The Gods of Mars [UNABRIDGED-MP3 CD]

Rating:
Summary: John Carter finally returns to Barsoom to find Dejah Thoris
Review: At the end of "A Princess of Mars," the first in the John Carter series by Edgar Rice Burroughs, John Carter got the factory that produced oxygen for Barsoom (the Martian name for Mars) working again, but had collapsed. When he revived he found himself back on earth, separated from Dejah Thoris, the Princess of Helium and his beloved. Originally published in 1913 as a serial in "All-Story Magazine," this story finds John Carter returning to Mars and setting off to find his woman. Knowing that it was originally published as a serial is useful because Burroughs loads on the cliffhangers throughout the novel. When Carter returns to Barsoom a decade has passed and he finds himself in that part of the planet that the natives consider to be "heaven," which proves to be a more ironic idea. Carter has to reunite with his friend the fierce green warrior Tars Tarkas, fight with the great white apes of Barsoom and plant men, violate some significant religious taboos, survive the affections of an evil goddess, help with a slave revolt, fight in an arena, and still save Dejah Thoris in the middle of a giant air battle between the red, green, black and white people of Barsoom.

"The Gods of Mars" is an early Burroughs novel, which means it is high on action and low on details. ERB would set his adventures in strange worlds such as Barsoom, Venus, Pellucidar, etc., but beyond the basic idea of it being a strange world he was content for such places to be the settings for this stories. The writing is a bit stilted and ERB likes to mix cliches and ponderous phrases that make the narrative seem dated, but "The Gods of Mars" meets his basic criteria of providing a ripping yarn for his readers. The best thing you can say about this novel is that the action never stops from start to finish. The worst thing you can say about it is that Burroughs puts off reuniting our hero with his beloved, but if you have read many of ERB's novels, Tarzan or otherwise, you know that once his happy couple is back together the story is pretty much over. However, even at the end there is another cliffhanger that will make you track down "The Warlord of Mars," the next installment in what is clearly the best Burroughs series. ERB milked the Tarzan character dry and still produced another dozen novels in that series, while the Mars books (sorry, the Barsoom series) remained relatively fresh.

Rating:
Summary: fun and interesting
Review: It would be difficult for this book to top its predecessor. In fact I would say this is a step down from A Princess of Mars in general quality. However, A Princess of Mars is, in my opinion, the best story ever written. If you're looking for an interesting, fun sequel, this book delivers well. John Carter returns to Mars after a ten year exile on Earth. There he is reunited with his old friend Tars Tarkas. Together they fight their way through the Martian "heaven" (which turns out to be a living hell) past giant apes, plant men and false gods. Along the way they meet new people, discover hidden races of "gods," and find new quests.

However, this book fails to reunite John Carter with his wife Dejah Thoris until late in the book (very late in the book). Their relationship was always my favorite part of the original, A Princess of Mars. Naturally, I am a bit disappointed in this. However, I feel that The Gods of Mars holds up better than most sequels--it is fun and exciting, and returns the reader to one of the most interesting worlds ever conceived in all of fiction. As an avid Sci Fi reader, I can honestly say this is one of the better science fiction books I have read.

Rating:
Summary: Thoroughly enjoyable
Review: This is the second book in the series, _A Princess of Mars_ being the first. I like this one better. Again, John Carter astral-travels to Mars, and instantly finds himself in a battle with the plant men, alongside his old friend Tars Tarkas. A new resourceful female character, is introduced. Surprisingly, Burroughs does a hatchet-job on fanatical mass religion and corrupt priests, which is something I didn't expect in an action-adventure novel [...]. Burroughs is generally an adequate, workman-like writer, but, boy, could he tell a story! This book is just one action-packed adventure after another. And even though Burroughs wrote most of his Mars novels right around 1912, they still hold up today.