The Gap Into Power: A Dark and Hungry God Arises

"A Dark and Hungry God Arises" is an expansion from the second book as much as the second is an expansion from the first. The structure changes from mostly-Morn-and-occasionally-Angus to swapping between many different characters over the course of the long and dizzyingly complex story. Donaldson's world expands to include politicians and leaders, both power-crazy and honest, all driving at their own aims and all caught in utter deadlock by each other. The theme of all the plots and complex intentions of every character in the book concentrating in one spot and acting like a "critical mass" is a good one, and gives a suitable background for a highly explosive ending. The structuring is brilliant - unfaultable, in my book - and if you try listing all the characters the story swaps between after you've read it, you'll find a couple of interesting "nuggets" for the really attentive reader . . . This is true of the third and fourth books, as well. In my review on here of the second book in the Gap Series, "Forbidden Knowledge", I stated that my considerations of readers of a more squeamish disposition forced me to mark down. In the third book this is less true - the darkness is still there, but the utter horror of the second (particularly the "force-growing" of Davies Hyland on Enablement Station) isn't so much in evidence. Only one particular scene - where an important conversation is conducted to the background of a woman gutting herself for the pleasure of a crowd - is particularly vile. I think that is the only example of horror in the series which can be considered entirely gratuitous. It is unnecessary, and rather wince-worthy. That it elicits disgust from me is testament to that. But there is none of the intense and ghastly - though never gratuitous - horror of the second book. At any rate, it is a minor complaint. This book is superb. It is chock-full of characters in situations unbelievable in their horror and tense extremity, but which Donaldson somehow manages to *make* believable. I state categorically that he is a master story-teller - one of the best who has ever lived. All the characters are larger than life. They run the story, rather than the other way round. The opening concept of Norna and the crib inversion with Angus is particularly good, and intriguing; not to mention excellently executed. This is a superb third book to the series. I have this to close with. You may have read the first two, and been left unsure as to whether the series gets better. Believe me, it does. Once you start reading the third book you will be so gripped you'll forget reading this.

All good myths (or operas, if you will) must have the characters travel into the underworld, for only there lies the key to solving the problems in the mortal realm. Billingate *is* Hades--take special note of the Bill's physical description and his manner of dealing with people. The Devil you say? I read in one review of person complaining regarding Davies' whining. Wouldn't you whine in his place? Milos deserved his fate--he sold his humanity years ago. Angus's walking crib is painful to endure, but his being let go is as wonderful as when Mhoram came into his power. Remember Mhoram from Thomas Covenant? I've always thought he was one of the truly great fictional characters. Notice how similar Mhoram and Vector Shaheed are? Donaldson continues to excel--each book is a masterpiece.

After a stale but tantalizing prelude ("The Real Story") and a convoluted but exciting sequel ("Forbidden Knowledge"), the third book of the Gap Series takes you deeper into the intergalactic drama of back-stabbing, subterfuge, treason, and mindless cruelty. While the previous two books were told from the perspectives of a single character (Angus in "The Real Story", Morn in "Forbidden Knowledge"), this one explodes onto center stage with a multi-character viewpoint, which will be maintained in the fourth and fifth volumes. Nick and his crew arrive on Billingate, the bootleg shipyard ruled by a less-than-charming fellow known as the Bill. When Nick fails in his attempts to sell Morn into prostitution, he trades her with the Amnion to get them off his back. Meanwhile, Angus, now a cyborg bereft of free will -- and a secret weapon of Warden Dios -- also arrives on Billingate to execute his lethal mission. When oldtime rivals Angus and Nick run into each other, things get progressively nasty. This is the best book in the entire Gap Series, thoroughly and consistently evoking mood: Billingate's obscene depravity; people's seething motives; plots and counter-plots; truths revealed as lies; allies more dangerous than enemies...By the time you've reached the (literally) explosive climax, your blood will be pounding, and you'll have no idea who has been doing what to whom for what reason. Important debut: Holt Fasner, UMC boss and the most powerful man in human space. He is evil personified and makes people like Nick and Angus look benign. The festering tension between him and UMCP Director Warden Dios (the second most powerful man in human space) only promises to get worse in the next book, "Chaos and Order".

After a tantalizing prelude ("The Real Story") and a convoluted sequel ("Forbidden Knowledge"), the third book of the Gap Cycle takes you deeper into the intergalactic drama of back-stabbing, subterfuge, treason, and mindless cruelty. While the previous two books were told mostly from the perspectives of a single character (Angus in the first, Morn in the second), this one explodes onto center stage with a multi-character viewpoint, which will be maintained in the fourth and fifth volumes. Nick and his crew arrive on Billingate, the bootleg shipyard ruled by a less-than-charming fellow known as the Bill. When Nick fails in his attempts to sell Morn into prostitution, he trades her with the Amnion to get them off his back. Meanwhile, Angus, now a cyborg bereft of free will -- and a secret weapon of Warden Dios -- also arrives on Billingate to execute his lethal mission. When oldtime rivals Angus and Nick run into each other, things get progressively nasty. This is the best book in the series, thoroughly and consistently evoking mood: Billingate's obscene depravity; people's seething motives; plots and counter-plots; truths revealed as lies; allies more dangerous than enemies... By the time you've reached the (literally) explosive climax, your blood will be pounding, and you'll have no idea who has been doing what to whom for what reason. Important debut: Holt Fasner, UMC boss and the most powerful man in human space. He is evil personified and makes people like Nick and Angus look benign. The festering tension between him and UMCP Director Warden Dios (the second most powerful man in human space) only promises to get worse in the next book, "Chaos and Order".

In book 3 of his Gap series, Stephen Donaldson ups the ante quite a ways. The first two books of the series were merely a prelude for this explosive turning point in the series. The plot is exceptional, Donaldson takes his main characters on a roller-coaster ride through the dark and corrupted Billingate. Unlike most Donaldson books, the plot can actually stand up and compare to his characters, which are still typically dark, brooding, and human