For Love and Glory FROM THE PUBLISHER
"Lissa, a human Earth woman, and her partner, "Karl," a giant alien academic who resembles a Tyrannosaur, are interstellar archaeologists investigating the remote and uncharted planet Jonna. There, they seem to have hit the jackpot. For on that distant world they've discovered an immense artifact that may have been left by the mysterious beings called the Forerunners. This race predated all the known cultures in the starfaring galaxy and vanished long before any other intelligent species had taken to the stars." But Lissa and Karl aren't the first to have made the discovery on Jonna. On the far-off world the archaeologists cross paths with the two freebooters whose plans for the arcane object are not purely scientific. Their discovery may be the best-preserved relic of the ancient beings yet found. Other artifacts from the Forerunners - once reverse engineered - have revolutionized entire fields of technology, reaping huge financial rewards. If the same is true for this newest discovery, Lissa realizes, only she and Karl stand between the seemingly friendly freebooters and what could be the treasure of a lifetime.
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
Hugo and Nebula award winner Anderson (Mother of Kings) incorporates two stories he wrote for the Asimov's Universe series into this absorbing posthumous novel, a fast-paced space opera that never lets the reader forget that aliens are alien. At a time when nearly immortal humans have colonized the galaxy, various space-faring species commingle freely and the residents of Earth have become as alien to other humans as true ETs, an astronomical event that may affect all existence is about to take place. Unfortunately, only one set of aliens knows what that event is and their ruling dictatorship is hell-bent on keeping it that way. Lissa Windholm, an Earth woman with a spirit of adventure men find attractive, is determined to uncover the mystery and share the knowledge with everyone. Lissa and her partner Karl, a tyrannosaurus-like scientist, make some startling archeological discoveries on the planet Jonna about beings known as the Forerunners, but a psychologically scarred starship captain and an impressively ancient and profit-minded human rogue have other plans for the relics. Moving from one key sequence to another, Anderson omits much of the buildup and back story customary for such epic-scale SF, yet his protagonists and the worlds they explore always feel rich and real. (May 23) FYI: Anderson died in 2001. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
Library Journal
On the remote planet Jonna, interstellar archaeologists Lissa Windholm and the giant lizard-like scientist known as "Karl," discover an immense artifact thought to belong to the mysterious race of technologically advanced Forerunners. However, another pair of galactic explorers also claim discovery of the object, with motives that may have nothing to do with the advancement of scientific knowledge. This far-future adventure by the late sf Grandmaster provides a compact tale of galactic intrigue, mystery, and adventure featuring a cast of engaging characters. A good addition to most sf collections. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
Kirkus Reviews
A final hurrah from the prolific Anderson (Mother of Kings, 2001, etc.), who died in 2001. In Anderson's galaxy, the legendary Forerunners vanished millions of years ago, having left artifacts scattered on dozens of planets. Surveying a habitable planet, explorer Lissa Davysdaughter, of family Windholm on planet Asborg, comes across a Forerunner device. Apparently still functioning, the device will be of enormous scientific value-but only if Lissa can persuade freebooter Torben Hebo, who also claims the device, to share. Torben agrees but then makes crude sexual advances, which Lissa rejects in disgust. In an age when everyone is immortal, long-term memory storage becomes a problem; Torben drifts off to Earth, now occupied by a sort of group intelligence, to have his memories edited. Lissa teams up with a dissident alien Susaian to discover the location of an event of extraordinary significance, the imminent collision of two black holes, information that the tyrannical Susaian government, the Dominance, definitely does not intend to share. Years later, Lissa again meets up with Torben; he has mellowed in the interim, and now claims to know the whereabouts of a planet where operating Forerunner devices may be found. In this new and dangerous venture, the pair again will be opposed by their old rivals in the Susaian Dominance. Episodic and meandering: a slight but mostly pleasing footnote to a career that varied widely, from frequent brilliance at short/medium length to patchy, too-often longwinded work.
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