Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful, well-paced read.
Review: Some of these reviewers need to lighten up a bit! This was a well written, wonderfully paced book that I read in 3 sittings. I have not done that with a Sci-Fi book in quite a while. Sure, almost every plot element presented here has been used before but so what? Name a book and author that hasn't attempted to improve or expand on ideas and works by those who preceded them.And insofar as complaining about being left hanging with several (OK, numerous) unresolved story lines, do you think perhaps that it was written with a sequel in mind? One would hope and assume so. A great read for lovers of hard core Sci-Fi where the plot, characters and most of the science line up beautifully. I'd had given it 5 stars except those are reserved for George R. R. Martin for single-handedly breathing some air into the long deflated Fantasy field.
Rating:
Summary: A political statement set in outer space
Review: I picked up this book not knowing anything about the author. Ship of Fools held my interest a lot more than I expected. At first, I thought this was a suspense book set in outer space, with a lot of the questions from Rama and logistics from 2010. After mulling it over, I think this book works best as a study of the political trappings of the Aragnos. The alien spaceship and Antioch serve as the catalyst for changing the dynamics of the Aragnos civilization. Sure, everyone would like all the alien issues resolved, but I think this book is worth the read even without all the i's crossed and t's dotted.
Rating:
Summary: a sci-fi page-turner
Review: "Ship of Fools" is set on the Argonos, a starship housing a small society which has been shipbound for hundreds of years. The story opens on the cusp of a proletarian rebellion and a potential theocratic coup d'etat, and the narrator, one of the captain's closest advisors, finds himself caught up in political affairs. At the same time, the society's ancient history and mission is called on: a dead human planet, and then a dead alien ship, are discovered, and the inhabitants of the Argonos must piece together the mysteries they offer. The issues explored by "Ship of Fools" are many and varied: religious belief and its place in politics, class struggles, the nature and strength of friendship, the existence and religious framework of evil (and whether it can conquer the truly unwilling), and the ultimate power and legitimacy of self-sacrifice. Yet somehow, even while considering all this, the plot is gripping and fast-paced, the narration is enjoyable, and the book is impossible to put down. The major drawback of "Ship of Fools" is that it tries to do more than is ultimately possible. Many of the issues the novel raises - physical disability and deformity, unrequited romantic love - are ignored entirely. Most of the issues that are discussed are not resolved; in fact, even the action of the story is only partially settled. Lack of closure is not always a fatal error, however, especially in a book with so many satisfying narrative and thematic elements. Perhaps the author intends to complete the story in a sequel; if so, it will surely be worthwhile reading. Even if "Ship of Fools" is the complete story of the Argonos and its inhabitants, it is compelling and thought-provoking reading worthy of any science-fiction fan.
Rating: 
Summary: Use your imagination
Review: Be forewarned, as many of the other reviews have stated, much of the story, particularily the ending, is not clear cut. If you are the type who needs to know exactly what happened, to know every detail of how the main characters fare, this might not be the novel for you. I found the concept, and the story to be fascinating. Russo paints a broad portrait of what is occuring by focusing on one major character, Bartolomeo. It is not giving away to much to say that the book is a narrative from that character. The author does not step away this character, and fill in other events that are unknown to him. If Bartholomew is not aware of an event, or aware of a reason for something, then the reader isnt either. This is why not every detail of what is occuring is known to us, simply because Bartolomeo isnt aware of them. The aliens are a mystery throughout the book, why is this? It's because Bartolomeo doesnt know. Why do certain events occur? If he doesnt know then we dont know. If you are the type of reader who likes a good mystery, who can fill in spots using your imagination, who doesnt need everything spelled out for you, who doesnt always need everything to conform to whats normally done, then i highly recommend the book. If you like spelled out endings where everything is clear, dont bother, you wont like it.
Rating: 
Summary: Enjoyable read, but very weak finish
Review: Richard Paul Russo here tackles two of science fiction's hoarier scenarios: The generation starship, and the mysterious alien ship which no one can understand. Although he writes a more engaging story than some of his predecessors (e.g., Arthur C. Clarke's Rendezvous with Rama, and John E. Stith's Reckoning Infinity), he doesn't pull it off. The book is most interesting in exploring how the good ship Argyros works. The political machinations and tensions among the factions, the sense of sameness - if not ennui - which pervades their society, and occasional moments of desperation and revolt. Unfortunately he sets this against a backdrop of the aforementioned mysterious alien ship, with the twist that the ship appears related to a dead colony on a nearby world, and is, well, far from safe to explore. As such Russo sets out to paint yet another picture of aliens so alien and mysterious that we can't understand them. Such stories are never satisfying, because when the aliens' (or perhaps their ship's) behavior is the centerpiece of the book, we need to eventually be told SOMETHING about them. Why are they behaving as they are? Why are they sitting in the middle of space, silent? Why are the rooms constructed the way they are? It's not that we need all the answers hand-delivered, but we need to be given something, and we're not. We can't even draw our own conclusions because there's nothing there to draw from. Worse, one is left with the strong impression that Russo himself doesn't even have an idea as to what it's all about. The story ends up being - sort of - about how humans react to such an encounter, but the alien ship is so generic it's not even up to the level of, say, 2001, and the ending seems all-too-predicable, ultimately. The religious and spiritual overtones are not without interest, but they're at best the third-most-interesting element of the book and cannot carry it. I suspect that I'll barely remember the details of this book a year from now, although I enjoyed it for most of the ride. Chalk it up as another novel which could have been much better than it is, if it had had a firmer direction.
Rating:
Summary: Ignore the naysayers - this is spectacular
Review: I'm disappointed to read some of the reviews of this book which state that it's a letdown and that it doesn't have a tidy resolution. Clearly these are the type of people who like Americanized versions of foreign movies, where all the loose ends are tied up for you nicely, instead of making you think. This book has great characters and is more suspenseful than any book I've read in a very long time. If you like your books compelling and thought provoking, give this a shot. If you want a fantasy sci-fi book that's the equivalent of a tv sitcom, go elsewhere.
Rating:
Summary: So close and Yet so far away
Review: Like other readers I was both awed and disappointed by this masterful story. The saga expands in an almost poetical vein with pointed characterization and succinct plots within plots. The ideas discussed in this book - origins, family, meaning of life, aliens, religion, discovery - require a sequeal and perhaps a prequel. High praise for the sparse, direct, superb writing and crafting.
Kudos for interesting characters and for a new presentation of several well-used themes. Man's first encounter with ETs has been told again and again, yet this indirect approach is one of the best. The horrific race remains thoroughly "alien" to the end - their thoughts, morals, purposes and society a mystery, undecipherable. More positives: The elusive, alluring female priest, the shadowy bishop, the manner in which the dark, cloistered mood is created. Points needing expanding or revising: The origin of the "Ship",
The prominence of the Church - for logical not philosophical reasons. If anything, the role of the Church in the far future will be less that it is not now. The inscrutability of the aliens - why did they commit these horrific acts, to what purpose? Why did they remain hidden? Finally, what happens to the group on Antioch. Still, if you are not looking for "this is Agon from the planet Zedur; stop your atomic testing or face destruction" fiction but instead want a heady, taut experience, this is the one for you.
Rating: 
Summary: UNSOLVED MYSTERIES IN SPACE
Review: These are the voyages of the starship Argonos, its 5-year mission to.....whoops, what is our mission? Where are going? Where did we come from? This is pretty much the setup for this Philip K. Dick award winning novel by Richard Russo. The Argonos is a starship that has been in space so long that all memory of its mission has been forgotten. Was it meant as an exploration vessel? A ship to make contact with alien life? Or was it a liferaft from a doomed Earth? Nobody knows. So they simply wander the universe with no purpose. I guess that would make them intergalactic existententialists? The ship is divided into distinct and competing social classes with the military, educated and the religious orders at the top while the workers grind away down below. In fact the captain of the ship is losing his grip over his command to the plotting of Bishop Saldano. The main character of the novel is Bartolomeo Aguilera, the boyhood friend and most trusted advisor of the captain. A signal from an unknown planet brings the
Argonos to a deserted world. Well, it's not quite deserted, in a sealed section of a settlement they find thousands of human skeletons impaled on hooks. They show evidence of torture and horrible deaths. Soon after, another signal is received which will lure them to an alien spacecraft and even greater mystery. This novel had so much potential, but it was squandered. Russo never capitalizes on the suspense or horror of the first discovery. Most of the book concerns uneventful exploration, similar to Arthur C. Clarke's novel Rendezvous with Rama. It's not very engaging. If I wanted to read about exploration I would buy a memoir of a spelunker, not a science fiction novel. This aspect of the book was just plain boring. The human interaction between the characters was great, especially between Aguilera and the captain, and also a tragic love story between Aguilera and a woman priest. Another negative about the book was the lack of any resolution or explanation of questions which pile up in the book. It's like Russo leaves us hanging at the end just to prove how mysterious the universe really is. There's also a subliminal Christian message underlying the whole novel. Maybe the problem with this book was that it was underground religious fiction.
Rating:
Summary: So far away, but still so close
Review: Fantastic! No wonder this book has reached the top-ten lists of some of the science fiction forums. The setting of a group of people on this lonely ship is well laid out. The characters are impressive in their humanity and the adventure is riding on a high wave of suspense throughout the entire book. Russo has a deep understanding of the human spirit and clearly reflects it in the dialogues between the characters. The plot is very interesting and full with twists. The pace of the events is fast and the suspense high. What else could you ask for? Highly Recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Good, Evil, and the Human Condition
Review: Reading through the reviews, I can't say I'm surprised that there are many people who don't understand the book. This is not a book about spaceships, aliens, or colonization. These are metaphors and the book is a huge allegory. If words like metaphor and allegory are odd to you, chances are you won't understand the book. On the other hand, if you're one of those science fiction fans who understands that Bladerunner isn't a film about a bounty hunter and androids, but about the search for meaning in life, then this book will probably appeal to you greatly. There's not really much to say about the book other than that. It is what it is. And that's one of the finest philosophical novels I've read in years.
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