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Hero!
1st edition Del Rey 1991 paperback, vg++ In stock shipped from our UK warehouse
293 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 13, 1991
About the author
Dave Duncan
140 books596 followersOriginally from Scotland, Dave Duncan lived all his adult life in Western Canada, having enjoyed a long career as a petroleum geologist before taking up writing. Since discovering that imaginary worlds were more satisfying than the real one, he published more than 60 novels, mostly in the fantasy genre, but also young adult, science fiction, and historical.
He wrote at times under the pseudonym Sarah B. Franklin (but only for literary purposes) and Ken Hood (which is short for "D'ye Ken Whodunit?")
His most successful works were fantasy series: The Seventh Sword, A Man of His Word and its sequel, A Handful of Men, and seven books about The King’s Blades. His books have been translated into 15 languages, and of late have been appearing in audiobook format as well.
He and Janet were married in 1959. He is survived by her, one son and two daughters, as well as four grandchildren.
He was both a founding and honorary lifetime member of SFCanada, and a member of the CSFFA Hall of Fame.
He wrote at times under the pseudonym Sarah B. Franklin (but only for literary purposes) and Ken Hood (which is short for "D'ye Ken Whodunit?")
His most successful works were fantasy series: The Seventh Sword, A Man of His Word and its sequel, A Handful of Men, and seven books about The King’s Blades. His books have been translated into 15 languages, and of late have been appearing in audiobook format as well.
He and Janet were married in 1959. He is survived by her, one son and two daughters, as well as four grandchildren.
He was both a founding and honorary lifetime member of SFCanada, and a member of the CSFFA Hall of Fame.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
November 14, 2023
It had been a corpse of a day.
Bourne Identity meets Enemy Mine. What makes a hero? Science fiction and action tropes inverted forcing the reader to figure out who’s doing what to whom. And why. Outside Duncan’s usual medieval action fantasy, but excellent hard science fiction. First published in 1991.
“It’s coming in coplanar with the ecliptic, tangential to Ult’s orbit, so in theory it could.” “That sounds like a missile trajectory!” “It could be.”
Folded timeline of main character flashbacks fills a lifetime of back story as the main action takes place in a week’s time. Only opening chapter is not in the protagonist’s point of view and contains a lively bit of misdirection.
“We have to get their population down to sustainable limits somehow. If they breed like vermin, then they must expect to be treated like vermin.”
Rationed profanity keeps the story grounded in the far future. Logical phraseology and internal dialogue propel the inner drama.
All mortals died in the end. Defeat was inevitable, but to go bravely was the closest a boy could come to victory.
Bourne Identity meets Enemy Mine. What makes a hero? Science fiction and action tropes inverted forcing the reader to figure out who’s doing what to whom. And why. Outside Duncan’s usual medieval action fantasy, but excellent hard science fiction. First published in 1991.
“It’s coming in coplanar with the ecliptic, tangential to Ult’s orbit, so in theory it could.” “That sounds like a missile trajectory!” “It could be.”
Folded timeline of main character flashbacks fills a lifetime of back story as the main action takes place in a week’s time. Only opening chapter is not in the protagonist’s point of view and contains a lively bit of misdirection.
“We have to get their population down to sustainable limits somehow. If they breed like vermin, then they must expect to be treated like vermin.”
Rationed profanity keeps the story grounded in the far future. Logical phraseology and internal dialogue propel the inner drama.
All mortals died in the end. Defeat was inevitable, but to go bravely was the closest a boy could come to victory.
September 16, 2019
This is an interesting book, one continuing a trend of retrograde sexual politics in Duncan's writing (I read this immediately after Wildcatter which at least had a more science fictional reason for people to run around screwing each other.
If you're new to my reviews, I certainly don't mind people screwing each other, but the picture of these young-old "boys" and "girls" joylessly having orgies in mansions while the world decays around them and the billions of unnamed unseen peasants toil somewhere off-page was...offputting.
The book is told as an interleaving of flash-backs and present day scenes, with the titular "Hero" having an interesting twist on the Chosen One trope.
If you're new to my reviews, I certainly don't mind people screwing each other, but the picture of these young-old "boys" and "girls" joylessly having orgies in mansions while the world decays around them and the billions of unnamed unseen peasants toil somewhere off-page was...offputting.
The book is told as an interleaving of flash-backs and present day scenes, with the titular "Hero" having an interesting twist on the Chosen One trope.
April 11, 2020
This was a strange book. In the beginning I didn't know what was going on because people talk about past events that have meaning to them but no meaning to me. And then there will be a flashback with no warning, no "Twelve Years Earlier" type of thing, so it took me awhile to get the hang of "Oh, this is a flashback." The structure of the book is NOw, Flashback, Now, Flashback, cont. By the end we understand what the characters were talking about before because we have lived it through the flashbacks.
Another strange thing is that everyone is referred to as a "boy" or "girl", not as "man" or "woman". After awhile we get the picture that everyone stops aging in their youth so everyone looks like they are 18 years old or something like that, when in reality they could be 200 years old.
The hero in this book is not a real hero (sorry a bit of a spoiler), rather he was made into a hero by the guys in charge. They had reasons for that that are really spoilers so I won't go into those. After he "saves the world" and becomes a hero he lives it up, sleeping around with lots of girls in the mansion he got as prize for his heroics. He's living the high life for years when suddenly there's a new crisis, one that looks like there's no way out even for a hero.
Another strange thing is that everyone is referred to as a "boy" or "girl", not as "man" or "woman". After awhile we get the picture that everyone stops aging in their youth so everyone looks like they are 18 years old or something like that, when in reality they could be 200 years old.
The hero in this book is not a real hero (sorry a bit of a spoiler), rather he was made into a hero by the guys in charge. They had reasons for that that are really spoilers so I won't go into those. After he "saves the world" and becomes a hero he lives it up, sleeping around with lots of girls in the mansion he got as prize for his heroics. He's living the high life for years when suddenly there's a new crisis, one that looks like there's no way out even for a hero.
May 24, 2020
This was my first Dave Duncan book, and I’m very impressed. His words have a lyrical, animated poetry that nevertheless goes down smoothly.
The title is ironic. At the beginning of the book, Duncan gives you every reason to assume that the protagonist is a stereotypically bratty hero, and a male chauvinist to boot. The character develops, and the mysteries are unveiled, layer by layer, in an organic and believable way. In many ways he flips, and in many areas it turns out that you got it delightfully wrong. This is quite an accomplishment, especially considering that the nature of the protagonist is one you would normally not be able to relate to.
TL;DR, The story is there, and you’ll have completely bought in to the main character, who is atypical and robust. If the other characters are a bit two dimensional, that’s actually part of the critique. The setting and science are not accidental, but integral to the plot, well-thought out, and consistent.
The title is ironic. At the beginning of the book, Duncan gives you every reason to assume that the protagonist is a stereotypically bratty hero, and a male chauvinist to boot. The character develops, and the mysteries are unveiled, layer by layer, in an organic and believable way. In many ways he flips, and in many areas it turns out that you got it delightfully wrong. This is quite an accomplishment, especially considering that the nature of the protagonist is one you would normally not be able to relate to.
TL;DR, The story is there, and you’ll have completely bought in to the main character, who is atypical and robust. If the other characters are a bit two dimensional, that’s actually part of the critique. The setting and science are not accidental, but integral to the plot, well-thought out, and consistent.
July 21, 2017
Good space opera. Don't be put off by the garish cover. It's a nice take on homo sapiens vs homo (?) superior - in this case the Brotherhood, a race of near-identical clones. Duncan has built a well-thought-out universe: human space extends for 5000 ly or more, but travel is restricted to STL ships -- modified asteroids -- with a max speed of about .33 C. Hence contact is restricted to occ ships from near-neighbors and (unreliable) radio broadcasts. Many human worlds have fallen silent in recent years....
Might be time for a reread. Duncan is a competent writer, and puts fresh twists on old plots.
Might be time for a reread. Duncan is a competent writer, and puts fresh twists on old plots.
April 3, 2020
Well, that was surprising. Starts out like a 1950's pulpy space opera (Space Patrol!) and turns out to be much more complicated than that, with a time-shifting narrative structure with a fairly downbeat ending. Overall, I rather liked it.
January 5, 2020
Stopped sixty pages to the end. Couldn't carry on, I was taking twice as long to read it...
December 17, 2021
Dave Duncan is not an ass man
November 10, 2023
An entertaining read.
July 19, 2024
Story was all over the place. Barely got to page 60, when I totally lost interest.
October 16, 2010
In the about the author section at the end of the book, it said that Dave Duncan switched between writing fantasy and Science Fiction. the King's blades are fantasy, of course, as are the pandemia books and the Seventh Sword. The Great Game aren't what I would call sci-fi either; making me think - there's a lot of Duncan I ain't read...
This one specifically made me feel a little let down, i'm so used to Duncan's series where the worlds are filled out with more books that things felt somewhat rushed here. it was an interesting story and an even more interesting take on a militaristic Patrol organisation, but I felt that standing alone it wasn't as great a world portrayal as it might have been.
This one specifically made me feel a little let down, i'm so used to Duncan's series where the worlds are filled out with more books that things felt somewhat rushed here. it was an interesting story and an even more interesting take on a militaristic Patrol organisation, but I felt that standing alone it wasn't as great a world portrayal as it might have been.
July 18, 2007
Synopsis:
A military hero struggles with his identity as a clone when he’s caught between in a war between humans and the Brotherhood who created him.
Review:
Science fiction is not really my thing, but I do like to give it a try every now and again when I’m given an author or book recommendation.
Read the rest here:
http://superfastreader.com/hero-by-da...
A military hero struggles with his identity as a clone when he’s caught between in a war between humans and the Brotherhood who created him.
Review:
Science fiction is not really my thing, but I do like to give it a try every now and again when I’m given an author or book recommendation.
Read the rest here:
http://superfastreader.com/hero-by-da...
January 9, 2012
Okay, I'm a bit biased because the book's dedicated to me, but it is a fabulous read. On one hand, great adventure novel of hero saving the world; on another level, complete satire of hero-saving-the-world-type novels.
March 24, 2013
I generally like Duncan but I just couldn't get into this book
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews