The Empress of Mars

By: Kage Baker

Narrated by: Nicola Barber

Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

When the British Arean Company founded its Martian colony, it welcomed any settlers it could get. Outcasts, misfits, and dreamers emigrated in droves to undertake the grueling task of terraforming the cold red planet - only to be abandoned when the BAC discovered it couldn't turn a profit on Mars.

This is the story of Mary Griffith, a determined woman with three daughters, who opened the only place to buy a beer on the Tharsis Bulge. It's also the story of Manco Inca, whose attempt to terraform Mars brought a new goddess vividly to life; of Stanford Crosley, con man extraordinaire; of Ottorino Vespucci, space cowboy and romantic hero; of the Clan Morrigan; of the denizens of the Martian Motel, and of the machinations of another company entirely - all of whom contribute to the downfall of the BAC and the founding of a new world. But Mary and her struggles and triumphs are at the center of it all, in her bar, the Empress of Mars.

Based on the Hugo-nominated novella of the same name, this is a rollicking novel of action, planetary romance, and high adventure.

©2009 Kage Baker (P)2011 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

“Most writers’ alternate universes are fun to visit, but Kage Baker’s is one I wouldn’t mind moving to: the Barsoom of Edgar Rice Burroughs... seen through the eyes of a writer far more poetic, vastly more scientifically literate, and with an infinitely superior sense of humor. Even as science-fictional taverns go, the Empress of Mars is memorable, a joint I hope I’ll be able to return to many times.” (Spider Robinson)

Competent

Author Kage Baker creates a fully imagined, logical world peopled with colorful characters. Listening, especially during the cold season, you can almost imagine yourself being there. On the down side, the characters do not change or develop. Rather than building, the conflict tends to bump along, occasionally breaking down like one of the dust-covered vehicles that roam the settlements. Everything comes together in the end, as expected, but the journey benefits from some fast-forwarding through the repetitive problems the characters encounter.

Kage Baker's Storytelling is Flawless!

This story is about a rag-tag group of pioneers on Mars, with a tough, salt of the earth, matriarch at their center. Mary Griffith runs the Empress of Mars, providing beer to the few residents that have been able to stick it out on a desert planet with no oxygen, freezing temperatures, and dangerous sand storms. I love all the characters that Kage Baker has placed in this story of life in a bio-dome on Mars. Mary Griffith, of course, is the heroine. She is feisty, strong, and fiercely protective of all her fellow pioneers. Her brew house is a haven to many interesting people, the ex goddess-worshiping heretic, the enthusiastic journalist from Nepal, the gentle South American artist that carves beautiful statues in the Martian desert.... Kage weaves many themes into this tale - religion, politics, and feminism, but she always keeps it humorous. This is the second Kage Baker novel I have listened to and I will now proceed to gobble up her complete list of works!

Very British

You'll recognize the British style of story telling pretty early on, it's got a feel of it's own that's hard to describe.. not "bad", just "different". The storyline itself is a bit on the "eye-rolling" side from time to time, and if you've had the pleasure to spend any time with a local (or AS a local) in a British Pub, you'll see all the stereotypical personalities mentioned here. It was a bit of a strange mix of styles for a Sci-Fi story, but I ended up enjoying it overall during a "Book Slump" when I couldn't seem to find one of the "Epic Great Sci-Fi Tales" we all love to find.

If you're in a book slump, you might want to spend a credit on this one.

A Delightful Space Adventure Terraforming Mars

Effortless is perhaps the best word I can use to describe Kage Baker's prose. The act of reading Baker's work, too, is effortless. Her ideas are multilayered and challenging, her references sly and knowledgeable, but falling into her world and her vision takes no work whatsoever. She opens the door, and I'm there. I do admire and miss her singular talent.

She had me at this early description: ""He had spent most of his adult life in Hospital and a good bit of his childhood, too, ever since (having at the age of ten been caught reading a story by Edgar Allan Poe) he had been diagnosed as Eccentric."

The "Empress of Mars" title works in three ways: 1) it refers to the Queen of England (who technically rules Mars); 2) it's the name of the only bar on the planet, "Empress of Mars"; and 3) it's the well-deserved description of Mary Griffith, the owner of the bar. Terraforming isn't going well on Mars, and Griffith's bar resembles nothing so much as the Island of Misfit toys. That makes it the perfect place to launch and fight for a new future for the planet.

Baker's work evokes the best of Burroughs and Heinlein and Bradbury -- and not a little of Joss Whedon's take on the space western, for that matter -- with a decidedly Anglophilic twist. Lovers of classic science fiction, adventure, and subtle social commentary will find much to enjoy here.

Although this technically takes place within the universe of Baker's Company series, it stands very well on its own.

Nicola Barber's narrator is a delight!

For Younger Readers

I would have absolutely loved this story when I was ten. It is a fun, entertaining piece of very light science fiction. I recommend it to younger readers. It was a bit simple for my tastes now, after more than four decades of avid consumption of written science fiction. I also found the narration pleasant, but also a bit irritating. She sounds like she is reading Mary Poppins to us. And the audio engineer(s) should be slapped on the wrist for not eliminating the sound of her sharp intake of breath, every few seconds. I found that highly distracting and quite annoying.

Ends with a smile

My first encounter with this author. A some what quirky story line that comes together nicely at the end. Life in the semi mythical western frontier in the U.S. transferred to Mars. I enjoyed it.

A fun romp through the Martian wastes!

If you could sum up The Empress of Mars in three words, what would they be?

Colorful droll intelligent

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Empress of Mars?

The conversation between Mary Griffith, Mother Willow and Mother Glenda. Inspired commentary on the neo-puritanism that may be found in any religion (or in any social movement)!

What about Nicola Barber’s performance did you like?

This gal nails every character perfectly. Wonderful voice, wonderful talent, wonderful performance. I especially liked her rendering of Mr. De Wit, as well as Ottorino's translation device.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes.

Any additional comments?

One of Baker's works that can easily be overlooked as merely a ScFy adventure story, but which is really much, much more.

A Fun Fusion of Heinlein, Shane, Barsoom, & Baker

Kage Baker's The Empress of Mars (2009) was an enjoyable listen. It reminded me of a cross between Heinlein's The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress and a western like Shane, but with a greater female focus.

Mary Griffith is the big-bosomed proprietress of The Empress, the only bar on Mars. She is working hard to live there with her three daughters and her handful of misfit workers, including Mr. Morton (an ex-psychiatric hospital inmate who would like to be a thespian), Manco Inca (an ex-terraforming specialist who is a devotee of Our Lady of Guadalupe), the Heretic (an ex-priestess of a Goddess worshipping religion), and Ottorino Vespucci (an ex-actor from a western show). Mary herself was a biologist employed by the British Arean Corporation in charge of colonizing Mars until they decided to cut costs and fire their workers, leaving them stranded on the red planet. Now Mary brews the best (the only!) beer on Mars, deals firmly and fairly with her neighbors, and takes in any strays who need a place to live. Can she keep her family intact and The Empress in business despite the corporation trying to take her land and the religious organization trying to make her clean up her act?

Kage Baker interestingly imagines how colonists might live on Mars, covering details like oxygen, temperature, shelter, terraforming, transportation, business, entertainment, reproduction, and religion. Her characters are often compelling, with different pasts, problems, and strong points. She also works into her novel plenty of funny allusions, to Edgar Rice Burroughs, Edgar Allan Poe, The Wizard of Oz, Spiderman, Clint Eastwood, and so on. Her Mars is attractively gritty and sublime. And although she is sympathetic to women and their strengths and understands men and their weaknesses, she is not writing a feminist manifesto. Instead, she is on the side of kindness, freedom, fairness, tolerance, hard work, and fun.

Reader Nicola Barber has an appealing British voice and dexterously modifies it for different accents (American, Australian, cockney, Italian, etc.), and she doesn't strain herself unnaturally for men. My only criticisms are that sometimes she breathes in audibly and that sometimes it's a little difficult to distinguish between her accents for Chiring the Sherpa and Manco the South American, but really it's pleasant and easy to follow the story as Barber reads it.

All in all I found The Empress of Mars to be an entertaining book, but I bet I won't deeply remember it.

little guy v. conglomerate

If you could sum up The Empress of Mars in three words, what would they be?

Dust, wind, and people. Even in the harsh environment of Mars, people are people everywhere. Great characters, nice twist at the end, excellent reader.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Ottarino Vespucci, the poor little rich boy with the serious Wild West fantasy obsession. In spite of being a loon, he was a caring and creative person who made life work for him the way he wanted it.

What about Nicola Barber’s performance did you like?

She made the characters come alive and didn't overpronounce any words.

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

I enjoyed this story of the little guy in difficult circumstances pitted against the big inflexible conglomerate. There were some excellent plot twists that I did not see coming.

Any additional comments?

Great space western with women in some of the important roles.

Brilliant, funny, and compelling

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I had this on my wishlist for a long time after seeing it as a recommendation. Wish I had taken it earlier. The cast of misfits are adorable, the back story is different, and the sci-fi elements are pretty minimal (antigrav being the exception).

Life on Mars is portrayed as a mix of European colonialism gone bad, with elements of life on the wild west frontier. Most of the people are reluctant colonists, either signed up from psychiatric hospitals, on the run from their previous life, or victims of "get rich quick" government and company propaganda.

As the Company tries to gain leverage over their errant tenants, and to take control of their more valuable assets, the tensions builds to a climax.

Any additional comments?

The book manages to keep a high degree of action and tension while only showing a bare minimum of violence. No sex scenes or bad language. Shows how it can be done.