Ghosts in the Machine

I rated this novel C +, which translates to a Worls Without End rating of 1 star.  There were far too many needless/pointless plot complications, and seemingly endless reversals of fortune.  It was hard to find sympathetic characters, or to really care at all about what was happening.  This is my seventh novel by Robert J. Sawyer - and very much the worst of them.  If you want the best of the best - try "The Terminal Experiment".  The "Neanderthal Parallax" trilogy is also very good, although the first novel is much the best, and the third has major problems.

Note that for a novel, this book is pretty light in the loafers.  The trade paperback copy that I read was only 253 pages long - but the text did not start until page 17.

Robert J. Sawyer also has some very good shorter fiction.  It is great nice to see Canadian locations in his work.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Worlds Without End

My rating system for this website (I have done reviews for over 85 “books” (including short stories, novelettes and novellas, as well as novels).

Their system is out of 5 stars, and allows you to use half-stars, so highest rating is 5 full stars, next-highest 4 ½ stars, etc. – and lowest is ½ star.  I did NOT want to space these ratings equally, giving just as much precedence to low-quality mush as to really good works.  For that reason, I laid out my system as follows:

My rating system: I begin with one star being equivalent to a rating of “C  -”. Progressing upwards, I add ½ star for each step, up to the maximum 5 stars, which is equivalent to a rating of “A”+.  I reserve ½ star for BOMBS, there being no option of zero or negative stars. As a result, I maximize my rating space for good books, and don’t squander half or more of that rating space on books that are of marginal quality.