# The Gap Cycle by Stephen R. Donaldson



## Southern Geologist (Jan 12, 2013)

[Please note that this is a review of a series of books rather than any individual book within the series.] 

Stephen R. Donaldson is primarily known for the dark fantasy work *The  Chronicles of Thomas Covenant*, which kicked off his career.  The *Gap  Cycle*, however, is a space opera.  The sub-genre space opera is a form of science fiction  traditionally characterized by a focus on grand adventure, melodramatic  romance, a war of good versus evil, and characters rather  than technology.  The setting of outer space tends to be used merely as a backdrop for the  action.  The *Gap Cycle* is a space opera in a more literal sense, too:  The last four books in the series were inspired by Wagner's  Ring Cycle.

I should note at this point that the Gap Cycle is a  subversive work which viciously tears apart the conventions of formulaic  space opera.  Technology, while taking a back seat to the characters,  is present as more than just a backdrop and the author makes an attempt  at a level of realism that goes beyond traditional space opera.  Grand  adventure  is replaced by the simple and brutal reality of the difficulty of  survival while engaging in interstellar travel and the dangers and  widespread influence of politics even on distant regions of space.  The  characters, too, are complex.   There is no black and white morality.  The author stated that his intent  with the first book in the series "The Real Story" was to display the  shifting roles of victim, victimizer and rescuer, and this theme is  pervasive throughout.  There is no galaxy-wide battle featuring mankind  taking on the evil forces of invading aliens--aliens are present and do  have a distaste for  mankind but their method of warfare is much more insidious than simply  sending ships out to blast stuff--humankind are  fragmented and in perpetual conflict, both as a result of human nature  and of political conflicts.

The series starts slowly with a focus on three main characters, all of  whom are fighting for survival--physiological and psychological--in their own (sometimes despicable) ways,  but slowly expands its scope to reveal a much bigger picture.  About  half-way through the second one book will see that these people are  pawns in a much larger political conflict that is revealed in full later in the series.

Donaldson thrives at subverting genre conventions but his  greatest strength is in characterization.  Of the three starting  characters and only one should be the least bit sympathetic.  One is nothing  short of monstrous and another lies somewhere in the middle, but he is  no saint either.  And yet these characters--and those that come  later--are fascinating.  Third person limited viewpoint is used  throughout the series with the viewpoint switching from character to  character in alternating chapters.  The author uses this technique  magnificently to peel away layers of lies and distrust and let you peer inside the mind of  the main characters and find out who they really are and--more  importantly--why.  Much like real life, hardly anyone is evil just for  the sake of being evil, or good merely for the sake of goodness, they've all  had experiences--good and bad--that make their thoughts and actions  inevitable and you will find out why.

Another of the author's  great strengths is in writing action scenes.  He generates intelligently  written, tense action scenes with a level of skill that most writers  couldn't dream of achieving.  His work had me flipping pages like a mad  man, staring intensely at the text, terrified of what would happen  next--would these people survive?--but needing to find out in spite of  myself and and needing to find out  immediately.  I must acknowledge that his skill at pacing assists in  making the action scenes so engaging.  He knows how to slowly build the  story to a climax and feed you just enough details to let you know what  might be coming next, but not enough to know how it will play out.   You're  left wondering if this chase or that plan will work out, if any of your  favorite characters will die and, if so, who.  That his writing  generates this dilemma seems quite  appropriate given that Heisenberg's uncertainty principle is used as an  analogy for our inability to determine the outcome of human behavior  throughout the series.  The books are also structured well; they get  progressively longer as the series continues but at no point did I feel  lost or that there was fat that needed to be cut.

Be warned,  though, Donaldson is not one to pull punches.  Many people have  difficulty getting through the first book in the series--the  prelude--because of the violence and sadism contained within that short  volume.  Out of darkness comes light, but the series is gritty and a  reader will be lost in darkness for a while before they get a glimpse of light.

This series is one of the finest pieces of  fiction I've ever had the joy of reading and comes highly recommended, but it is not for the weak of  heart or stomach.


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## Foxbat (Jan 13, 2013)

I think this is a very fair and honest review. I've come across a few people who failed to get past The Real Story but, if you do make the step beyond, the rewards are great.


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## Southern Geologist (Jan 13, 2013)

Thank you for the compliment.  I've noticed that people have trouble getting past *The Real Story* and (probably should have mentioned this in my review but forgot) I think that's partially because of the sexual violence in that one and partially because it's the weakest book in the series.  I think Donaldson made a smart move when he asked the publisher to combine *The Real Story* and *Forbidden Knowledge* into one volume for the latest reprint.


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## Fried Egg (Jan 14, 2013)

I don't think "The Real Story" is the weakest in the series but it is the only one that can stand alone. In a way, it's almost an extended prologue for the rest of the series, and yet it is more than that. I think that Donaldson was setting up the most repugnant, repulsive and unlike-able character he could (Angus Thermapyle) with the intention of transforming the reader's perception of him by the end of the series. At the end you will find yourself cheering him on despite despising at the beginning.


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## Foxbat (Jan 14, 2013)

Fried Egg said:


> I think that Donaldson was setting up the most repugnant, repulsive and unlike-able character he could (Angus Thermapyle) with the intention of transforming the reader's perception of him by the end of the series. At the end you will find yourself cheering him on despite despising at the beginning.


 
I think you're spot on with that statement....and yes, I was cheering him on at the end


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## Southern Geologist (Jan 14, 2013)

Fried Egg said:


> I don't think "The Real Story" is the weakest in the series but it is the only one that can stand alone. In a way, it's almost an extended prologue for the rest of the series, and yet it is more than that. I think that Donaldson was setting up the most repugnant, repulsive and unlike-able character he could (Angus Thermapyle) with the intention of transforming the reader's perception of him by the end of the series. At the end you will find yourself cheering him on despite despising at the beginning.



For what it's worth, I did enjoy *The Real Story* and did not find it to be a weak book _in general_, but I do stand by my statement that it's the weakest in the series simply because what it is stacked against is nothing short of magnificent in my eyes.

I think you're largely right about his goal with Angus, though I will note that Donaldson stated that he originally intended the work as a stand-alone novella to demonstrate a reversal of the roles of victimizer, victim, and rescuer but gave up on it for several years because he could never make the work match his standards for being publishable until he came up with the idea of using it as a prelude to a series.  That said, it is entirely possible that he re-wrote Angus to be even more of a ******* once the idea of using it as part of a series came to him.


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