Sandy gave 4 stars to a particular work. The review can be found at http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi.... It seems that Sandy was quite impressed with the work, awarding it a solid 4-star rating.

This indicates that the work likely had several aspects that Sandy found appealing. Perhaps it had an engaging plot, well-developed characters, or beautiful writing.

Without reading the actual review, it's difficult to know exactly what Sandy liked about the work. However, the 4-star rating suggests that it is worth checking out for fans of the genre.

Whether you're a die-hard fantasy lover or just looking for a good read, it might be worth visiting the link provided to see what Sandy had to say about The Stonehenge Gate.

So, I had heard great things about this Jack Williamson fellow and decided that I would give him a try. I picked up an audio book through the library that was narrated by Harlan Ellison. Ellison has the ability to enhance any work with his remarkable performance.

I am approximately a third of the way through the book. It contains some nice science fiction elements from the 1930s. The characters are quite enjoyable. It follows the classic plot of exploring an alien and strange world. It is fairly entertaining, but nothing overly special.

Then, out of nowhere, a character mentions internet cafes.

What???

Did someone take a novel from the 1930s and attempt to update it for a modern audience?

After that, I looked at some reviews. Apparently, Williamson wrote this book in 2004 when he was 97 years old.

And now, I simply have to obtain more of his books. Because if he was capable of writing something like this at the age of 97, what must he have been like at his prime???

The premise of this story was truly excellent, yet it was not executed very well. Four professors stumble upon a Stonehenge-like gate in the Sahara that leads to other worlds. The other worlds are fascinating, but Williamson sometimes seems to stretch too far. The planet where a significant portion of the book takes place is strangely similar to the 19th century U.S., with colonial rule, slavery, and on the verge of civil war. Many questions remain unanswered, and an entire series of books could be written to explore the different worlds discovered in more depth. If that's the case, unfortunately, I won't be reading them.

My main complaint is the lack of depth in the characters. The book is told in the first person, and the narrator, an English professor who suddenly finds himself in the role of an interstellar explorer, has no personality at all. Throughout the entire book, all we know about him is that he's 57, single, a university English professor, has never had children, and feels 'giddy' at heights. That's it. We learn nothing about Derek, a fellow professor, except for his excitement about the adventure he finds himself on. And the poker analogies - I just wished they would stop.

Finally, a word about the audio version. Harlan Ellison was not a very good reader. His voice for Ram, from Kenya, sounded like an Irishman trying to do an African accent. It was strange and annoying, especially considering how many times he had to say the phrase "little mama" (Ram's great-grandmother, who seems to have given Ram some important knowledge when he was a child). The voices for the always-optimistic Derek and the young boy Kensith were equally irritating.

Overall, this was a great idea that was nearly spoiled by poor execution, both by the writer and the reader.

Four academics embark on a journey to Africa. During their exploration, they stumble upon a mysterious gate. To their astonishment, this gate enables them to travel to other worlds.

What unfolds next is an exciting adventure as they explore numerous worlds, each with its own unique characteristics and wonders. Along the way, they face various challenges and obstacles, but their determination to understand and survive keeps them going.

The main theme of the book delves into the fascinating idea that the builders of these gates might actually be our own ancestors. This concept adds an element of mystery and speculation, making the story even more captivating.

Overall, it is an interesting read that takes the readers on a thrilling ride through different worlds and makes them ponder about the possibilities of our past and the unknown.

Obviously, this piece of writing is not particularly gripping. In fact, it can be a bit tedious at times. However, despite these drawbacks, it still manages to be a worthwhile read. The content may not be filled with thrilling moments or edge-of-your-seat excitement, but it offers something of value. Perhaps it contains interesting ideas, useful information, or a unique perspective that makes it worth the time and effort to peruse. It may not be a page-turner that keeps you up all night, but it can provide a source of entertainment or enlightenment during a quiet moment. So, while it may not be the most exciting read, it is still one that should not be overlooked.

SINOPSIS:

A group of archaeologists and a friend (the narrator) are in Tunisia. They have observed through a GPS scanner some stone structures buried in the Sahara Desert that are very similar to those of Stonehenge. And without hesitation or laziness, they go there with the intention of conducting excavations.

They find this new Stonehenge with its trilithons and pass through one of them, which turns out to be a spatial door that takes them to an arid and torrid world, of a volcanic type with bone remains. They return and prepare to cross another trilithon, but here comes a kind of giant grasshopper about 3 meters long that catches one of them and slips through one of the trilithons. A rescue is necessary and they prepare to also cross the door and go after the grasshopper.

They thus arrive on another planet where, following a road, they find another trilithon that takes them to another planet. They keep jumping from planet to planet until they arrive at one where there is a river through which a civilization is developed consisting of black men (slaves) and white men (lords).

One of these space explorer-archaeologists is black and has a curious characteristic. He has a mole on his forehead that lights up. This black character is the same as the black God that the legend says reigned in this world together with his white wife. But as the black God got involved with a white human, the white goddess became jealous and killed him and destroyed all the civilization that existed on that planet.

In short, this man-lantern decides that he is the heir of the God and that he must save the world by restoring equality between blacks and whites. And that's where almost the whole book gets into telling the adventures of these people in that jungle, around the river, even creating a revolution for it.

Finally, once the revolution is over, they continue looking for the one kidnapped by the grasshopper and find her on another planet, which is the original of the grasshopper creatures. But these creatures are good robots and in fact they are the ones that create the energy routes to go from one planet to another. And in fact they travel like this already without the need for the trilithons (and I say what the hell did they build the trilithons for if it's the grasshoppers that create the routes to travel between planets? This work of making trilithons is useless). Well, these grasshoppers are the remains of a civilization that carried out all this network of travels, but that disappeared. And as the space explorers are actually archaeologists, they stay on this planet to "archaeologize", except for the black one who stays on the planet of the black and white Gods, and the protagonist who returns to Earth and will be the one to tell the story, but no one believes him (besides, the trilithons of the Sahara have mysteriously disappeared, look where).

And that's the end.

COMENTARIO:

A load of rubbish. Not only is it argumentatively idiotic, surely taken from the movie StarGate since the novel was written later; but it is also fatally written. It's been a long time since I've come across something so bad.

And curiously, the author is considered one of the pillars of science fiction. I'm right in saying that there's a lot of rubbish in science fiction. And this is a good example.

I really wanted to give this a 2 1/2 stars rating, but unfortunately, there wasn't such an option available.

For me, this particular work had some rather significant faults. The pacing was truly horrible. It would go from being way too fast, making it difficult to keep up and fully understand what was happening, to suddenly being way too slow, which made the story drag on and lose my interest. And then, all of a sudden, everything was resolved in a rather rushed and unconvincing manner.

I just couldn't really get into the characters or the story. It felt as if this might have been okay back in the 50's or 60's, but it's just not up to my standards, I guess. However, it was decently written though. At least there was that redeeming quality.

Overall, it was a bit of a disappointment, but I can still appreciate the effort that went into writing it.

I truly wanted to have a much deeper affection for this. I am an extremely big fan of Williamson. However, it had a rather slow start and it was a bit challenging to establish a connection with.

Towards the end, both the narrator and the little boy began to grow on me, and I earnestly desired for them to succeed. But unfortunately, I lost the thread of the plot.

Harlan Ellison read it, and his reaction was very, um...emphatic. At times, he seemed a little more excited than what the story actually deserved. Nevertheless, it is still a perfectly satisfactory story to spend some time with, capable of providing a certain degree of entertainment and diversion.

Overall, although it didn't completely capture my heart, it did have its moments and can be considered an okay read for those looking to kill some time.

A Strange Story

A strange story unfolds before our eyes. The main arc is an adventure travelogue that takes the reader through a gate and into strange worlds. It's a journey filled with mystery and excitement, as the protagonist and his companions encounter new and unknown landscapes.

However, the middle half of the story takes a rather unexpected turn. It takes place in a slave society that is thinly veiled as the American peribellum south. Here, the characters are faced with the harsh realities of slavery and the injustices that come with it.

One of the protagonist's companions then all but accidentally triggers a slave rebellion. This event sets off a chain of events that leads to the companion running off with a white "plantation" owner. It's a strange turn of events that leaves the reader wondering about the point of it all.

It's hard to see the point of this story. It's not the character's actions, deeds, philosophy, or anything else that leads to the success of the rebellion. It's not condemning slavery, nor is it arguing for slavery. It seems to be a story that is simply there, without a clear purpose or message.

The movie I just watched was an absolute disaster. It was filled with racist and misogynistic drivel that was truly offensive.

The dialogue was so bad that it kept repeating pointlessly, making it feel like a broken record. There was no story to speak of, just a jumbled mess of scenes that didn't seem to connect.

The pacing was also completely off, with some scenes dragging on forever and others being over in a flash. It was a waste of my time and money, and I would not recommend it to anyone.

I was really disappointed, as I had high hopes for this movie. But unfortunately, it failed to deliver on every level. It's a prime example of what not to do when making a movie.

What do you envision for yourself at the age of 97? As for me, if by some stroke of luck I reach that venerable age, I imagine myself perhaps enjoying pureed Gerber peaches and tuning in to re-runs of Emma Peel on the TV in the nursing home. But for sci-fi Grand Master Jack Williamson, 97 meant yet another novel. In a writing career that spanned an astonishing 77 years, dating back to his first published story, "The Metal Man," in 1928, he was on his 50th or so novel. Sadly, the novel in question, 2005's "The Stonehenge Gate," would be his swan song, as he passed away in November 2006.

Impressively, this novel is every bit as exciting, clear, readable, and awe-inspiring as anything in Williamson's remarkable body of work. Few authors have had a career as long and productive as his. It really does seem to prove the old adage about practice, practice, practice.

"The Stonehenge Gate" is narrated by Will Stone, an English professor at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales. Coincidentally, this is the same school and town where the author taught and lived for many years. Stone and three colleagues - Derek Ironcraft, a physicist and astronomer; Lupe Vargas, an archaeologist; and Ram Chenji, a linguistics and African history instructor from Kenya - stumble upon a mysterious, Stonehenge-like trilithon buried beneath the sands of the Sahara. After passing through the ancient archway, they are whisked away to a series of planets light-years distant. The four become separated and ultimately explore a war-torn planet, an empty world inhabited only by shape-shifting robots, a frozen planet that was the home of the trilithon builders, and a world divided into two continents: one populated by whites and the other an equatorial jungle land filled with blacks. It is on this last planet that the bulk of Williamson's novel unfolds, as Ram's arrival sets off a series of race riots and the start of a civil rights movement.

The all-important "sense of wonder" that was so crucial when the author began his writing career before sci-fi's Golden Age is very much in evidence here. The fact that many of the marvels remain unexplained only adds to the sense of cosmic awe. Readers who have followed Williamson's career over the decades may be a bit surprised by his use of modern terms like "Internet" and "e-book" in this, his final work. It's yet another indication of the longevity of his career. Those who have read other of his works may also notice similarities as "The Stonehenge Gate" progresses. The use of native drugs to induce visions is highly reminiscent of scenes in 1980's "The Humanoid Touch," while the idea of excavating in the Sahara to find alien artifacts recalls similar sequences in 1962's "The Trial of Terra." Even Derek Ironcraft's name is evocative of a main character in the author's most famous novel, 1949's "The Humanoids."

Despite these echoes, Williamson's final book is entirely original, and his four main characters are extremely engaging. Our narrator, in particular, is very convincing. Far from being an action hero, this 57-year-old repeatedly laments his desire to be back in his peaceful library in Portales, and the trials he endures have a very believable impact on him.

Anyway, perhaps I'm making too much of the author's advanced age, but seriously, how many people approaching the century mark could be expected to produce a 316-page novel that is as fresh and captivating as any sci-fi on the shelves today? This novel could most definitely have served as the first installment in a new blockbuster sci-fi series, but unfortunately, that was not to be. The world has truly lost a man of boundless imagination with the passing of Jack Williamson. While his extensive body of work lives on, he will surely be missed.

Four graduate school professors made an astonishing discovery - another Stonehenge hidden beneath the sands of the Sahara Desert. However, it was later revealed that the famous Stonehenge in England was merely a non-functioning replica of an interstellar gate.

These four professors embarked on a series of adventures that were both interesting and diverse as they journeyed from one world to another through several gates.

During their travels, the main characters underwent significant growth and change. They made life-changing choices and learned an abundance of knowledge, including the "true origin" of the human race.

Their experiences opened their eyes to a whole new universe of possibilities and challenges. They faced strange and wonderful creatures, explored unknown lands, and had to rely on their wits and courage to survive.

As they continued their adventures, they became closer as a team and learned to trust each other implicitly. Their journey was not only a physical one but also a spiritual and emotional one, as they discovered more about themselves and the world around them.

In the end, they returned home with a newfound appreciation for life and a deeper understanding of the mysteries of the universe. Their adventures had changed them forever, and they would never look at the world in the same way again.