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The Silent Empire #3
Trickster
While searching for their loved ones after the destruction of "The Dream," a telepathic communications net, Father Kendi Weaver and the crew of the Poltergeist are taken hostage by a strange group whose hidden agenda places all of their lives in great danger. Original.
368 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2003
2 people are currently reading
174 people want to read
About the author
Steven Harper
53 books119 followersA pseudonym of Steven Piziks
Steven Harper Piziks was born with a name that no one can reliably spell or pronounce, so he often writes under the pen name Steven Harper. He lives in Michigan with his family. When not at the keyboard, he plays the folk harp, fiddles with video games, and pretends he doesn’t talk to the household cats. In the past, he’s held jobs as a reporter, theater producer, secretary, and substitute teacher. He maintains that the most interesting thing about him is that he writes books.
Steven is the creator of The Silent Empire series, the Clockwork Empire steampunk series, and the Books of Blood and Iron series for Roc Books. All four Silent Empire novels were finalists for the Spectrum Award, a first!
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
April 8, 2018
My original review of the novel
P.J. Ochlan managed to make a story that I liked while reading it into one of my favorite bedtime stories.
P.J. Ochlan managed to make a story that I liked while reading it into one of my favorite bedtime stories.
March 13, 2017
A good read.
August 24, 2018
A good heist story. It continues filling out the universe Harper created with a greater emphasis on the actual universe rather than the Dream.
June 23, 2020
4.5 now that was a heist
February 16, 2017
I've wanted to give one of the books in this series 5 stars since I started it and I'm glad I finally can. Sure, I've had some quibbles but when haven't I? They're tiny, though.
This is a spoiler free review for Trickster, but I will definitely mention things that happened in the first two books Dreamer and Nightmare.
Starting this book felt like coming home. I love it when a series can do that to me. Just a warm feeling of recognition in the chest when you're being pulled back into a familiar world. Meeting characters you love again and getting to know new characters through their eyes. It's like a vacation for the soul.
In short: I've read this book over the course of a single day and don't regret it.
This is the third book in a series, but it's actually the direct sequel to the first book (the second was a prequel). That means we're finally on the way to finding Harenn's son and the lost members of - now Father - Kendi's family. The Dream has been rendered unreachable for most of the Silent population as a consequence of the happenings in the first book. This means that this story was more of an action adventure spy story than the first two, which was nonetheless entertaining.
Kendi is more serious and tries to be more of an adult now due to what he's been through and his new position. It probably also helps that his relationship with Ben is rock solid and on the level where they're actually talking about having children now.
It's Ben who seems to be a bit more unstable deep down. It's clear that he doesn't have doubts about his feelings for Kendi anymore, but he has other issues he doesn't tell anyone about. He clearly hasn't worked through his mother's death yet and in the end he gets told another thing that might throw him off course further. It's going to be interesting to see how his storyline will develop. I'm intrigued. Plus, his Dream space is sort of awesome.
Harenn and Gretchen are also back. Harenn continues to be an interesting character, full of rage and sadness but also love and compassion. Her storyline got solved a lot faster than I anticipated, but I was glad she stuck around. She's a great addition to the team.
Gretchen is a bit more complicated. She can't reach the Dream anymore and therefore battles with a lot of bitterness and depression. She's much more cynic now and I hope that she'll arrive at a better place as the story continues.
New to the team is Lucia, who is a bit of a breeze of fresh air. She's more optimistic than a lot of the other characters and maybe a bit naive at points. Her hero worship of Kendi was adorable and I really liked her friendship with Harenn.
We also get to know two members of Kendi's family. One of which is a POV character in her own right.
The antagonists are sane for a change. No trauma, no megalomaniac dreams, no other issues. Just a few quirks (some more gross than others) and plain old villainy. Seeing our heroes taking them out was fun!
My very short list of quibbles:
- While the first book mentioned that Kendi and Ben weren't super solid, one never got the impression that they were on and off again quite so often? I mean, Ben even bought a big bed because of Kendi and Ara was a fan of the relationship.
- Sejal was unique in the first book, but here it said that 'some people' can possess others through the Dream. Sejal's abilities seemed to be a bit trivialized in general. I'm very curious what he's actually doing at the moment, though. One needs a very good reason to keep the Deus Ex Machina out of the story when he's close friends with your protagonist.
- No seriously, someone tell me what's up with Jeren/Cole! There was nothing. Was that only a gimmick?
Am definitely very excited for the next book!
This is a spoiler free review for Trickster, but I will definitely mention things that happened in the first two books Dreamer and Nightmare.
Starting this book felt like coming home. I love it when a series can do that to me. Just a warm feeling of recognition in the chest when you're being pulled back into a familiar world. Meeting characters you love again and getting to know new characters through their eyes. It's like a vacation for the soul.
In short: I've read this book over the course of a single day and don't regret it.
This is the third book in a series, but it's actually the direct sequel to the first book (the second was a prequel). That means we're finally on the way to finding Harenn's son and the lost members of - now Father - Kendi's family. The Dream has been rendered unreachable for most of the Silent population as a consequence of the happenings in the first book. This means that this story was more of an action adventure spy story than the first two, which was nonetheless entertaining.
Kendi is more serious and tries to be more of an adult now due to what he's been through and his new position. It probably also helps that his relationship with Ben is rock solid and on the level where they're actually talking about having children now.
It's Ben who seems to be a bit more unstable deep down. It's clear that he doesn't have doubts about his feelings for Kendi anymore, but he has other issues he doesn't tell anyone about. He clearly hasn't worked through his mother's death yet and in the end he gets told another thing that might throw him off course further. It's going to be interesting to see how his storyline will develop. I'm intrigued. Plus, his Dream space is sort of awesome.
Harenn and Gretchen are also back. Harenn continues to be an interesting character, full of rage and sadness but also love and compassion. Her storyline got solved a lot faster than I anticipated, but I was glad she stuck around. She's a great addition to the team.
Gretchen is a bit more complicated. She can't reach the Dream anymore and therefore battles with a lot of bitterness and depression. She's much more cynic now and I hope that she'll arrive at a better place as the story continues.
New to the team is Lucia, who is a bit of a breeze of fresh air. She's more optimistic than a lot of the other characters and maybe a bit naive at points. Her hero worship of Kendi was adorable and I really liked her friendship with Harenn.
We also get to know two members of Kendi's family. One of which is a POV character in her own right.
The antagonists are sane for a change. No trauma, no megalomaniac dreams, no other issues. Just a few quirks (some more gross than others) and plain old villainy. Seeing our heroes taking them out was fun!
My very short list of quibbles:
- While the first book mentioned that Kendi and Ben weren't super solid, one never got the impression that they were on and off again quite so often? I mean, Ben even bought a big bed because of Kendi and Ara was a fan of the relationship.
- Sejal was unique in the first book, but here it said that 'some people' can possess others through the Dream. Sejal's abilities seemed to be a bit trivialized in general. I'm very curious what he's actually doing at the moment, though. One needs a very good reason to keep the Deus Ex Machina out of the story when he's close friends with your protagonist.
- No seriously, someone tell me what's up with Jeren/Cole! There was nothing. Was that only a gimmick?
Am definitely very excited for the next book!
August 28, 2010
Good Sci-Fi adventure; fast-paced, intelligent and not a predictable plot line. Kept true to the characters, yet... why was I a little disappointed?
Kendi and Ben's characters were not developed much in this segment of their story, relying too much on the characterization that happened in the previous book. The other characters that were introduced into this segment were not fascinating enough to make up for the lack of character development that took place in Kendi and Ben themselves.
Maybe I'm too partial to coming-of-age stories, and the intense character-development you get in them. This one was way past that stage in the characters, portraying them fully integrated into their adult power and strength. When characters are fully developed and are no longer... maturing, or introducing themselves to the reader, I tend to get somewhat bored.
Kendi and Ben's characters were not developed much in this segment of their story, relying too much on the characterization that happened in the previous book. The other characters that were introduced into this segment were not fascinating enough to make up for the lack of character development that took place in Kendi and Ben themselves.
Maybe I'm too partial to coming-of-age stories, and the intense character-development you get in them. This one was way past that stage in the characters, portraying them fully integrated into their adult power and strength. When characters are fully developed and are no longer... maturing, or introducing themselves to the reader, I tend to get somewhat bored.
July 9, 2008
Kendi's lifelong dream, to reunite his family, might just come true if he can pull off an almost impossible rescue. At the same time, we get to learn more about some of the secondary characters (Harenn, Lucia, Gretchen) and see Kendi and Ben's relationship develop. I was mentally biting my nails by the end of this book.
August 18, 2025
Good continuation of the series. The fall out from the dream was far reaching and this world became even more brutal. I liked the rescue and the "heist" feel to the book. This story has strong characters, action, and suspense.
July 16, 2010
A library selection.. this book is weird and has some redeeming qualities. I happily return it to the library. Not one I would keep.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews