I’m sure everyone has their favourite tropes that will almost guarantee them enjoying a book. One of mine is musician main characters, or magic systems that are based in music. I’m also pretty fond of tournaments and competitions like the Proton Game. That means this novel would have had to go very wrong for me not to like it.And I do like it. There are problems – most notably the moments of random sexism (particularly the way our male POV character, Stile, objectifies the many women whose lives seem to revolve around him) – but these moments never became too egregious for me. Sheen, the female robot designed specifically to be Stile’s ideal women (it was creepy when Warren and Spike did it on Buffy, it’s creepy here), has a plot that could have been horrendous, but is redeemed somewhat by how it is resolved not by Stile, but by Lady Blue.Lady Blue was probably my favourite character. Recently widowed and forced to accept Stile in her husband’s place (if you’re a Farscape fan, think Aeryn having to deal with two Crichton’s), she continues to protect her home with immense cunning and awareness. The novel always respects her feelings and never forces her development. Her relationship with Stile is allowed a natural growth.Stile himself is an intriguing hero. He’s more thoughtful and warm-hearted than a lot of modern protagonists and whilst he does have an overabundance of skills in all areas – physical, mental and creative – at least he has a good excuse for this. He has spent his entire life in a world where training for the Game is essential. The format of this tournament, which is a major part of the science fiction parts of the books, allows a huge range of contests in every imaginable field (including some you wouldn’t think of). I have a very special place in my heart for Stile’s harmonica duel with Clef. At the same time, Stile is also new to the fantasy world of Phaze and that means the reader can learn a new world along with him as he makes basic mistakes. His physical ability is also restricted (though never dominated) by his physical disabilities: damaged knees and dwarfism. Both of these hinder him, but he learns to deal with (and sometimes take advantage) of both.The contrast between Proton and Phaze is another important part of the novel. In one world, Stile is a serf aided by a robot, in the other, he is a great magician aided by a unicorn. Proton is a dystopian future, Phaze feels deep in the past, with its mythical creatures and lack of technology. It raises some interesting questions about the divide between science fiction and fantasy, if there is one.I can’t speak to the first or last novels in this trilogy, as I haven’t read them (I really should read the third – despite what I found an overlong final confrontation, the actual ending of this one was a little abrupt for me), but I definitely enjoyed “Blue Adept” and would happily read it again.
I made the mistake of coming back to read this book after reading the author's autobiography "Bio of an Ogre". It's plainer than daylight that Piers created Stile in his image - the height complex, the crook knees, the obsession with horses, the harmonica playing, the stifling sense of "honour" that makes him an always misunderstood moral giant among mere mortals... When you realise how much the author is projecting, the whole thing invites a lot of cringing. The main crux of the book (and a lot of his other books) is about unappreciated and unsung heroes that finally get the glory they deserve and all the women clamoring after them to boot - which makes it all a bit of literary self-satsifying (I'll avoid the "M" word). The worst part of it all is the author's view of women, which is evident on every second page. Chauvinistic, in a word, but firmly convinced that he's an equal opportunity type of chap. I won't go into it here, but suffice to say that once you notice it, it colours the whole reading experience distinctly negatively.Having said that, though, it's still a damn clever concept and he pulls the whole thing off really well. After a while you get used to the clunky writing, the endless loops of logical thought and reasoning and the fact that every character sounds exactly the same. Plus there are unexpected twists and turns that make it hard to put the book down. Still worth a read.
Do You like book Blue Adept (1987)?
Not as good as the first in the series but still entertaining. Both books are very similar in plot and could probably have been a single volume rather than two. Stile is transitioning between Phase & Proton in the search of his alternate selfs' killer and collecting a retinue of magical creatures as well as self aware machines to help him in his quest. As the story unfolds the connections between Phase & Proton becomes a little more clear and the killers identity is revealed somewhat. Will probably continue reading the series to fully reveal the mystery of Stiles killer and the questions of why.
—Haydensdad
I read this book back when it came out in 1981. And I picked it up again because it was a library book (via Overdrive) that was available now. Of course, I'd forgotten that it was book 2 in the series! :-)But it was still a lot of fun to read. Anthony writes an interesting story with the two worlds of science and magic. And the Game on the science side is really interesting too. Technically, this book was annoying to read, with typos that looked like OCR errors on _every_ page (not an exaggeration). Most of them were easy to figure out (like it consistently read "Came" rather than "Game") but others were so opaque that I eventually went to my books and dug out the print copy to figure out what was supposed to be there.And of course, then there's the fact that the book ends in the middle of the Game, so we don't know if he wins. "That's fine," I thought, "I'll just go check out book three and keep reading." But the library only has book 2 available on Overdrive. Book 1 and 3 (and 4-6, for that matter) are not there. What's up with that? I love that I can check out digital books from the library, but man it would be nice if there were more titles available.
—Jennifer Kyrnin
Not as good as the first or third installments of the trilogy; the end especially got a bit silly. One gripe here is that all of his characters tend to have the same "voice" even when they're disguised with various masks of age, race, origin, class, origin, etc.This series appeals to and helped shape my aesthetic sensibilities, in the way Piers Anthony creates a universe with certain rules and limitations, and explores one facet of it at a time. Typical of this author, the series develops in a way that reminds me of a Baroque dance suite, like J.S. Bach's 'cello suites. The adventures are uniquely keyed to the powers and responsibilities of each main character.
—Christian Crowley
