Kevin's Watch

Has anyone read the Tripod Trilogy? They are:

The White Mountains
The City of Gold and Lead
The Pool of Fire

The books are mainly for adolescents. I really loved them when I was young. I recently reread them and I found they were still fabulous.

Has anyone else enjoyed these books?

Yeah, I loved them, then and now. There's also a "prequel" called When the Tripods Came or something like that. (Been years, literally).

Ever read any of his others? I particularly liked the alternate reality series, Fireball, Newfoundland and Dragon Paths if I remember correctly.

As you say, intended for adolescents, but still very good sci-fi. Stuff like that really is timeless.

Must say I liked the idea of the "Place of Blessed Relief" for the slaves who could no longer serve the masters.

And a great exploration of the differences in perception that may occur between ourselves and other intelligent species. Also liked the way that humanity so quickly adapted to their presence.

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I found the prequel wasn't as good as the original trilogy. I have just bought the Prince in Waiting series, but I haven't read it yet. I shall have to try the others you have mentioned

What I loved about the White Mountains was how Christopher described everyday things that were no longer everyday things, but you kind of had to figure them out--i.e. their hiding place being a former hotel. There are several other examples. I know this seems rather simple, but the way these things were meshed into the story really pleased me.

I also liked the fact that Will was not a hero. He was an impulsive person who succeeded only because of sheer luck, not through any type of skill or forethought. I hate reading about perfect heroes. I think that is why I enjoyed Covenant so much.

The place of blessed release was ingenious - of course, they had to have something like that because of the conditions the slaves lived under....and their relative worthlessness to the Masters. I remember reading the description of the sweat building up against Will's chest because of the mask being buckled under his shoulders and squirming in my seat while thinking how uncomfortable that would be.

It's so nice to find someone who enjoyed these books, too.

Forgot about the Prince in Waiting. Those were great as well.

I agree about the prequel, but I still enjoyed having the different perspective on it. Particularly how the caps evolved.

Another thing I liked was the whole idea of a global resistance. It wasn't a case of "British resistance" saves the world, it was a co-operative.

On the subject of adolescent sci-fi, ever tried Douglas Hill? Colsec Series, Legionnaire series and one other one, about aliens taking earth over and reducing people to the status of animals, basically.

Very good, if you get the chance.

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