Rating: 
Summary: Worth reading
Review: I think what a lot of the reviewers are missing is the fact that Richard Paul Russo can WRITE! I was drawn from chapter to chapter in a way I haven't been in years--the book had the feel similar to that in Rendevous with Rama. I don't read much science fiction anymore--there is so little sense of wonder in it. Ship of Fools has wonder aplenty, and the characterization is excellent. Nor did I find the dialogue clumsy, as one reviewer did. I was most impressed with Russo's balanced viewpoint between Christianity and disbelief. A sympathetic priest in a SF novel? Quite refreshing.
The scene with Father Veronica (you know the one I mean) is breathtaking. And yes, I felt the ending was not quite as dramatic as I would have liked. But I really enjoyed the ride. I would indeed read the sequel, but I rather hope there isn't one.
I also hope that those who read these reviews and decide to buy the book buy a new version rather than a used one. The writer receives no royalties on used books, and cannot continue to be published unless someone buys new copies.
Rating: 
Summary: A dishonest book
Review: Do not let the excellent wtiting and character development fool you. This is a book that truly underestimates its audience. During the whole book, there are questions, mysteries, and plot that are never resolved. Instead, we are left to think that not all questions are answered in life and to enjoy a sense of mystery.The problem is that what is left unresolved is not trivial, but quite major and essential. So, I truly think that the author developed the questions, plot twists, and other unknown facts WITHOUT EVER INTENDING RESOLVE THEM. Instead, he opted to satisfy his readers with a movie ending. So, I repeat: the author himself does not know what motivated the aliens, the reasons for the preponderance of the Church, the history of the humans, or anything that he teased us with. He never intended to answer these questions, so he did not bother to answer them in writing or even in his own mind.
Rating:
Summary: The first 5 star book within 3 years!
Review: Finally I picked a book which wasn't just a three star average story. I am so glad that I found that book. It is one hell of a page turner and absorbing from the first to the last page. The style reminded me of Alastair Reynolds but just not as complex and mind twisting. Richard Russo has a great talent for creating an "Alien meets Event Horizon" kind of environment. When you read that book you want to make sure you are not alone! People who enjoy dark, gothic, and fear laden movies such as Alien will get a kick out of this book. On the negative side it would not be surprising if some people do not like the ending. I am not going into any details but you should not expect a happy Hollywood brainwashed finale. I personally do hope Russo keeps the story going in another book. In summary, it is a great book with a great story and great characters all along, it deserves 5 stars!
Rating:
Summary: Stylish and Provoking
Review: Richard Paul Russo's latest work, Ship of Fools, is as much a philosophical exploration-or simply a mood piece-as it is a tale of fiction. As always, Russo breathes a gritty authenticity into the people, places, and social system of Ship of Fools. Unfortunately, the book fails to fall neatly into any conventional science fiction niche. Not heroic enough for space opera, not intense enough for horror, not comprehensive enough as a dystopian treatise, and not revealing enough as a tale of alien contact, the book is stylish and thought-provoking but raises more questions than it attempts to answer and sets up more potential story lines than it bothers to pursue. Fans expecting something like Russo's Carlucci books, or relying too much on the back-cover synopsis or reviewers' quotes, are likely to end up disappointed. Readers who enjoy observing how a master writer creates and manipulates the fabric of a story, or exploring their own beliefs and tenets through the thoughts of others, will find the book rich indeed. The human generation ship Argonos has been in space for hundreds of years. Its original purpose is murky. Its aging mechanical systems are gradually falling apart. Its tightly closed social system consists of a working class which performs the labor necessary to keep machines and society functioning, and a ruling class which peripherally includes ship's crew and clergy. Tensions are running high between classes and among the various ruling class factions. Argonos picks up a radio signal from a nearby planet. At this point, the ship really needs a habitable world in order to re-provision if nothing else. An exploration party finds the planet habitable but no longer inhabited. A cache of grisly human remains among a cluster of strange buildings hints at an alien menace, but no records can be found to explain what has happened. When the transmitter that drew Argonos to the planet begins sending out a different signal, the ship's leaders decide to follow up. This takes Argonos to another vast starship, clearly alien and apparently derelict. Teams are sent to systematically investigate the vessel, thus leading to the story's climax. Russo's main themes are evil, particularly the evil outside versus the evil within; nobility, duty, or whatever else provides the motivation for people to rise above self-interest and serve a greater cause; and how a closed society breeds lifestyle abnormalities along with genetic abnormalities. Russo's characters directly or indirectly question God, the status quo, the value of individual lives, and man's place in the universe in general, with varying degrees of resolution before the tale's end. Ship of Fools provides no big, emotionally satisfying payoff, but offers an absorbing read nevertheless.
Rating: 
Summary: A Cosmic Letdown Of Stellar Proportions
Review: Richard Paul Russo is unquestionably one of our finest contemporary writers of science fiction. However, I wasn't satisfied with either the plot nor its end in his latest novel, "Ship Of Fools". Russo offers some tantalizing clues regarding a deserted human colony on the planet Antioch and the mysterious alien starship which may be related to the colony's sudden demise, but he doesn't quite pull all the pieces together. As the tale's narrator, Bartolomeo Aguilera is an intriguing character, along with others as diverse as the Argonos's captain and Father Veronica. Yet I didn't understand why Bartolomeo would risk sending the colonists aboard the starship Argonos to the planet Antioch towards the end of the tale. Still, this is an enjoyable reading experience graced with some of Russo's best prose.
Rating: 
Summary: Great despite a lack of closure
Review: If Ship of Fools had more of a conclusion, it would have been at the top of my list. However, Russo seems to have grown tired toward the end, and the pure energy that fills the first 805 of the book is lost. Still, Ship of Fools is full of excitement and discovery. Despite being set in a cliche (the "colony of people who live on a ship and have never set foot on a planet" cliche), Russo manages to pull of a highly original series of events. All of them surround the discovery of a mysterious vessel, which keeps a singular focus within the story. However, the events themselves range from death to inner conflict to paranoia to sympathy. Ultimately, it is a tale of exploration that is approached from many levels, grounded in the most obvious exploration -- that of the ship. If only it had an end, it would be a 5-star book. When I finished reading it, I immediately went online to order the sequel... I just assumed there was one, and was devastated when I learned otherwise. I would still recommend this highly to those looking for an interesting story about discovery and exploration, and anyone who enjoys reading because it makes you think. For those who look to sci-fi for space battles and combat and three-breasted she-beasts... well, while there is a cloud of danger and some action, this probably is not what you're looking for.
Rating:
Summary: It's a floor wax AND a dessert topping!
Review: "Ship of Fools" seems to be that polarizing kind of book that folks either love and hate. The prose is well-written, Russo keeps the plot moving and the pages turning, and the novel is an engrossing read...until the end. The end, as others have mentioned, is where it all goes horribly wrong. Up to that point, "Ship of Fools" is a somewhat standard but entertaining mix of Clarke's "Rendezvous With Rama" and Heinlein's "Universe." Russo adds some interesting political and social observations on the theme of a ship that's been in space so long it's all anyone remembers. Putting class struggles on a ship was particularly inspired. It's when the ship starts exploring a seemingly dead ship (the "Rama" plotline) that Russo paints himself into a corner he can't get out of. The ship is Big and Mysterious--and maybe even Evil. But once Russo has given this ship all kinds of mysteries, the book ends with a movie-like escape sequence. It's ultimately unsatisfying, like reading through 300 pages of suspense only for the conclusion, "...and then the little boy woke up." Some have argued that this is an expression of the theme that space is big and mysterious, and that there are no answers. That point is well taken, but even a novel on this theme must throw some sort of bone to the reader--a sign that the author really is trying to make that point. Otherwise, an ending like this makes it hard to tell whether the author had some grand point in mind, or merely stopped when he hit his word count. "Ship of Fools" had me engrossed while I read it, but after I'd finished, it was like having read half a book.
Rating:
Summary: Subtle and well written
Review: This is a well-written thematic story. Although it has several subplots, the main storyline is written to demonstrate the power of human curiosity. Russo takes his characters through a journey of exploration punctuated by frequent and gruesome clues that Something Is Not Right. But the characters press on, and - here is the magic of Russo's storytelling - the reader is right there with them. The lure of the unknown is so strong that you are willing to leap through every new doorway just to see what is on the other side, no matter how many dried corpses or mysterious accidents should have cautioned you away. Even after the last page is turned and the folly of the exploration unmasked, the book leaves you with the nagging urge to go back, to open one more door or seek the answer to one more question - a powerful demonstration of what Pavlovian creatures we can be.
Rating:
Summary: A good sci fi episode
Review: I received this book mistakenly (I'd ordered Katherine Porter's SHIP OF FOOLS...quite different!), but thought I'd give it a read. While not a fan of the sci fi genre, I found this to be a quick and entertaining read...actually pretty user friendly for the non "space" reader such as myself. It wasn't bogged down with a lot of technical alien/interplanetary mumbo jumbo. It actually had a story and some interesting character development. The pay off wasn't quite what I was hoping for, however, so it tended to come off in the end as a long episode of a sci fi show a la STAR TREK. Plenty amusing, tho, for that airplane ride or bedside table.
Rating:
Summary: FUN BUT COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER
Review: I just finished reading this book. I like it for the fact that it reminds me of a X file episode. Where it always leaves you hanging wanting more. . It was a lot like reading a fast manuscript for a movie idea. So many things seemed like they could have been more fully explained or given more depth. Doesn't mean it wasn't a fun read however. . On the other hand there were a number of things wrong with the story if it was minimally examined. The old women was a sore point for me. Pg 199 with him speaking Spanish, so lame. Then the question of the old women/alien speaking of the planet name given by the bishop. Why would aliens with superior intellect and technology make such a careless statement. Why are the aliens dumb enough to leave doors unlocked that have tons of rotting dead people yet smart enough to control gravity etc. Why are the alien blaster weapons so weak and fire only at the last two ships. Why do some of the people go crazy. Why did the bishop try to kill him, and in such a strange way. What did the machine the bishop had at the start have too do with anything. What became of reading the records the church had. Why is jumping in a worm hole at the end going to save anyone, don't the aliens know the coordinates back to the planet. And a bunch more.
In the end I give it a 3 out of 5. Fun read but not enough.
| 
