Path of the Fury
(Fury, one of ?four?)
by David Weber
military science fiction
copyright 1992
read in July 2016
rated 9/10: really, really good
Okay, not "really, really good" in any absolute sense. Not really really good literature. Not really really good for plot, nor for characters, nor for depth... Just really, really good for enjoyment.
A rip roaring thrill ride from beginning to end.
Well, okay, there was the bit where two characters discuss how good a "cadre drop commando" will be. That dragged. I skimmed over it on the second reading...
Yes, second reading. Fury is fun. Just what I needed. Absolute escapism, with ultra heroic heroes and occasionally troubled but still callous villains. I read, enjoyed, re-read, skimmed perhaps ten pages, understood more of the plot, enjoyed the second reading at least as much as the first.
Heroic heroes? How's this:
One relatively minor character believes that one of eight people could be a traitor. How can he prove it? He thumbs his nose at all eight then closes his eyes. If I'm dead by tomorrow, he thinks, That will prove that one of those eight is a traitor. My successor will have a new lead to follow...
Giving his life in support of goodness and niceness? Heroic? You betcha!
It's over the top. It's heroic action-packed adventure. It is a lot of very enjoyable fun :-)
And two other points:
I love the pacing of this story... "A stern chase is a long chase." Just as applicable in space battles as in naval warfare. Look out! Here comes the enemy! When will they be here? In exactly seventeen hours and thirty-one minutes... The action crawls through the vast distances of space. The story races non-stop -- but with realistic comments on the actual time between paragraphs.
And finally: This book is the introduction to a series. Yet it is -- absolutely -- a standalone book. This is excellent.
I do rant against books which are largely pilot episodes for a continuing saga. Path of the Fury is an example of the correct approach to "book one".
Fury is a complete book: with beginning, middle and end. Every villain is accounted for, every loose end is tied up. So why would I read a second book in the series?
This is the secret of a good "book one": I want to read book two because I like the book one style, I like the book one characters, I want to see another adventure in the same style, with the same characters.
Compare that to Extinction Game. Game has average characters. Some are likeable, most are so bland that I can hardly tell them apart. Each Fury character is strong -- yes, over the top strong -- and memorable. Each is unique. Many share the trait of absolute, dedicated heroism -- yet they all act in different ways. Zero points to Game, one point to Fury.
Game has an interesting concept. It is clearly set up to provide a range of environments within one universe. Fury has a more uniform universe, the differences are in the way that characters act within that universe. Point each to Game and Fury.
Game ends with one problem solved and another set up but still completely mysterious. Who are the magical people with the glittery eyes? No idea... It is clearly set up to force us -- if we want an answer -- to read more books in the series. Fury ends with all villains wiped from the board. The author will invent more villains for the next book. One point to Fury, minus one for Game.
Game is an incomplete story. It attempts to sell the next book by leaving many stones unturned. Fury is a complete story. I like the action, I like the characters, I want to read another book -- simply because I enjoyed reading this first book.
And that is how to write a good first book in a series.
Path of the Fury is a great book. And it is also a great book as first of a series.
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Dr Nick Lethbridge / Agamedes Consulting
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"Talk is cheap, because supply exceeds demand." … per Ginger Meggs
1 comment:
20dec17: I want some light entertainment. So I read Path of the Fury... a third time.
I enjoy this book just as much as I did before :-) That's a nine out of ten: really, really good. And I discover new points of interest:
I've been skimming a website of "tropes", or cliches... and Fury is full of them. Including the tendency of characters to bite their lips -- or inside cheeks -- until they bleed. This is a sign of extreme tension. Luckily enough, even teeth all the way through lips never requires medical treatment :-)
And then there's a point which even Blind Freddy could not miss. .. yet I only discovered it on this third reading...
One of the "characters" is a Fury. Yes, one of the three Furies of ancient Greek mythology. Then there's the spaceship AI which becomes a second "modern" Fury. And I keep expecting -- for completeness -- to meet a third Fury. Perhaps in a second book?
Good grief! How could I be so blind! Read the book -- and tell me how quickly you identify the third Fury. I am soooo embarrassed.
Ah well. Just goes to show. A good book always has more to offer on a second -- or third -- reading. If only because the reader skips over some of the obvious points being presented.
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