Okay, time to give this book a review people can use. First, if you have not read at least the 4th and 5th books of this series, read them first. If you do not, this book is extremely confusing and hard to follow. It refers to several things that happen in the first five books, and they are integrel to the story. Also, I do not agree with the ending, it is confusing and hard to believe. Otherwise, it is an average and well-written book. A somewhat dissappointing conclusion to a series that should have ended after three books.

A good book in a good series

Thank you so much Piers Anthony for this wonderful addition to my favorite series you have written so far in my oppinion. You added so much to the characters and made me fall in love with the protagonists all over again.

This series started out very good. The first book, especially, pulls you in and hooks you. But in each subsequent book, logic drifts further and further into the background, while plot convolutions and "surprises" (which usually counter "facts" laid out in previous books) take the fore. And do they all have to end with a deus ex machina? Please!

This was by far the worst, and fitting that being the worst and final book in the series, it has the worst and final ending of its own. The one star I am forced to give it, it does not deserve.

well there is not much to say it was just fantastic and i loved it

...ly bad! Wow! I am in awe. I had to give this book a 5-star rating simply because any aspiring author of Sciene-fiction or Fantasy should have access to a copy. It is a finely-crafted example of both what not to do when writing fiction, and how it is possible to achieve publication with no merit whatsoever! As mentioned elsewhere, the "deus ex machina" devices abound in this travesty, and lengthy descriptions detail the puppet-like nature of our "hero", and how he does not feel he deserves the appellation. Quite true, too. Who needs to be when you have boots and gauntlets that automatically react in the best possible fashion in the face of danger, and a gun that turns magic back at its nefarious caster? Oh, and all this "travelling to places you can see or remember just by thinking of it" guff...puh-lease! The preface mentions that the reader need not have perused the preceding books in the series. An accurate assertion, as refreshers are given ad nauseum...believe me - this was the first I had seen of the series, and I was well and truly sick of the constant reminders of things I had managed to grasp by the first or second time they were mentioned. It is hard to describe the nature of this book's plot woes...for one thing, the heroes are never really at risk. The only major casualties sustained by the Roundear and his cronies (ie. "goodies") are anonymous infantry and a distant non-allied city-state. We see a lot of Zady shouting "I'll get you!" and showing surprisingly good aim with avian excrement - surprising because she never hits any targets with anything more lethal. We see a lot of hints of incestuous admiration, and a wonderful piece of condescension so purulent that it singlehandedly made sense of the whole Political Correctness movement for me (it involves the warm fuzzy feeling one gets for a slightly retarded human child that is almost equal to the one we get for its normal counterpart). But maybe I was just in a bad mood by that stage and read too much into it. The ending, and especially Mouvar's explanation of the whys and wherefores of the struggle with Devale, was particularly rank in terms of plot and pseudo-philosophy. I was, quite seriously, putting down the book every page or so to stop for breath and clear my head. What more can I say - rush out and buy a copy now! Or better yet, borrow someone else's, because trust me - you DO NOT want to have paid to read this.

It was obvious that Piers Anthony was ad libbing this book. It was so in need of editing, and so random that I'm amazed I finished it.

i bought this 'cause school wanted us to read this book. ok, wierd, too...just, not right. the writing was not very good, the story though was cool

If you are a Piers Anthony fan, you are probably not hooked on his writing. You are hooked on his creativity. This man has an imagination that cannot be duplicated anywhere. He can look at a droll, everyday item and turn it into a chapter/story. He not only creates imagery in words, but tends to turn the world upside down and around you. He is very thought provoking. If his technique has you down, back up and look for the real gem, imagination.

Normally I have always like his work, but this is the exception. I was intrigued by his discussion of time travel and the perils inherent in it. However, the story fell flat. Nothing is worse than a good short story idea that is forced into a paperback. I almost put it down but continued on in hope that the ending would at least tie it all together and make it a worthwhile read, but alas, it was not to be. I finished it while on the beach and almost threw it into the ocean I was so disapointed.

between history and scifi. It taught me a lot about the time period, and had an intruiging plot. Confusing ending. Overall, it's hard to classify this book exactly.

This book is not for the average reader. It's geared more towards the reader that grasp the concept of time travel. Also the respect of a man's devotion to his life's love. I also recommend that you listen to Living Colour's "Time's up!" as you read, it complemments the story.

Anthony admits in "Bio of an Ogre" that a lot of his fantasy inspiration is from the Arabian Nights. Here he tries a similar story in his style. You are better off buying The Arabian Nights in an unexpurgated edition -- yes, that means that when the hero sneaks into the harem, he really does it with the ladies. Its easy to see that Anthony's bold sexual themes derive from the inspiration of his source. However, the book lacks a certain dimensionality to the characters, as if this is an early work when he was an uncertain writer. I don't remember much of the story or plot, and that says it all -- its a throwaway imitation. Get the original source!

While I admit the story and characters are simplistic, I rarely look for depth when reading Piers Anthony novels. Most of his earlier works are written to appeal to a younger crowd. This book is told straight out in simple language a tale of adventure with an appropriate mix of heroism, sex, stupidity, love, and conflict. Hasan is admittedly one-dimensional, but that is to be expected of a poor young man who has been exposed to nothing but goldsmithing in his life...until he meets up with a crafty magician who cons Hasan into trapping himself on a mountaintop. This turns a blessing in disguise when his only means of escape leads to the gilded, isolated abode of a dozen beautiful and wealthy princesses who adopt him as their brother. He learns much from them but still never quite loses his naivety through the story. But this same naivety ultimately keeps him on his pursuit to rescue the marvelously pretty, artificially-winged woman he meets, marries, and then loses to a wrathful queen of the Isle of Wak (also, incidentally, inhabited entirely by beautiful women). Several help him in his quest, including a hardened but compassionate military general witch and an arrogant but humorous djinn. The book reads quickly...great to breeze through and then give to a friend, and a nice paperback to keep on your shelf afterward.

This book is very interesting. A little different than his other novels, but definately worth reading.

This book is mildly amusing with its odd cast of characters and plot mixtures. Among other things it contains humans, human/plant hybrids, ant people, good wizards, bad wizards, spaceships, magic castles, time warps, romance, etc. Spring (the human heroine) is a strong protagonist, but Herb is a bit wimpy as the half-human, half-plant hero. Read it just for fun, but don't expect too much. For a really intense read about green people, I recommend MISTWALKER by Denise Lopes Heald.

An interesting and sometimes humorous novel. Herb Moss and Spring go through a series of adventures as they try to elude an evil magician. The story tends to sidetrack into various fairy tales, and wanders a bit getting to the climax. A kidnapped maiden, dragons, and various ETs all add to the plot. The story becomes a bit corny at points, and gives a plant's eye view of life - those flowers you pick may be someone's children. Overall, it is good light fiction.

If you're making up a best ten list this year, you'll need only nine more.

This book had potential but somewhere it got lost. It has interesting characters and a reasonably good plot. Unfortunately, the sub-plots don't blend well in this story. The entire bit with the Chinese mer-people struck me as an overly complicated plug to test Don's ability to commit. The plot and sub-plots should flow like a melody and the harmonies. In Mercycle, the sub-plots were dischordant. They distracted rather than added to the story.

This story is not nearly as tight as other Anthony novels. I usually like his work. This book was a disappointment to me.

On the back flyleaf of my copy, Anthony tells the story of how this story was originally rejected by eight publishers and how its merits were miraculously discovered only after he was a popular author. I found myself instead thinking that the editors were right the first time and prostituted themselves once he was a popular author and that both of them are relying on the Anthony name to trick as many of us as possible into buying this book. Don't.

I thought Mercycle was a great book! I've never had a book just grab me like that and take me in along for the ride. From the first page to the last, I just couldn't get enough! Now I'm waiting for the next book after Mercycle. Hopefully there will be one! And let the next adventure begin!

I found MerCycle to be one of the more interesting SF novels I have come across. The idea of a lost Minoan city was fascinating to me, as I am a history major in college. While I would not go as far as to say that this is Piers Anthony's best work, I do believe it is, at worst, better than average for him.

Man, this book was bad. I mean BAD. I don't know what the other reviewers were reading, but this was just...I have no words.

Why did I pick it up? Piers Anthony supposedly can write a decent standalone novel, I really liked the early books in all his adult series, I am fond of "end of the world" stories...the book was thin. I had hope. That was my fatal mistake.

All six people are dysfunctional - Zera is whiny, annoying and takes forever to catch on. Gus is pathetic - hydrophobic, lazy, lacking in social skills and constantly leering at the women. Gordan/Gloria is another fine example of Anthony's misogyny - Gloria is only good at girly things, Gordon is great at manly things. By the end of the book, I hated them all and hoped they'd just die.

The interactions between all of them are immature and in many places, just plain unrealistic. The storyline was dull and uninteresting, the ending, disappointing, and the writing was very clunky and amateurish.

While the writing might not quite match that of Piers Anthony's more recent works, I like that this book stands alone. Too many science fiction and fantasy works today offer subtitles like "Book Two Billion of a Multi-Billion Part Saga in Nine Hundred Stages." If you like high-concept science fiction, then look no further. After rainbows of ice formed around the Earth, they began melting, leaving an unlikely band of people to save themselves and each other. I enjoyed the frequent action sequences, and the growing relationships between the characters. I especially liked how the attitudes toward the transvestite character slowly changed, and how all the survivors learned to work together.

It's hard to believe these days, but Piers Anthony used to write his books one at a time, or in trilogies of no more than three volumes. In fact, he was considered one of the best of Science Fiction's "New Wave" of writers of the late 60s and early 70s

Rings of Ice, while not as "edgy" as much of the literature of the New Wave, is a fine example of the form -- thoughtful, character-driven, often intensely moving. The characters are deftly and realistically drawn, the action gripping but plausible.

With everything else Anthony has ever written, edited or used to prop up a rickety table filling the shelves at all the major bookstore chains, it's astonishing that Rings of Ice has remained out of print for so long. Seek it out.

I have been a fan of Piers Anthony for many years: I have most of his novels, and have always enjoyed them . . . until now. I liked the other 3 Geodyssey books, but the quality of writing in this 4th book is surprisingly bad. The dialog and actions & attitudes of his characters is so contrived that it is hard to believe that Piers Anthony wrote this book.

I am rather liberal-minded when it comes to sex & erotica, but the sex in this book is surprising graphic, and lacks good taste.

The history is interesting, but Anthony has shot down his own dream of having these Geodyssey books in the classroom.

I loved the other 3 Geodyssey books. They're among my favourite novels and I keep trying to get others to read them. I waited a year and a half for Muse of Art to come to paperback so that I could finally read it. Well, I must say I was a little disappointed! The history was good just like in the other 3, but it read like bad erotica. Piers himself stated somewhere that the Geodyssey series wasn't selling the way he had hoped, I think he's now stooping too low on purpose to try to make it sell.

We can only hope that Climate of Change (the fifth and final) has the quality of the first three.

Although this book differed from other Piers Anthony works which were much more comedic, I loved it and would recommend it whole-heartedly to everyone interested in humanity, history, science, or learning about themselves. I did not read the first three books in the series but unlike most series I understood the story even without reading the first three. I thought that the book was a little bit heavy on the sexuality, but since reproduction is a major part of humanity, it was relevant. To anyone wondering whether to read it--I say go for it!!

In this inter-dimensional fantasy, Jack, a college-age art student, falls in love with, and eventually has relations with, the thirteen-year-old physically challenged girl he was supposed to deliver to a medical clinic. If that simple fact doesn't send you off book-burning right from the start, then you might find some small entertainment value in this mildly interesting story. People and things are rarely what they seem in this convoluted, but still easy to follow book, starting with the girl, Tappy. Blind,(although doctors say there's nothing wrong with her eyes), and mute, (although she talks in her sleep), and all the while wearing a leg brace, Tappy eventually takes Jack on a hike up a mountain side, walks right into a large rock, and leads him through it into another world. There they encounter a race of primitives (who nonetheless have some useful technologies), as well as some helpful androids, who explain that Tappy is actually the human host for the Imago, a sentient being that promotes empathy for all life. This makes her supremely dangerous to the Gaol, a race of brutal conquerors who rule the galaxy, and who intend to continue ruling it by imprisoning Tappy. Although there are some slow spots in the first half of the book, there are also lots of twists and surprises; but as is often the case with fantasies, the successive shocks become less and less impressive as you go along. Anthony has a good eye for description, and Farmer's sections are quickly discernable by their more scientific rationalizations, so that as a whole the book reads pretty well. Perhaps instead of asking "Who are you?" the Caterpillar should be asking "Who is your target audience?" The sexual content guarantees that this book can't be recommended to young readers, despite the fact that the authors try to assuge Jack's guilt by showing his remorse, Tappy's need, and the effect of the Imago living inside of her. On the other hand, there's little in the way of truly deep philosophical thought or sophisticated scientific speculation to lure the more experienced adult readers. So while this is not in all ways a bad book, the number of people who will really just love it is probably very small.