Specify Containing Books Araminta Station (Cadwal Chronicles #1)
Title | : | Araminta Station (Cadwal Chronicles #1) |
Author | : | Jack Vance |
Book Format | : | Hardcover |
Book Edition | : | First Edition |
Pages | : | Pages: 554 pages |
Published | : | May 18th 1990 by Bookthrift Co (first published 1987) |
Categories | : | Science Fiction. Fiction. Fantasy. Space. Space Opera. Science Fiction Fantasy. Mystery. Crime |
Jack Vance
Hardcover | Pages: 554 pages Rating: 4.07 | 990 Users | 66 Reviews
Chronicle In Pursuance Of Books Araminta Station (Cadwal Chronicles #1)
The planet Cadwal is forever set aside as a natural perserve, owned and administered by the Naturalist Society of Earth, and inhabited by a very limited number of skilled human scientists and their families. But this system has been complicated by the passing centuries, and has become a byzantine culture where every place in the Houses of Cadwal is the object of savage competition.In Araminta Station, the first volume of The Cadwal Chronicles, Jack Vance has constructed a brilliant, complex tale of revenge and murder, of love and alien intrigue, and set it glittering among the stars of the Purple Rose System.
Identify Books Conducive To Araminta Station (Cadwal Chronicles #1)
Original Title: | Araminta Station |
ISBN: | 079171652X (ISBN13: 9780791716526) |
Series: | Cadwal Chronicles #1, Gaean Reach |
Rating Containing Books Araminta Station (Cadwal Chronicles #1)
Ratings: 4.07 From 990 Users | 66 ReviewsCrit Containing Books Araminta Station (Cadwal Chronicles #1)
"This book came out in 1988 and I immediately bought a copy and have read it many times since. I always enjoy reading it and I think it is certainly in my top ten of favourite Jack Vance books." was what I wrote on 6 June 2012 when I gave it four stars.On reading it again I think it deserves five stars. The author creates interesting worlds and Glawen Clattuc is one of the author's more sympathetic main characters.This is my first Jack Vance book, and I was really expecting to like it, but was disappointed. It's okay, and comes to a satisfactory conclusion, but I almost gave up a couple times at the dry, boring storyline and the odd, ponderous dialogue.
Araminta Station is the quiet administrative center of the Cadwal Conservancy, which encompasses the entire planet of Cadwal. A small number of families provide the human resources to staff the various bureaus established by the Cadwal Charter, an ancient document prepared by the Naturalist Society of Old Earth, that functions as their Constitution. People are chosen for this relatively small number of positions according to their Status Index; this is affected by lineage, academic achievement
The book takes an unexpected turn about halfway through, when the action inexplicably moves away from the intrigues, infighting, and politics of planet Cadwal. The protagonist, Glawen Clattuc, travels with a reluctant subordinate on a long investigation into various criminal activities. The bulk of this excursion, from the departure at the spaceport until Glawen's inevitable discovery of the criminals, is extraneous to the story and not terribly interesting to read, and during this hundred page
I enjoyed it, but it was not like I was expecting. I knew it was a coming of age story, and that part I got right. It's about a youngster named Glawen Clattuc who lives in Cadwal, a world that is set a a planet-wide natural reserve where immigration is heavily restricted. The Naturalist Society of Earth, the institution that set the reserve, has basically disbanded on Earth, but Cadwal continues operating according to its charter, although there are political pressures trying to change that. The
It has been some time since I read Araminta Station and I must say that I was pleasantly surprised. Jack folds out a consistent universe and an understandable planetary environment. Glawen is very likable as a character and the story intricate and satisfying, although sometimes a bit tedious. The dialogs are superb, as usual with Vance, and make me ponder if it is possible to use this attitude to my own personal advantage. But alas, something like that is not possible. There is only one master,
Araminta Station is a long book, and it is very "Jack Vance." It's set in the very far future on a planet that has been set aside for centuries for preservation in near-natural state. Permanent population is strictly limited to the descendents of 6 original administrators -- 20 males and 20 females in each of the 6 "Agency" families. Over the years some allowances have been made for permanent staff, servants, tourists and tourist facilities, "compatible" economic development like small-scale
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