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The many anecdotes and mathematical trivia that can be found in the book are enriching, and keep up the entertainment value. The result is lots of loose ends and unsatisfactory resolutions of subplots.
First, it was written by two authors that I like for very different reasons. Second, the title refers to one of the most fascinating stories in the history of mathematics, and I was curious to see what these great authors would handle that subject.Although the result is an interesting read, I was a little disappointed overall.
This book caught my interest for a variety of reasons. The authors had no problem gathering new momentum for the second part of the book, but in doing so they started more storylines than they could handle.
The search and eventual find of the elusive proof of Fermat's last theorem using only mathematical techniques known in Fermat's days is a capturing story, but once the proof is published the story deflates. What follows has nothing to do with the proof, and could just as well have been a different book.
In spite of the weaknesses, there are lots of treasures in this book. Overall I did not regret reading this book.
I picked this book up hoping that it would have the same sort of magic that earlier Clarke fiction had in spades. It is a mystery how this could have left the galleys.Ultimately, the worst realization for me was to conclude that had this book not been authored by two of the greatest names in the SF pantheon, it would never have been accepted for publication.Which leads me to think that this was not really a book that had to be written by choice, but possibly to simply fulfill a contract or pay off an obligation. Sadly, it was a major disappointment in every way. Other reviewers have it right - poor plot, cardboard cutout characters, oddly mocking tones, unresolved developments. Clarke and Pohl mailed this one in, and it shows. Unworthy coda to an amazing career.
Highly recommend it. This is the Arthur Clarke type of storytelling that I grew to love through the years. Wonderful story, interesting character development (thanks to Pohl) and great scifi mind candy to chew on. The audiobook version is done with the Sri Lankan accents that made it almost like a radio play. Nice bonus.
I picked up this book in great anticipation and I really, really wanted to like this story. It seems like a mix-match of many different ideas without any direction. It's one of those that makes you cringe as you read through it.CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: Superficial at best. I hope people do not remember Clarke by this piece of work, and I really think this is a total embarrassment to his illustrious writing career.PLOT: Basically, I grinded through the entire book expecting the author to make his point soon and tie the entire story together. Attempts at portraying real feelings make me feel like I'm reading the work of a 3rd grade student.I'm never posted any reviews on amazon before, and I'm wondering why I felt the strong need to write something here. It was a case when I really wanted to put the book down, but felt that the author has a trick up his sleeves on the next page. I just (painfully) finished this book today, and words to describe my thoughts include "disappointment", "unsatisfactory", and "thoroughly bored". Some of the plots cooked up by the author also seem ridiculous and quite childish.
This never happened. Ideas were raised and not followed up on, which make you wonder why it was mentioned in the first place. Characters do not have a life and soul, and I never developed any emotional response to any one of them. I think it's because I feel betrayed by Clarke.Don't waste your time on this poorly written and conceived book.
I also found myself wanting to know more about the various alien races by the end of the novel. I thought the premise was rather interesting especially since I enjoyed most of Clarkes other novels. Well I was excited to get this book when it came out. Additionally, I don't understand why they named the novel as they did since, as pointed out in other reviews, it doesn't ultimately have all that much to do with the story as a whole. I found this to be rather poorly written. I felt the story just tended to drift and could have used a good deal of tightening. All that being said however, it was still rather enjoyable. It's not for everyone, but if the premise sounds interesting or yoiu are a fna of either author, it would be a good 'save for later' selection for that rainy day read.
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