 "Replacement for a favorite book" | 2009-09-10 |
| - Reviewed By carolivy from Michigan |
| This book was a replacement purchase for a very well read book that finally fell apart, it was read so many times! I really love this story and will read it many more times. |
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 "A very dull read" | 2008-01-07 |
| - Reviewed By Paulina |
| This book came highly recommended but I feel it was a disappointment. It is long winded, dull, confusing and never really picks up. There are some good fantasy world ideas but has a Tolkien-esque never ending slow pace. Very blah and a waste of time. |
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| "Strongly written, new creation mythos, intricate new world" | 2007-09-03 |
| - Reviewed By Obsessive bibliophile from Athens, GA USA |
"The Infinity Concerto" - Book One in the Songs of Earth and Power omnibus - is multi-layered and textured. I believe it will likely take me several readings to find all the meanings that are embedded in this story. The basic storyline revolves around Michael Perrin, a thoughtful young man who wants to be a poet. He befriends a composer named Arno Waltiri, who it is said wrote a concerto called The Infinity Concerto that was so unusual that it not only drove its listeners mad but also that many of those listeners disappeared. Waltiri claims that the concerto was primarily inspired by a man called David Clarkham, who subsequently disappeared; Arno gives Michael a key and a piece of paper with directions to follow, that should lead him to Clarkham. Waltiri dies soon thereafter. Despite warnings from Waltiri's wife Golda that Waltiri repented of his choice to give these to him, Michael decides to go ahead and follow the directions - and ends up somewhere . . . that is not Earth anymore. Forced to learn to survive, Michael has to grow up and grow strong very quickly - but is he just a pawn in some hidden power struggle? Or is he something else altogether?
Some sections of this part of the text seemed rather slow moving, but everything was necessary for the plot. Because the plot is so intricate, at times ponderous prose is necessary to bring about all the necessary information. All-in-all, I found book one quite enjoyable.
The Serpent Mage" - book two - picks up shortly after Infinity Concerto leaves off. Michael Perrin is back home, living with his parents and continuing his training. Arno Waltiri has left his estate and the disposition of his papers and recordings to Michael. Waltiri has also left his house to Michael and eventually Michael moves in and begins to go through the papers.
Michael's desires for normality are shattered, however, when he reads a news story about strange bodies discovered in a nearby hotel - one grossly obese, one strangely mummified and in a party dress. Other news stories speak of "hauntings" around the world - Michael suspects that the Sidhe are coming to Earth. If that isn't enough, he is contacted by a musical faculty member from UCLA named Kristine Pendeers who is looking for the Infinity Concerto - Opus 45. She wants to discover and perform it; and she has a friend who, with the help of letters and papers they hope to discover in Waltiri's estate, hopes to finish Mahler's unfinished Symphony. And they then plan play the two pieces together. Once the decision is made to start looking for these materials, Michael begins to fall under various attacks to stop him from completing these tasks.
Hopefully the bits of plot I outlined above don't spoil the book for anyone - I could hardly outline less without being so vague about the basic plot of the book as to be basically providing you with a meaningless synopsis; however, there is so much more to this book than the above. Greg Bear weaves throughout this story a fascinating new mythos about the creation and evolution, de-evolution and re-evolution of man and the universe that I found to be quite astonishing in its depth and breadth. He weaves in references to several world religions and ties them in to his mythos, showing how the original truth was "twisted" over the years to conform to what would best serve those in power. It's a really interesting device and I enjoyed the way it was woven in throughout the story. You may also look at vegetarianism in a whole new light.
There was only one thing about the story that bothered me and I'm not sure if it was because I misinterpreted what I was reading or if it is because of some sort of misogyny on the part of the author. It is mentioned several times throughout the course of the book that "magic is carried by the woman." However, not one single mage shown is a woman. If women carry the magic, why aren't there any female mages? Or, as I said, perhaps I am misinterpreting it, and by "carry" they mean like a recessive gene - they carry the magic, but cannot use it.
Those who are fans of epic fantasy, magical realism, stories of the Sidhe (especially of the darker natures thereof) or simply well-crafted alternate realities, please do not miss this one. |
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 "Not Free SF Reader" | 2007-09-03 |
| - Reviewed By - Research Finished |
The fantasy here is by way of horror. A human that ends up in this world, after crossing over from our own is basically then stuck in a Clive Barker book, a very nasty and horrific situation. A similar feel to Mark Chadbourn's World's End, or Sean Williams Crooked Letter.
Humans affected by the supernatural powers around them struggle greatly with the concept, apart from the actual basic facts of survival.
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| "old-style Greg Bear" | 2006-12-05 |
| - Reviewed By alsq from Fort Collins, CO USA |
Short summary: this is the coming of age of a californian teenager captured in a beautiful (my opinion) and dark fantasy world that has little respect for nonsense. It takes too long a while for the kid to grow up. In the meantime, there are too many, too wordy description of too many unessential details that muddle a very inventive imaginary universe. The book would have been much better it it had been 1/3 shorter.
Some books by Greg Bear I've read fairly recently I also liked a lot, so why not trying some of his older writing. Hmmm. Think again. This one I wanted to put down for good after fifty pages, but on the merit of previous reads I persisted, and thank heavens it got better. But not that much . . ..
The fundamental ideas are original and refreshing, but it took me 150 pages to begin to care for Michael, the protagonist. At page 50 or so, when yet another creative calamity was just about to get him, I found myself rooting for the calamity.
I plodded on, for Bear's sake. Michael grows up, fortunately, but the process is annoying to the reader (me) rather than inspiring. The narrative is fine, yet Mr. Bear gets lost in many winded descriptions that stall the action and add only marginal detail to otherwise very good world-building. More often than not I ended up reading the first sentence and the last sentence of, or just scanning through, too many paragraphs without dialog.
Mr. Bear's writing gets better with time. This early novel of his is not quite ripe yet. The absorption value (how much I get lost in the story) is uneven. Your mileage as a reader will vary--a lot. I cannot really recommend this title, sorry. Three stars because the world is original and crafty, I did finish the book, and there are some good moments :) |
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| "How fantasy should be." | 2005-05-21 |
| - Reviewed By dragondrums from Ingleby Barwick. U.K. |
Originally two separate books, Greg Bear's `Infinity Concerto' and `The Serpent Mage' are brought together in one volume renamed `Songs of Earth and Power'.
The story revolves around Michael Perrin, a young poet who is searching for meaning in his life but with no direction. When he befriends Arno Waltiri an elderly neighbour who is also artistic (a composer), it is a meeting of minds and Michaels life changes forever. Unfortunately Arno dies soon after meeting Michael but leaves him a key to an old abandoned house. What Michael is about to discover is that this house is a gateway to another realm, the Realm of the Sidhe, a realm that is both compelling and dangerous, a realm that is difficult to escape from.
Greg Bear's land of elves is not the pretty, enchanted place of so many fantasy novels but is an oppressive, menacing land of cruelty and fear, ruled by the unfeeling Sidhe. His brilliantly descriptive narrative draws the reader in until you feel part of this world. It is a difficult book to put down. Songs of Earth and Power isn't an easy or comfortable read but it is one that is well worth the effort. It's definitely one of the better novels in the fantasy genre and it's a great addition to the bookshelf of any lover of fantasy.
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