Three empires existed in uneasy proximity in the known galaxy. They all have one thing in common--demons. In a region of space called Rainbow Bridge, an Exchange scouting expedition has found a mysterious structure with its mechanisms still functioning after unknown aeons. Within are bodies of two gigantic, horned creatures, perfectly preserved--or are they alive?.
From Publishers Weekly
In the start of another splendid adventure series, Chalker ( The Changewinds Saga ) posits a galaxy ruled by three multi-specied empires: the Exchange, based on (very) free enterprise; the Mizlaplan, where religious perfection is sought; and the feudal Mycohl. Humans are represented in all three. An Exchange vessel mapping a distant frontier finds demons--a common image in the folklore of all known races--in suspended animation and sends an emergency warning. Each empire dispatches a team to investigate. Three sections of the book, told from the perspectives of each of the cultures, describe team members and how they were created. The three vessels converge on the planet where the warnings originated to find the first expedition destroyed and demons gone. The end of the first volume leaves the Exchange team trapped in the demons' edifice, apparently a multi-dimensional tesseractok , about to follow the other two teams into unknown worlds. Chalker's humans and aliens, and their political credos, are extremely well drawn, the shifting points of view gaining sympathy for all three sides. The only villains so far are the demons. Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Review
"Eminently entertaining ... explodes into action from page one". -- Houston Post
Description:
Three empires existed in uneasy proximity in the known galaxy. They all have one thing in common--demons. In a region of space called Rainbow Bridge, an Exchange scouting expedition has found a mysterious structure with its mechanisms still functioning after unknown aeons. Within are bodies of two gigantic, horned creatures, perfectly preserved--or are they alive?.
From Publishers Weekly
In the start of another splendid adventure series, Chalker ( The Changewinds Saga ) posits a galaxy ruled by three multi-specied empires: the Exchange, based on (very) free enterprise; the Mizlaplan, where religious perfection is sought; and the feudal Mycohl. Humans are represented in all three. An Exchange vessel mapping a distant frontier finds demons--a common image in the folklore of all known races--in suspended animation and sends an emergency warning. Each empire dispatches a team to investigate. Three sections of the book, told from the perspectives of each of the cultures, describe team members and how they were created. The three vessels converge on the planet where the warnings originated to find the first expedition destroyed and demons gone. The end of the first volume leaves the Exchange team trapped in the demons' edifice, apparently a multi-dimensional tesseractok , about to follow the other two teams into unknown worlds. Chalker's humans and aliens, and their political credos, are extremely well drawn, the shifting points of view gaining sympathy for all three sides. The only villains so far are the demons.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Review
"Eminently entertaining ... explodes into action from page one". -- Houston Post