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Fantasy. Fiction. HTML: From refugee to tyrant of Jupiter, Hope Hubris is an exile of the planet he once ruled in this sci-fi saga from the New York Times�??bestselling author. This is the fifth in the series Bio of a Space Tyrant, featuring the stages in the life of Hope Hubris, the tyrant of Jupiter, and his beloved sister, Spirit. Child of flame and terror, born and bred to violence, Hope Hubris had ruled the solar system's most powerful empire with a fierce, uncompromising passion. His was a white-hot flame of justice that scarred friend and foe alike. Yet now he left Jupiter as an exile, his autocratic rule overthrown by the one person he could not oppose. Deposed, disgraced, but forever unbroken, the tyrant's greatest hour was still to come. For only he could shoulder the burden of humanity's boldest dream: to leave behind the confines of the solar system and journey outward to the stars. The epic of Hope Hubris comes to a blazing climax!… (more)
User reviews
I can't even say that the series jumped the shark here because that happened in volume 3 already.
Whereas book 3 had Piers' silliness show up with references to Florida and the US and book 4 was very overtly sexual, book 5 dipped into both of those vices, though not as severely as the previous volumes did. Not leave his inside jokes, behind, though, Piers did show us Hope's brilliance in unmistakeable fashion - although this brilliance is also apparent in many of Piers' other books - like the devious plots of the devil foiled by the various aspects of Immortality - or the plots of the various Wizards in the Blue Adept series. I enjoy it when creativity is used to get out of a tough spot, but things get wrapped up too nicely for my liking in Piers books.
The mystery of Hopie's parentage is finally revealed - and it was certainly nothing like he had suggested - but there was enough hints about it that it came as no real shock. The oddest thing for me was the complete lack of QYV in this book - it's only ever mentioned once - as the destination for Hope's manuscripts. And, in this volume, Piers actually did acknowledge his silliness with the naming of characters as he introduced Hope's last woman of consequence - Fortuna Foundling.
So overall - the series was an interesting diversion. I certainly didn't invest a whole lot of time in reading it - the books were small and light. There was enough sci-fi mumbo jumbo to keep things almost plausible - but the sex was a little too central for my taste and the neat bows that the various plot lines create at the end just weren't realistic enough for me.
I am a fan of Piers Anthony; but, reader beware -- this ain't no Xanth. Much more intense situations.