Necromancer

Dorsai Series, Book 2

By: Gordon R. Dickson

Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki

Length: 5 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's Summary

Life on Earth is good. Disease is checked, hunger ended, and war and suffering abolished, with liberty and justice and a high standard of living for all. But Paul Formain, a strangely gifted young engineer, doesn't believe a word of it. So he comes to Walter Blunt's Chantry Guild, whose motto is "Destruct!" and whose stated goal is the end of civilization. There are Alternate Laws at work in the world, says the Chantry Guild; Walter Blunt has pledged his life to them, and to the principle of destruction as a positive force. After centuries of hope and progress, and the triumph of science, something strange is happening to mankind. And whatever it is, it's going to be big.

©1962, 1990 Gordon R. Dickson (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

Good Dickson.

If you could sum up Necromancer in three words, what would they be?

Before it's time.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Necromancer?

Villan revealed as hero, or vice-versa.

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

Yes, pretty much on the same level.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No, but it made me think about thinking.

Any additional comments?

I read the original Dorsai book when it first came out. The Audible book of Dorsai was as good as I remembered, But, so far, I don't see how Necromancer fits into the series. Hopefully book 3 will clear up the mystery.

Confusing

Since this book was a series, I thought there would be some continuity. No so, didn't make sense. wish i could return it.

Not a Dorsai story but still good

Interesting solid story in the Dorsai universe but not a Donal story. after getting over the disappointment I really enjoyed the story.

Rapid delivery of complex story

I’ve read Necromancer several times as it deals with events at the start of the Dorsai series.

Some of the ideas explained are fairly complex. The narrator keeps a rapid pace throughout the book, presumably to keep the listener interested, but that didn’t work for me. I struggled with the accent and tone. It was dry and flat. There was little time to absorb details before the next scene was relentlessly upon you.

Previously after reading through the Dorsai Childe Cycle I read Necromancer and it helped me to understand how the splinter cultures came about. As Paul Formain (apt name btw) finds himself the stage is set for Tactics of Mistake. It’s a short mystery tale. I enjoyed it as part of a whole rather than as a story in its own right.