new reader of gap series

[bloodguard]

ok so im about 2/3 of the way through book 2 and as expected i am really enjoying the series so far the only problem so far is that i find myself liking angus no matter how hard i try not to and i amnt proud of the fact due to the guy being an utter rapist and murderer but i also like nick as he doesnt "yet" seem nearly as bad as angus although is still mean enough to be "cool". just thought i would post this to keep you updated of what i have read and will let you know when book 2 is done.

and also would anyone like to explain the pre-empt act thanks

[Usivius]

well, I was having the 'liking Nick' problem (or at least somewhat sympathizing with him... see my post on second read of 'Forbidden Kowledge'); but I am in no way sympathizing with Angus. Liking the character as an element of the story is one thing, but I cannot come anywhere near the notion of 'liking' HIM...

[bossk]

Yeah - I've had trouble 'liking' any of the characters. I'm in book 3 now, so Dios is having potential.

[bloodguard]

ok finally finished book 2 now i dont know how cause my girlfriend never gives me peace she thinks 30mins is plenty reading time. anyway i agree warden dios does have potential to be a likeable character but with nearly another 3 books to go that possibly could change. i also think angus/joshua will become more likable as you sympathise with him because of his multiple zone implants but even that is unlikely so i will come back again when the 3rd book is done

[Variol Farseer]

Without giving anything away, by the time I finished The Gap I liked Warden Dios a lot, and had something approaching respect for Angus. Morn also improves as she gradually stops being a victim and starts taking charge of her life.

Bloodguard, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at how well your guesses turn out. You'd better hold on to that, because this is an SRD book, after all, and it's chock-full of unpleasant surprises as well!

[bossk]

ok finally finished book 2 now i dont know how cause my girlfriend never gives me peace she thinks 30mins is plenty reading time.

Oh god do I sympathize. My wife mostly reads magazines, so she doesn't understand that I need to immerse myself in the world I'm reading about, and that I can't chat about bills or anything else while I'm reading! I also have a 3-year-old, so reading time is mostly confined to lunch hour at work and bedtime.

[bloodguard]

yeah tell me about it i have a nagging bird and a 9month old son, although he doesnt moan all the time.
so im finished the 3rd book at long last and thought the ending was quite good and i have to say pity is seeping into my head regarding angus ,to be honest the little we have heard about how he was treated by his mother so far would make anyone slightly sympathetic towards him. and my like for nick has also lessened because of his desperate bargaining and sneakiness. so i am hoping to get fired into the next book and get through that mind u i still havent got the 5th book yet so i will have to really take my time wi this one

[Dawngreeter]

.... the only problem so far is that i find myself liking angus no matter how hard i try not to and i amnt proud of the fact due to the guy being an utter rapist and murderer but i also like nick as he doesnt "yet" seem nearly as bad as angus although is still mean enough to be "cool".

and also would anyone like to explain the pre-empt act thanks

Man the books only get better & better with each addition. It's alright how you feel about Angus; I felt the same way especially as I read more.

Don't worry about the Preempt Act as it will be adequately explained later along with a bunch of other stuff. Just keep plugging along and hold on to your hat!

[Nav]

The Pre-empt Act basically gives the UMCP the authority to take over a case from a local security agency. Angus' apparent collaboration with a Com-Mine security officer was used to shock the GCES into rushing the act through, without considering that it effectively was giving Holt Fasner carte blanche to use the UMCP for whatever purpose he wished.

By the end of the Gap I liked Angus, hated Nick and had a grudging respect for Dios. In Angus' case, we were made fully aware of everything that had happened to him growing up and it was easy to see how he'd become such a sick and depraved human being. This makes any humanity that Angus' displays seem that much more remarkable.

Initially I liked Nick's cool, swashbuckling exterior, but as the series progressed we see more and more how his appearance and reputation matter more to him than anything else. What's more, his drive in this respect stems from a bad experience that, IMO, he brought upon himself to a large extent. As SRD said at the end of the third book with regard to his villain/victim/rescuer trinity: "Now it's Nick's turn to be the victim, and it couldn't happen to a nicer guy."

As for Dios, it's hard to sum him up without giving away quite a bit from the later books, but

Spoiler

I felt that, although he ultimately saves mankind from Holt's tyranny, he was a big part of the mechanism that created Holt's power in the first place. On balance, I think he does a little bit better than breaking even.

[Usivius]

Well put, Nav. I agree with the Warden assessment, but give him much more credit and like his character much more than you, I think. He was one of my favourites. And I gain a grudging respect for Angus by the end.

[greyy]

They will talk about the pre-empt act so much in the rest of the book, it will all be clear to you later. At the point in the book you are in, the act is puposefully vague.

[CovenantJr]

Agreed. SRD's timing of information is important.

[Elfgirl]

...but i also like nick as he doesnt "yet" seem nearly as bad as angus although is still mean enough to be "cool".

You're looking at someone who FELL IN LUST with Nick!! I'd have swapped places with Morn in a heartbeat! (and not need to fake it, either )

[A Gunslinger]

You like the bad boys, don't you Elfy?

I am about halfway through book 1 (my second reading, but it has been 7 years). You gotta feel for the gap-sick Morn.

[exnihilo]

I'm having a hard time getting going with book 4 right now. Seems like we've lost some of the momentum of the nonstop action of books 2 & 3. I guess SRD is regrouping somewhat to set up the next phase of the action.

[Usivius]

push ahead! Despite some slowdown in teh middle books (as I see it) Book 5 is well worth it! and you need to read all books before. It's ot just about a dynamic ending, but about how Morn comes to heal everyone! Yet net herself ... there it lies with others ...

and the last cople of chapters are tear-jerking poetic for me....

[A Gunslinger]

I am done with one and starting 2. To new readers you must stay with it. MUST.

Peaceful hegemony indeed!

[neuroticboy]

ahhhh all you who are just getting through the gap for the first time. i read them all as they came out many years ago and am surely over 35 or 40 times through for the series. it's my opinion-2 things- that this is by far srd's best work, and also deserving of some of the best scifi of all times, and this is coming from a diehard asimov/clarke/niven fan. the charecter and pov writing are definitely up there with asimov, and the story runs with the best. any of you all like orson scott card's ender books? read them if you haven't

comments and mail welcome

j gadsby

[Loredoctor]

ahhhh all you who are just getting through the gap for the first time. i read them all as they came out many years ago and am surely over 35 or 40 times through for the series. it's my opinion-2 things- that this is by far srd's best work, and also deserving of some of the best scifi of all times, and this is coming from a diehard asimov/clarke/niven fan. the charecter and pov writing are definitely up there with asimov, and the story runs with the best. any of you all like orson scott card's ender books? read them if you haven't

comments and mail welcome

j gadsby

Welcome to the Gap forum and welcome to Kevinswatch, neuroticboy. Great post, too.

[CovenantJr]

some of the best scifi of all times, and this is coming from a diehard asimov/clarke/niven fan

My girlfriend's a big fan of Asimov etc too, but she just will not believe me about the Gap.