The Tachyon Webby Christopher Pike
From Goodreads:
Originally published in 1986, this long out-of-print book has been frequently requested by Pike fans. It is the story of five young thrill-seekers who take a stolen spaceship out for a joy ride and blast beyond the Tachyon Web--the iron boundary that barred mankind from the worlds beyond. There they find danger, excitement and heartstopping adventure. And, on a strange alien world, one of them also finds loveMy Thoughts: I think it's the only Pike book from the 80's and 90's that I haven't already read (and that includes the one Cheerleader series book he wrote early in his career!). Although I never read his middle school books.
I'm a HUGE Pike fan, but I prefer his thrillers to his science fiction books- of which this was his first.. I'm not much of a science fiction fan, most that I have read for pleasure have been more sci-fi fantasy then pure science fiction. But because Pike is the author that he is, I was able to enjoy the characters and the drama of deep space adventure.
Eric goes along with his friends on a dangerous space run, they're already breaking the rules by not having the owner of the ship on board, but Eric's friends Shrem and Sammy are planning on breaking even more rules. They're going to jump the Tachyon Web.
I'll admit, I'm bad with the science fiction parts of the book. Maybe that's why it works for me? This book was written in the 80's so I'm not sure how some of the science has withstood the test of time, or how unrealistic it may seem to sci fi aficionados. So, while I was impressed with some of the plot details, I'm not sure someone with a more sophisticated knowledge of, oh, let's say how the blender works, would enjoy it as much.
I liked the romance and usual teenage angst. I would have liked to see even more of what made some of the minor characters tic- Cleo and Sammy in particular. I liked the ending, it's a little happier than some of Pike's later science fiction-y books like See You Later. Pike has a thing for downer endings, something which reading R.L. Stine did not prepare me for. What, the main character doesn't end up happy, or even alive? I appreciate it now, because few YA authors back then wrote without some major fluff.
Overall I enjoyed it, but when it comes to Pike I prefer Final Friends or Chain Letter (the first one, not the second). Will I still read everything he ever writes? Yup. I can't help it, I'm a fan for life.
The Tachyon Web gets a Midnight Book Rating of:
Glad you liked it. I haven't read science fiction in a long time... but I need to read Across the Universe, so maybe I'll end up liking it. (I'm on an action-mystery kick at the moment.)
ReplyDeleteI remember not liking this one. Probably because it's so sci-fi. I don't remember See You Later at all. It doesn't even sound familiar Chain Letter is by far my favorite of his. Side note: Out of all the books I've given away, his are the ones I regret the most.
ReplyDeleteYou know, I'm a hardcore Christopher Pike fan, but I have to admit that this one wasn't one of my favorites. That said, I did enjoy it, and I'd read it again if I had a copy! My absolute favorites of his are The Last Vampire (including the newly published continuations of the series…and I can't WAIT for Thirst V!) and The Immortals.
ReplyDeleteI'm tickled beyond words to see a C. Pike book up for review - it feels like no one really talks about him, even though he was writing awesome YA before YA was cool!
I think I'm going to have a marathon of reading the three Pike books you sent me, but I'm going to wait and read them all the week of your B-day as a tribute to you!
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