The Return of Santiago

THE RETURN OF SANTIAGO(2003) is the sequel to the classic SANTIAGO(1986). SANTIAGO was so good, that it was a very tough act to follow, but THE RETURN does a good job, and I rate it at 4.5 stars. In the original SANTIAGO, we learned that Santiago was really more of an idea than a person (there were 6 Santiagos over the course of 30 years in the original book). Santiago is described as "The King of Thieves", but he is really a revolutionary who keeps the Galaxy-ruling Democracy at bay on "The Inner Frontier". RETURN is set 100+ years later in time, and starts off with a petty thief coming across the entire collection of poetic writings of Black Orpheus, a contemporary during the original "reign of Santiago" a hundred years ealier... well, our petty thief figures out "the secret of Santiago", takes on the moniker "Rhymer" and decides to continue writing in the vein of Black Orpheus, and to help ressurrect the legend and reign of Santiago, to keep the increasingly oppressive Democracy at bay. The author couldn't just continue writing in the exact same way as the original book, as that would have been too boring; but he is able to mix some of the original flavor with enough new twists and turns that RETURN still is able to continually capture the reader's attention and interest. All in all, it is great fun, and that is really why I read - for enjoyment! Someday, I expect there might be a third book in this series, rounding out a new classic "Trilogy".

If you liked Santiago, you'll like his return just as much. More quirky characters, more moral tales told in short, episdodic chapters. More problems presented, more problems solved. It doesn't much matter if you read the original book or not. Have fun everyone!

If you're not familiar with Mike Resnick's work, Santiago, pick it up and read it before reading this one. Even without reading the first book, this book is a lot of fun. Mike's storytelling is excellent, but it has gotten better over the years and I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan or who wants to read something entertaining.It's been over a hundred years since the last Santiago surfaced and Danny Briggs, aka Dante Alighieri, discovers Black Orpheus's original poems in a house he broke into. This sets him on a quest of bringing back Santiago, the famed King of Outlaws who worked towards righting injustices.Along the way, Dante meets people on the frontier such as the Virgil Soaring Hawk, Tyrannosaurus Barnes, the One Armed Bandit, Waltzin' Matilda. Moby Dick, and a host of other unforgetable characters. His search for Santiago takes him up against some of the baddest aliens in the galaxy.If you're looking for sheer fun, this is the book!

Mike Resnick's Santiago is not only one of my all-time favorite science-fiction novels, but also one of the first genre books I read when growing up. As far as I'm concerned, it's about as close to a perfect adventure novel as any reader could hope for.So I had mixed feelings about the sequel. Resnick had resisted writing one for nearly fifteen years, because the first book ended without any need for a follow-up. I was worried that this would just be a watered-down version of the first book (remember the sequels to Bill the Galactic Hero that Harry Harrison foisted on us?).I'm so happy to report that I was wrong.The Return of Santiago is probably the second-greatest adventure novel I've read. Resnick has recognized the two things that made the first book so much fun -- the poetry of Black Orpheus, and the quirky characters (and subjects of those poems) who populate the Inner Frontier of Resnick's future universe. Instead of a limp attempt at following up the saga of Songbird from the first novel, Resnick tells the tale of a petty thief a hundred years in the future, who sets out to be the new Black Orpheus and tell the tales of the Frontier. Danny, our thief, rechristians himself "Dante Alighieri," and prompty finds a Virgil to guide him through the Frontier (from which Santiago has long vanished, we discover). After writing his first few poems, Dante realizes that what made Orpheus great was having a Santiago who affected the entire Frontier, and was known to all as the greatest outlaw (all the while fighting the corrupt Democracy). He decides, then, to go on a quest to find a new Santiago to provide him with fodder for his poetry.Dante's quest, like Songbird's in the first book, takes him to dozens of planets, and introduces us to hundreds of fascinating, quirky characters. I'm hesitant to spoil any of Resnick's wonderful writing. Suffice to say, the book has characters who will make you laugh out loud, and ones who are truly horrifying.As with the first book, the fun of this novel is the quest, not the reward. However, Resnick has improved as a writer over the decades, and this novel has a much more solid feeling ending than the original one did. No one will ever call this great literature, but The Return of Santiago will be remembered as one of the most enjoyable adventure novels in a long time.