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Wer auf Larry Nivens "Ringwelt" steht, kommt bei "Titan" ganz sicher auf seine Kosten.Obwohl die beiden Bücher neuen Jahre auseinanderliegen -"Ringwelt" erschien 1970, "Titan" 1979- lassen sich trotz einer völlig anderen Story gewisse Paralellen nicht verleugnen. Auch bei "Titan" geht es um eine künstliche Welt, auf -oder besser gesagt "in" - der die Hauptakteure Abenteuer zu bestehen haben. Faszinierend daran ist weniger die Geschichte selbst -eine Expedition zum Saturn stößt auf einen nicht natürlichen Mond, der um den Planeten kreist und wird von ihm eingefangen - sondern der Ideenreichtum mit dem das Leben in dem Saturnsatelliten beschrieben und erdacht wird. Leider kann man nicht davon schwärmen, ohne viel zu verraten, aber wer die "Ringwelt" wegen ihrer Bewohner lieb gewonnen hat, kann sich "Titan" bestimmt nicht entziehen. Der Weg der Expeditionsmitglieder zu der Herrscherin der Kunstwelt liest sich eher wie ein Fantasy-Roman und entbehrt jeglichem Techcore. Ein Buch mit einer Geschichte zum Lachen und Mitfühlen, aber auch ein Buch, dass Fragen stellt, wer oder was wir sind. Wie ernst man das nimmt, kann sich jeder selbst aussuchen, die Unterhaltung ist jedoch mit Sicherheit gewährleistet. Der Bonus liegt natürlich in den weiteren zwei Folgen, auf die man sich freuen kann, aber dazu mehr an andere Stelle. (Dies ist eine Amazon.de an der Uni-Studentenrezension.)

I picked up Titan in a used book pile at the swap meet for a quarter! I had never heard of Varley and didn't expect much. However, after reading it I was amazed, and could not contain my excitement. I thoroughly enjoyed discovering the world known as "Titan." But I wanted more, and what would you know, it was the first book of a trilogy. Yes! I took my own sweet time reading second book Wizard, just so that I could savor every paragraph and soak up all that was said. Wizard was just as good if not better than Titan. I can't wait to read Demon.

I guess it's easy to find fault with anything, but I observed two themes with this book that I found unsettling. The first was the sex, which didn't seem to be part of the plot (or maybe I missed that connection) - like who cares who was bonking whom on the ship? The second was the references to movies in the descriptions used - and here I quote - "Gaea looked a lot like Charles Laughton in 'The Private Life of Henry VIII'". Hmmm maybe I should write a book like that...The man who looked a lot like Nicholas Cage in 'Face Off' said to the woman who looked a bit like Uma Thurman in 'Pulp Fiction' "Is that your car? The one that looks a bit like James Bond's in 'Thunderball'"?Where do I pick up the Hugo?

The first time I read John Varley (and perhaps the first time I read Science Fiction) it was when I bought Demon, the last episode of the Gea trilogy by mistake. Imagine me with 15 ears old trying to read something so strange as Demon, which I think is the strongest episode of the Gaea trilogy. In the beginning I was almost giving up to read the book but I must confess that when I finished it I read it more 2 times, I bought Titan and Wizard and read all the trilogy more 3 or 4 times.Its amazing how John Varley is able to construct a so strange universe and keep it consistent, every time that I make another read I find something new, a detail that I didn't notice.Now I'm 26 years old and I'm aungry to read more of Varley, I'm just waiting for Portuguese editions of the other books.I hope that some day somebody try to make a movie of the trilogy.

This is my 3rd attempt to get a review posted. Normally, I'dhave given up, but my opinion of this book is so strongly negative, Ijust had to try again. Let me start off by saying that I'm a big fan of Varley's shorter novels (Millennium, Ophiuchi Hotline), as well as his short stories. I think that he has one of the most vivid imaginations ever, and even better, he is able to combine his amazing creations into a cohesive story that is usually very enjoyable. When it comes to his longer works, however, his skills waver. Titan contains his trademark creativity, but the storyline is so weak, and the ending so bland, that everything else gets dragged down with it. It's as if he decided to coast on the strength of his creations instead of doing something significant with them. A sign that I've had a good read is when I finish the book and say, "Yeah, I can see that." With this book, it was a resounding, "So what?" Another problem I have with this book is the amount of sexuality contained within. Now, I'm no prude, and I don't mind a little sex in my reading as long as it serves some point, furthering the plot or whatever. In Titan, however, Varley takes an almost adolescent preoccupation with it, and it's SO prevalent. It's as if he knows the reader is getting bored and needs to spice things up or risk losing them. That's a trick employed by bad writers, and he should know better. Finally, let me say that if you're expecting this book to be quality science-fiction or to have a central message, you'll be disappointed. I wouldn't call it sci-fi at all; it's purely escapist adult fantasy, and poorly written at that. What amazes me is that this is book one of a trilogy. I can't imagine continuing to read this storyline.