Rating: 
Summary: Infinity's Shore
Review: This is Book #2 of a trilogy. The first was Brightness Reef, which I thoroughly enjoyed. In Infinity's Shore I didn't feel the characters' personalities were explored as deeply as the first book, there was too much destruction going on instead of consruction, and the ending is a real cliffhanger, leaving me with the feeling that it was written only so the next book will be purchased, and not as a story which can stand on its own. I have enjoyed all the other books I have read by David Brin and hope the next one in the trilogy will not be as disappointing.
Rating: 
Summary: Highly recommended (but read the predecessor first).
Review: This is book two of Dr. Brin's eagerly-awaited new trilogy. The first
volume, Brightness Reef, was
a stunning introduction, and Infinity's Shore carries the narrative
forward like a cresting ocean wave. A lot of the open questions from the first volume
are resolved, but many new ones are raised. Some fascinating new characters are introduced, but most of the players here are old friends -- deepened and
realized more fully than in any of Brin's previous work.
The trilogy is built around the circumstances of the fallow world of Jijo,
and set against the tapestry of Brin's "Uplift" universe. The crew of the starship Streaker (from the classic Startide Rising)
plan their daring escape from the planet, while the inhabitants struggle
against a mighty invader. The story is told
in the first-person from the individual viewpoints of a few main characters, the balance between
the various characters is very good, and their respective views of the events
taking place on Jijo is fascinating.
Is there any downside to Infinity's Shore? If there is, it would
be the extensive background that the reader needs before diving into the
story. Like any sequel, the first few chapters of this book contain lots of
flashbacks and other devices for filling in the background material; it's good,
but it probably isn't quite enough. To really enjoy the wealth of themes and
metaphors in this book, it is helpful to have read volume one. Ambitious readers
who go to the effort of consecutively reading Sundiver, Startide Rising, The Uplift War, Brightness Reef,
and Infinity's Shore will be well rewarded -- and left with a fierce
anticipation of the trilogy's final volume.
Rating:
Summary: Highly recommended (but read the predecessor first).
Review: This is book two of Dr. Brin's eagerly-awaited new trilogy. The firstvolume, Brightness Reef, wasa stunning introduction, and Infinity's Shore carries the narrative forward like a cresting ocean wave. A lot of the open questions from the first volume are resolved, but many new ones are raised. Some fascinating new characters are introduced, but most of the players here are old friends -- deepened and realized more fully than in any of Brin's previous work. The trilogy is built around the circumstances of the fallow world of Jijo, and set against the tapestry of Brin's "Uplift" universe. The crew of the starship Streaker (from the classic Startide Rising) plan their daring escape from the planet, while the inhabitants struggle against a mighty invader. The story is told in the first-person from the individual viewpoints of a few main characters, the balance between the various characters is very good, and their respective views of the events taking place on Jijo is fascinating. Is there any downside to Infinity's Shore? If there is, it would be the extensive background that the reader needs before diving into the story. Like any sequel, the first few chapters of this book contain lots of flashbacks and other devices for filling in the background material; it's good, but it probably isn't quite enough. To really enjoy the wealth of themes and metaphors in this book, it is helpful to have read volume one. Ambitious readers who go to the effort of consecutively reading Sundiver, Startide Rising, The Uplift War, Brightness Reef, and Infinity's Shore will be well rewarded -- and left with a fierce anticipation of the trilogy's final volume.
Rating:
Summary: Infinity's Shore: Surfing towards an exciting finale.
Review: This is really the fifth volume in the Uplift Saga. It neatly packages all the important themes from the previous works; ready to be blown open in what promises to be an exciting conclusion.
The writing (and presentation) is clean, and the story moves along at a quick pace. The aliens initially seem anthropomorphic, but subtly shift in ones perception into truly alien characters. The only comparable work regarding complex interstellar alien conflict is the excellent Chanur series by C.J. Cherryh. In my opinion, with the exception of "The Uplift War," this series is better.
Many hard science fiction books, with the exception of those by Greg Bear and Gregory Benford, fail to connect the cosmic happenings to a believable personal level. This work, and this book, succeed in that endeavor. If you want exciting, thought provoking, and moving hard science fiction with characters you care about, then you should buy this book.
Rating:
Summary: Great book and series
Review: This is really the fifth volume in the Uplift Saga. It neatly packages all the important themes from the previous works; ready to be blown open in what promises to be an exciting conclusion. The writing (and presentation) is clean, and the story moves along at a quick pace. The aliens initially seem anthropomorphic, but subtly shift in ones perception into truly alien characters. The only comparable work regarding complex interstellar alien conflict is the excellent Chanur series by C.J. Cherryh. In my opinion, with the exception of "The Uplift War," this series is better. Many hard science fiction books, with the exception of those by Greg Bear and Gregory Benford, fail to connect the cosmic happenings to a believable personal level. This work, and this book, succeed in that endeavor. If you want exciting, thought provoking, and moving hard science fiction with characters you care about, then you should buy this book
Rating: 
Summary: disappointing and way too long
Review: This review applies to David Brin's new Uplift trilogy as a whole.
I loved Brin's other Uplift books but the new Uplift trilogy is a long-winded dud. It introduces a few enticing ideas, but constantly gets bogged down in useless character development and leaves way too many loose ends without resolving anything. This entire trilogy could have easily been condensed into a single volume, and at least two-thirds of the characters eliminated completely, without losing any of the core content. As it is, the three volumes lack continuity and the main ideas and characters introduced in the beginning turn out to have no relevance in the end. NOT RECOMMENDED.
Rating:
Summary: disappointing and way too long
Review: This review applies to David Brin's new Uplift trilogy as a whole.
I loved Brin's other Uplift books but the new Uplift trilogy is a long-winded dud. It introduces a few enticing ideas, but constantly gets bogged down in useless character development and leaves way too many loose ends without resolving anything. This entire trilogy could have easily been condensed into a single volume, and at least two-thirds of the characters eliminated completely, without losing any of the core content. As it is, the three volumes lack continuity and the main ideas and characters introduced in the beginning turn out to have no relevance in the end. NOT RECOMMENDED.
Rating:
Summary: A Good read and on par with the rest of the series
Review: Two years ago I picked up my first David Brin novel on a lunch break, and have been hooked ever since. By the time Infinity's Shore had come out I was thoroughly excited, as I had been quickly running out of novels by the author to read. The story largely stood up to my expectations. The same superbly written cast and sprawling landscape that I've come to expect from an author such as Brin. I have fallen madly in love with the Stranger (Emerson), and found that the novel points involving him were probably the most enjoyable. It was also happy to see the return of the Streaker after so long, although I have to admit many of my favorite characters were left behind in Startide Rising. One of the comforting aspects of Mr. Brin's new creations, however, is that they are easy to identify with and just as satisfying. I have to say that I enjoyed Infinity's Shore, with the exception of perhaps the final, space-rooted scenes. At this point I was thinking, "oh, please," especially with a particular bit involving Rety and Dwer. These last actions certainly do not take away from the rest of the book, though I feel that Brin struggles occasionally on the endings of his work. I remain, however, feeling distinctly excited for the sequel and have been pestering the bookseller for months. All in all a good effort for Mr. Brin. One could only wish he wrote faster...
Rating: 
Summary: It's a must-read for those who enjoyed Brightness Reef
Review: Unfortunately this Brin book suffers from a few problems. Brin's style of following a story from multiple points of view takes a rather nasty turn for the worse here. Too many observers create such short sections that trying to jump from one frame of mind to the next every few pages makes one quite frustrated. Furthermore, the plotline does not pick up for quite a large number of pages at the beginning. One can assume that this is to introduce those who haven't read Brightness Reef to the background, but it's done at a level that almost sacrifices those who have! The final problem is the lack of even a approximation of an ending. It's understood that this is just the second part of a trilogy, but cutting a book short right at the peak of the climax leaves the reader a bit cheated. On the positive side is Brin's ability to realistically portray a number of different alien races together with their lifestyles, ways of thinking, habits, traditions, etc. Moreover, the storyline is based on a very interesting idea and is furthered in this section of the story. If you read and enjoyed Brightness Reef, this is the continuation of the story. If you haven't read Brightness Reef, read that one first and decide whether you like to setting.
Rating:
Summary: Easy to read. Hard to put down. Great stuff!
Review: Unlike Brightness Reef, Infinity's Shore is enthralling cover to cover. Perhaps it is because the characters have become dear to us or perhaps it is because IS has a tighter plot than BR. But IS is definitely a more enjoyable read.
Brin seems to have gone back to the formula that was so successful with Startide Rising. Great character development and the reader is kept on the edge of their seat throughout as the plot moves from one cliff-hanger to the next. It would have been easy for Brin to have left us unfulfilled with an unsatisfying ending but here once again IS, as in SR, there is a satisfactory closure while still leaving us hungry for the next installment.
IS is hard to put down and thoroughly enjoyable. I can't wait for the next one.
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