Customer Reviews
One book too many - By: Andy, 26 Jan 2008 
I reallly enjoyed the first book 'to your scattered bodies go' & thought it was an amzing read, but found as I read the sequels to this they became less & less interesting.
This is one book I felt shouldn't have been written. Some of the other books had racial comments, but these were in the frame of the story. The author himself said that some of the comments made by people should only be attributed to the person who was saying them - ie if you had a eigteenth century slave trader talking he's unlikely to have 20th century ethics. Indeed the second book with Samuel Clemens made the point that racialism can occur on both sides & that sadly it can be the person being racialised in the past that can turn into the agressor because of fear.
I know he's basing the story on historical figures & that they would necessarily act in the spirits of their times but in this (last) book though I couldn't see the reasons for the stereotyping & it made me uncomfortable. I also felt there was a lack of a coherent story.
I'd say by alll means read the first 4 books, you'll enjoy an amazing story, but you don't need this one to complete the saga despite some revelations.
A "must read" to complete the series. - By: , 30 Jan 2000 
Having read the rest I just didn't want to leave Riverworld behind. I wish he would write another!
If you haven't read the previous books, then do so first. A thought provoking & exciting adventure series encompassing many famous historical players.
Thankyou Mr Farmer.
He should have ended it with the 4th volume... - By: , 27 Mar 1999 I reallly enjoyed the first 4 volumes of the series, even though I had some smalll gripes about them. This one, however, is simply a book nobody needs. The plot`s basicallly been finished at the end of No. 4, & though I won't spoil the fun by revealing the gimmick of the this book, I might safely tell you, that it doesn't reallly offer any great new insight. What we have here instead is a typical sequel: The author doesn't reallly have anything more to say, but since the readers are willing to buy another volume, the author's gonna write it. The reslt is a book filled with situations that are anything but credible. Would you believe, for example, that people decide not to do anything about an armed takeover of their home, because they don't want to miss a party they've been invited to? Or that they spend days pursuing an unknown person that causes strange things to happen - & then one day they just stop doing so, because they just find something else to do? It just doesn't work - & that goes for the whole book: It just doesn't work. Read the first four & skip this one - or if you must read it, get it from a library.
