In a time much like that of early twentieth-century Earth, Digen Farris, Head of the legendary House of Zeor and a Sime healer, goes into Gen Territory to become a doctor by Gen law. He falls in love with a Gen woman who is not at all what she seems. Ultimately, he must choose between his Sime heritage and his Gen love--a choice that will shape humanity's future destiny.Publishers Weekly "House of Zeor created a fervent cult. This second novel of the mutated Simes and their symbiotic-vampire relationship will be welcomed."Winner of the Galaxy Award.
Jacqueline Lichtenberg is creator of the Sime~Gen Universe, primary author of Star Trek Lives!, founder of the Star Trek Welcommittee, creator of the term Intimate Adventure, winner of the Galaxy Award for Spirituality in Science Fiction and one of the first Romantic Times Awards for Best Science Fiction Novel. Her work is now in e-book form, audio-dramatization and on XM Satellite Radio. She has been sf/f reviewer for The Monthly Aspectarian since 1993.
Reprints and new titles coming from Wildside Press, 2011.
Find currently available titles and free chapters at http://www.jacquelinelichtenberg.com With Professor Jean Lorrah, she teaches sf/f writing online via Tarot and Astrology.
Another S-G book that I thought I had read years ago but never did.
I prefer the S-G books set earlier in the timeline. I don't like reading about politics, even S-G politics! ;) But even so, this was quite good. The issues a Sime surgeon would have to deal with are very interesting. The socio-political structures that have developed from the time of Klyd & Hugh mostly made me sad. They made sense, but I kept wanting them not to!
This is a cautionary tale of what happens when rules and regulations made with the best of intentions get caught up in bureaucracy and small minds that insist every single occasion of an infraction be punished to the fullest, without thought for the circumstances or the individuals involved.
Rules made 200 years ago that don’t evolve are restrictive as hell when the society moves on from the epoch in which the rules were made.
Set against the backdrop of a Gen hospital where the first Sime surgeon works, this book explores the issues above while also developing deeply into character motivations and developing trust in relationships. The science here is a hard system and while you can skip the descriptions of what’s going on during transfers (or other situations), I urge you to read them. So much more immersive.
I probably preferred this to the first book: House of Zeor. However, still not resonating with me. General storyline not too bad, but...
...too hard for me to follow all the medical, sime-gen issues and terminology. Seems every second page a gen or a sime is falling into some near-fatal condition. Also, the self-sacrificing martyrdom of so many characters just gave me the shits. Chastising someone else for not taking care of themselves, letting themselves get into a dangerous state then seem to do the same thing themselves.
Not my most favorite of the sime gen book as but steady and true. I just do not like it so much because of the philosophy in it and it's tragic nature. As a adult through its grown in me this read
In the far future a mutation develops and humankind is split into Simes and Gens. Simes "change over" at adolescence into vampire-like creatures that must suction off energy from Gens every month. Ordinarily, this causes the death of the Gen. But then "Channels" are discovered who could safely take energy from Gens and give that energy to Simes. Digen Farris is a channel with an injury that keeps him from functioning as one, but does allow him to take training as a surgeon, a lost art among Simes. And then he meets this Gen... Both Lichtenberg and Lorrah who write books in this series are both good storytellers and create characters to care about. And since each book was written to be read independently, this one can stand alone.