Read Planet of Adventure Omnibus Online
Authors: Jack Vance
Planet of Adventure Omnibus
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Customer Review:
Wonderful science-fiction adventure series
, November 7, 1997
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This book contains 4
excellent short SF novels by the masterful Jack Vance. Vance’s descriptions and
distinctive, elegant dialog combine to take the reader to an alternate reality
in ways that very few writers can match. These books are perhaps my favorites
by Vance. The alien beings depicted here are strange and fascinating, and Adam
Reith is a resourceful, inspiring hero.
A classic science fiction adventure series.
, July 17, 1996
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If you’re a fan of Jack
Vance, this may be his best series. If not, this is an excellent introduction
to this master of adventure SF and fantasy. In the first ten pages of the first
book, Terran explorer Adam Reith’s ship is destroyed by mysterious missiles,
and he is stranded on the unknown planet Tschai. Tschai has been colonized by
several mutually antagonistic alien races; they have imported primitive humans
for use as servants; over millenia, several human subspecies have evolved,
symbiotic to the various breeds of alien. Our hero gets to spend the next four
volumes criss-crossing the planet from one cliff-hanging adventure to another
in search of an intact spacecraft that he can buy, borrow, or steal. Gorgeous
prose and intricate, fully realized alien cultures raise this above the level
of a simple adventure series. Highly recommended
Outstanding!!!
, July 19, 2002
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First, let me state that
Jack Vance is my favorite SF author, so maybe I’m biased. That said, I believe
this series (and each individual book in it) is superb.
The plot involves an
Earthman, Adam Reith, who gets stranded on a planet occupied by four advanced
alien races. Reith must use every resource of his mind and body to avoid not
only capture and death, but to procure a spaceship to take him home. Along the
way, he gains allies who come to believe in his quest.
As usual, Vance has
succeeded in creating a world far removed from our own in both technology and temperament,
rich in both complexity and credibility. Reith is the quintessential Vancian
hero, relying as much on his mental resources as his muscle; he tends to outwit
and outmaneuver his opponents as opposed to simply over-powering them, but he
has no problem in asserting his physical prowess when necessary. The action
moves along at a breathtaking pace, with memorable characters and events at
every turn of the page. I can’t recommend it highly enough.
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of Contents