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Title: Rolling Thunder Author: John Varley Rating: Not available Avg. Score: 4 Submit Comment Hits: 29

Review of Rolling Thunder

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Comments for Rolling Thunder

• Posted on 2008-07-02
  Not as good as his earlier works
  
  NOTE: Closer to 3.5 stars.
  
  I am really hoping that John Varley's best writing is not behind him, as he is by far my favorite author. There are only three or four writers who I will read more than once, and Varley tops that list (though not with this trilogy).
  
  To be blunt, I thought the entire trilogy was "good." I liked it. The stories and characters - especially Jubal and Travis - are interesting.
  
  That being said, it isn't nearly as good as his past works such as Demon, Steel Beach, The Golden Globe, The Ophiuchi (sp?) Hotline and Millenium. Those books were nothing short of amazing. Every line seemed carefully crafted to evoke and emotional response. The stories were deep and meaningful. The characters came alive. Frequently, he made me laugh my ass off.
  
  This trilogy didn't do that nearly so much for me.
  
  I had heard somewhere that he might do another story in the world of Steel Beach / Golden Globe. That would be awesome, if he can recapture that same style of writing again.
  
  Regardless of what John writes, I will read it, because it is still very good.
  
  So, John, if you are reading this, please know that I am still one of your biggest fans.
  Score: 3
• Posted on 2008-06-15
  A good solid completion to this series.
  
  I have now finished reading the story of the Garcia-Strickland family.
  
  And it was pretty good. Not great, however.
  
  I liked the twist abouth how this generation of Garcias ended up in a space career, but I sometimes wonder at the likelihood of such a person being able to accomplish so much in such a major crisis.
  
  IOW, this book stamped "finished" to the storyline, but left me somewhat unsatisfied. Red Thunder was the kind of book which grabbed the reader by the throat and refused to let go until the reader reached the last page. Red Lightning, while less aggressive, carried on the storyline and clearly was a logical extension of what happened in RT.
  
  Rolling Thunder, however...
  
  Don't get me wrong. John Varley is an excellent writer. And his ability to create believable characters and realistic dialog are well-honed. By and large, his plot carried itself well. It's just that things were proceeding along right up until... And it's that "until" which, in my opinion, doomed Rolling Thunder to 'decent' and 'adequate' status rather than 'superb' and 'excellent conclusion'. He chose at one point to have a "character" - if you can call an alien life form which no one can communicate with "character" - do something which totally changes the tone of the book from space adventure to "end-of-humanity" suspense. It would be fine if there were a Bruce Willis character, who, with his team of plucky oil-rig workers, came out and put paid to the threat, but Varley let the E-O-H crisis continue unabated.
  
  I'm not saying that all crises in real life end on a happy note, but given the general upbeat, we can solve this if we put our minds to it, approach of books one and two, the "we're gonna slink off with our tails between our legs" finish simply didn't end the series right.
  
  Score: 3
• Posted on 2008-05-23
  much weaker than the previous volumes
  
  I really liked the first two volumes in this series. I almost always finish books but I didn't finish this one. It's slow and the heroine is really annoying. I also didn't like the author lecturing on current political issues. I read SF to get away from those...
  
  Varley writes great short stories, I'd recommend his collections without hesitation. The original Red Thunder was refreshing. This installment is just weak.
  Score: 2
• Posted on 2008-05-20
  Varley should play professional baseball
  
  John Varely is one of the greatest scifi writers alive today. His works are incredibly good, and his writing style is captivating. This book is the third installment in his "thunder" series. I was very thrown off by the first three or four chapters, confused by the next few, and yearning for more by the end of the book. If you have read the first two don't be disappointed by the character change in the beginning. It pays off by the end of the book if you are patient with the begining. This book is in typical Varley style as it jumps around a little, but it all comes to a fantastic conclusion. A conclusion that makes me want to strangle the writer for stopping so soon. Hopefully the publisher is just waiting a couple of months to put out the fourth book, because I have got to know how this fantastic curveball of a stroyline ends. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did :)
  Score: 5
• Posted on 2008-05-17
  Interesting POV, a little too much sex
  
  Rolling Thunder the new novel by John Varley, tells the story of Podkayne, a Martian Naval Officer and singer extraordinaire. Varley, three time winner of the Hugo award and two time winner of the Nebula award, continues to tell stories full of strong female characters, and twisting, curving plots.
  
  Podkayne is the daughter and granddaughter of some of his characters from previous novels, and her story continues the tale of the exploration of our solar system in the not too distant future. Podkayne is just trying to get through her required service in the Martian Navy. What she really wants to be is a singer. When an opportunity to perform her music for the Navy on Europa ((one of Jupiter's moons) is offered, she snatches up the chance. Her story seems simple, prosaic even (at least, as much as it can be for a good-looking nineteen year old), until she encounters Europa's "freckles". After that, her life takes a drastic turn, culminating the revelation of just what the "Rolling Thunder" really is, and what it means for her family.
  
  Varley has Podkayne tell the story memoir style, reliving her past by writing events from her perspective. So it's a historical account of fictional events from one person's perspective. It's a unique way to tell a fiction story.
  
  Varley's story mirrors much of Heinlein's works in style and content. Like Heinlein, he uses free societies and free love (with some rather explicit sex) in his stories, so this work is solely for adult reading.
  
  Rolling Thunder is a fast reading novel that packs a great deal into a few pages. Varley can get as much into his three hundred pages as other authors do in five hundred. It is a novel that takes many unexpected twists and turns, and its ending is both surprising and an excellent set up for more John Varley novels to come. I recommend this novel to adults who enjoy Heinlein, near space SF, or character driven plots.
  Score: 3