Rating: 
Summary: Well... it is a fair follow up story to ringworld.
Review: I like Louis Wu. He is nearly my favorite Larry Niven character. So when this book came out years past I ran down to the book store and bought a copy. The book is sort of about Louis Wu and the old gang of the two previous Ringworld series. Some of the writing about Louis is quite good. (Spoiler Warning) Louis has a terminal disease from being off booster spice. His cure is quite innovative when looking at things on a microscophic level. My hat is off to Larry for thinking of such an good solution to an illness. I didn't care for the new characters. They tend to come into the main thrust of the novel and I just wanted to learn more about the Hindmost and Chmee. Chmee is just busy running his life and he treats everything as an afterthought. Perhaps I would be this way if I lived on a stable Ringworld with a bunch of wives and a Kingdom to defend. But, to Larry Niven fans, this is still classic Niven. The last few chapters makes up for some of the dull parts. Remember, Pak do not like automation. Since the death of Teela Brown there has not been a Pak on Ringworld. Thus we have the true crux of Ringworld's problem: it does not have a Pak running the structure. A paranoid Puppeteer is not a replacement for a Pak. You'll have to read this novel before "Ringworld's Children" comes out for the Summer.
Rating: 
Summary: Unpleasant Surprise
Review: First off-I love Niven's work. I got hooked on him about a year ago when I read Ringworld. After that, I went back and read the entire Known Space series in a rough chronological order. This series is very good. However, about 100 pages into Ringworld Throne, I had to log into this site and look up the reviews to make sure I hadn't landed in the Twilight Zone. Sure enough, most people had come to the conclusions I had...this book is horrible. First off, he uses too many rediculously long names with shallow characters that you can't possibly keep track of (the cast of characters in the back of the book might help with this). About 30 pages in, I found myself just skipping over the names and trying to get an idea of where he was going with the plot. Second, the narrative is so disjointed and difficult to read it is hard to believe this is the person who created the astounding original Ringworld novel. It is very rare that I do not finish a book, but after 100 pages, I just couldn't stand it any longer. Sorry Larry...this book hurt. Despite the love I have for your work, this novel receives one star.
Rating:
Summary: As if the first two of the trilogy never existed.
Review: This reads like the work of an author who wrote two excellent books, then took some time off during which he explored funky religions and had an "awakening." The book opens slowly and pokes along, He inroduces many characters with interchangeable names. "Rishathra," interspecies sex for treaty building etc. got small billing in the first two novels. In this one it becomes the focus. Things pick up a bit halfway through, but overall this has little in common with "Ringworld" and "The Ringworld Engineers."
Rating:
Summary: Were These Niven's Notes...Actual Work Still Due?
Review: This effort from Mr. Niven has perhaps more to do with completing a trilogy simply for the sake of completing it...than being a serious attempt at story telling. Having read many other Niven works, I recognize this likely to be in the vein of 'write a book, fulfill a contract, get whining fans off my back;" tired successful author, minimal involvement. Certainly, the possibilities were nearly endless to develop a good plot, embellish the story with excellent scene descriptions, characterizations, and drama. Unfortunately the experience of the actual read is akin to reviewing overly long Cliff notes...disjointed, major point highlights, skim through, etc. Such are the sad realities when a long career draws near an end, perhaps. When a writer has been as excellent as Niven - can we help but want to experience again the wonderment?
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