Hell's Gate
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4.3 • 24 Ratings
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- $6.99
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- $6.99
Publisher Description
They Thought They Knew How The Universes Worked-THEY WERE WRONG In the almost two centuries since the discovery of the first inter-universal portal, Arcana has explored scores of other worlds . . . all of them duplicates of their own. Multiple Earths, virgin planets with a twist, because the "explorers" already know where to find all of their vast, untapped natural resources. Worlds beyond worlds, effectively infinite living space and mineral wealth. And in all that time, they have never encountered another intelligent species. No cities, no vast empires, no civilizations and no equivalent of their own dragons, gryphons, spells, and wizards.But all of that is about to change. It seems there is intelligent life elsewhere in the multiverse. Other human intelligent life, with terrifying new weapons and powers of the mind . . . and wizards who go by the strange title of "scientist." At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Magic and high tech collide in this exciting military SF novel from bestseller Weber (War of Honor) and Evans (Far Edge of Darkness), the first of a new series. Two human societies, the Sharona and the Union of Arcana, have evolved in parallel universes without encountering another civilization, human or otherwise. The Sharona exhibit a level of technology roughly analogous to the late 19th century, with psionic abilities thrown in for seasoning, but the Arcana have harnessed magical energies down to the consumer level. Astonishingly, it's the magical society that suffers the greater shock when one of their companies encounters a small Sharona civilian survey team and is almost annihilated by the enemy's repeating firearms. The authors treat both societies sympathetically and realistically, with human vices and virtues evenly distributed. The narrative bogs down slightly under the weight of the world building necessary for later installments, but is uncompromising in sacrificing even strong, sympathetic characters to the demands of the plot.
Customer Reviews
Very difficult read.
100 pages in and the exposition is wearing me down.
Ouch
This has got to be one of the slowest, most painful starts to any book I’ve read in a long, long time. If you are a fan of Achingly detailed world-crafting and character backgrounds without any reason to care for any of the multitude of characters being introduced, this book might be for you. Have fun. I stopped reading when the two sides finally made contact and I felt like I should have been taking notes to clarify who was who. I put it down and don’t see myself picking it up again.