Steele Allen 03

Reviews & Overviews by Rod Cameron

Coyote Frontier – Allen Steele

Following on from my review of Allen Steele’s Coyote Rising last issue, you will no doubt remember that the planet, or strictly moon, Coyote was located in a solar system 40 light years from Earth. The first two books, Coyote and Coyote Rising concerned the colonisation of this moon. After two decades, the colonists have settled into a free and stable existence, but unfortunately technology is starting to fail and medical supplies are badly needed. The mistakes made on Earth such as destruction of forests are starting to be repeated here, just as Earth tries to pressure the colonists to take more immigrants.

And after my minor complaints about the lack of storyline in the second book, the author takes a look at the alien natives.

Coyote Frontier is written in the same style as the first – disjointed diaries, journals and more traditional narrative, and this style again works well in building up momentum quickly. The underlying theme is much “greener” in this book than the previous ones. The story is as usual very readable, with excellent characterisations. But I would suggest, only worth reading after the first two books – it does stand on its own, but what is the point. Much better to begin at the beginning.
One final comment, setting aside the 3 page epilogue, it remains to be seen whether the penultimate section of 20 pages is an irrelevant and unnecessary storyline, or the feed-in to another book.

Publisher: Orbit
Date: 2005
Pages: 479 Pages
Price: £6.99
ISBN: 1-84149-369-4
Format: Paperback
Reviewed by: Rod Cameron
Date Reviewed: May 2006

*Coyote Frontier* – Allen Steele
Following on from my review of Allen Steele’s Coyote Rising last issue, you will no doubt remember that the planet, or strictly moon, Coyote was located in a solar system 40 light years from Earth. The first two books, Coyote and Coyote Rising concerned the colonisation of this moon. After two decades, the colonists have settled into a free and stable existence, but unfortunately technology is starting to fail and medical supplies are badly needed. The mistakes made on Earth such as destruction of forests are starting to be repeated here, just as Earth tries to pressure the colonists to take more immigrants. And after my minor complaints about the lack of storyline in the second book, the author takes a look at the alien natives. Coyote Frontier is written in the same style as the first – disjointed diaries, journals and more traditional narrative, and this style again works well in building up momentum quickly. The underlying theme is much “greener” in this book than the previous ones. The story is as usual very readable, with excellent characterisations. But I would suggest, only worth reading after the first two books – it does stand on its own, but what is the point. Much better to begin at the beginning. One final comment, setting aside the 3 page epilogue, it remains to be seen whether the penultimate section of 20 pages is an irrelevant and unnecessary storyline, or the feed-in to another book.
Publisher: Orbit Date: 2005 Pages: 479 Pages Price: £6.99 ISBN: 1-84149-369-4 Format: Paperback Reviewed by: Rod Cameron Date Reviewed: May 2006