- Hardcover: 224 pages
- Publisher: Gollancz; First Edition edition (7 Mar 1991)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0575050012
- ISBN-13: 978-0575050013
- Product Dimensions: 19.8 x 13.5 x 2.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 2,138,288 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
| |||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
A collection of eight science fiction short stories by the award-winning author of "Four Hundred Billion Stars" and "Eternal Light". The collection includes "The King of the Hill", "Karl and the Ogre", "Transcendence", "The Temporary King", "Exiles" and "The Airs of Earth".
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organise and find favourite items. |
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Format:Paperback
I've been trying to get to know the sci-fi genre better. As such, I read one short story everyday without fail. Paul McAuley's short stories are among the best I've read. This is my favorite volume of his work. Not every writer can make you think about a story after you've read it. Most stories just end, and the reader returns to reality. Paul McAuley's stories impact upon your reality. The narrative ends, and the story carries on in you. That's the highest achievement of fiction if you ask me. Salman Rushdie said the same thing on Oprah. This volume costs less than a McDonald's. Every story will haunt you emotionally and intellectually. If that doesn't make you curious, you either like McDonald's more than I, or you don't like books as much.
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Paul J McAuley’s first collection features 8 short stories, the majority of which tie in to the future history of Earth used as the background for his first 3 novels.
The title story is a fantasy tale of a young boy possessed by the spirit of King Arthur to throw off the shackles of American occupiers in an alternate Cold War. It’s a simple story but well told, and manages to be a lot less silly than it sounds.
‘Karl and the Ogre’ looks as though it’s heading even more into outright fantasy fiction with a fairly generic Ogre-hunting quest, before it becomes apparent that the setting is actually a future Earth transformed by science. A nice twist rescues this from being standard sword and sorcery fare, making this the best story in the collection.
After two quasi-fantasy tales ‘Transcendence’ finds McAuley back in more familiar science fiction mode, in a moving story concerning a possible crystal life form on Venus – a strong story that remembers to focus as much on characterisation as science.
Besides a few references to the universe of Four Hundred Billion Stars and Secret harmonies, ‘The Temporary King’ seems to be just a straight love triangle drama. With no central sf idea driving the plot this is the first poor story of the collection.
‘Exiles’ is another character-based piece set in McAuley’s future history, but again the plot in this tale of migrant spacers is so slight as to be almost non-existent.
‘Little Ilya and Spider and Box’ is a superior variation on the previous tale, dealing this time with the attempts of an abused child to hitch a lift off of Earth. A fairly enjoyable if unspectacular thriller.
The mid-book slump is firmly dispelled with ‘The Airs of Earth’, a perceptive look at the culture clash between the near immortal Goldens and their ephemeral human cousins.
Finally ‘The Heirs of Earth’ continues the theme of culture clash, this time between a spacer and the degenerate inhabitants of Earth.
All in all a fairly average collection, with the couple of superior stories balanced out by a couple of aimless pieces. The King of the Hill adds a little background colour to readers of the shared universe of McAuley's 1st three novels, but there isn’t enough variation or invention to make this a truly successful anthology.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
1 review
Not Free SF Reader
14 Nov 2007
Format:Hardcover
A fair bit of this collection has stories based in the same future history setting, a hint of which can be seen in the names of the last two stories. The first two stories are the ones that are quite different.
A good collection, averaging 3.50, certainly worth reading.
King of the Hill : The King of the Hill - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : Karl and the Ogre - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : Transcendence - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : The Temporary King - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : Exiles - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : Little Ilya and Spider and Box - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : The Airs of Earth - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : The Heirs of Earth - Paul J. McAuley
Mythological archer rebellion.
4 out of 5
A whole generation of children with enhanced intelligence wipe out all the adults via bacteria, and these superbright changelings go hunting the remnants that haven't been killed outright.
3.5 out of 5
Meat, to me, is murder.
3.5 out of 5
Love 'em, but you can't leave them if they kill you.
4 out of 5
Freespacer life.
3 out of 5
Clone kid story.
3 out of 5
Shorttime betboy longtime entertainment.
4 out of 5
Shooting and spacing.
3 out of 5
A good collection, averaging 3.50, certainly worth reading.
King of the Hill : The King of the Hill - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : Karl and the Ogre - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : Transcendence - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : The Temporary King - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : Exiles - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : Little Ilya and Spider and Box - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : The Airs of Earth - Paul J. McAuley
King of the Hill : The Heirs of Earth - Paul J. McAuley
Mythological archer rebellion.
4 out of 5
A whole generation of children with enhanced intelligence wipe out all the adults via bacteria, and these superbright changelings go hunting the remnants that haven't been killed outright.
3.5 out of 5
Meat, to me, is murder.
3.5 out of 5
Love 'em, but you can't leave them if they kill you.
4 out of 5
Freespacer life.
3 out of 5
Clone kid story.
3 out of 5
Shorttime betboy longtime entertainment.
4 out of 5
Shooting and spacing.
3 out of 5
Was this review helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
