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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Paths of the Cursed, 30 Jun 2008
EVE-Online has been running for five years. Players have seen massive changes to the game play mechanics but the actual story line has been very slow to develop, being depicted through short stories and occasional in-game events. The Empyrean Age needed to pull together all these loose plot threads without resorting to the feared dei ex machinae that many thought would be necessary.
It has done an admirable job. The story fills in gaps and ties together plot elements without ever straining credulity. The characters are well written and the setting true to the game that inspired it. The author manages to describe and incorporate many elements of the EVE universe, presenting a coherent tale where before there were only snapshots.
The story takes place towards the end of a cold war between the four primary space-faring nations of EVE. The plot follows a small number of individuals whose actions shape events. Some of the characters are important figures with no small amount of power, while others are minor players reluctantly forced into the middle of the fray. Mysterious figures make desperate power-plays for personal ends, while democratic institutions are demolished in the face of strident nationalism. Tyrants and folk-heroes vie for power while new technology threatens to tilt the balance.
If there are things I would criticise I would say:
1. The portrayal of Amarrians is very one-dimensional. The only good ones are those that have lost their minds, or so it would seem. This goes to extremes with some chapters handling the Amarr Chamberlain. I think one of the descriptions, if portrayed visually, would land the author in jail. Caldari fare only a little better, while the Minmatar are all haplessly naïve.
2. The timing of this novel is a bit rushed. With so little for so long it too much to absorb all at once. It doesn't really strain credibility or in any way stretch the boundaries of the EVE universe, but it feels like it should.
All in all, for an EVE fan this is a great book. Even for those who have never heard of EVE it is still a well written stand-alone sci-fi novel, although the resonance will be diminshed. Finally, it has an interesting twist at the end... opening doors that were long thought closed.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
ultimate reading, 26 Oct 2009
This review is from: Eve: The Empyrean Age (Hardcover)
If you ever played the game odds are you still are playing.
This book gives you all the background information you want from the world of Eve you play in.
As a story on it's own it holds it's ground. The storylines of all 4 races are intwined and you will find yourself choosing sides or feeling sympathy for any of the main characters ultimately resulting in creating such a character ingame. Wether it be a free fought Minmatar or a money hungry Caldari they all have something that will atrackt our attention and make us want to know more.
Once you start reading this book, you'll find it hard to put it aside, you just keep on reading, I know I did. A must have for all fans of sci-fi and Eve-online players.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Enjoyable, well-paced but lacked depth in characters, 14 Jun 2009
The book provided a well-paced, enjoyable read for sunny afternoons in the garden.
First off, I'm not an EVE player. In fact, before buying the book off Amazon I had never heard of EVE. Possibly the book means more to those who do and may have more insight into the stories behind the scenes & history of the civilizations presented in the book.
The book flowed well, especially for what is evidently the writer's first novel. My only constructive feedback would be that more time should be sent with the central characters to develop them. Example would be Téa and Gear. If the author had simply added a couple of chapters on their back stories, then the reader would have experienced these first hand and felt more about the characters.
Otherwise for a non EVE player, a two-page history of the civilizations at the beginning of the book would have helped... as it took awhile to decipher what civilization did what and who hated who, and so forth.
I enjoyed the book and would recommend it -- to a regular Sci-Fi reader, not a novice (as there are far better Sci-Fi novels to introduce someone to).
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