The 'time gate' by the time our main protagonists venture back to the Pliocene Era has been formalized, with groups of eight going through each morning.

This is more a continuation of the story than a sequel to The Many-Colored Land maybe the publishers felt one volume would be too long? In any case, The Golden Torc picks up right where we left off. A pleasure to read.īook 177 of my science fiction and fantasy reading project. It remains to be seen if all three cultures can agree on his elimination!Ī lovely balance of male and female roles, which passes the Bechdel test with flying colours. Which begs the question of how that was possible-presumably some hints will be given in later books.Īiken Drum continues to be a wild card-showing odd moments of compassion, but mostly looking out for number one, this psychopathic human has angered all sides of the conflict now, Tanu, Firvulag and Human. Unknowingly, the Tanu’s torment of certain humans opens the doorway for operancy.Īlso an interesting revelation: Mercy (the woman who drew the anthropologist Bryan into exile) has been genetically tested and though she came from the future, she is almost full-blooded Tanu. Just like childbirth, there is pain & struggle, but once the end product is achieved, there is joy. We also discover that becoming psychically operant is not for the faint-hearted, there is pain involved and even necessary for that transformation.

I love May’s involvement of geology in this book, and the couple of appearances by plesiosaurs! Despite the fact that we’re pretty sure that those massive marine reptiles didn’t live in the Pliocene, but still, plesiosaurs! Honour means different things to different cultures and May exploits those differences masterfully. It’s reminiscent of the British facing Native Americans, two different codes of conduct ending in unexpected victories for the less-well-armed side of the conflict. For one thing, humans are willing to fight dirty.

The worm turns, when humans turn out to be nastier and craftier than their Tanu overlords ever imagined. Lots of nice twists & turns in this second installment of the Saga of the Pliocene Exile.

The many colored land by julian may