The Hope's End

William Blake features as a central figure in this book, and in fact is in some remote sense one of the villains. The real target, though, is not so much the historical Blake as it is the late twentieth century's versions of nature romanticism and "small is beautiful" ideologies. The dystopian future setting of this book is ruled by an enfeebled monarchy, and an authoritarian Church that forbids reading, and hoards a small cache of remaining technology which it uses to bedazzle an ignorant and oppressed population. The teachings of this Church seem to stem from this romantic, back to nature philosophy.This critical philosophical and political content lends stature to what is in essence the old story of a thief who learns of his surprising heritage. As a result, this is a book that can be read on multiple levels, either as straight adventure and mystery or as a philosophical critique. The slow revelations of more details about both the history of the world, and the history of the main character, are handled well and sustain interest and suspense.

Hope's End reflects the depths of teenage angst brought to a nasty dark peak. Chambers' allusions to historical figures are done with just enough mystery for Vel's mind and enough accuracy for our own imaginations to make effective connections. For many readers the importance of the poet William Blake might be a bit tougher. (Chambers clarifies his odd choice of Blake in an interview ---which helps considerably since Blake doesn't quite fit into the company of Hitler and Pol Pot--I sure as heck couldn't figure it out!) Anyway if Hope's End is an accurate reflection of how young people view the world today, well it's TOUGH. Even the female characters are rough and tough--there's nothing soft about anyone in this book. It's an intense read, but hardly uplifting.

After five centuries on Hera, the human colony of Hope is an agricultural society dominated by the Council and the Church. However, the current cycle has been nasty as the five-year summer fails to arrive, leading to a scarcity of food for a hungry populace. On top of that, an alien deadly disease and the arrival of the dangerous Frill shake the planet further. When the King dies, Chief Council Hillor pushes forward his plan to have the wealthy handle food distribution while Church leader Lord Denon turns to the Holy Scripture as written by William Blake for guidance. Meanwhile a street punk Vel rejects the notion of laboring in the fields because he preferring cons and stealing. That changes when he learns he is in the succession to the vacant throne of Hope. Though he refuses to become involved in the power struggle, Hillor and others want to use Vel. If they cannot, one of the factions or perhaps a Frill will simply kill Vel. HOPE'S END is an engaging science fiction book that plays out on multiple levels. The coming of age of the hero Vel is the prime theme of the story line, but choices for the other key participants permeate the plot and making it very complex. The novel starts slow so that the readers can understand the fully developed society, but eventually picks up to light year speed. Stephen Chambers provides quite a debut that will rock genre fans with the hope of a new talent for many years to come.Harriet Klausner