Olympos

Starred review from May 30, 2005
Drawing from Homer's Iliad
, Shakespeare's Tempest
and the work of several 19th-century poets, Simmons achieves another triumph in this majestic, if convoluted, sequel to his much-praised Ilium
(2003). Posthumans masquerading as the Greek gods and living on Mars travel back and forth through time and alternate universes to interfere in the real Trojan War, employing a resurrected late 20th-century classics professor, Thomas Hockenberry, as their tool. Meanwhile, the last remaining old-style human beings on a far-future Earth must struggle for survival against a variety of hostile forces. Superhuman entities with names like Prospero, Caliban and Ariel lay complex plots, using human beings as game pieces. From the outer solar system, an advanced race of semiorganic Artificial Intelligences, called moravecs, observe Earth and Mars in consternation, trying to make sense of the situation, hoping to shift the balance of power before out-of-control quantum forces destroy everything. This is powerful stuff, rich in both high-tech sense of wonder and literary allusions, but Simmons is in complete control of his material as half a dozen baroque plot lines smoothly converge on a rousing and highly satisfying conclusion. Agent, Richard Curtis.
7-city author tour.

November 1, 2005
Adult/High School -In "Ilium" (Eos, 2003), readers were introduced to Hockenberry, a 20th-century historian on a Mars of the far future restructured to look and feel like ancient Greece. He works for quantum-technology-wielding beings that brought classical mythology to life for their own amusement. "Olympos" places Hockenberry in an alliance with the Moravecs, a race of sentient robots who fear that the self-styled gods' technology will destroy the solar system. Together, they fight for ways to stop the Olympians. A second story line occurs on Earth, with humankind facing extinction from multiple directions. Voynix, powerful robotic creatures that once served humans, seem bent on killing and destroying everything they can. A monster named Caliban and a giant, pulsating brain known as Setebos add spine-tingling, H. P. Lovecraft-inspired terrors. Full of plot twists, doses of humor, and technologically pumped action sequences, this complex tale is nevertheless readable and surprisingly easy to follow. While it is even more complex than its predecessor, Simmons does a much better job of connecting the threads here. The mixing of Homer's "Iliad" and Shakespeare's "The Tempest" is likewise handled better, making more solid use of the personae. While it helps to have some familiarity with these classics, it isn't required. The spectacular ending leaves just enough open for a sequel. Fans of epic, action-driven science fiction will talk about this inventive and highly addictive thriller for years." -Matthew L. Moffett, Northern Virginia Community College, Annandale"

Copyright 2005 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 15, 2005
A temporary alliance between Achilles and Hector brings Greeks and Trojans together to lay siege to the mountain home of the gods. Soon other powerful beings become involved in a cataclysmic battle between humans and powerful entities, with names such as Demogorgon and Night. Like its companion book "Ilium", Simmons's latest mammoth novel takes place in the far-future where ancient Troy (Ilium) is re-created, along with its gods and heroes, on a terraformed Mars for the entertainment and edification of humanity's successors. Through the eyes of a resurrected and reconstituted 21st-century scholar named Hockenberry, the author of "Hyperion Cantos" explores the relationship of history and culture to the idea of humanity. An exceptional creation, this volume belongs in all libraries.

Copyright 2005 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2005
The final volume in Simmons' retelling of the " Iliad" begins with the Greeks and Trojans, led by Achilles and Hector, laying siege to the home of the gods when Agamemnon returns with the news that everyone outside of Troy has vanished. From that point, the novel becomes a huge maelstrom of characters from history, mythology, and literature and of beings of vast powers warring against one another and the humans in their various strongholds in a conflict that threatens to destroy the solar system, at the very least. Simmons tells each segment of this saga from a single viewpoint and thereby enables the reader to keep going without getting lost. Simmons fans and those who like whale-sized stories, not to mention those who want to see what happens after the action of " Ilium" (2003), will enjoy " Olympos."(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2005, American Library Association.)