Inferno

Larry Niven, Jerry Pournelle
Inferno Cover

Inferno

drussell440
4/20/2015
Email

If you want to churn through one book during a holiday in one go then this is ideal. It starts with some very dry observations of the Sci Fi fandom and convention life of the mid seventies and has a real good nod to Mr Asimov being the Belle of all conventions of the time - after the authour dies and then wakes up in hell you wonder if the same tongue in cheek approach will last. Although some very dry and ironic situations appear throughout the reality of Dante's world becomes very life like, gruelling and horrific. The book then speeds through the different levels of hell at a break neck pace which will engross, engage and never let you go until the very end. Like a travelougue of the worst holiday possible. This speed is actually the only weak point in the book - in some cases big plot changes take place within a scentence which trips the reader up becuase the frugal use of words have spoiled the narrative. This is especially apparent towards the end as if the two authors needed to hurry up and get the story resolved.

Dont let this spoil the book. I have now read this twice in my life and after a 2015 re-read this did not seem dated at all.

Highly entertaining, horrific and ironic at the same time. Think of darkest monty python mixed with the Evil Dead.