Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Novelization
Review: The 3 vol. series is an excellent tie-in to and novelization of the B5 t.v. series. Based on the Mysterious characters known as Techno-Mages who "use science to create Magic" We learn how the Mages work their Magic? With the aid of a programmable alien symbiotic implant at the base of thier skulls, of course. With it they can acomplish the same feats as the Wizards and Sorcerers in the Fantasy Novels. Endless streams of exploding fireballs, protective shields around their bodies, invisible highspeed platforms of levitation for movement, holographic dragons. Guided by the Circle and dedicated to the code. We also learn that Techno Mages go through various levels of training such as apprentis, chrystalis, initiate then Mage, apparently each candidate spends a couple of years at each stage. But now a new initiate (Galen the charactar from B5 & Crusade) Has discovered the long lost spell of distruction. Just as a large and unusual and sudden amount of activity is being detected on the rim. maybe the Shadows? I've heard from B5 websites that the Techno Mages where made up of numerous different species? but these Novels only describe human and centauri.
Rating: 
Summary: Babylon5 Casting Shadows-The Passing of the Technomages
Review: The author has turned some of the most intriguing characters in the B5 universe into 2nd rate David Copperfields--illusionists with little power other than being very good at maintaining probes everywhere. Despite stating several times they are a power that could stand up to the Shadows, they seem ridiculously easy to destroy. Galen has his spell of destruction, but he seems incompetent in every other type of spell to make up for it. Speaking of Galen, except for his love of Isabell, his character is nothing like that shown on Crusade.Disappointing.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent look into a lesser-seen corner of Bablyon 5
Review: The Techno-Mages were always a corner of the Babylon 5 Universe I found quite interesting, but not one that I ever thought was explored to its fullest potential. Jeanne Cavelos's trilogy seems ready to fix that."Casting Shadows," the first of three books, is the story of the initiation of Galen, a young Techno-Mage, and of how the Mages react to the news of the return of the Shadows. I enjoyed this book a lot, on two levels. First, it gave a wonderful insight into the workings of the Techno-Mages, how the sect evolved and how they viewed themselves. Second, it was a good character study of Galen, his teacher Elric and of other Mages. It is a tragic love story disguised as a political sci-fi thriller, and I am quite anxious to see how the rest of the trilogy plays out.
Rating:
Summary: An absolute MUST!!!
Review: The technomages trilogy by Jeanne Cavelos is an absolute MUST for any B5 fan. The plot and storytelling is superb, and it really fills in the holes that the series leave in some points. Just remember to start reading when you'll have some time off, because once you start you won't be able to put the book down. Specially the last book of the trilogy is mindblowing. I sincerely hope Jeanne C will in the future write more books for B5 fans, we would truly appreciate it!!
Rating:
Summary: Looking forward to the second installment.
Review: The Technomages were some of the more provocative beings conjured up by Stracynski's imagination for the Babylon 5 universe. Their story-potential barely tapped by a sole B5 episode, 'The Geometry of Shadows', development of the history, powers and knowledge of the Technomages promised to be a major ingredient of Babylon 5: Crusade which featured a Technomage, Galen, among its main characters. Alas, due to Crusade's early cancelation, their potential was never realized. This novel answers many open questions on Galen and his order. It sheds light on the origins of technomancy, reveals how the Technomages reacted to the return of the Shadows, and the crucial role Galen played in it. Once started, it is hard to put down. One of the best B5 novels so far.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Superb!
Review: This book is a classic - Jeanne manages the difficult task of filling in the gaps in the Technomage story with consumate ease, and as for Galen, she describes this character's persona so with such feeling and care that I am desperate to watch the Crusade episodes again to get as much info on him as possible!! The only let down in the tale was the...piece at the beginning with farmer X and farmer Y, "simple folk" who are looked after by the wise parental Technomage Elric - memories of Ewoks rapidly sprang to mind during this chapter but thankfully after this the book recovered - and how!! To be honest,whilst I'm not a SCI-FI geek in, I've never felt such empathy for a character in a book as Galen. The way Cavelos describes his pent-up, suppressed, self-critical attitude just makes you want to tell him to trust himself, but of course you can't, and she doesn't take the easy way out of having him see the light at the end of the book (maybe in book 2 or 3 though I hope!). As for the firefight in the Inn between Galen & Isabel and the Draak, 2 Technomages and a human, well it was truely amazing, the tension fell out of every line on the page. Well done Jeanne, I look forward to Book 2 with anticipation....!
Rating:
Summary: One of the Best New Sci-Fi Book Series
Review: This book was great! Tightly written, excellent character development, well researched into the Babylon 5 universe, and true to the vision of J. Michael Straczynski. This book gives wonderful background information to the new Babylon 5 series now in production. This series of books could well rival the origional TV series if it is ever taken to the screen. If I had a few extra million laying around I'd produce it!
Rating:
Summary: A book for Dreamers, Shapers, Singers, and Makers.
Review: This is the trilogy that I have been long waiting for. When I heard it was out I made a beeline to the nearest store to buy it, unfortunately they were sold out. A few hours later and a half a tank of gas, I managed to find a copy. I read it in one night, which made going to lectures the next day very difficult. I will not spoil any of the details in this novel, but it follows the story line very well. And the details about the mages is very engaging. If you are a fan of the series, this is a must buy. It is also fairly easy to follow, even if you have no idea what a technomage is. This novel is well worth reading. The only downside is that I now have to suffer until July to get the second book in the trilogy, oh well it will be released in the fullness of time. What are you doing still reading the reviews buy the book already
Rating: 
Summary: Very good start
Review: This was a great beginning to what hopefully develops into a memorable trilogy. This is a different sort of story than those others from the past because there is so much to work with. For example, based on information from the show, one could pretty accurately fill in the blanks as to what would happen to Bester in the Psi-Corps stories, or how the Centauri trilogy would turn out. This story has expanded on some already seen characters, such as Galen, Elric, and Morden, and presents new interesting ones. We learn about the technomage culture and hierarchical system. There is a lot of intrigue to this book and a surprising amount of sadness to it as well. If you are a B5 fan, you may think this a peripheral and unimportant story, and initially disregard it. I highly recommend this book because there are very many possible avenues with which the story can go.
Rating:
Summary: Tragic background to the Shadow War
Review: This was one of those B5 books that had to be done after the show was over and after you knew the conclusion to the Shadow War. In the television series the Shadows went from a background entity in the first season to the enemy in the second season. This book takes place in that part of the show when it was just realized that the Shadows were more than a one show villain. The techno-mages have always been powerful outsiders that could control the destinies of entire worlds. This book chronicles their time as they find out that there are other more powerful forces in the universe that are much much more adapt at control. What makes this book enjoyable is the presence of Galen. This is a young inexperienced version of Galen, but it's definitely Galen. One of the things about Galen in the Crusade series (one can only hope that the series will one day be revived and everyone at TNT who killed it will end up working as convenience store managers) that was so impressive is that he was never just a know-it-all alien like you'd expect. He became one of the most emotionally unstable characters in the show. Most of this book is how he became that way and why he never was just a techno-mage. I'm a little disappointed in the fact that it looks like this whole trilogy will take place BEFORE the techno-mages leave everyone behind, because I would like to see SOME explanation as to why Galen is not taking a part in the third Centauri book (did he retire? die? What?) but that's ok. Also, this was a book that I was wary of as Cavelos' last book The Shadow Within was poorly written. THis book shows a definite improvement in writing style. So definitely recommended for Babylon 5 fans. Non-B5 fans might like it, if there is an interest, ie. don't make the mistake of forcing this on people who don't like Babylon 5 -- but that's kind of a typical fan mistake. It will simply meet the same dusty drawer that holds the green NT given by Gideons to agnostics. This is too bad because it is an excellent book in its own right, but there are some background things from either Crusade or Season 1 of b5 that probably should be known first.
|
