Circuit of Heaven

by Dennis Danvers

Book Overview

An ingeniously original new voice in the realm of quality SF creates a riveting coming-of-age story. Determined never to surrender to the wonders of the Bin, the virtual cyber-uptopia in which his... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0380790920
• ISBN13: 9780380790920
• Release Date: January 1999
• Publisher: Eos
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 4.3" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

One of the Greatest Works of Sci-Fi

This book makes the reader examine their viewpoints on death, religon and love. It chronicles the life or a man who has to choose between giving up his principles and downloading himself or leaving his love behind. Danvers gives vivid descriptions of settings and characters. An excellent book for any fan of Sci-Fi.

If You Could Live Forever...

Dennis Danvers is absolutely brilliant at taking some impossible premise and making it believable. This is the third novel of his that I've read and probably the best. In this one, a brave new world has been created, in which you can "upload" yourself into some kind of really far-out computer, and live forever in cyber-immortality. Most of humanity has already done so and is now living happily in "the Bin," while a few holdouts still populate an increasingly empty earth.This is the background for the love story of Nemo and Justine--one living in "the real world" and the other in "the Bin." But, it's far more complicated than that. Who are these people, really? What does it mean to be a human being? What is the nature of personal identity? And, is immortality always worth the cost? These questions are explored not in theory, but in the story, and the story is beautiful.What would you do? Give up eternal life for the person you love? Or give up real life for computerized immortality? And how would you decide? Profound and thoughtful story with an unobtrusive spiritual dimension. I recommend it highly.

Cyberpunk with a twist.....

Dennis Danvers gives the reader a plot unlike the common action-packed cyberpunk novels. His book is based on a whirlwind love story between two people from separate worlds. Nemo exists in the rundown world left behind by the flawless world Justine lives in. The Bin is the computerized world in which Justine and the majority of the world choose to live. Looking in on this world one could see its appealing options. The Bin is a place where people live the life they always wanted to live. They can choose how they look and can behave however they please. In addition, when a man enters the bin he is guaranteed immortal life. Unlike the real world, there are no instances of death, sickness, or poverty. To enter this world one must be uploaded into the computer, leaving the body behind to be burned. The two lovers meet during one of Nemo's few visits to his parents and seem to have the perfect love, almost too perfect. Unfortunately Nemo has always despised the life in the Bin, which tests the strength of their love. Danvers makes several references to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet that suggest the love Nemo and Justine share compares to that of the two star-crossed lovers in the play. Yet, Danvers didn't think one conflict would be enough, leaving the lovers with much more in store for them. Although Danvers' novel is unlike the traditional cyberpunk novel, it proves to be a great book. His plot is full of surprises that left me unable to put it down. He delivered the plot beautifully making Circuit of Heaven a must read.

A good, thoughtful, exciting read

I seem to gravitate to post-apocolyptic tales, whether they be happy or troubled scenarios, and thoroughly enjoyed this complex and gripping adventure.While the concept of converting living human personalities into virtual ones has been done before, most excellently by Frederick Pohl in his "Gateway" series for example, I relished Danvers' believable portrayals of persons good and evil, "real" and virtual, human and construct.There were sufficient twists and surprises to keep my up beyond my usual bed times, and I was genuinely touched by the ending. It's a keeper.

Great Love Story, interesting universe

Circuit of Heaven is, for pratical purposes, a fantasy novel not truly sci-fi. Like any fantasy novel where the main character enters and leaves some alternate magical universe, here we find the main character torn between two worlds by his love for a woman. The author makes repeated references to Romeo and Juliet throughout the novel and makes no secret that he is, in many ways, following this timeless tale of 'star crossed lovers.'This novel is quite satisfying, has a great narrative flow which is easy to read, and I found the sci-fi alternate reality more intriuging than most fantasy novels.John