Rating: 
Summary: Better then the 3rd book, but still somewhat questionable
Review: This is the 4th book in the Riverworld series.These main characters are Burton and Clemens. The plot is that of the two Riverboats continuing their journeys up river and finally meeting and have a huge battle. There are a lot of boring parts to this book. Especially in the beginning where there are two many dream sequences. So you may be skipping a bit in the beginning. After about the middle though, things get quite a bit more interesting and towards the end they are extremely exciting. As stated before the discrepancies in this novel and the next one are enormous. The author leaves quite a few issues unanswered. Such as the fate of Kazz, Loghu, Tom Mix, Jack London, and Johnston, the crow killer. One of the things I found most irritating about this book was that it seemed like the author had plenty of time to put in boring dream sequences but no time to clear up said issues for the sake of storyline completeness. Characters were literally there one chapter and gone the next. Without any written reference to them or why they were no longer in the main travelling party. Still worth it for the great Riverboat battle at the end, but it's irritating how many main characters are killed off wantonly. I gave this book 3 stars because once you get to the Riverboat Battle between Clemens and Prince John it's all exceptionally good with lots of action centering around your favorite characters.
Rating: 
Summary: The journey concludes in a climatic style...
Review: This is the best of the series. PJF finally gets to pull all of his story lines together and have them meet at Virolando before moving on to the Dark Tower. This stunning conclusion to 20 years of writing leaves the reader extremely satisfied, mostly. The downside is the author has to kill off many of our friends who have toiled all those years in the Quest, and he doesn't even describe their death scenes. Fortunately, PJF did publish the 5 chapters he excised from the great battle between the riverboats, in a limited printing of a novelette called Riverworld War. Obtaining this small book is an absolute must in fleshing the final details of that great battle.
Rating:
Summary: ok, but needs lots of editing
Review: This is the final novel of Farmer's original Riverworld cycle. Like the rest of the series, it is audacious, often fascinating, but also very problematic. "Labyrinth" is often long-winded and unwieldy, particularly in the beginning. But everything comes together as the rival riverboats commanded by archenemies Sam Clemens and John Lackland meet for their final confrontation, after which the survivors struggle on to gain entrance to the mysterious tower in the North Sea. The battle and the final leg of the journey are well-written and full of adventure and mystery. However, once they gain entrance to the tower, the story becomes dull and stagnant. The nature of the Ethicals, their struggle, and the truth about the human soul are presented in a series of interminable conversations. It is very unsatisfying, after having made the commitment to reading over a thousand pages of this series, to have it resolved with the introduction of a character who simply explains away all of the mysteries. Also, by the time the series ends, Farmer has killed off the majority of his most interesting characters, often in rather off-handed ways that are at odds with all the attention, detail, and craft that went into developing them in the first place. Of the final band that reaches the tower, most are relatively minor characters that I really didn't care about and whose personalities had not been well-developed. In my opinion, the Riverworld series has turned out to be quite a disappointment. It does not live up to the high reputation that it has garnered within the SF community.
Rating:
Summary: Ends with a whimper
Review: This is the final novel of Farmer's original Riverworld cycle. Like the rest of the series, it is audacious, often fascinating, but also very problematic. "Labyrinth" is often long-winded and unwieldy, particularly in the beginning. But everything comes together as the rival riverboats commanded by archenemies Sam Clemens and John Lackland meet for their final confrontation, after which the survivors struggle on to gain entrance to the mysterious tower in the North Sea. The battle and the final leg of the journey are well-written and full of adventure and mystery. However, once they gain entrance to the tower, the story becomes dull and stagnant. The nature of the Ethicals, their struggle, and the truth about the human soul are presented in a series of interminable conversations. It is very unsatisfying, after having made the commitment to reading over a thousand pages of this series, to have it resolved with the introduction of a character who simply explains away all of the mysteries. Also, by the time the series ends, Farmer has killed off the majority of his most interesting characters, often in rather off-handed ways that are at odds with all the attention, detail, and craft that went into developing them in the first place. Of the final band that reaches the tower, most are relatively minor characters that I really didn't care about and whose personalities had not been well-developed. In my opinion, the Riverworld series has turned out to be quite a disappointment. It does not live up to the high reputation that it has garnered within the SF community.
Rating: 
Summary: THIS IS THE END, DISAPPOINTING FRIEND
Review: This is the fourth installment of the Riverworld series and what an anti-climax it is. It concentrates on two main storylines. The first is the confrontation between the two riverboats of Samuel Clemens and King John. The second is the adventure of Richard Burton and his allies as they make their way to the secret tower to finally know the secrets of the Ethicals. Both storylines are handled childishly. Farmer has no skill in showing battle scenes. This is especially apparent in a dogfight between the two ships air forces. The battles become cluttered and because of this lose all sense of drama. Storylines and characters that seemed important in the first 3 books are either ignored or cast aside. Samuel Clemens is portrayed as an imitation of Captain Ahab. His thirst for revenge is only equalled by the imbecility of his stratagies and tactics in battle. As for Richard Burton and his band it becomes almost a K-mart version of the fellowship of the ring except the band is so non-existent that you don't even know who's in it until a character speaks up. It's unclear which characters are around because the scenes are so poorly constructed. The hype on the inside of this book states that the Riverworld series should be compared to the Dune and Foundation sagas. I know Isaac Asimov. Mr. Farmer, you are no Isaac Asimov. Looking back over this series, the first volume is the only one worth reading. The rest of them are hackwork.
Rating: 
Summary: A poor conclusion to a wonderful beginning
Review: Well, now that I am through reading _The Magic Labyrinth_ I have to conclude that it is a step up from the previous book, but there are still some things that irk me enough to give it three stars. The good things: at least Farmer got rid of the psychedelic dream visions from _The Dark Design_. The bad: unfortunately, the pacing really stinks. A lot of sections drag on forever; we know it's coming to battle between the two ships, but it takes forever to get there. Also, the ending comes in the last few pages at such a speed that it feels like a shock. And the very last few lines are such a cheat. I thought I was reading the last book, not so. On to _Gods Of Riverworld_. All in all enjoyable, but it could have been written better.
Rating:
Summary: Not The Last One
Review: Well, now that I am through reading _The Magic Labyrinth_ I have to conclude that it is a step up from the previous book, but there are still some things that irk me enough to give it three stars. The good things: at least Farmer got rid of the psychedelic dream visions from _The Dark Design_. The bad: unfortunately, the pacing really stinks. A lot of sections drag on forever; we know it's coming to battle between the two ships, but it takes forever to get there. Also, the ending comes in the last few pages at such a speed that it feels like a shock. And the very last few lines are such a cheat. I thought I was reading the last book, not so. On to _Gods Of Riverworld_. All in all enjoyable, but it could have been written better.
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