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Product Description
CHANGE IS ON THE AIR: The generals of the Middle Kingdom await the decision of the emperor.The campaign to secure the border from China to Iraq has reached a strange impasse. Two blood enemies have united against their common cause. But with the lives of thousands at his whim, the exalted Tsao Ch'un, the Son of Heaven, cannot decide. Destroy the Middle East in one blinding flash? Or take another path? THE WAY IS UNCLEAR: In the court of Tsao Ch'un, men of power have become smiling lackeys, whose graces conceal their fear, or their ambition. With his family held hostage by the empire, General Jiang Lei finds himself appointed to a special task: the orchestration of the last great war against the West. The total dominion of America. WAR APPROACHES: But life in the world of levels continues. No hint of war, or want, or discontent can infiltrate the oppressive, ordered society that replaces the world Jake Reed once knew. Since the first airships rolled over the horizon, nothing has been the same. His new life means new thinking, new customs, a new way of behaving, and with his every move scrutinized, Jake can only serve the bureaucracy of new China. But he is not the only citizen who feels discontent with the anodyne new order...
About the Author
David Wingrove is the Hugo Award-winning co-author (with Brian Aldiss) of The Trillion Year Spree: The History of Science Fiction. He is also the co-author of the first three MYST books - novelizations of one of the world's bestselling computer games. He lives in north London with his wife and four daughters.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Readers should be aware that the 2 previous reviews are for The Middle Kingdom, not Daylight On Iron Mountain. This book, DOIM, is the 2nd prequel volume to the original Chung Kuo epic, the 1st being Son of Heaven. David Wingrove has heavily revised the multi-threaded Chung Kuo story and each of the original 8 books will be published as two, making 16 from the original series plus the 2 prequels and 2 expansions/sequels, totalling 20 books in all. Yet for some reason, Amazon has decided to append 10-year old reviews onto the entry for the wrong book.
So, to the book itself. After the elegy for a lost world that was the overarching theme of book 1, Son of Heaven, DOIM shows us much more of the ruthless Han empire and its sociopathic leader, Tsao Chun. Wingrove's strengths are many, from the detail of character to the grand sweep of nations locked in struggle, all depicted through a dramatic unfolding that does not let go. Highly recommended, especially in light of current global events.
So, to the book itself. After the elegy for a lost world that was the overarching theme of book 1, Son of Heaven, DOIM shows us much more of the ruthless Han empire and its sociopathic leader, Tsao Chun. Wingrove's strengths are many, from the detail of character to the grand sweep of nations locked in struggle, all depicted through a dramatic unfolding that does not let go. Highly recommended, especially in light of current global events.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition
David Wingrove wrote the Chung Kuo series of eight science-fiction novels in the late eighties/nineties. Now he is apparently rewriting them, and has added two prequels, published in 2011, Son of Heaven and now Daylight on Iron Mountain.
These prequels sit very firmly within the "future history" sub-genre. Son of Heaven was a drama in three acts, dealing with the aftermath of a digital apocalypse, the catastrophe itself, and finally the triumph of its Chinese initiators.
This second novel picks up where its predecessors left off and is split more or less equally between the now dominant Pei Ching - based elite, and the lives of the main protagonists of the earlier novel Jake Reed and his family and friends.
As the book opens, the ruling despot T'sao Chun is faced with rebellion in the Middle East as he prepares his final assault on a divided America, lead by honourable poet-general Jiang Li and Caucasian adviser and computer genius Amos Shepherd.
The book covers a 20 year period. On a micro level Jake firstly sees an opportunity to regain a former life and then, bizarrely and possibly uniquely in a science fiction novel, gets involved in a dispute about his pension rights. On a macro level the book deals firstly with the final, brutal triumph of Tsao Chun, and then with conflict between him and his closest allies.
On a plus side, this is a close to being character driven as any science fiction. Jake and his family are real, believable people, with credible human reactions to the extraordinary world around them. Also, where the third act of the first novel was its weakest part, here as the war between Tsao Chun and his advisers reaches its height, it is the most thrilling. Finally, as with much great science fiction, this deals with contemporary issues. Pension rights is a rather bizarre one, but more interestingly, Wingrove looks at the role and fate of a tyrant, with T'sao Chun seen as a necessary means to an end but who runs the very real risk of becoming a Sadam/Gadaffi like figure. Also interesting and very relevant is the role of capitalism in an autocratic Chinese society.
On the downside, the scope of the novel is just too wide, and many story lines are either left to peter out or are left inadequately explored. To be cruel, the plot of the novel is all over the place, a bit of a mess. The conflict in the Middle East, Jakes attempts to rebuild his former life, his son Peter's career, Jiang Li's conquest of America, are just some of the themes which feel inadequately explored.
At the end of the day, this is intelligent science fiction, and as such is worthwhile, but it does have the feel of being a transitory novel within a series, rather than being a coherent standalone work. It is a reasonable sequel to Son of Heaven. Whether its position in the ultimate rewritten series atones for its faults remains to be seen.
These prequels sit very firmly within the "future history" sub-genre. Son of Heaven was a drama in three acts, dealing with the aftermath of a digital apocalypse, the catastrophe itself, and finally the triumph of its Chinese initiators.
This second novel picks up where its predecessors left off and is split more or less equally between the now dominant Pei Ching - based elite, and the lives of the main protagonists of the earlier novel Jake Reed and his family and friends.
As the book opens, the ruling despot T'sao Chun is faced with rebellion in the Middle East as he prepares his final assault on a divided America, lead by honourable poet-general Jiang Li and Caucasian adviser and computer genius Amos Shepherd.
The book covers a 20 year period. On a micro level Jake firstly sees an opportunity to regain a former life and then, bizarrely and possibly uniquely in a science fiction novel, gets involved in a dispute about his pension rights. On a macro level the book deals firstly with the final, brutal triumph of Tsao Chun, and then with conflict between him and his closest allies.
On a plus side, this is a close to being character driven as any science fiction. Jake and his family are real, believable people, with credible human reactions to the extraordinary world around them. Also, where the third act of the first novel was its weakest part, here as the war between Tsao Chun and his advisers reaches its height, it is the most thrilling. Finally, as with much great science fiction, this deals with contemporary issues. Pension rights is a rather bizarre one, but more interestingly, Wingrove looks at the role and fate of a tyrant, with T'sao Chun seen as a necessary means to an end but who runs the very real risk of becoming a Sadam/Gadaffi like figure. Also interesting and very relevant is the role of capitalism in an autocratic Chinese society.
On the downside, the scope of the novel is just too wide, and many story lines are either left to peter out or are left inadequately explored. To be cruel, the plot of the novel is all over the place, a bit of a mess. The conflict in the Middle East, Jakes attempts to rebuild his former life, his son Peter's career, Jiang Li's conquest of America, are just some of the themes which feel inadequately explored.
At the end of the day, this is intelligent science fiction, and as such is worthwhile, but it does have the feel of being a transitory novel within a series, rather than being a coherent standalone work. It is a reasonable sequel to Son of Heaven. Whether its position in the ultimate rewritten series atones for its faults remains to be seen.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
I really enjoyed Wingrove's first book Son of Heaven (Chung Kuo) and have eagerly awaited the next instalment in what is set to be a 20 book series.
Unlike the previous book, where the world was seen mainly through the eyes of Jake Reed and the Han general Jiang Lee, the story becomes far more multi-threaded as we get an insight into the power emanating from the "world leader" and so-called Son of Heaven Tsao Ch'un and his Seven Dragons, the administrators of his will in his sovereignty over the whole planet (and Mars too). We do catchup with Jake and Jiang Lee, and also find out about how their families have fared as life has changed from the old world to the new.
The world is now corrupt and divisive, with few standing up for the laws of the new world as greed and power have become central currencies. Whilst the story is multi-threaded, following the many lives in the new world of Chung Kuo, this theme is central to the premise of the book. And as each story comes together, we see views polarised as to who if fighting to maintain the status quo, and who is fighting to overturn it.
The dream of a utopian world ruled by the Han is on a knife edge...
Wingrove moves between characters and scenes quickly as he brings the threads together. Occasionally I got lost as to who was who as there are a number of characters to keep track of, and often the author will cut in from one thread to another with little introduction. Consult the appendices if you get really lost, but diligent and careful reading will reward you with a rich story of politics, intrigue, revenge, power, greed and corruption - as well as offering hope that not everyone is out for themselves.
Loved it. Couldn't put it down and can't wait for book three...
Unlike the previous book, where the world was seen mainly through the eyes of Jake Reed and the Han general Jiang Lee, the story becomes far more multi-threaded as we get an insight into the power emanating from the "world leader" and so-called Son of Heaven Tsao Ch'un and his Seven Dragons, the administrators of his will in his sovereignty over the whole planet (and Mars too). We do catchup with Jake and Jiang Lee, and also find out about how their families have fared as life has changed from the old world to the new.
The world is now corrupt and divisive, with few standing up for the laws of the new world as greed and power have become central currencies. Whilst the story is multi-threaded, following the many lives in the new world of Chung Kuo, this theme is central to the premise of the book. And as each story comes together, we see views polarised as to who if fighting to maintain the status quo, and who is fighting to overturn it.
The dream of a utopian world ruled by the Han is on a knife edge...
Wingrove moves between characters and scenes quickly as he brings the threads together. Occasionally I got lost as to who was who as there are a number of characters to keep track of, and often the author will cut in from one thread to another with little introduction. Consult the appendices if you get really lost, but diligent and careful reading will reward you with a rich story of politics, intrigue, revenge, power, greed and corruption - as well as offering hope that not everyone is out for themselves.
Loved it. Couldn't put it down and can't wait for book three...
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
world of chung kuo
This is an excellent read, could not put it down, and if you have read the later Chung Kuo books helps explain the beginning of the world of Middle Earth. Read more
Published 11 days ago by gilly
This could actually happen!
I read the first book and had to read the second. I haven't quite finished the second yet but so far it is just as gripping as the first. Read more
Published 3 months ago by M. Lonergan
better than the first!
The story follows Jake Reed and Jiang Lei, the heroes of the first book, as both attempt to come to terms with the Mile High City of Ice. Read more
Published 6 months ago by AlexandraK
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