''Anvil of Stars'' is a science fiction novel by American writer

Greg Bear Gregory Dale Bear (August 20, 1951 – November 19, 2022) was an American writer and illustrator best known for science fiction. His work covered themes of galactic conflict ('' Forge of God'' books), parallel universes ('' The Way'' series), ...

, a sequel to ''

The Forge of God ''The Forge of God'' is a 1987 science fiction novel by American writer Greg Bear. Earth faces destruction when an inscrutable and overwhelming alien form of life attacks. Plot The novel features scenes and events, including the discovery of ...

''. The book was initially released in 1993 by Warner Books.

Overview

In the novel, volunteers from among survivors of the recently destroyed

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

are sent on a

quest A quest is a journey toward a specific mission or a goal. The word serves as a plot device in mythology and fiction: a difficult journey towards a goal, often symbolic or allegorical. Tales of quests figure prominently in the folklore of ever ...

by a mysterious race of beings known as "The Benefactors" to find and destroy "The Killers", the civilization responsible for the Earth's destruction. The Benefactors' Law requires the "Destruction of all intelligences responsible for or associated with the manufacture of self-replicating and destructive devices." The book is written almost entirely from the point of view of a central character, Martin Gordon, known as Martin Spruce, who is the son of a central character in ''

'', Arthur Gordon. Although a leader or Pan, Martin has moral qualms. His successor, Hans, however, does not hesitate to finish "the Job."

Plot

There are two interwoven themes in the novel. The first is the cost of justice. Destroying the race that attempted to destroy humanity (and, it is later revealed, other races) appears to be a simple matter of retaliation. The Killers, when they are discovered, have formidable philosophical defenses in addition to their vast technological resources. They have created hundreds of sapient races, interlocked in a culture of breathtaking complexity and beauty. The execution of justice falls to children of the destroyed planets. Those from Earth base their on-ship culture on

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by List of Scottish novelists, Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and Puer aeternus, never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending ...

, calling themselves Wendys and Lost Boys. It is revealed once the Leviathan system is destroyed that the Killers were in fact still in the system, and had continued to manufacture fleets of self-replicating machines to destroy alien races. However, while the Killers were destroyed and justice served, trillions of what were likely innocents had to die to accomplish this. Bear leaves the human crew torn between relief that their work is complete and their guilt that they were little better than those they had come to destroy.

Reviews

*Review by Russell Letson (1992) in Locus, #374 March 1992 *Review by Faren Miller (1992) in Locus, #374 March 1992 *Review by Gary K. Wolfe (1992) in Locus, #375 April 1992 *Review by Andy Sawyer (1992) in Paperback Inferno, #95 *Review by Mary Gentle (1992) in Interzone, #60 June 1992 *Review by Charles Von Rospach (1992) in Amazing Stories, July 1992 *Review by Thomas A. Easton s by Tom Easton(1992) in Analog Science Fiction and Fact, September 1992 *Review by John Clute (1992) in The New York Review of Science Fiction, October 1992 *Review by Colin Bird (1993) in Vector 173 *Review by Colin Steele (1993) in SF Commentary, #73/74/75

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anvil Of Stars 1992 American novels 1992 science fiction novels American science fiction novels Novels by Greg Bear Legend Books books