Finlay and Evangeline.
The rebels make their first strike at the Empire, really just Owen and Hazel, and are successful. A big meeting is held with our group of rebels, along with the Golgatha Underground and a few others. I am shocked by a couple of the attendees. They determine they can't agree on a final form of government but that rebellion is necessary. The best plan made is to separate our group into 4 teams to go to 4 planets with a goal to achieve.
There is also the Dauntless with Silence and Frost, loyal to the Empire but in trouble for not stopping Owen originally. They are sent to check the planets on the outer rim to learn about aliens. It's a death sentence really. They are on the wrong side here (IMO) but I like their loyalty and character. They were also changed by the maze in book one.
Religion and the church play a bigger role in Deathstalker Rebellion and I can't say I enjoy them any more than I do in any other situation. Religion at best plays a role of social grouping and at worst, a controlling. political body. The latter is what we get here.
Then finally we head off with Jack and Ruby, to the first planet. Technos is where the new stardrive is being built and everyone wants it. It is being built by clones as slaves in the worst possible conditions. They connect up with the local rebels to try to bring down the factory and free the clones and rebels. The Jesuits, Wolfe security forces and a team of investigators from the Empire are all hoping to end the distraction of the rebels.
The next in the t he Deathstalker series is Deathstalker War. I thought it would be about the war with the aliens after the rebellion had ended but now I realize it is the next phase of the rebellion. The blurb indicates the fight heads to Golgotha, the home planet for the Empire and Lionstone.
"I'm glad we had this little talk," said Stelmach, "I was feeling a bit depressed, but now I've moved on to feeling actually suicidal. Why don't we just swallow all our tongues now and get it over with?"
Narration:
I continue to enjoy Gildart Jackson who does well with all the voices and makes these long books more entertaining. I am happy I can listen at 1.5x speed.
Listen to a clip:
https://soundcloud.com/user-149056452...
October 9, 2023
-Siguiendo los senderos marcados por el libro anterior.-
Género. Ciencia ficción.
Lo que nos cuenta. El libro El laberinto de la locura (publicación original: Deathstalker Rebellion, 1996) nos muestra como Valentine Wolfe se desplaza hasta lo más profundo de Golgotha para reunirse con representantes de los espers, clones y ciberatas, junto con algunos aristócratas de los clanes, porque tal vez puedan unirse en su enfrentamiento contra la Emperatriz, pero son interrumpidos por fuerzas de esta ya que, en secreto, alguno de los supuestos insurrectos trabaja directamente para Lionstone XIV. Otros clanes tienen relaciones con las IA rebeldes de Shub y también están en el punto de mira de la Zorra de Hierro, demasiado ocupada para dar la importancia necesaria a Owen Deathstalker y al grupo de rebeldes que lo acompañan. Segundo libro de la serie Deathstalker.
¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:
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Género. Ciencia ficción.
Lo que nos cuenta. El libro El laberinto de la locura (publicación original: Deathstalker Rebellion, 1996) nos muestra como Valentine Wolfe se desplaza hasta lo más profundo de Golgotha para reunirse con representantes de los espers, clones y ciberatas, junto con algunos aristócratas de los clanes, porque tal vez puedan unirse en su enfrentamiento contra la Emperatriz, pero son interrumpidos por fuerzas de esta ya que, en secreto, alguno de los supuestos insurrectos trabaja directamente para Lionstone XIV. Otros clanes tienen relaciones con las IA rebeldes de Shub y también están en el punto de mira de la Zorra de Hierro, demasiado ocupada para dar la importancia necesaria a Owen Deathstalker y al grupo de rebeldes que lo acompañan. Segundo libro de la serie Deathstalker.
¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:
https://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com...
July 11, 2019
Owen & Co start their rebellion. The Empire is still up to its greedy and evil ways. Those who went through the madness maze in book one are getting more and more powerful - it seems that he keeps adding things to each series hero. Now they've got mind powers (Nightside), super strength (Droods), and a sort of telepathy. Plus they're all really smart, so they just sort of know things.
His stories are really well read, which is great, but the stories themselves are getting boring. Insert superhero A into slot B. Oops, same character, put a black hat on him and make him an Empire agent. There's no depth of character, just action and snark, and they all sound alike. I'm done with this series. I may revisit Nightside if he writes more of those, but I want more out of a book than everyone saying the same things, always punching first and talking later.
His stories are really well read, which is great, but the stories themselves are getting boring. Insert superhero A into slot B. Oops, same character, put a black hat on him and make him an Empire agent. There's no depth of character, just action and snark, and they all sound alike. I'm done with this series. I may revisit Nightside if he writes more of those, but I want more out of a book than everyone saying the same things, always punching first and talking later.
July 14, 2019
The second book of the series allegedly starring Owen Deathstalker—he only appears in roughly a third of the book. This is because the book is comprised of separate short stories each complete in itself spanning the rebellion’s first major blow against the Empire, Capt John Silence and crew facing down an alien strike against Golgotha the imperial home world, political intrigue within the court of Lionstone XIV and the rebellion base. All in all not a bad way to cover all the ground needed to be presented, but Simon Green really should have titled the series something else as Owen Deathstalker is constantly outshined by Jack Random, Ruby Journey, Capt Silence, Investigator Frost and others.
Nonetheless I’m looking forward to the next installment.
Nonetheless I’m looking forward to the next installment.
January 4, 2020
An amazing sequel to Deathstalker.
As always, Green has a way of giving characters god like powers, while still leaving them flawed, and making an interesting world. Seeing how the Madness Maze continues to influence the actions of Owen, Hazel, Jack, & Ruby while they face overcoming odds is something else.
I'm glad I decided to finally give this series a try. My only complaint is that he focuses too much on the characters and not enough on his world building. To me, Greens best work is when he's building a world, and using the character stories to flesh it out. See the Nightside series as a great example.
As always, Green has a way of giving characters god like powers, while still leaving them flawed, and making an interesting world. Seeing how the Madness Maze continues to influence the actions of Owen, Hazel, Jack, & Ruby while they face overcoming odds is something else.
I'm glad I decided to finally give this series a try. My only complaint is that he focuses too much on the characters and not enough on his world building. To me, Greens best work is when he's building a world, and using the character stories to flesh it out. See the Nightside series as a great example.
November 22, 2023
3.8 — rounded up.
What started as a fun palate cleanser series really vecame something more in this book. The author shows us his wide range of genre and yet ability to weave a unifying story with wide variety of characters. He expertly navigates political intrigue, info dumps of science, social ethics of rights of clones, telepathic fantasy powers, action adventure survival, creepy ghost horro story, and so so so many much more.
Would highly recommend this novel if u liked first, this one is much better than the first….
What started as a fun palate cleanser series really vecame something more in this book. The author shows us his wide range of genre and yet ability to weave a unifying story with wide variety of characters. He expertly navigates political intrigue, info dumps of science, social ethics of rights of clones, telepathic fantasy powers, action adventure survival, creepy ghost horro story, and so so so many much more.
Would highly recommend this novel if u liked first, this one is much better than the first….
January 8, 2021
Interesting followup. I feel like he didn't focus as much on the world part and just focused on a few characters. Crazy that he spent much of the time focusing on 1 world. I'm assuming that the next book will focus on other characters. I think all the character focus from the first book is what I enjoyed. Also, many of the elements from the first book aren't in this one, so wondering if they'll come back. Overall, an enjoyable read, but curious how the rest of the series will go.
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