Counterfeit Kings

By Adam Connell

Counterfeit Kings is science fiction that transcends the genre and stands shoulder to shoulder with the best new novels of this decade. Set around a colony of gas mines hovering over lo, Jupiter's... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0972002642
• ISBN13: 9780972002646
• Release Date: May 2004
• Publisher: UNKNO
• Length: 380 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.5" x 0.9" x 5.2"

Customer Reviews

Intense

Counterfeit Kings rivals the best of classic SF in scope and intensity. The science fiction setting and plot are woven together tightly, giving us one of the most plausible future visions ever put on paper. The plot twists and turns like a runaway rollercoaster, and even the most jaded reader of SF is going to get taken by surprise as the story unfolds. But for me, the most fascinating details of Counterfeit Kings are the characters. The cover shows a flayed human face, and Adam Connell pulls off the equivelent feat in presenting his characters, peeling away the layers of their external actions to stare unblinkingly at the demons that drive them. Life in outer space isn't easy in Connell's vision--the characters are trapped in flimsy tin cans, surrounded by void, their lives dependent on jury-rigged and ever-failing technology. The stress and claustrophopia has taken a toll on even the most likable of the characters. The heroes are separated from the villians by only the thinest moral lines, but, in the end, these lines prove to be the truly important ones. Connell's understanding of human desires and actions equals or exceeds his impressive grasp of science fiction. Even non-SF readers will love this book.I can't recommend this book highly enough. Connell has gained a fan for life in me after this one.

Action, Action 24/7!

Yeah, you can feel there are themes lurking under the book's surface current, but I don't have time for that. I want to be entertained. And I was! Holy cow, this book, it's like stepping onto one of those moving walkways at the airport. You have to be prepared for the jolt. So let me prepare you. Counterfeit Kings is high conflict, rip out the breaks, non-stop action. Chases, dogfights in space, murder, betrayals. Blood, guts, and octane, as I like to say.There's depth if you want it, but only if you want it. Connell's not hitting you over the head with allusions and symbolism and blah blah. You can be like me...I rode this thing like a twenty-foot wave and it left me breathless. I want more! Let's hear it for a sequel!

LIVING, BREATHING FEMALE CHARACTERS

None of the other reviewers have commented on the book's female characters. Being a woman, I'll step in and raise my voice. I do agree with most of what's been said around me, but the women of Counterfeit Kings are the book's strength. Sari and Kitsis in particular.Sari's a strong heroine, but not in a Ripley/Alien kind of way. She's not a whip-cracking butt kicker. She's pregnant, she has her frail moments. She's also the book's toughest character when it comes to self-sacrifice and her refusal to live in denial. A lot of the characters lie to themselves to cope, but never Sari.Science fiction doesn't have enough complex, layered women. Hopefully Counterfeit Kings starts a trend.

Adam Connell is the real deal

Awesome, awesome, awesome!!If Alfred Bester, David Mamet and Kate Chopin had a voodoo love-child, theirpunk-rock offspring would be Adam Connell.Counterfeit Kings is a daring debut on par with Mieville's and Stephenson's.Connell surprises, delights and amazes. All the things science fiction wasmeant to do, and Connell does them better than most.

Completely Original and Exhilarating

This remarkable novel by Adam Connell is a fast-paced page-turner that grabs you from the starting blocks and takes you on an exhilarating spree of plot twists, sudden violence, and poignancy. In spinning this volatile tale of desperation, conflicted loyalties, and revenge, Mr. Connell uses an interplay between a variety of characters--some despicable yet humorously sympathetic, and others heroic yet tragically flawed--to weave a wonderful read that left the impressions of a true cinematic experience on this reader. Highly, highly recommended.