Flinx Transcendent: A Pip & Flinx Adventure

• Publisher:   Del Rey
• Number Of Pages:   416
• Publication Date:   2009-05-19
• ISBN-10 / ASIN:   0345496078
• ISBN-13 / EAN:   9780345496072

From one of the most brilliant imaginations in science fiction comes Flinx Transcendent, Alan Dean Foster’s thrilling conclusion to the series that began over thirty-five years ago–the epic adventures of Flinx and his flying minidrag companion, Pip. Flinx is the only one with even the tiniest chance of stopping the evil colossus barreling in to destroy the Humanx Commonwealth (and everything else in the Milky Way). With time running out, Flinx is a man in search of a solution and in search of himself. His efforts take him to the land of his mortal enemies, the bloodthirsty AAnn, where chances are excellent that Flinx’s discovery–and summary execution–will eliminate all his demons and doubts in one masterstroke. The way Flinx is feeling, that might not be the worst imaginable end. After years of searching for his father, he finally has–and must bear–the truth. And now he must also seek out an ancient sentient weapons platform wandering around somewhere in the galaxy and then communicate with it, a powwow that could very well fry his already frazzled brain. Then there are the oblivion-craving assassins determined to stop Flinx before he can prevent total annihilation. With a future that rosy, it’s no surprise he’s flirting with disaster. Still, Flinx is no quitter, and he’s got something else going for him–an uncanny ability to improvise and triumph (or at least survive) in impossible situations. He’s certainly been through enough of them, and now he’s going to need every ounce of that know-how, because he’s venturing to places where the laws of physics fear to tread, where no one’s ever been, to do what no one’s ever done, and where his deadliest enemy is so close it’s invisible.

Wretchedly written. Initial set-piece on Aann homeworld has nothing to do with the remainder of the book. Order of Null are incompetent villains, hence provide no drama. Much of the book is endless banter irrelevant to forwarding the plot. Doesn't even get to the main plot until the last the last third of the book, and that is basically "Flinx sticks his head into a variety of old machines until he saves the galaxy. The End." Tying up every single plot point in the series is grotesquely dull.

- - - POSSIBLE SPOILER OR TWO BELOW - - - I too have read Flinx since the beginning. Those early books were what addicted me to the series. In the last few years Foster seems to have just lost sight of what made the series special to me, and from reading other review, special to many other fans. This book could have easily dropped the whole first half, when I saw the Null arc reappear I groaned, muttering, "not again. Geesh, just drop them." They added nothing to the overall series and are rather flat as villains. I just wanted to get on with the cool stuff, Tar-Aym weapons platform, Tse Mallory and Tru, stuff like that. Even Syl seems to drag the book into less than satisfying directions. Overall I wish we could have notched the whole thing down a few steps from "Flinx has to save the whole universe" to "Flinx goes places and sees and does truly amazing things." I also feel rather sad for the people in the Universe they lured the EVIL BLOB into. Wonder if that is how it got into OUR universe? I wonder if I am just haded with all the extra years of reading SciFi since Tar-Aym Krang came out, and all the new science we know now. Perhaps people today just can't get the same thrill out of books like Splinter of the Minds Eye, one of my all-time favorites. My ratings for the various books in the series: * (10/10) The Tar-Aiym Krang (1972)
* (8/10) Bloodhype (1973)
* (9/10) Orphan Star (1977)
* (9/10) The End of the Matter (1977)
* (8/10) For Love of Mother-Not (1983)
* (7/10) Flinx in Flux (1988)
* (7/10) Mid-Flinx (1995)
* (7/10) Reunion (2001)
* (6/10) Flinx's Folly (2003)
* (4/10) Sliding Scales (2004)
* (4/10) Running from the Deity (2005)
* (6/10) Trouble Magnet (2006)
* (5/10) Patrimony (2007)
* (5/10) Flinx Transcendent (2009) Dishonorable mention * (2/10) Qofum (2008)

This is billed as the last Flinx and Pip, I hope not. The series has been a pleasure to read and worth the effort to follow. Foster has kept up the merit of the writing and plotline throughout.

This is probably the poorest book ADF has ever written. At its worst it is almost unreadable, full of sentences that defy good taste. At best -- well, it doesn't have a best, and doesn't even read like Foster. It feels like a pure money-grab that was ghosted by some kid who just discovered the long words in the thesaurus. The plot is a joke, to the degree it has one, and I'd say the same thing about the editing if any were apparent -- this thing should have been cut by 2/3 and published as a novella somewhere. Don't waste your time. I almost never write negative reviews, but I really resent being sucked into this book, and the irritation built with every plodding, pompous, padded page. So I make an exception here; ADF should have killed this one in the cradle.

Having followed Foster's Commonwealth series since the The Tar-Aiym Krang (yes, I'm that old!), I was very disappointed with Flinx Transcendent. After a series of short Flinx novels beginning with Sliding Scales, I had hoped for a sprawling epic ending. Instead I got was two novellas parading as a single novel. To me it felt like a contrite way to end a storyline Mr. Foster was tired of pursuing. I had thought Quofum was the worst original novel he had written but this was worse.

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