Rating: 
Summary: Good follow-up to the first volume
Review: Not too much really to say about the stories themselves. A reader either likes the series or he/she doesn't. If you haven't read any of Farmer's "World of Tiers" books yet, by all means be sure to read the first one first (Maker of Universes). A new reader will be lost in the plot otherwise. This particular volune (#2) consists of Farmer's 4th, 5th and 6th tales of Kickaha, Wolfe and the race of lords. "Behind the Walls of Terra" is a well done story centering on Kickaha's return to earth to search for the last living beller and his friend Wolfe (Jadawin), tangling with earth's lord, Red Orc and an interloper. The second story, "The Lavalite World", drags and is probably the weakest of the series. Readers will want to go thru that one only because it's part of the collection. The last volume, "More than Fire" I cannot comment on at this time since I haven't read it yet. The set of stories by Farmer are imaginative, fast moving (for the most part) and handily available in the two paperback volumes. The book price, while not really cheap is not out of line for paperbacks sold today. Folks who enjoy tales of fantasy, other worlds or dimensions, and science fiction should pass many pleasant hours with the collection -- but read it in sequence to understand what's going on. ** Recommended ** ~P~
Rating:
Summary: Good follow-up to the first volume
Review: Not too much really to say about the stories themselves. A reader either likes the series or he/she doesn't. If you haven't read any of Farmer's "World of Tiers" books yet, by all means be sure to read the first one first (Maker of Universes). A new reader will be lost in the plot otherwise. This particular volune (#2) consists of Farmer's 4th, 5th and 6th tales of Kickaha, Wolfe and the race of lords. "Behind the Walls of Terra" is a well done story centering on Kickaha's return to earth to search for the last living beller and his friend Wolfe (Jadawin), tangling with earth's lord, Red Orc and an interloper. The second story, "The Lavalite World", drags and is probably the weakest of the series. Readers will want to go thru that one only because it's part of the collection. The last volume, "More than Fire" I cannot comment on at this time since I haven't read it yet. The set of stories by Farmer are imaginative, fast moving (for the most part) and handily available in the two paperback volumes. The book price, while not really cheap is not out of line for paperbacks sold today. Folks who enjoy tales of fantasy, other worlds or dimensions, and science fiction should pass many pleasant hours with the collection -- but read it in sequence to understand what's going on. ** Recommended ** ~P~
Rating: 
Summary: The best of Farmer's original series
Review: THE WORLD OF TIERS is the best of Farmer's original series, better even than RIVERWORLD, which is quite good, too. The series only gets better as Kickaha replaces Wolff as the protagonist. Don't miss Volume Two or RED ORC'S RAGE!
Rating:
Summary: Do you like adventure and a fast moving story?
Review: Then you'll like this book. Maker of Universes is one of my all time favorite stories. I first read it in high school (1968) and have re-read it several times since. It has a quick hook to catch your interest in the beginning pages of the story, a fast moving/changing developing story and a somewhat of a surprize ending. This particular volume also contains two of Farmer's later related stories, though I don't know why the publisher didn't also include "The Lavalite World". These other two stories are also good, though not in the same class as the blueprint (Maker of Universes). Mr. Farmer does this a lot with his writing, manufacturing sequels after a successful sale. At any rate, this is a worthwhile collection, abeit incomplete, and will give you much reading enjoyment
Rating: 
Summary: Never fails to pick the trite cliche
Review: This book presents the first three of Philip Jose Farmer's "The World of Tiers" novels. "The World of Tiers" features a host of alternate universes, all "next door" to Earth and accessed through hidden gates, created and ruled by a decadent and technologically advanced race of Lords. This first novel opens with the Earthman Robert Wolff summoned to one of these parallel universes, to discover his Lordly heritage and to set right the evils of his world. Later installments introduce the human hero Kickaha and other members of Wolff's family. These books are fantasy yarns in the spirit of Edgar Rice Burroughs's John Carter of Mars adventures, and Farmer's Machiavellian family of Lords prefigures Corwin and relatives in Roger Zelazny's Amber chronicles. By comparison with these two siblings, "The World of Tiers" is certainly the runt of the litter. Farmer never fails to choose the trite cliche when confronted with a plot decision. The third novel in the series features the Lord Anana falling in love with the human Kickaha, overcome by his masculine charm, despite her "murderous" nature and previous disdain for lowly humans. No convincing argument for this transformation is presented, and it is clearly intended as a sop for Farmer's predominantly male audience. Similar teenage male pulp fiction conventions crowd the plot, never reworked artfully, and the action drags almost unbearably after several hundred pages. The story also suffers from an odd disjointedness; the characters in the novel periodically become possessed of vast knowledge concerning newly encountered races and cities, unbeknownst to the reader. A paragraph will suddenly contain a multitude of unintroduced terms and names with which the protagonist is intimately familiar, despite his complete ignorance of the landscape in the previous paragraph. Readers who enjoy this style of fiction might derive a few afternoons of enjoyment from Farmer's "The World of Tiers." I'd much rather rejoin John Carter and the lovely Dejah Thoris on Barsoom, or travel with Corwin and Random through Shadow.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic Farmer
Review: This book was my introduction to Philip Jose Farmer. Within five pages I knew I'd found something worth reading and by the end I realized that my Sci-fi knowledge was truly lacking prior to having read Farmer. He is undoubtedly a master. Farmer's literary style may seem pulpish but the shear scope of his imagination combined with the unrelenting pace of his naratives leaves one saturated in worlds complex and thoroughly detailed. I've since read the Riverworld Series (a triumph of imaginative literature filled with thought provoking situations and mind expanding metaphisical conotations) and a number of his other works and now consider myself a fan bordering on cult status. Any fan of Sci-fi or fantasy should not be without a collection of Farmer's works.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic Farmer
Review: This book was my introduction to Philip Jose Farmer. Within five pages I knew I'd found something worth reading and by the end I realized that my Sci-fi knowledge was truly lacking prior to having read Farmer. He is undoubtedly a master. Farmer's literary style may seem pulpish but the shear scope of his imagination combined with the unrelenting pace of his naratives leaves one saturated in worlds complex and thoroughly detailed. I've since read the Riverworld Series (a triumph of imaginative literature filled with thought provoking situations and mind expanding metaphisical conotations) and a number of his other works and now consider myself a fan bordering on cult status. Any fan of Sci-fi or fantasy should not be without a collection of Farmer's works.
Rating: 
Summary: I gave up on it after 100 pages...
Review: This is one of the few books that I have outright abandoned. After about 100 pages, I was frustrated with the complete lack of character development and breakneck pace of the book. The concept upon which the book is based (multiple parallel worlds that are worlds stacked on top of each other) isn't that great to begin with, and the author does absolutely nothing to make it seem interesting. I had purchased the first five books of this series in hardback from the Science Fiction bookclub, thus I was motivated to finish the books and not just donate the books unread to charity. However, after reading some of the other negative reviews on Amazon, I can tell that my initial impressions with the book were spot on and that it is only going to get worse. I will spare you the specifics, but please see the reviews from jackaroe or webtarkeena - they pretty much sum it up.
Rating:
Summary: I gave up on it after 100 pages...
Review: This is one of the few books that I have outright abandoned. After about 100 pages, I was frustrated with the complete lack of character development and breakneck pace of the book. The concept upon which the book is based (multiple parallel worlds that are worlds stacked on top of each other) isn't that great to begin with, and the author does absolutely nothing to make it seem interesting. I had purchased the first five books of this series in hardback from the Science Fiction bookclub, thus I was motivated to finish the books and not just donate the books unread to charity. However, after reading some of the other negative reviews on Amazon, I can tell that my initial impressions with the book were spot on and that it is only going to get worse. I will spare you the specifics, but please see the reviews from jackaroe or webtarkeena - they pretty much sum it up.
Rating:
Summary: A MASTER WRITER AT THE HEIGHT OF HIS CAREER!
Review: tHIS SERIES i HAVE READ AT LEAST 3 TIMES IN THE LAST 20 YEARS. yOU MUST READ THIS CLASSIC.
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