Child of the River: Confluence Book 1

This is the sort of SF that doesn't seem to get written much now and is a great example of how good writing and imagination combine to produce great SF. I found this thoroughly entertaining and good fun. I liked the mix of ancient science with medieval life and the sense of a grander scheme than is revealed which provides for a lovely sense of mystery. The characters are also believable and not written to maximize the marketing demographic which seems to be the way now. Because the central character is believable he is authentic. He could recognizably appear in any frontier area or war zone that appears in the news today. This means you can develop a rapport with him and it makes his story believable. I hope this series helps other authors realize that good SF can be still be successful

A great book and very hard to put down!Good read for anyone and would definitely recommend it to everyone!

Nice, visual style of writing. The characters were fairly mediocre and there wasn't anything groundbreaking about the science, with this being more of a 'future fantasy' than a real science-fiction book. It's the first part of a trilogy, but unfortunately the plot doesn't reach any resolution by the end of the book, so it's probably best read as part of a whole. I've not read the other books and it now seems as though this book is out of print. This is a pity because the style of writing was very visual and the world the author has created, if not particularly original, was beautifully visualised. I would definitely keep an eye open for other books by this author.

Nice characters, slow story line. Like a third of an Anne McCaffrey novel strung out to be a whole book on its own. Would have done better if amalgamated with books two and three from the start. Ends at exactly the wrong point and shamlessly directs you to the next volume. Formula sequelisation at its worst. But a good if unsatisfying read.

This is one big book; if you read Book 1 you are more or less obliged to read the others since books 1 and 2 both end in classic cliff hangers. And the final closure in the last chapters of book 3 is huge. So monumental in fact that I had some trouble understanding what was going on. The final resolution, of the 'book' as much as the story, is very clever and illuminates events at the start of book 1, although it's a strain to remember that far back! But thankfully it has a resolution to match the scale of the series; if you've read 400 Billion Stars you'll know the kind of ending you're in for, only this one is three times bigger. In later books, McAuley got over this monster epic style, to advantage I think; his Jackaroo books and shorts are (mostly) understated and yet have a much more powerful effect.Some of Confluence is a little bit ..clunky. The main character's initial motivation for some incredibly rash decisions, so early on, is pushing it a bit, and the story occasionally drags, with the characters continually embarking on week long journeys to somewhere or other, only to stay put for a night before setting out on the next leg. This makes it rather linear and episodic which is not such a good look.But some of those episodes are very entertaining, the action is film production quality and the ideas come thick and fast throughout.I won't put Confluence in the masterpiece category (ref Neal Stephenson's 'The Baroque Cycle' for a masterful trilogy); it's an eary book from McAuley, although there are some notable themes here that are developed in his later work.Having now sadly read his entire output I can say it's been an exceptional ride. And this certainly has enough to rate it worth readibg with 5 stars for such a rich and well told story. Try his other books as well.

Coming of age, mystery, young love, and a bit of plot. Works for me... and six more words required, too.

Great story, I don't understand why there are not reviews. Kindle price is a great deal. Here is a review I posted after finishing the three volume series:It's hard to describe this book and the other two in the series. They were a combination of Lord of the rings, the New Testament story of Jesus,and 1001 Arabian nights. The author must have an imagination as wide as the sky to have created this series. It is a story of 1000 stories. Well maybe not 1000 but certainly a lot.One after another the stories unfold so that if you find one a little boring it soon and new one begins. Is the age old tale of the boy who saves the world. Seriously I cannot imagine how the author came up with so many ideas, such a vividly imagined kaleidoscope of a world and hundreds of different bloodlines/people. I don't write a lot of reviews. I read the first in the series which to me reads like one long book. Often the series will have a different feel from book to book as the author maturity.to me this felt like a unified work ended up reading all three one after the other, something I normally would not do. The series of books is highly recommended and I intend to read everything Mr. McAuley has written.

This has been one of my favorite books for many years. I have a treasured hard copy that I bought as a teenager, but was excited to find a digital version of these books! Rereading now!

Enjoyable.