Rating: 
Summary: Professional, predictable, and pedantic.
Review: Starswarm was written by someone who has fabricated several pounds of novels and read even more. The plot has been used in dozens of novels and hundreds of video games and thousands of movies. Viz: Plucky youth with secret identity sneaks thru villains to find the holy grail, claim his birthright, and win the girl. In this case the hero Kip is a "prince of the blood" gone into hiding with a faithful retainer, and a "magic" helper. An ursurper is on his tail. At no time is there any suspense. At no time is any character other than a cardboard cut-out. At no time is the history and society of Kip's world other than briefly sketched in. Been there, done that, have the T-shirt.
Rating: 
Summary: A reputable imitation of Robert Heinlein's juveniles
Review: The "Jupiter Series" was started by Jerry Pournelle and Charles Sheffield in "Higher Education," and that first novel is still the best book in the series. Several others have been written by Sheffield solo, and they're all worth reading. I wish the two would get together and write a sequel using the first novel's characters, since we were left with the implication that such was coming. "Starswarm" is Pournelle going at it alone, and like many of his solo novels, they're good, but not as good as his collaborations. Like Larry Niven in recent years, Pournelle and another writer together prove the whole is greater than the parts. In this one, Pournelle creates a very interesting alien, a series of exciting and escalating conflicts, and a creditable resolution. My one quibble with him is that I doubt the kids centuries from now are still going to be playing "Warcraft" as their video game of choice. If you like science fiction, have fond memories of reading Robert Heinlein's juveniles, or are a young reader looking for more of the "Jupiter Series," "Starswarm" won't disappoint.
| 
