Coyote

A Novel of Interstellar Exploration

By: Allen Steele

Narrated by: Peter Ganim, Allen Steele

Length: 17 hrs and 36 mins

Publisher's summary

Coyote marks a dramatic new turn in the career of Allen Steele, Hugo Award-winning author of Chronospace. Epic in scope, passionate in its conviction, and set against a backdrop of plausible events, it tells the brilliant story of Earth's first interstellar colonists - and the mysterious planet that becomes their home...

The crime of the century begins without a hitch. On July 5th, 2070, as it's about to be launched, the starship Alabama is hijacked - by her captain and crew. In defiance of the repressive government of The United Republic of Earth, they replace her handpicked passengers with political dissidents and their families. These become Earth's first pioneers in the exploration of space...

Captain R. E. Lee, their leader. Colonel Gill Reese, the soldier sent to stop Lee. Les Gilles, the senior communications officer, a victim of a mistake that will threaten the entire mission. Crewman Eric Gunther, who has his own agenda for being aboard. His daughter, Wendy, a teenager who will grow up too quickly. Jorge and Rita Montero, ordinary people caught up in extraordinary circumstances. And their son Carlos, who will become a hero in spite of himself.

After almost two-and-a-half centuries in cold sleep, they will awaken above their destination: a habitable world named Coyote. A planet that will test their strength, their beliefs, and their very humanity...

In Coyote, Allen Steele delivers a grand novel of galactic adventure - a tale of life on the newest of frontiers.

BONUS AUDIO: Includes an exclusive introduction by author Allen Steele

©2003 Allen Steele (P)2008 Audible, Inc.

Poorly thought-out

I wanted to like this book. I really really did. The original premise is fairly engaging. The narrator is pretty good. But, there are some things in here that just make me want to slap the author and say "what were you thinking?"

If you enjoy smart sci fi, where the author has clearly thought out the situation and considered the possibilities presented by the level of technology that he has established, then stay away from this book. If you like believable characters who don't speak in cliche, stay away from this book. If you get annoyed when a character does (or doesn't do) something that is clearly only there to set up a situation the author wants to get to, then please, do yourself a favor, and just don't go here.

I listened to the whole dang thing. I have a hard time quitting a story once started, and I kept thinking that maybe this would get better. Maybe, once we got past the travesty that was the story of the actual colonization, it would start making more sense. Sadly, this was not to be. While the last part of the book seemed like it was going to finally hit a stride and start being smart, it took an absolute nose-dive in the final hour that has pushed me past anger, past disappointment, and simply left me baffled at what the author could have been thinking.

offensive

I found this book incredibly offensive. The right wing-conservative bashing was unbelievable. Why couldnt this guy write about left wing fascist? We all know that it is the left wing that will not allow free speech. They are the ones who want to run every tiny aspect of your life. I want my money back.

Bad narration

I managed to get through one chapter before I had to switch to another book. Imagine Steven Wright playing Spock - that's how monotonous this narration is. The Sci-Fi story may be fine but I'll never know. There are some voices you could listen as they read the phone directory, but this narrator kills what may have been a good book, or a crappy book. Either way, I'll never buy one of his narrations again.

Fiction, not science fiction.

There is very little science reality used as a base for this story. I am more used to the thoughtful presentations of Ben Bova, Robert Hienlien, and Isac Asimov. I found myself thinking "what...are you kidding me?" about six hours into the first book before I put it down and abandoned the whole series. Very disappointing.

This book is horrible

I hated it! Half of the book is told in a series of past 'captains logs' and the narrator is horrible. Seems like they were really trying to be like the enders series but failed miserably.

Sheesh

Would you try another book from Allen Steele and/or Peter Ganim and Allen Steele ?

Some reviews implied a typical story of a fight for freedom that, nefariously or ignorantly, shapes the story to ironically reinforce real-world ignorance and oppression. A story politically educated and/or southerners would be offended by. Sadly, it is. The abusive govt uses nearly all southern names of civil war or civil rights struggles for bad guys. So?

Civil rights was not a north/south but an R/D struggle except for the vote. Racist hiring and redlining was NATIONWIDE, causing 1960s race riots in Chicago IL, Detroit MI, Harlem NY, Watts CA, etc; most not southern cities but all D run. Using Jesse Helms (1960s racist who swapped D for R party LATER in 1970s. Media used him for decades to push falsehood it was the Rs opposing when it was mainly Ds). Yet, somehow, his story's bad govt uses only southern names. A George Wallace shuttle but no Mayor Daily police HQ building, etc names? Gosh, I wonder why? What real-world impression might that cause, or awareness prevent?

As to the civil war refs, the names with the rest of the story reinforce the falsehood it was about the north freeing the slaves and equality. Consider why wars are really fought and the export tariff that triggered the war. Southern industrialization stayed halted (no new competition) and civil rights had to wait yet another 100 years, nationwide. The goal was retaining regional econ dominance and used R/D parties.

Isn't it great 9 of 10 USA kids are effectively locked into schools controlled by politicians who need not worry about competition costing revenue or much of the public becoming actually educated and encouraged to think? I managed to get to the protagonist on the 2nd amendment, how libertarianism only works when all are on the same side –what BS. To hell with the 100 lb gal fending off a 250 lb attempted rapist, I guess.

See the first two Aristeia series novels for SCI-FI for what this novel was supposed to be without stupidly offending Rs, Ds, or people who actually think and just want entertainment without stupid protagonists.

This book had potential, but then it got stupid.

It started off well, good narrator, good big story, and then it went into a small, dumb, drawn out story about Carlos and Wendy. I felt like we were looking at the big picture, following a grand plot, and then it focused way in on a side story about a group of dumb kids. To top it off, I really didn't like the (uncredited) woman's performance who read this side story. So, I really felt like this book fell on it's face. It should really be called "Coyote: A Novel of Interstellar Exploration and a Piddly Story about Dumb Teenagers". The second book, Coyote Rising, gets even worse with dumb side stories about people who arrive on Coyote. Every story is more pointless then the last, and they were all so dumb that I never cared how they would end up tying together. I didn't finish it.

I should have read the reviews

For a fan of this genre, the science, characters and plot are central. This unfortunate book lacks all three. The author's hatred of conservatives and Christians flows through every character and every plot line. His utopian society is based upon theft, kidnapping, negligent homicide and lies. The author intimates that all of this is justified if one simply feels oppressed or has a generalized "spiritual feeling". Theft apparently does not trouble the author as he "lifts" the first half of his plot from Robert Heinlein. Lacking any understanding of relativity is but a small part of the author's shortcomings. His ignorance of science, history, and human natue make this a ponderous and unenjoyable book. The author is welcome to his political myopia; I am just sorry I paid to witness it.

Change the Narrator!

Oh dear, please oh please change the Narrator! It sounds like he's a badly made robot. The cadence is so mechanical, he almost sounds like he's reading stereo instructions.

Very average kept waiting for something....but...

Struggled to finish, a very mediocre sci fi story with many holes and leftover questions.