Coyote Destiny

Coyote Chronicles #2

by Allen M. Steele

"The best space colonization saga to come along in decades" ( Rocky Mountain News ) continues.

The unexpected arrival of a ship from Earth after their long isolation from their home world leaves the inhabitants of Coyote both hopeful and wary. The lone passenger brings news-both good and bad.

The good news is that there was a survivor of the long-ago explosion of the Robert E. Lee and he is living still on Earth, in the ruined city called Boston. The bad news is that the person responsible for that act of terrorism is also still alive-and somewhere on Coyote...

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

352 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Before becoming a science fiction writer, Allen Steele was a journalist for newspapers and magazines in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Missouri, and his home state of Tennessee. But science fiction was his first love, so he eventually ditched journalism and began producing that which had made him decide to become a writer in the first place.

Since then, Steele has published eighteen novels and nearly one hundred short stories. His work has received numerous accolades, including three Hugo Awards, and has been translated worldwide, mainly into languages he can’t read. He serves on the board of advisors for the Space Frontier Foundation and is a member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. He also belongs to Sigma, a group of science fiction writers who frequently serve as unpaid consultants on matters regarding technology and security.

Allen Steele is a lifelong space buff, and this interest has not only influenced his writing, it has taken him to some interesting places. He has witnessed numerous space shuttle launches from Kennedy Space Center and has flown NASA’s shuttle cockpit simulator at the Johnson Space Center. In 2001, he testified before the US House of Representatives in hearings regarding the future of space exploration. He would like very much to go into orbit, and hopes that one day he’ll be able to afford to do so.

Steele lives in western Massachusetts with his wife, Linda, and a continual procession of adopted dogs. He collects vintage science fiction books and magazines, spacecraft model kits, and dreams.

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the concluding volume of Steele's long-running Coyote series, and it brings the stories of the original and other early colonists to a satisfying conclusion. A lot of the book is set on the Earth, which didn't seem completely appropriate, and I wasn't entirely happy with the eventual fate of all of the characters, but the fact that the reader cares about them so strongly is an endorsement of the quality of Steele's craft. It's an excellent book and a fine story that closes one of the finest science fiction series ever produced.

[Bookbrow · Rating 3 out of 5]

As is often the case, after some great earlier books of this engaging series, this concluding tale wraps the sequence up nicely but is lacking in the invention and freshness of earlier books. That said I thought the book was a good read and it brought a decent sense of closure to the series.

[Peter · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have enjoyed the whole Coyote series overall, but found this last volume very disappointing. First, the relationship between Jorge and Inez that fuels a lot of the emotion of this particular story is, well, skeevy. When we first meet them he is her superior officer and ogling her butt while she's trying to work, and then constantly finds excuses for touching her or getting close to her. The narration tries to justify this because "he really loves her," it's not just physical, but that makes it worse - trying to justify and make sympathetic a sexual harasser is tone-deaf at best and misogynistic at worst. Throughout this series the author hasn't really handled female characters well but this is I think the absolute low point. We soon learn a fact about their connection to each other which appears to make a physical relationship impossible ... but then the plot just barrels past that when the author wants a sex scene. Which is then justified with some bunk about how Edgar Allen Poe married his first cousin. Um, what?
Also, the plot is fairly non-sensical. A group of Coyoteans travel back to Earth to find a person who they think might be in Boston so they just land a comparatively technologically advanced spacecraft in the middle of a ruined city and start asking questions of locals who are dressed in dirty rags. I wonder if that will go badly? Ultimately it doesn't, in part because the telepathy that Steele introduced in the previous volume now deus-ex-machinas like crazy and puts everything right. Our supposed protagonists do nothing.
The Sawyer Lee plot is also really flimsy: I must get revenge on someone who 20 years ago led to the death of a woman I had a couple of dates with!
Like I said, overall I like the series a lot, and this volume kinda sorta ties up some ends that were left a bit loose at the end of the far superior Coyote Horizon (even though that one's plot also has some holes and a sketchy treatment of the female characters), so if you've made it this far in the series it's probably worth reading. But, meh.

[G Baars · Rating 1 out of 5]

Redneck SF? Cowboy SF? Deluded Yankee Dreams of Grandeur SF? I don’t know if these are offficial genres, but they could be if Steele keeps it up. The dialogue is part AI-generated CSI-level TV-Appel, part failed John Wayne-style cowboy drivel. I’m scanning through full pages in 10-15 seconds because there is so little unpredictability per page. But maybe it was just ahead of it’s time? SF for Trump voters?
A shame, as there are some nice ideas here. But then the characters would have to be more than one-dimensional for anything to be believable. As it is most of the characters come off as either stereotypes or just self-righteous NRA types.
Why have I read it you ask? Well, I’m one of those dumb completists, so I’ll read the series to the end, can’t help myself. But honestly, I would stay away from this book and the previous one in the series.

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

A suicide bomber has blown up the Starship Robert E. Lee. A Coyote passenger, Hawk Thompson, is rescued by Earth forces. The catch is that he is now a philosophical leader, and followers on Earth and Coyote think he may be the Messiah they need. Earth is closed to interstellar traffic, so Coyote must negotiate with aliens to allow a team through the starbridge to retrieve Hawk, assuming he is willing to return. Meanwhile, on Coyote, the chase is on to capture the bombmaker. And, oh yes, there is a romance involving second cousins who cannot marry on Coyote. Allen Steele is certainly not shy about stirring complications into his plot.

I like other novels set in the Coyote universe better than Destiny; the philosophy here is poorly explained, and I found the consanguinity issue unconvincing. Nevertheless, Steele always holds my attention. 3.5

[Stuart Dean · Rating 4 out of 5]

20 years ago the starbridge to Earth got blowed up. Now a ship from Earth shows up with surprising information. It turns out the krag maga, spiritual leader of the alien philosophy, is alive and well on Earth. Coyote decides to send some people to Earth to bring him home. They go to Boston where they run into trouble. Things do not go exactly as planned. A secondary story line involves the search for a man responsible for the destruction of the stargate. Things do not go exactly as planned.

Once again we come to the end of the Coyote saga. We get to see how things have gone on Coyote as they are once again cut off from Earth. There's a little romance, and we get some resolution for the original members of the Coyote expedition. All very interesting and well written.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

If the current political climate makes you think "is this truly the only planet I can live on?", then cheer up, emo kid! According to the plot of this book, we'd totally find a way to spread bozocity across light years.

[Keith B · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sure it added to the Coyote series but it wasn't that good. Not even Science Fiction really. A thinly disguised story of revenge based on the characters featured in the Coyote series with rockets and space travel... that's it.

[Charl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love all the Coyote stories, but apparently I missed a couple of books. Oh, the hardship, that I must read the ones I missed, too!

Seriously, if you like hard SF with truly believable characters, you should be reading these.

[Dave Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Serviceable but not engaging enough to make me want to read more in the series. Perhaps as I was not invested in the characters from earlier books in the series.

[Reuben Robert · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ugh. Couldn’t get through this soon enough. Just a bunch of supposedly seasoned characters repeatedly doing stupid things.

[Chaz Wyman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recommend the whole series.
Steele writes clearly, and tells his story without undue scene jumping, and or flashbacks, or digressions.
I'd have liked a more complex Xenobiology. And its all a bit too Americancentric, but none of this was enough for me to deny how good these books are.

[Francis Gahren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good news / bad news. First the good news: Coyote Destiny, the fifth book in perhaps the best space-colonization series ever (just my opinion; feel free to chime in) and the seventh book in the Coyote universe, is terrific like all the rest. Now the bad news: according to the author, two-time Hugo Award winner Allen Steele, “This is the end of the series, I think. I’m writing one more (episode) in the universe, HEX, and then I’m putting everything on the shelf and going off to tackle another subject. Maybe I’ll eventually come back to Coyote, but after 10 years, I think the time has come to move on.” Alas!

The rest of this review won’t mean a lot to those who have not read the previous novels. If you are one of those, go to your nearest book seller or library immediately and get a copy of Coyote and get started. By the time you get to Coyote Destiny, you will feel like you are on a first-name basis with the colonists and their extended families. There are definitely some characters you will wish you could join at Lew’s Cantina for a shot of bearshine and a mug of sourgrass ale…and just a few you would avoid at all costs.

At the end of Coyote Horizon, Hawk Thompson, who has become the chaaz’maha, a kind of unwilling messiah on Coyote, and several other characters we know are headed to Earth. As they enter the starbridge, a terrorist sets off a bomb that explodes the Robert E. Lee and the starbridge, isolating Coyote once again.

In Coyote Destiny’s “Prologue” we discover that at Starbridge Earth, where several ships loaded with colonists are waiting to make the jump to Coyote, a lone lifeboat from the Robert E. Lee has made it through. On board is only one survivor, the chaaz’maha, himself.
Skip forward nearly two decades. The Coyote Starbridge has been rebuilt, but no travel or trade with Earth is allowed. To everyone’s surprise a ship from Earth arrives. Sergio Vargas has stolen a decommissioned freighter and made it to a forgotten starbridge in the Kuiper belt. Vargas comes with information that sets off the rest of the book.

First is the fact that the chaaz’maha is still alive and that he has a legion of followers on Earth, much of which is politically, economically and ecologically in tatters. Second, the suicide bomber on the Robert E. Lee was not acting alone. The man who made the bomb is in hiding under an assumed name on Coyote.

The chapters of the novel alternate between these two plots. Jorge Montrero, grandson of Wendy Gunther, the former president and one of the original colonists, and Inez Sanchez, Hawk Thompson’s daughter, head back to Earth to bring the chaaz’maha home. This mission is fraught with danger from several sources.

Meanwhile, General Sawyer Lee sets off to the tiny outpost of Manuelito to apprehend the maker of the bomb, a man who may now be actually a follower of the chaaz’maha’s teachings.
Eventually the two plotlines converge. But before they do, expect murder, mayhem, political intrigue, forbidden romance and some other surprises, before a satisfying, if not totally happy, conclusion.

While it will be hard not to anticipate the upcoming chapters in the Coyote saga, Steele’s next project should be something to look forward to.

[John Loyd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Coyote Horizon by Allen Steele


Coyote Destiny (2010) 331 pages by Allen Steele.

Coyote is a moon around the planet Bear 46 light years from Earth. The original ship that went to Coyote took 230 years to get there. Later ships cut that time closer to fifty and 13 Coyote years (39 Earth years) a star bridge was constructed that cut the travel time to just a couple of weeks. Coyote, Coyote Rising and Coyote Frontier are about the discovery, exploration, colonization and eventual independence. Spindrift and Galaxy Blues and in the Coyote universe. At some point an alien race,

In Coyote Destiny the prologue picks up from where Coyote Horizon left off. Telling us that the chaaz'maha survived and made it to Earth. Then it skips ahead nineteen years. In the intervening time the hjadd have helped rebuild the starbridge but forbidden travel to Earth. There has been no contact with Earth for those nineteen years and then Sergio Vargas arrives alone in a small freighter and tells them that the chaaz'maha survived and that David Laird built the bomb that the Reverend used to blow up the Robert E. Lee.

That breaks the plot into two major story lines. A mission to Earth and a search for Laird. The mission to Earth starts with a trip to the Talus in order to get permission to break the ban on contact. We pick up the story of Jorge and Inez before the contact from Earth and follow them through the trips to the Talus and on to Earth. General Sawyer Lee takes the initiative to find Laird.

After being a little disappointed that the story skipped 19 years ahead it was very good. After some of the schemes are revealed at the end it all seems nice and tight. Though with Vargas being untrustworthy I would have left him back on Coyote--forget having him as a native guide. I'll accept the way things turned out.

[Don Viecelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

From My Newsletter Number 18:
I came across Allen Steele who is a two-time Hugo Award winner several years ago and enjoyed his first book in the Coyote Trilogy called Coyote. This novel is about the first starship to leave Earth to colonize a planet they named Coyote, which is located in 47 Ursae Majoris. The colonists escaped from an authoritative government and are starting over on a new world. Live is difficult and Earth rulers are not quite ready to give up control to the rebellious colonists. The author creates a whole new world on Coyote and continues the trilogy with two more books called Coyote Rising and Coyote Frontier.

Mr. Steele thought he was finally through with this sage, but his readers pressed him for more stories and he relented. The result is the Coyote Chronicles with two more books called Coyote Horizon and Coyote Destiny. In Coyote Horizon the year is 2350 and the colony is thriving with more refugees arriving every day. The colonists are still exploring their new world and they learn new things about the aliens that made contact with their leaders. Unfortunately, there are still people from Earth intent upon terrorist’s acts who try to disrupt the new government and end up destroying the starbridge that links Coyote with Earth.

In Coyote Destiny the story continues with the leaders on Coyote tracking down the terrorists and re-establishing the link to Earth with help from the aliens. A new leader emerges who promotes a new message of peace on both worlds and the story of Coyote seems to have been completed. If you haven’t experienced this work, then I think you will find it entertaining and worth your reading enjoyment.

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great visit to Coyote! I think I liked this one a little more than Coyote Horizon, but still not as much as the first three. Compared to Coyote Horizon I felt that this one was more adventurous, although less related to Coyote. In Coyote Destiny some of the characters return to Earth (not really a spoiler, you can guess that from the ending of C.H. and find that out early in the book, or even the flap summary), so you get to see what's become of Earth first hand. I found that pretty interesting, even if it meant that almost half the book took place away from Coyote. Unfortunately the half of the book that remained on Coyote was somewhat less exciting. And while the two halves of the story were somewhat related, there weren't as many criss crossing story lines as there were in C.H. Yes, the book was exciting, and I didn't want to put it down much - darn work always getting in the way =) , but I think it could have used another 100 pages or so. Too often things felt like they happened too orderly. There weren't any real surprises and no big twists. I felt there was a bit of deus ex machina used to quickly wrap the story up at the end. But it was a satisfactory, if not unexpected, ending to the story arc started in C.H.

Anyway, still a great read, especially if you enjoyed the rest of the stories from the Coyote universe.

[Steve Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sad to see this series end. Really well developed world with rich characters and problems with moral dilemmas. It's not just fin adventure, but makes you think.

Unlike previous Coyote novels, this book spent half of it's time back on Earth (the earth of the future some 500 years from now). It's interesting to see the vision of what has happened on earth since the first settlers left in 2070 and colonized Coyote.

While this is the last of the series, Steele leaves us with a clear feeling of where things are headed and reasserts a positive belief in mankind's ability to survive as a species.

To know more check out my in-depth reviews of books #1 and #2.

There are a couple of novels Steele has written that have been set in this same universe and I certainly plan to read those. "Hex" and "Galaxy Blues"

I've said this before, but if you are a Robert Heinlein fan this is the closest you will get to that same style of wit, genius, and understanding of what being human is, mingled with science!

[Jeff Koeppen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very fitting ending to the excellent five book Coyote series. I really enjoyed this series and the finale had me staying up late at night because I couldn't put it down. Not quite a 5-star book in my opinion but I'd give it 4.5 if I could. This is one of the best series I've read in a while, the last series I attempted was Hamilton's Night's Dawn trilogy and it buried me alive and eventually it became hard to read and I bailed. Anyway, Steele's saga maintains interesting plots and characters all the way through as we eventually get to know several generations of Coyote residents. If you are a science fiction fan you can't go wrong by picking up Coyote and starting out on a fun five book ride through time and space.

[Pedro Marroquín · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mucho más light de lo que se merecía esta serie, con múltiples finales a la historia que empezó hace siete libros. La verdad es que aparte de enseñarte como mueren los ancianos que empezaron la serie siendo niños recién llegados a explorar el nuevo planeta (luna) y de resolver la explosión que acabó con el stargate del libro anterior (con un paseo por la Tierra mucho más desolador de lo que se merecía la serie) poco se puede hablar del argumento, porque casi no lo hay. Y como la prosa es bastante pedestre, casi no tuene nada recomendable el libro. Excepto que acaba la serie de forma que cierra el círculo que empezó con Coyote.

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Get ready to jump to lightspeed through the Stargate!" I thought it was awesome!!!!! There was a lot of fighting and shooting. The down side to it was that it bounced back and forth between two stories. It kept me guessing between the two stories. If you want to know what the end of the world might be like, you would want to read this book. It would also be a good book if you like Science Fiction.

[John (JP) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another adventure in the Coyote universe. Like his other books in the Coyote series, Steele relates the same story from multiple dairy entries of the characters. This story completes the arch's started in Coyote Horizon and Coyote Frontier. You need some familarity with the other books to fully appericate stories told, yet Steele supplies sufficent background information so the causual reader can follow and enjoy the story.

[Todd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my favorite of the series. This felt like 2 novellas that were oddly combined. I liked one of the stories more than the other. If you've read the entire Coyote series, you'll enjoy these. I highly recommend the first 3. This whole series examines what happens when we finally colonize a new planet (or a moon in the case of this book), and does an excellent job of it.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read in Steele's Coyote universe. Interesting characters and setting and satisfying resolution to Earth's troubles.

I admit I would have liked to see the story of the chaaz'maha's efforts on Earth told firsthand, instead of learning it secondhand, but perhaps that's material for another book.

[Jeremy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked "Coyote Horizon", but this follow-up was a big disappointment. The entire plot of the book turned out to be one big contrivance, the kind of thing that has been a minor problem throughout all the "Coyote" books but which really ruined this one for me. I just don't believe that people are capable of planning that much stuff out in advance without stuff going wrong.

[Chip · Rating 4 out of 5]

The conclusion of the main Coyote universe books. Nice action - both on and off the planet, characters are well developed and identifiable. Satisfying end of the story and people. Fills in many of the subplots mentioned in the other books. If you like the other Coyote book, you'll probably like this one as well.

[Max]

Really great, but I don't like how the CFSS Robert E Lee was destroyed, but then again, not all things can be good... I also liked how the book is told with two stories going on at once, and how they finally get back to earth.

[Gordon Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Allen Steele's writing style sometimes sees his stories getting lost in the detail without progressing the plot. I am charmed by how believable this near future world is even if the stories telling somhow dampens the natural excitment of the plot.

[MB (What she read) · Rating 3 out of 5]

My favorite part about the Coyote series was always the fauna and exploration of the planet. There was never enough of that for me.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is suppose to be the last book in the Coyote series. While the story was good I was disappointed in the ending.

[Patrick O'Connor · Rating 5 out of 5]

The last book in the Coyote series, by Allen Steele--maybe... Put this series in with the Dragonriders of Pern and Asimov's Foundation Series, IMHO.

Patrick