Product Description

Del was a rock singer. He was also the renegade son of the Ruby Dynasty, which made his career choice less than respectable, and gave him more to worry about than getting gigs and not getting cheated by recording companies, club owners, or his agent. For one thing, the Ruby Dynasty ruled the Skolian Imperialate, an interstellar Empire, which had recently had a war with another empire, the Eubian Concord. For another, Del was singing on Earth, which was part of a third interstellar civilization, and one which had an uneasy relationship with the Imperialate. Del undeniably had talent, and was rapidly rising from an unknown fringe artist to stardom. But, with his life entangled in the politics of three interstellar civilizations, whether he wanted that or not, talent might not be enough. And that factor might have much more effect than his music on the lives of trillions of people on the thousands of inhabited worlds across the galaxy.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #214472 in Books
• Published on: 2009-05-05
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 512 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781416591603
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

About the Author
Catherine Asaro has an M.A. in physics, and a Ph.D. in chemical physics, both from Harvard. She has done research at the University of Toronto, The Max Planck Institute, and the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. A former ballet and jazz dancer, she founded the Mainly Jazz Dance program at Harvard and now teaches at the Caryl Maxwell Classical Ballet. She has written sixteen novels in the popular Skolian Saga as well as two near-future technothrillers, The Veiled Web and The Phoenix Code. Her other books for Baen include The Ruby Dice, Alpha and Sunrise Alley. She currently runs Molecudyne Research and lives in Maryland with her husband and daughter.

Customer Reviews

Sweet story
This is a science fiction novel with a strong romantic tilt and a male protagonist, unusually so for a romantic story (yet Asaro manages this convincingly time after time). It is the 10th or so entry in the Skolian Empire series, but stands entirely on its own, revolves arounds a new character (a member of the royal family we knew only by name before), surprisingly has no background or scientific infodumps, instead smoothly incorporating required information into the story.

The story is - Del, the youngest scion of a royal family ruling an interstellar empire, is on Earth, hiding in anonymity under a pseudonym. His unusual good looks and a tremendous vocal talent land him a contract as a rock singer, but the path to stardom is unlikely: his telepathic sensitivity cripples him in front of crowds. He's an awkward, naive farm boy thrust into the decadence of Earth's music industry, yet his past hides pain and alienation.

Usually being more fond of science fiction novels, I was surprised that the sample chapters I read drew me in so well. The book is a good, fast read, and the end had a surprisingly emotional impact - I did not expect to be tearing up. This is an excellent book to read for readers new to the Skolian series, and existing fans will also enjoy it.

Gets Stronger as the Story Progresses
Diamond Star is a stand-alone book, but it also is part of a collection of books, novellas, and short stories that Catherine Asaro has written about the Skolian empire/universe. I also have to disclose that this is the first of Asaro's books that I have read.

The book is strong enough to encourage me to read more of her books, especially from the Skolian empire series. The book is weak enough that I almost didn't get far enough to come to that conclusion. Let me explain:

The first third of the book is very focused on introducing us to Del and his baptism into the world of the music business of the future. Other than references to fancy equipment and the fact that Del was from a planet other than earth, I felt like it was a book about a wannabe rock singer of the 1960s or '70s, and I wasn't very intrigued.

But as the reader gets to know Del and some layers of background are unpeeled, the story becomes more complex and compelling. I found the last half of the book to be engrossing, fun, scary, and thought-provoking, and I found the ending to be heart-wrenching. I was surprised I had come to care so much about Del and his relationships with family and friends, but I had. That's the mark of a good writer.

I will be interested to see how some of Asaro's other Skolian books compare to Diamond Star. I am especially interested to read about some of the other members of Del's family to better understand how they became the people they are in this book.

If we could give half-stars, this book would be 3.5. I bumped it up to 4 rather than down to 3 because of the strength of the second half of the book.

The CD that goes with the book is quite good--not music I would normally listen to, but I received it with the book and have listened several times. Kudos to the band Point Valid.

Another great entry in Asaro's Skolian series
I love all three of Catherine Asaro's series, but the Skolians most of all. Diamond Star is particularly interesting because it takes place on Earth only a couple of centuries from now, so the feel is more like one of Asaro's AI books. But it connects beautifully into the larger Skolian story arc by demonstrating the power of art--in this case, of music.

Del is a damaged and troubled young man, and it's sometimes painful to watch his mistakes. But he grows as a man, an artist, and a prince, and the end is smashing. Clearly Asaro loves music and has done her research on alternative rock, and that shine through Diamond Star. I also really like the music that is threaded through the book, and which is available on CD.

Can't wait for the next Skolian novel!