House of Reeds

Rating:
Summary: Deadly intrigue and adventure in an alternate 24th Century
Review: 'House of Reeds' is the second book of the 'Sixth Sun', and stands as both a self-contained novel and a continuation from 'Wasteland of Flint'. The first was set out on the periphery of the empire of the Imperial Méxica, and 'House of Reeds' focuses on the planet Jagan where the military power and diplomatic and commercial influence of Tenochtitlán is being steadily asserted.

It begins with the receipt of a disturbing message for Chu-sa Hadeishi of the light cruiser IMN Cornuelle, and light years away an unexpected reassignment for the Swedish-Russian xenoarchaeologist Gretchen Anderssen. On Old Earth, Anáhuac, a minor Méxica prince, Tezozómoc is about to become the pawn of political machinations.

All will arrive on Jagan to be confronted by intrigue, mystery and danger.

Rumour of a First Sun artefact will send Gretchen and her little band of troublemakers into the hinterland where the native lords are chafing under the increasing Méxica dominance. Chu-sa Hadeishi and his crew will find themselves playing an unexpected and deadly role in Imperial policies. The wastrel Prince Tezozómoc will discover the true price of his royal birthright.

'House of Reeds' is a cinematic and fast-paced story with weaving plot threads amidst the dramatic background of the alternate future history of the Méxica and the alien planet Jagan. In 'Wasteland of Flint' the hostile environment of Ephesus III provided an evocative backdrop; Jagan in contrast is an old, long-inhabited world, its sentient species weary and all too aware of their fall, living amidst the ruins and secrets of their ancient greatness. Whilst much of the action takes place in the Five Rivers region of Jagan or high above in orbit, Harlan effectively brings the world to life.

Throughout the 414 pages the weaving plot threads heighten the tension and danger. There is vivid characterisation, dialogue, combat, occasional humor and glimpses of the history of Anáhuac, and a shadowy threat to all humanity.

The characters of Chu-sa Hadeishi and Gretchen Anderssen are deftly developed, with more insight into the tension between the cultures of the Méxica, their Nisei and Scottish allies and the lesser peoples of Anáhuac. A cast of other characters ably support the main players: Magdalena, the competent Hesht comm-tech (the cover portrait does not really do her justice), Parker the English pilot and his quest for a smoke, the crew of the Cornuelle, and the agents of the Mirror -- the secret police of the Empire. The most compelling figure is Malakar, an elderly reptilian native of Jagan, a believable alien and a tragic figure, a counterpoint to the ambitious lords, for she remembers the lost heritage of her species.

Evoking vague memories of Jack Vance and Talbot Mundy, 'House of Reeds' proves Harlan a master storyteller.

Rating:
Summary: Adequate Space Opera
Review: An improvement on its predecessor, House of Reeds suffers from Harlan's tendency to construct excessively elaborate plots and use of a large number of relatively shallow characters. He is continuing to flesh out this fairly enjoyable but implausible future history, which continues to be the best aspect of these books.

Rating:
Summary: Adequate Space Opera
Review: An improvement on its predecessor, House of Reeds suffers from Harlan's tendency to construct excessively elaborate plots and use of a large number of relatively shallow characters. He is continuing to flesh out this fairly enjoyable but implausible future history, which continues to be the best aspect of these books.

Rating:
Summary: Great worldbuilding, plenty of action
Review: In a universe where the Aztec rather than Europeans prevailed, the Aztec-dominated Empire reaches across the galaxy. On one ancient world, the priests of the Aztec plot a 'flower war.' The manufactured war will give soldiers a chance to earn glory, exercise their weapons, and provide the blood sacrifices their gods require. Of course, the war will also cause problems for anyone who gets caught in its midst--including renegade Captain Mitsuhara Hadeishi, archeologist Gretchen Anderssen, or Aztec prince Texozomoc.

To provoke the war, Aztec priests pretend to be nordic opponents of the Aztec empire, sharing military equipment with the native population of Jagan. But not even the priests recognize the dangers they're provoking--dangers that include hidden weapons from millions of years of civilization (many made unusable by the lack of fuels and metals in a world where mines where exhausted thousands of years earlier but suddenly useful with the Empire's reintroduction of lubricants, power supplies, and metal), real opponents of the Aztec rule, and even possibly remnants of ancient civilizations with no love for the upstart Aztec Empire.

Author Thomas Harlan has smoothed out the often-clunky writing of some of his earlier books and offers some fun and fascinating world-building. What if the Japanese and Aztec empires had been able to strike first? With Japanese metal technology and their shared martial traditions, the combination would have been daunting. Adding to that a mysterious ancient civilization and hunt for its artifacts and you have a powerful basis for story-telling. Harlan adds some nice battle sequences and considerable blood-letting to keep the pages turning.

HOUSE OF REEDS is nicely done, even to its twist at the end. It did, however, fall a bit short of my hopes when it came to the characters. I didn't really get a good understanding of what Gretchen was up to, or why we should care about her successes or failures. In the difficult balance between developing characters and putting them in danger, Harlan chose action--perhaps a bit too often.

Rating:
Summary: A good sequel, but not great.
Review: Though less "clunky" than Wasteland of Flint, House of Reeds still proves Harlan has a way to go to create a smooth flowing story. I found the book enjoyable, and unique, but stuttering here and there. The entire first half of the book is somewhat slow moving, setting up the action that will happen later as a planet explodes into war. It is choppy, disjointed, and full of the private introspections of each character with zero revelation of those characters' motivations. Many characters often act completely OUT of character creating some confusion, at least in my mind, about WHY they are behaving in such a way. Also, the book tends to start story lines that never go anywhere. SPOILERS:

For instance...Fitzsimmons. In the first novel, Fitzsimmons is brought foward as a possible love interest for Gretchen. He is a secondary character, certainly, but present a great deal throughout the book. In the House of Reeds, Fitz is back and this time his "crush" on Gretchen is pointed out very obviously. Near the end of the book, however, Fitz is suddenly killed off with little fanfare. Just, oh he's dead, moving on. I found this turn dissapointing.

I truly enjoyed Gretchen's "reawakening", which I think is one of the more interesting parts of the story. Her newfound (or refound) "powers" bring and interesting mysticism to the series.

While you don't absolutely have to read the first book to read the second, I would highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: A good sequel, but not great.
Review: Though less "clunky" than Wasteland of Flint, House of Reeds still proves Harlan has a way to go to create a smooth flowing story. I found the book enjoyable, and unique, but stuttering here and there. The entire first half of the book is somewhat slow moving, setting up the action that will happen later as a planet explodes into war. It is choppy, disjointed, and full of the private introspections of each character with zero revelation of those characters' motivations. Many characters often act completely OUT of character creating some confusion, at least in my mind, about WHY they are behaving in such a way. Also, the book tends to start story lines that never go anywhere. SPOILERS:

For instance...Fitzsimmons. In the first novel, Fitzsimmons is brought foward as a possible love interest for Gretchen. He is a secondary character, certainly, but present a great deal throughout the book. In the House of Reeds, Fitz is back and this time his "crush" on Gretchen is pointed out very obviously. Near the end of the book, however, Fitz is suddenly killed off with little fanfare. Just, oh he's dead, moving on. I found this turn dissapointing.

I truly enjoyed Gretchen's "reawakening", which I think is one of the more interesting parts of the story. Her newfound (or refound) "powers" bring and interesting mysticism to the series.

While you don't absolutely have to read the first book to read the second, I would highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Exciting blend of alternative history and space opera
Review: What if Earth was united by a Japanese-influenced Aztec empire, which ventures forth into the Milky Way Galaxy? This intriguing premise, a unique blend of alternate history and space opera, forms the core of Thomas Harlan's ongoing saga, of which "House of Reeds" is the second in the series. Harland does a very impressive job in world-building, describing the "native" inhabitants and the Imperial Mexica offworlders of the planet Jagan, which lies near the rim of the human empire. He focuses attention on the three main protagonists, xenoarchaeologist Gretchen Andressen, Imperial Mexica Navy Chu-sa (Commander) Matsuharu Hadeishi, skipper of the light cruiser Henry R. Cornuelle, and Tezozomac, a minor Mexica prince of the Imperial household, whose fortunes and fates become merged in an unexpected struggle for power between the natives and the Empire's Flower Priesthood. The priests, masquerading themselves as Nordic terrorists opposed to the Mexica Empire, unwittingly fuel the flames of armed opposition by the dominant race of natives, the reptilian Jehanan, by instigating a conflict which ultimately ruins the careers of several Imperial Navy officers and leaves countless Jehanan and humans dead. This is among the most enjoyable space operas I have come across lately and look forward to reading its predecessor, the "Wasteland of Flint".

Rating:
Summary: Deadly intrigue and adventure in an alternate 24th Century
Review: Xenoarcheologist Gretchen Anderssen looks forward to some well deserved R&R especially quality time with her children whom she has not seen in what seems like eons. However, at the space transport, she learns that the Company needs her and her team to take a short detour to investigate rumors of a possible major find of a First Sun artifact on the planet Jagan.

Her Hesht companion Magdalena and her pilot David Parker feels they are being set up and their misgivings prove valid as the trio has landed in the middle of an armed conflict. The Méxicali has declared war on the Jehanan, assumed to have been native to Jagan by the Empire, to enable Tezozómoc, the Emperor's youngest son to taste blood. The dynamic threesome tries to avert war while seeking the secret to the HOUSE OF REEDS.

This exciting sequel to WASTELAND OF FLINT provides further adventures of the supremacy and control by the Japanese-Aztec Méxicali Empire on numerous sentient species with the confrontation occurring on Jagan. The story line is character driven, but not just by the intrepid fully developed archeological trio as the secondary cast adds depth in terms of military, planetary history, and non-human intelligent races. Though some readers may find the military tactics quite length (it is a military science fiction tale) fans will cherish this tale that brings alive the various races that populate Harlan's universe.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Enthralling
Review: Xenoarcheologist Gretchen Anderssen looks forward to some well deserved R&R especially quality time with her children whom she has not seen in what seems like eons. However, at the space transport, she learns that the Company needs her and her team to take a short detour to investigate rumors of a possible major find of a First Sun artifact on the planet Jagan.

Her Hesht companion Magdalena and her pilot David Parker feels they are being set up and their misgivings prove valid as the trio has landed in the middle of an armed conflict. The Méxicali has declared war on the Jehanan, assumed to have been native to Jagan by the Empire, to enable Tezozómoc, the Emperor's youngest son to taste blood. The dynamic threesome tries to avert war while seeking the secret to the HOUSE OF REEDS.

This exciting sequel to WASTELAND OF FLINT provides further adventures of the supremacy and control by the Japanese-Aztec Méxicali Empire on numerous sentient species with the confrontation occurring on Jagan. The story line is character driven, but not just by the intrepid fully developed archeological trio as the secondary cast adds depth in terms of military, planetary history, and non-human intelligent races. Though some readers may find the military tactics quite length (it is a military science fiction tale) fans will cherish this tale that brings alive the various races that populate Harlan's universe.

Harriet Klausner