Rating: 
Summary: Imaginative, Well Written Sci-Fi That Stalls Occasionally
Review: I should qualify the comments that follow by stating that I am not a huge fan of science fiction, feeling that often elements of storyline and characterization become sacrificed at the expense of scientific theories and content. Any true fan of the genre should therefore temper my observations accordingly. That said, I found this work by Vernor Vinge in large part enjoyable and imaginatively written--so much so that he dispelled many of my normal reservations regarding alien races based upon animals with earth-based antecedents. Normally I would find an intelligent and manually dexterous race predicated upon wolves preposterous, both visually and scientifically. However, Vinge imbued them with so much individual character and inventively wondrous social interaction, that I quickly found myself accepting the premise despite my initial skepticism, and I felt the marvelous exploration of pack consciousness justified their inclusion. In a similar way, the author made the plant-based Sroderiders entirely credible. I both agree and disagree with some earlier reviewers' comments. I found that the story stalled during the initial chapters of Part Two, in which a great amount of discourse is devoted to the space travel between Relay and Harmonious Repose, and the nature of Zones, the Net and various matters of propulsion and ship design. This slowing of pace is also reflected concurrently in the events taking place upon Tines World. It was here, for me, that the elements of story were abandoned in favor of theoretical and scientific exposition, and the unfolding of the narrative suffered accordingly. In other sections of the book, most notably Part One, these elements are present, but more effectively balanced and interwoven with the storyline and evolving characterization, and it was this theoretical indulgence and diversion that prevented me from according the novel full marks. Also, while the inclusion of communiques on the Net were often effective as a means of updating the reader to events occuring elsewhere in the galaxy, after a time I felt the device became too repetitive and obvious, at times interrupting the flow of the narrative unnecessarily. Part One and the events following Harmonius Repose do not suffer from this slowing of storyline, and the setting established in Part One is masterfully done. Some have complained about the lack of suspense at the conclusion, but I found the events building in expectation in Part Three, and could not put the last hundred pages down. While the final chapter has a summary feeling, I was well satisfied by the conclusion, especially the fate of the Society for Rational Investigation, one of the occasions where I felt the use of Net messages both appropriate and commanding. All in all an enjoyable and entertaining read, written with skill and imagination. Recommended, and, if you are willing to wade through the exposition that dominates the early chapters of Part Two, I believe you will find yourself amply rewarded.
Rating: 
Summary: Has one flaw ,and a minor one at that.
Review: An excelent saga on a galactic scale ,which is uniqe in it's sub-classification. The book has two main stories in it ,one hard sci-fi plot ,the other a soft plot. On the hard side ,the book is great in it's grasp of how alien minds would be different from ours as well as in the more basic technological aspect. The technolegy is highly advenced ,polished and computeristic. On the soft side ,all the charecters were properly developed ,in both plots ,and the emotional-cognitive procceses were outlined. The problem was with the "Tines". The Tines are supposed to be a pack-mind aliens who's technological level is about the same as medievil earth. Only that when Vernor wrote them ,He wrote how a being made of a pack of dog-like creatures ,would replace Man in his medievil days ,and not how those creatures would develop with their own mind. Other then this basic flaw the book rocks. Great science fiction ,great action and scope ,and nice "universe building". Very very recommended.
Rating:
Summary: A marvelous story
Review: All that I can say is buy this book. In fact, buy several copies of this book and give them to friends. It's that good. It is amazing in it's scope, the adventure spans the galaxy and gets better with every page. I found myself staying up much later than I should have just to read this. The book weighs in at a hefty 612 pages. A lesser author would have spread this book out over several novels, and this shows just how good of an author Vernor Vinge is. There is a prequel out now, but this book stands suberbly on it's own. Once again get this!
Rating:
Summary: An Amazing Galaxy Spanning Adventure
Review: This was a great science fiction novel. It is a story about a "virus" that infects the galaxy and the quest to retrieve the "antidote". But there is so much more to this epic. There is a deep space setting, and a setting on a primitive world inhabited by packs of sentient, dog like creatures. Vinge expertly plots the story and brings the two worlds together in grand style. It is a long book, but it is well paced and suspenseful most of the way. The characters, both human and alien, are convincing. An amazing trip through the deepest reaches of the galaxy, I consider this one of the top sci-fi novels of the past decade. Like all great science fiction, it stretches your imagination to the limit.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, Not Great. Poor Ending
Review: I thought some of the ideas presented in this wildly creative book -- "pack minds" or single high-grade conciousnesses built out of multiple lower-grade consciousnesses -- to be highly intriguing. Yet at the same time the plot was convoluted with quick plot solutions at many points that were all too glaringly not well woven into the story: almost like the writer painted himself into numerous plot corners and then had to bail out with obvious devices. The ending was weak, hurried and unsatisfying. Some of the massive events he relates, such as the murder of billions of souls and the crushing of countless civilizations, are skimmed over quickly and hardly get the gravitas they deserve -- and yet one must at the same time be glad for that as the book is overly long and I found myself skipping pages.
Rating:
Summary: gripping space opera
Review: worth the awards it was given. hard sci-fi at its finest-while referencing the classic space-opera genre, it manages to avoid retreading old territory. a well told story that really tries to give insight into portraying alien culture. a bit heavy handed in the characterization at times, but one of the better sci-fi books i've read in years.
Rating:
Summary: Good blending of Hard SF and Space Opera
Review: Vinge does the impossible and creates a novel that blends Hard SF with Space Opera and Science Fatansy. The result is closer to the latter than the former, but AFUTD has a sense of pluasibility that makes it more engrossing than your typical space opera. Not a perfect book, it gets a little slow in the second half, but certainly a very good one.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent universe; good plot; adequate resolution
Review: Consider the galaxy divided into zones: the Slowness, where FTL travel is impossible, and technology is limited to a vague extrapolation of what we know today; the Beyond, where FTL travel is possible, and sentient software and hardware dominate the technology; and the Transcend populated by Powers, literal gods whose thoughts and actions are inconceivable those who haven't "transcended". Populate it with millions of different races, and connect it with a galaxy wide information network. A human colony attempting to "transcend", using information found in an ancient archive, instead unleashes a "perversion" on the galaxy. Two children escape to a medieval world populated by dog-like creatures who share consciousness as packs. With them they have the possible countermeasure to the evil that was released. Two humans and two sentient mollusk/machines race to retrieve the countermeasure and save the galaxy. There are really two stories here, and either might be enough to power its own novel. There are two big issues here: What would life be like in a universe where gods were many and observable, and godhood was difficult but obtainable? And, what is the nature of consciousness, memory and self? The author powers these questions with "Space chase" and "Marooned on a backward world" to generate the tension. It works well. However, on the downside the book never really addresses the philosophical issues head on. After getting fleeting glimspes of them in the opening pages, Vinge continues on almost mechanically, referring tangentially to the questions, the implications and the possibilities the world which he has created. Deeper meanings seem just out of reach for the remainder of the book. The book is valuable and a worthwhile read, because it makes one think, but at the same time I think Vinge gets off easy, because he never lets the reader know what he thinks.
Rating:
Summary: Very good
Review: This book is very good. It would stand alone as a book well-worth reading even if it didn't have a "sort of" sequel waiting in the wings ("sort of" because you don't really have to have read this book to enjoy A Deepness in the Sky, but it helps) that's even better. As with so much of today's best SF, Vinge has created a downright fantastic Universe and peopled it with interesting and compelling characters doing fascinating things. That's a lot of superlatives, I know, but every one is deserved. The creative exercise of first rank here is, of course, the group-mind race of dog-like creatures. I was impressed that Vinge introduces us to this race without directly describing them - yet he pulls it off; a remarkable feat. Next is the division of the galaxy into Zones, described elsewhere herein. While the alleged scientific underpinnings for this phenomenon are never adequately explained, it's a forgivable error, and in any event, less of a suspension of disbelief is required than most SF books will throw at us. Then there's the plant-like protagonists and the extemely well-drawn rougue from the distant past. The book's chief flaw is that the single driving event of the novel's plot, the plague, is never explained that well. FoOr a time I thought he was leaving it to be discovered by me as it was by the characters, but this didn't really turn out to be the case. In the end, I didn't have a much better idea than I had at the start about what happened. This made the resolution seem a bit too pat, frankly. All in all, a great book but not extraordinary. For that, you need only move on to the sequel. But read this invigorating and compelling book first - you're bound to enjoy it and you'll get more out of A Deepness in the Sky if you do.
Rating:
Summary: A book of two halves.
Review: This is a book with two distinct halves which are intertwined and to some extent interlinked. The extra-planetary half of the book is at times obtuse and laborious, it is full of intangible concepts, sotto voce commentary in the form of the "web of lies", and is, all in all, a bit longwinded and boring. I found it difficult to find any empathy whatever with the skrode riders. The other half or the book deserves five stars, the concept of a mentality which is a pack conciousness is a great idea and makes for very interesting reading. I especially enjoyed the sex scene, talk about trusting someone! The feudal nature of the planetary half of the story was very appealing and the book is worth a read for this part of the story alone. I suppose the difficulty is in melding the two halves of the book together. Perhaps other readers prefer the extra-planetary half. Who can account for taste.
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