Passing of the Technomages

[SmileOfTheShadow]

Re: novels filling in details. Peter David's always been good about that with novelizations. I really enjoyed his star trek novels as well, especially Imzadi which I thought brought the Riker/Troi dynamic to a level the show never really touched.

The original Dell books didn't really help out too much in that regard, had very little to do with the show. The last two that were reprinted, one being the technomage prequel and the second by Kathryn Drennan were exceptions of course. The Kathryn Drennan one I think holds up as one of the better novels I've read period, and I would have liked it regardless of its involvement in the B5 universe.

[Marsden]

Re. "Too many contributed things relating back to the original B5 run...", I found that to be a strength. Anchor points to B5, A Call to Arms and Crusade in the trilogies were GOOD things. They helped stitch everything together.

I agree completely, that's one of my main reasons for even reading the books, the fact that they actually continue or fill in blanks in the B5 story. Anybody can write a generic space opera novel and give the character's names Ivonnova and Sheridan and so on but that won't make it B5 unless it's part of the whole story. See the first dell books for an opposite example.


Btw, I really liked the first half of the 1st PsiCorp book but after Senator Crawford is gone I didn't like it as much. I enjoyed the 2nd book but my favorite part weres the last few chapters where they mentioned or depicted things that were mentioned on the show. The last book was a good "chase" story and I enjoyed it, I thought the characterizations of Garibaldi and Bester very well done.

I thought the Centauri trilogy was one of the best books ever and is my sixth season of B5. Actually, the behind the scene "expanation" in the second book (I think) helped me to enjoy "A Call to Arms" much better than I did on veiwing it before I read it. Really. I'm a details person and you just can't bog the movie down with too much explanation/exposition but the novel occurring around the same events is able to fill that in very nicely. At least this one did, and more.


I haven't read the Techomage trilogy yet but I am planning to as soon as I can get them. I already have the third book but I'm saving it until I get the first two.

[ZenoParadoxus]

Yes, by the Science Fiction Book Club.
"The Passing Of The Techno-Mages"
by Jeanne Cavelos
Product Details
Hardcover: 874 pages
Publisher: Science Fiction BookClub; 1st edition (2002)
ISBN-10: 0739423959
ISBN-13: 978-0739423950

That's the one. The few book vendors listing it for sale on abebooks have prices from $35 to $99 (that last price apparently being the book store that I got it from at $4.95 instead). I'll be going back to see if they happen to get the other two omnibus editions...

Zeno

[KoshN]

Wow that's a great collector's find. Were all the 3 trilogies done in hardcover?

Yes, by the Science Fiction Book Club.

See the B5 Novels, Novelizations and Short Stories FAQ:

http://www.b5tv.com/showthread.php?p=367352#post367352

under Omnibus editions.

Here's the applicable portion:

OMNIBUS EDITIONS OF THE DEL REY TRILOGIES

"The Psi Corps Trilogy"
by J. Gregory Keyes
Product Details
Hardcover: 712 pages
Publisher: Science Fiction Book Club (January 1, 1999)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0739406566
ISBN-13: 978-0739406564


"Legions of Fire"
by Peter David
Product Details
Hardcover: 733 pages
Publisher: Science Fiction Book Club; 1st edition (2000)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0739414852
ISBN-13: 978-0739414859


"The Passing Of The Techno-Mages"
by Jeanne Cavelos
Product Details
Hardcover: 874 pages
Publisher: Science Fiction BookClub; 1st edition (2002)
ISBN-10: 0739423959
ISBN-13: 978-0739423950

[KoshN]

I have them. I thought that was the weakest of the three book series they put out. Too many contributed things relating back to the original B5 run. Even though I thought the last 2 PSI Corps were bad, book one was amazing.

LOL. I have them all as well, both in hardback and paperback form, and found the Psi Corps trilogy the least likeable of the three trilogies. The first was especially dry, with all its aliases.

Re. "Too many contributed things relating back to the original B5 run...", I found that to be a strength. Anchor points to B5, A Call to Arms and Crusade in the trilogies were GOOD things. They helped stitch everything together. I highly recommend The Passing of the Techno-mages and wish it could be filmed as a miniseries.

[SmileOfTheShadow]

I stopped by a used bookstore I've never been to before and was browsing the SF hardcovers, when what do I see but the Passing of the Techno-Mages hardcover (bookclub edition), in mint condition for $4.99! Of course I snapped it up instantly.

So now I have a mint set of the paperbacks to dispose of, to maintain the status quo. I'd rather sell them to someone here than some random stranger on e-bay. Anyone interested?

Wow that's a great collector's find. Were all the 3 trilogies done in hardcover?

[lotjx]

I have them. I thought that was the weakest of the three book series they put out. Too many contributed things relating back to the original B5 run. Even though I thought the last 2 PSI Corps were bad, book one was amazing.

[ZenoParadoxus]

I stopped by a used bookstore I've never been to before and was browsing the SF hardcovers, when what do I see but the Passing of the Techno-Mages hardcover (bookclub edition), in mint condition for $4.99! Of course I snapped it up instantly.

So now I have a mint set of the paperbacks to dispose of, to maintain the status quo. I'd rather sell them to someone here than some random stranger on e-bay. Anyone interested?