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Firefly
When a fleshless corpse is found on a Florida estate, a reclusive caretaker, an investigative reporter, a police officer, and a woman discover that a creature whose victims die in a frenzied state of sexual ecstasy is preying on human beings.
466 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published August 1, 1990
23 people are currently reading
1315 people want to read
About the author
Piers Anthony
441 books4,215 followersThough he spent the first four years of his life in England, Piers never returned to live in his country of birth after moving to Spain and immigrated to America at age six. After graduating with a B.A. from Goddard College, he married one of his fellow students and and spent fifteen years in an assortment of professions before he began writing fiction full-time.
Piers is a self-proclaimed environmentalist and lives on a tree farm in Florida with his wife. They have two grown daughters.
Piers is a self-proclaimed environmentalist and lives on a tree farm in Florida with his wife. They have two grown daughters.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 177 reviews
April 23, 2016
The cover flap says "Be warned. No previous work by Piers Anthony can prepare you for the experience of Firefly." So I think "I've read 4 volumes of Bio of a Space Tyrant, I think I can handle this." I was so very wrong.
This book is a love letter to rape. It catalogs various ways in which people, mostly women, are raped. It outlines the reasons why victims encourage rape. A grim parody of a Washington Irving tale explains how a rape can be justified and even reward the rapist. The true monster in the book is rape, and how it becomes the status quo.
This book is also a treatise on MRA views of women's sexuality. One allegory explains how woman-kind evolved sexuality not only as a means of reproduction, but also as a means of controlling men. No evolutionary explanation of male sexuality was offered or required - man as sexual being is self-evident. Without exception, all the female characters in the story strive to service the male characters in the story, and derive their own pleasure merely knowing that the men are happy.
This book is Piers Anthony's public request to destigmatize consensual incest and statutory rape. In his Author's Note concluding the book, he explains that The Problem is that society stigmatizes deviancy. He equates pedophilia and incest with such conditions as homosexuality. I suppose his argument is: if two adult men can love each other, then surely an adult man can make love to a 5 year old girl. He explains that in consensual incest and statutory rape no one is hurt, and it's only a crime because Society views it so.
Putting all that aside, the book just isn't well written. All of the characters are 1-dimensional, defined strictly by their sexuality:
* This man is impotent
* This man is in a loveless marriage
* This woman is a nymphomaniac who uses sex as a survival mechanism
* This woman is frigid and is trapped in an abusive marriage
* This man is a rapist
* This man is an emotionless being who views sex through clinical means
* This man loves a woman who is not his wife
There is no anticipation or development in this story. Nearly every Chekov gun is fired in the same chapter it appears, some merely a few sentences later. Characters always act against their own self interest in unrealistic ways. What interesting literary devices the book does contain are completely overshadowed by these problems.
I would recommend this book to no one.
This book is a love letter to rape. It catalogs various ways in which people, mostly women, are raped. It outlines the reasons why victims encourage rape. A grim parody of a Washington Irving tale explains how a rape can be justified and even reward the rapist. The true monster in the book is rape, and how it becomes the status quo.
This book is also a treatise on MRA views of women's sexuality. One allegory explains how woman-kind evolved sexuality not only as a means of reproduction, but also as a means of controlling men. No evolutionary explanation of male sexuality was offered or required - man as sexual being is self-evident. Without exception, all the female characters in the story strive to service the male characters in the story, and derive their own pleasure merely knowing that the men are happy.
This book is Piers Anthony's public request to destigmatize consensual incest and statutory rape. In his Author's Note concluding the book, he explains that The Problem is that society stigmatizes deviancy. He equates pedophilia and incest with such conditions as homosexuality. I suppose his argument is: if two adult men can love each other, then surely an adult man can make love to a 5 year old girl. He explains that in consensual incest and statutory rape no one is hurt, and it's only a crime because Society views it so.
Putting all that aside, the book just isn't well written. All of the characters are 1-dimensional, defined strictly by their sexuality:
* This man is impotent
* This man is in a loveless marriage
* This woman is a nymphomaniac who uses sex as a survival mechanism
* This woman is frigid and is trapped in an abusive marriage
* This man is a rapist
* This man is an emotionless being who views sex through clinical means
* This man loves a woman who is not his wife
There is no anticipation or development in this story. Nearly every Chekov gun is fired in the same chapter it appears, some merely a few sentences later. Characters always act against their own self interest in unrealistic ways. What interesting literary devices the book does contain are completely overshadowed by these problems.
I would recommend this book to no one.
never-never-read
June 27, 2017Hang on - "When a fleshless corpse is found on a Florida estate, a reclusive caretaker, an investigative reporter, a police officer, and a woman discover..."
"When a fleshless corpse is found on a Florida estate, a reclusive caretaker, an investigative reporter, a police officer, and a woman discover..."
"When a fleshless corpse is found on a Florida estate, a reclusive caretaker, an investigative reporter, a police officer, and a woman discover..."
Um.
Ok.
Guessing the "woman" doesn't have a job/personality/function then? And here's me thinking that an investigative reporter or police officer or caretaker could have been female! Silly, silly me.
(I mean this sounded terrible anyway, but if even the synopsis fucks up: well...)
"When a fleshless corpse is found on a Florida estate, a reclusive caretaker, an investigative reporter, a police officer, and a woman discover..."
"When a fleshless corpse is found on a Florida estate, a reclusive caretaker, an investigative reporter, a police officer, and a woman discover..."
Um.
Ok.
Guessing the "woman" doesn't have a job/personality/function then? And here's me thinking that an investigative reporter or police officer or caretaker could have been female! Silly, silly me.
(I mean this sounded terrible anyway, but if even the synopsis fucks up: well...)
July 29, 2016
I know that going back and rating long-ago-read books is probably a little silly, but this book was seared into my brain as an adolescent.
I picked it up because I was in high school and loving much of Anthony's work (Cluster series, Incarnations of Immortality, Apprentice Adept, etc.. - everything but Xanth) and I saw it at BookStop.
What I found was one was one of the most disturbing novels I'll ever read in my lifetime. An alien uses pheromones to lure in victims to devour them from the inside out. And what follows is all kind of crazy pornographic, over the top "erotica" scenes that were more disturbing than anything else. Oh, and for a dash of pedophilia, a graphic sex scene is included with a small child. No thanks. I haven't read Anthony since.
I picked it up because I was in high school and loving much of Anthony's work (Cluster series, Incarnations of Immortality, Apprentice Adept, etc.. - everything but Xanth) and I saw it at BookStop.
What I found was one was one of the most disturbing novels I'll ever read in my lifetime. An alien uses pheromones to lure in victims to devour them from the inside out. And what follows is all kind of crazy pornographic, over the top "erotica" scenes that were more disturbing than anything else. Oh, and for a dash of pedophilia, a graphic sex scene is included with a small child. No thanks. I haven't read Anthony since.
Read
March 13, 2025It's a trick. Get an axe.
If you come across this book, do not read this book. Do not touch this book. Get a can of gasoline and a match and burn this book to ashes.
Normally, it would pain me to say such things. I believe firmly in the exploration of ideas, even ideas we find repugnant or off-putting. However, there are ideas which I believe merit no argument or discussion, because they are wrong. There is no argument that can be made for them. And a whole great chunk of this book has, at its core, one of those ideas.
Warning: the following spoilers contain references to rape, child abuse, and pedophilia.
If you come across this book, do not read this book. Do not touch this book. Get a can of gasoline and a match and burn this book to ashes.
Normally, it would pain me to say such things. I believe firmly in the exploration of ideas, even ideas we find repugnant or off-putting. However, there are ideas which I believe merit no argument or discussion, because they are wrong. There is no argument that can be made for them. And a whole great chunk of this book has, at its core, one of those ideas.
Warning: the following spoilers contain references to rape, child abuse, and pedophilia.
August 28, 2014
We don't ban books anymore. That is what the Chinese did to ensure ignorance of the masses. Plus murdering the scholars and burning the libraries. Confucius lost, civilisations crippled. Russia. Throw the thinking people under lock and key. Imprisoned their shining stars. However, I have torn 2 to shreds in my life and this shall be number 3. Hi Piers. Ha. You ruined your one great series many moons ago with lechery. Since Heinlein's great fall I have watched a few great male authors descend into the well. I had hoped against hope that Anthony would not go there. Sad. He told himself these things needed to be said. He even let it be republished when he was told by a professional he respected that it could make things worse. Shame. I think of all the teens who read Xanth books who will pick this up and read it. Even Xanth was poisoned with it by the time he wrote The color of her panties. Firefly is simply nauseating. I am sure it is well received by the child molesting masses. I will destroy any copies I find.
Read
May 31, 2013Dafuq did I just read? This was more like a deranged repressed child molester's fan fiction than fantasy. Yeesh.
July 10, 2020
All right, so Piers Anthony is long established, and this book has been out for years and years, too. So why am I reviewing it?
Well, first of all, I think it's important to talk about past books too, whether we loved or hated them. The wonder and magic of books is that they stay around - look at examples like Pride and Prejudice, after all. Books have the power to be read and influence people far into the future.
So I think it's important that I touch on this book because to be honest, when I think about it, it just might be about one of the most disturbing books I've ever read. I read it when I was a young teenager and at the time I didn't have a problem with it, but now, thinking back, I am incredibly disturbed as an adult that the book even exists.
The whole book comes across merely as a vehicle for Anthony's sexual fantasies. This is actually a common theme through his books, I am thinking, and I may do other reviews to touch on this as well. In any event, a large part of the book - far too much of it, in my opinion - is devoted to descriptions of this creature overpowering people, which thus necessitates describing their reactions and orgasms in pornographic detail.
The worst part, however, is that the book contains a description of a sexual scene with a young child, and that is what really revolts me about this book. How it was ever seen as fit to publish, I do not know, considering that it has graphic descriptions of pedophilia and child abuse.
I would not recommend this book for anyone and I honestly hope that it's been pulled from active publication.
Well, first of all, I think it's important to talk about past books too, whether we loved or hated them. The wonder and magic of books is that they stay around - look at examples like Pride and Prejudice, after all. Books have the power to be read and influence people far into the future.
So I think it's important that I touch on this book because to be honest, when I think about it, it just might be about one of the most disturbing books I've ever read. I read it when I was a young teenager and at the time I didn't have a problem with it, but now, thinking back, I am incredibly disturbed as an adult that the book even exists.
The whole book comes across merely as a vehicle for Anthony's sexual fantasies. This is actually a common theme through his books, I am thinking, and I may do other reviews to touch on this as well. In any event, a large part of the book - far too much of it, in my opinion - is devoted to descriptions of this creature overpowering people, which thus necessitates describing their reactions and orgasms in pornographic detail.
The worst part, however, is that the book contains a description of a sexual scene with a young child, and that is what really revolts me about this book. How it was ever seen as fit to publish, I do not know, considering that it has graphic descriptions of pedophilia and child abuse.
I would not recommend this book for anyone and I honestly hope that it's been pulled from active publication.
January 26, 2014
For erotic horror, it wasn't terrible. The "pedophilia" content was far less disturbing than reviews would lead one to believe but it could be troubling to some. Certainly not the sort of youth fantasy the author is known for, this novel was all grown up and went far further than the typical horror novel would in exploring human sexuality. It wasn't very appealing as erotica would go, but it certainly went to places untouched by most. I wouldn't suggest this to most readers as it was troubling and difficult to read and the ending was just sort of there. It didn't really close the story out very well. The author's afterward was very interesting and I would suggest that anyone who would be interested in hearing his thoughts on the work read it. Perhaps even before they read the novel itself.
April 22, 2016
I read this book several years ago (sometime in 1995/1996). Not my favorite work by Piers Anthony (Incarnations series gets that honor) but decent and really different and defintely not material for everyone. What I want to address here is the extreme reaction to the sex scene with the five year old girl in chapter 32 that is giving everyone the heebee jeebies. I recently came across reviews of that and thought "I don't even remember that part" so I went and check out the book again and re-read it. I disagree with everyone who says this was an approval of pedophilia and that the author condones that behavior, for a couple of reasons. #1 It's obvious that the girl, Nymph, has been groomed to accept sexual abuse as a normal behavior; she comes from a really messed up situation where her father and brother do unspeakable things to her and she strongly wants her father's approval and has been misled into seeking out attention that most young children would either recoil from or have no knowledge of. This is her "normal". #2 She is "asking for it" because due to aforementioned grooming she thinks that this is the way she is going to get the love and affection she craves, because she really doesn't know any better, and the man who is on trial for molesting her only did so with her permission (he keeps saying he shouldn't be doing this but she keeps egging him on). #3 The interview is from HER perspective (see #1 and #2) and the court interviewer is clearly disturbed by Nymph's admissions. HER PERSPECTIVE, meaning that the tale is told as she sees it, and as far as she sees it there was nothing wrong with her "relationship" with Mad. Now, of course, in a civilized society, we all know this is totally inappropriate and young children lack an understanding of adult matters, but this is Nymph's reality. And of course there are consequences for Mad's lack of judgement in the situation. As for the detail of the actual acts between Nymph and Mad, that was fairly disturbing, but acceptable because it is the telling of what the child is explaining to the court interviewer and and explanation of why she is trying to help Mad avoid prison time.
May 12, 2009
Piers Anthony gives us a heartfelt plea for understanding for sick fucks everywhere. Avoid like the Xanth.
Read
April 21, 2017I'll have a review as soon as my eyes stop rolling so hard.
March 23, 2014
You see, I'm reviewing a book I did not really read and have no wish to read. I read parts of it, and it was so horrible I had to comment about it.
This book has a graphic scene of a 5-year old having sex with a pedophile in a POSITIVE light. And then, when the perpetrator goes into trial, what follows is the corniest scene ever, with everyone in the courtroom being "moved" by their "love", in tears, etc.
ARGH. ARGH. ARGH.
So with no further ado, if you want to know what I'm talking about, read on here:
http://hradzka.livejournal.com/392471...
I'm so disgusted I'm speechless...
This book has a graphic scene of a 5-year old having sex with a pedophile in a POSITIVE light. And then, when the perpetrator goes into trial, what follows is the corniest scene ever, with everyone in the courtroom being "moved" by their "love", in tears, etc.
ARGH. ARGH. ARGH.
So with no further ado, if you want to know what I'm talking about, read on here:
http://hradzka.livejournal.com/392471...
I'm so disgusted I'm speechless...
August 21, 2022
Appalling. Boring, confusing, pretentious and hugely problematic.
June 15, 2017
Without a doubt, the single worst book I have ever read. Not for the nauseating pedophilia, but because it's just bad writing. Poorly developed characters who say things no real people would ever say. Characters that are neither likable or even necessary to the plot. Plot devices that make no sense, like one character who makes up ridiculous, nonsensical stories that become so annoying to read that you just want to skip over them completely. An unseen villain who is never fully fleshed out, explained or understood.
I don't even know what genre this fits into. This is not horror - it wasn't the slightest bit scary or even suspenseful. This is not erotica - nothing about this will turn you on unless you're absolutely sick and deranged. This is not romance - the two couples who do engage in a relationship are so irritating that you just want them to die already! This is not even entertainment - I could not WAIT for it to be over. I never put down a book without finishing it, but I should have burned this ten pages in.
I loved the Xanth series as a kid, but this may have put me off of Piers Anthony forever.
I don't even know what genre this fits into. This is not horror - it wasn't the slightest bit scary or even suspenseful. This is not erotica - nothing about this will turn you on unless you're absolutely sick and deranged. This is not romance - the two couples who do engage in a relationship are so irritating that you just want them to die already! This is not even entertainment - I could not WAIT for it to be over. I never put down a book without finishing it, but I should have burned this ten pages in.
I loved the Xanth series as a kid, but this may have put me off of Piers Anthony forever.
February 24, 2011
The premise of this story was unique. I felt, the whole time I was reading that it was bordering on science fiction, fantasy, horror, and erotica.
The description of the formless beast and explanation of how it lived was excellent. Some of the erotic elements bordered on disturbing, but I was prompted to keep reading because I was waiting for some redemption for the main (character?)
The description of the formless beast and explanation of how it lived was excellent. Some of the erotic elements bordered on disturbing, but I was prompted to keep reading because I was waiting for some redemption for the main (character?)
April 15, 2009
Living in Florida, I love stories that weave the essense of what old Florida is like. This is definitely a weird read. It has been a long time since I read it, but it made a lasting impression.
June 1, 2011
Bizarre, pedofilic sex scenes and alien anal penetration. Not at ALL like Anthony's normal writing. Reads like bad erotic fiction and the 5-year old sex scene is incredibly graphic and shocking.
July 12, 2016
Huge, HUGE trigger warnings for pedophilia and child abuse.
If it were possible to give a book negative stars, I would. It was a viable, if rather creepy, alien invasion story...then came the flashback/interview with the little girl. No, no, NO. Sex with a child--a child of, I believe, six or seven--is never all right and never consensual, and making the child the instigator is fucking disgusting and trying to paint their relationship as loving and affectionate and a viable kind of wife-husbandry is sickening. He even stuck an afterword in the back trying to justify the whole thing.
I was losing interest in Mr. Anthony's writing when I read this book, and this ended it permanently.
If it were possible to give a book negative stars, I would. It was a viable, if rather creepy, alien invasion story...then came the flashback/interview with the little girl. No, no, NO. Sex with a child--a child of, I believe, six or seven--is never all right and never consensual, and making the child the instigator is fucking disgusting and trying to paint their relationship as loving and affectionate and a viable kind of wife-husbandry is sickening. He even stuck an afterword in the back trying to justify the whole thing.
I was losing interest in Mr. Anthony's writing when I read this book, and this ended it permanently.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 27, 2017
I am at a loss of how to rate this book.
Spoilers
The prose was well written and the story far exceeded my expectations of a monster of the week book.
There is a monster and it does kill people in a gruesome way but there is a lot more here.
Two different love stories, characters with diverse backgrounds and who grow and change throughout the arc. Short stories mixed in through the narrative that relate to the characters and their history in an allegorical way.
If this was all I think I would give the book a five.
However.....
This book has one very disturbing scene about pedophilia.
Apparently this book caused the author to receive some rather strong mail and he added not one, but two afterwords to the book. Reading the afterwards the author does state he is not for pedophilia, but he sure takes a lot of words to say it and it doesn't ever have an equivocal statement like "this is wrong". Instead he argues that seeing how the victim of the crime turned out should be enough in the book to show that there are consequences.
The seen is part of the plot and it is not thrown in for shock value, but way too much detail is given.
Without the scene I would rate this a four or five, with it, I have lowered it down to 2.
(And I am washing my brain out with some good wholesome reading like Slaughterhouse 5)
Spoilers
The prose was well written and the story far exceeded my expectations of a monster of the week book.
There is a monster and it does kill people in a gruesome way but there is a lot more here.
Two different love stories, characters with diverse backgrounds and who grow and change throughout the arc. Short stories mixed in through the narrative that relate to the characters and their history in an allegorical way.
If this was all I think I would give the book a five.
However.....
This book has one very disturbing scene about pedophilia.
Apparently this book caused the author to receive some rather strong mail and he added not one, but two afterwords to the book. Reading the afterwards the author does state he is not for pedophilia, but he sure takes a lot of words to say it and it doesn't ever have an equivocal statement like "this is wrong". Instead he argues that seeing how the victim of the crime turned out should be enough in the book to show that there are consequences.
The seen is part of the plot and it is not thrown in for shock value, but way too much detail is given.
Without the scene I would rate this a four or five, with it, I have lowered it down to 2.
(And I am washing my brain out with some good wholesome reading like Slaughterhouse 5)
October 11, 2022
While this was not what I would’ve expected from Piers Anthony I enjoyed it well enough. This felt like a strange collaboration between Michael Crichton and Richard Laymon.
There are a lot of reasons why people wouldn’t like this book. For starters, this really isn’t a horror novel but more of an erotic melodrama about a group of broken people. Secondly, there are lots and I mean lots of stories within stories in this book, many of which take up a fair number of pages. But, maybe the most damned would be the clunky dialog and transitions that the book has.
However, regardless of all of that, I found myself enjoying the story well enough and I quickly read through the nearly 600-page ebook in a few days.
3.5/5
There are a lot of reasons why people wouldn’t like this book. For starters, this really isn’t a horror novel but more of an erotic melodrama about a group of broken people. Secondly, there are lots and I mean lots of stories within stories in this book, many of which take up a fair number of pages. But, maybe the most damned would be the clunky dialog and transitions that the book has.
However, regardless of all of that, I found myself enjoying the story well enough and I quickly read through the nearly 600-page ebook in a few days.
3.5/5
Read
April 21, 2017Probably gonna shelf this one. Piers is my favorite author of all time, and it's my goal to read all of his many hundreds of books, but this one is just boring the crap out of me. I was really intrigued to see for myself what most reviewers of this book are pissing, moaning and calling for the head of Piers for, but alas, I'm just bored by the inundation of information I'm getting on every known form of plant and wildlife in Florida.
September 10, 2015
This book was...strange.
Now, to be honest, most of Piers Anthony's books are strange - it's what I love about them. But they're strange in a good way, while this was just...strange in a strange way.
I got this book from a free shelf at a thrift store. I was like 'Ooh, free Piers Anthony, yay!' Then I started reading it...and mostly just got confused.
I'm not sure if this is intended to be horror...thriller...erotica...romance... It sort of ended up a jumbled mess of nothing in particular.
Many people, I imagine, take offense at some of the subject matter delved into in the book. I actually found those scenes to be among the most interesting to read, to be honest.
What was more frustrating to me was the writing style.
I have to make an admission right here, though. There is something about Piers Anthony's writing style I don't like. I don't like how...abrupt his style tends to be, how it often feels more like a script than a book. I've grown up on books that have paragraphs of descriptive detail and prefer to focus on showing, rather than telling, in my own work.
However, for most of Piers Anthony's writings, it works, because the characters and situations are so compelling, so interesting, that it shows through without having to rely on a lot of description.
It does not do so in this book. Most of the characters fall very flat and lifeless. I found myself not caring as people died, because they didn't come across as 'people' in the book, just one sided characters being pushed into situations that didn't seem the least bit plausible.
And by plausible, I don't mean the 'firefly'. Actually, with all the lavish thought put into how the creature works and lives and hunts and feeds, the 'firefly' was, quite possibly, the most 'real' and interesting character in the book. Any time the creature showed up, I cheered, because I was fascinated by how it worked.
No, it is all the human interactions that come across to the reader as implausible, unbelievable. The way the characters talk to each other is stilted and awkward. Their physical responses seem forced and stiff and unnatural. The 'alien firefly' seems more human than the humans.
The erotic sections of the book were even more stiff (no pun intended. Really). The feeling was more coldly clinical than anything else, and the phrasings used more stilted still than the rest of the book.
To be entirely honest, there were a few times I flipped back to the cover of the book to doublecheck the author's name listed on it, but what I read feels more like sometime trying to write in Piers Anthony's style...but not succeeding. Or possibly succeeding too well in emulating parts of his style, without managing to keep any of the 'humanness' in his writing.
I don't...regret reading this book, I think. I'm not sure, to be honest. It was very long, very convoluted. There were, however, a few parts of the book I did enjoy reading, but they were few and far between.
I don't think I could recommend the book to anyone to read, though. Or rather, I don't think I would. If you can find it cheap or free, flip through it and think it looks vaguely interesting, well...I won't say that you shouldn't read it. But it's not a book I would suggest people actively seek out, either.
Now, to be honest, most of Piers Anthony's books are strange - it's what I love about them. But they're strange in a good way, while this was just...strange in a strange way.
I got this book from a free shelf at a thrift store. I was like 'Ooh, free Piers Anthony, yay!' Then I started reading it...and mostly just got confused.
I'm not sure if this is intended to be horror...thriller...erotica...romance... It sort of ended up a jumbled mess of nothing in particular.
Many people, I imagine, take offense at some of the subject matter delved into in the book. I actually found those scenes to be among the most interesting to read, to be honest.
What was more frustrating to me was the writing style.
I have to make an admission right here, though. There is something about Piers Anthony's writing style I don't like. I don't like how...abrupt his style tends to be, how it often feels more like a script than a book. I've grown up on books that have paragraphs of descriptive detail and prefer to focus on showing, rather than telling, in my own work.
However, for most of Piers Anthony's writings, it works, because the characters and situations are so compelling, so interesting, that it shows through without having to rely on a lot of description.
It does not do so in this book. Most of the characters fall very flat and lifeless. I found myself not caring as people died, because they didn't come across as 'people' in the book, just one sided characters being pushed into situations that didn't seem the least bit plausible.
And by plausible, I don't mean the 'firefly'. Actually, with all the lavish thought put into how the creature works and lives and hunts and feeds, the 'firefly' was, quite possibly, the most 'real' and interesting character in the book. Any time the creature showed up, I cheered, because I was fascinated by how it worked.
No, it is all the human interactions that come across to the reader as implausible, unbelievable. The way the characters talk to each other is stilted and awkward. Their physical responses seem forced and stiff and unnatural. The 'alien firefly' seems more human than the humans.
The erotic sections of the book were even more stiff (no pun intended. Really). The feeling was more coldly clinical than anything else, and the phrasings used more stilted still than the rest of the book.
To be entirely honest, there were a few times I flipped back to the cover of the book to doublecheck the author's name listed on it, but what I read feels more like sometime trying to write in Piers Anthony's style...but not succeeding. Or possibly succeeding too well in emulating parts of his style, without managing to keep any of the 'humanness' in his writing.
I don't...regret reading this book, I think. I'm not sure, to be honest. It was very long, very convoluted. There were, however, a few parts of the book I did enjoy reading, but they were few and far between.
I don't think I could recommend the book to anyone to read, though. Or rather, I don't think I would. If you can find it cheap or free, flip through it and think it looks vaguely interesting, well...I won't say that you shouldn't read it. But it's not a book I would suggest people actively seek out, either.
August 6, 2012
One of the first erotic books I read as a teenager. I loved Anthony's Xanth series and picked this up because of his name. At the time, I loved it -- but after picking it up again recently, the writing (especially the dialogue) is just...not good.
September 13, 2010
I read this book when I was about 14. I thought it was part of Piers Anthony's Xanth series. Man was I wrong, I really enjoyed it but definitely was not expecting my first sexual thriller.
January 19, 2012
If you’re familiar with this author at all, you’ll know him for his whimsical humorous stories. This is his first (and only?) attempt at horror, and I must say – the man has a sick, twisted mind.
May 22, 2020
I can understand why Piers Anthony fans hate this book. Its a sexually deviant horror book. Exactly why I love it.
June 20, 2024
The entirety of this book was irksome, and the second star comes only from the context granted through the authors note. The fact that this book is 400+ pages is a crime, and honestly a disservice to its own story.
Let me save you some time:
Our band of 5 winsome fellows is proportionally traumatized (3/5), and Piers makes a point of describing everyone’s raunchiest, most taboo fantasies and appointments and encounters. 2-3 of these are necessary for plot, the rest (some 10-15 scenes) are gratuitous and effervescent as far as expounding a character or the plot. A horny sea slug found better prey on land and our silent investor (and the bond of our fellows) owns this land. It kills 2 of our 5, and then is burned away but not eradicated, and thank god Piers relieved us of the worry about a sequel to this very poor and ineffectual commentary on cycles of abuse and their effects on humans.
Things I hated:
CHILD PORN EVERY 2 CHAPTERS. PIERS, WHY?
R A P E FANTASIES OR REALITIES EVERY 2-5 CHAPTERS. PIERS??? W H Y????
Sentient fuck slug :c
Most normal and chill character gets boofed to death.
Contrived yet still mundane romance between Flowers and Tishner.
Immense attention to the profession and reiteration of how ugly everyone is (???????)
Jade’s dead son who apparently doesn’t fucking matter at all? Her kid died in ch. 4 or something and we don’t talk about him again until THE END OF THE BOOK. For like TWO SENTENCESSSS.
Things I liked:
Cool monster. Would’ve been cooler if it mattered more.
The intent of the book (as discussed in the authors note), though this is fouled by the execution.
Cirano, our lil exterminator baddie who fell victim to the myriad pleasures of… *checks notes* butt stuff (go off, power bottom)
Idk what I expected of a man who titled a book “the color of her panties” tbh.
Let me save you some time:
Our band of 5 winsome fellows is proportionally traumatized (3/5), and Piers makes a point of describing everyone’s raunchiest, most taboo fantasies and appointments and encounters. 2-3 of these are necessary for plot, the rest (some 10-15 scenes) are gratuitous and effervescent as far as expounding a character or the plot. A horny sea slug found better prey on land and our silent investor (and the bond of our fellows) owns this land. It kills 2 of our 5, and then is burned away but not eradicated, and thank god Piers relieved us of the worry about a sequel to this very poor and ineffectual commentary on cycles of abuse and their effects on humans.
Things I hated:
CHILD PORN EVERY 2 CHAPTERS. PIERS, WHY?
R A P E FANTASIES OR REALITIES EVERY 2-5 CHAPTERS. PIERS??? W H Y????
Sentient fuck slug :c
Most normal and chill character gets boofed to death.
Contrived yet still mundane romance between Flowers and Tishner.
Immense attention to the profession and reiteration of how ugly everyone is (???????)
Jade’s dead son who apparently doesn’t fucking matter at all? Her kid died in ch. 4 or something and we don’t talk about him again until THE END OF THE BOOK. For like TWO SENTENCESSSS.
Things I liked:
Cool monster. Would’ve been cooler if it mattered more.
The intent of the book (as discussed in the authors note), though this is fouled by the execution.
Cirano, our lil exterminator baddie who fell victim to the myriad pleasures of… *checks notes* butt stuff (go off, power bottom)
Idk what I expected of a man who titled a book “the color of her panties” tbh.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 20, 2014
As a teenager I was hooked on Piers Anthony's "Xanth" series. Naturally, when he came out with "Firefly," a supposedly more mature, serious novel, I read it. And I regretted that decision more and more as I forced myself to read it.
This book was beyond terrible. Setting aside the whole issue of whether he's justifying child molestation, it is pure literary drivel. Its only redeeming quality is as an example to aspiring authors of how *not* to write.
This book is touted as "horror." The story was not scary or frightening in any way, shape, or form. How scary can it be when the author feels it necessary to explain what the "horror" is in the epilogue?
The only horror about this book is the realization of the time wasted reading it.
This book was beyond terrible. Setting aside the whole issue of whether he's justifying child molestation, it is pure literary drivel. Its only redeeming quality is as an example to aspiring authors of how *not* to write.
This book is touted as "horror." The story was not scary or frightening in any way, shape, or form. How scary can it be when the author feels it necessary to explain what the "horror" is in the epilogue?
The only horror about this book is the realization of the time wasted reading it.
April 1, 2021
I wrote a letter to Piers Anthony years ago to let him know I would not be reading anymore of his books because he is an unapologetic pedophile. He wrote me back saying he understood why it upset me but it is completely natural and society should just accept it. This is the only book I ever actually burned. I will continue to buy copies and burn them too. In my opinion every book that graphically describes a child getting sexually abused and enjoying it should be burned. What if a very impressionable young person reads this and decided it’s okay for them to be abused? Or a man reads this and decides it’s ok to rape his own kids? How is this book still in circulation?
January 15, 2019
This is quite a disturbing novel. It can be read as a straight up monster story, or it can be read with the implications of sexual predation on society, families and individuals. This book isn't scary. In its heart, it is terrifying. Anthony is asking us to hold a mirror up to the darker side of humanity, really have a good look at it, and perhaps even try to understand. If you get it, you'll be thinking about this novel for a long time. If you don't, then this is just a book about a creepy sex monster and a lot of erections.
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