David Zindell Books In Order

Publication Order of The Ea Cycle Books

Publication Order of The Neverness Cycle Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Collections

David Zindell

David Zindell is an American author of science fiction. He was born in Toledo, Ohio. He was awarded a BA degree in mathematics and anthropology at the University of Colorado. He currently lives in Seattle, Washington.

His first book, ”Neverness”, won the Crawford Award for best first fantasy novel in 1988 and is the first book in a series known as The Ea Cycle.
His early story’Shanidar’ was awarded the first prize in the Writers of the Future contest. Zindell’s most recent books are ”The Broken God” and its sequels, ”War in Heaven” (2006), and ”The Wild” (2008). Both of those titles were New York Times notable books for 2007.

Neverness, his bestselling novel, was shortlisted for the Arthur C.Clark award for being the best in science fiction stories. David Zindell is known for his beautiful and imaginative writing style. His stories are often concerned with themes such as the nature of belief and transcendence and whether we can obtain absolution from our past actions or not. His work also contains many impressive descriptions of space travel and aliens.

His writing style is romantic, poetic, heroic, or about philosophical issues in human life. Zindell was nominated for the John W. Campell after being the Best upcoming writer in 1986.

Neverness

The story follows the life of Mallory Ringess at ”the Academy” as a trainee. The academy was started by a pseudo-monastic order of truth-seekers called ”the Order of Mystic Mathematicians and other ineffable flame seekers hoping to be a pilot.

In the present day, a pilot is a special beast with a combination of the aspects of theoretical mathematician and a questing knight. With advanced mathematics, the pilots can navigate within the manifold, a kind of hyperspace linking all parts of the universe. Its dangers can cause the untrained or the unwary to get lost in the tangled threads space-time.

The book takes the reader through a life journey on a planet named ‘Neverness’ – a place where all civilized life within this world exists in one large metropolis. The main protagonist is a man named Mallory Ringess, born into an aristocratic family he seems to despise until his family is killed, and he is placed in a near-death state.

He accepts a mission from a person named ‘The Angel of Death to become one of the pilots of a form of faster-than-light spacecraft which are known as ‘Moths.’ This takes him through an adventurous journey throughout Neverness itself, as well as outside of worlds known as ‘farthest’ and ‘Further.’ As Mallory comes closer to a religious sect called the Transcendence, he realizes that he must complete his mission before transcending himself.
The protagonist Mallory Ringess is shown in both positive and negative lights; at times, he seems to be earnest in his attempts to complete specific missions given to him, but on the other hand, he also appears like someone who tends to take unnecessary risks when it comes to showing off or simply for his own entertainment.

The tone of this novel changes between that of a personal account and that of a splendid view of the universe, with the protagonist Mallory Ringess taking on both positive and negative lights; at times, he seems earnest in his attempts to complete specific missions given to him, but on the other hand, he also appears like someone who tends to take unnecessary risks when it comes to showing off or simply for his own entertainment.
The worlds that Ringess travels through are beautifully written, portraying the worlds in a way where the reader understands what they look like based on how Ringess describes them but leaves enough room for interpretation that they could be anything.

The novel Neverness is philosophical in its approach, with Ringess often having deep conversations with both his crew members and various other characters throughout the story. Though they can seem repetitive at times, it may feel that this is intentional as the reader begins to understand how important these conversations are for Ringess as he begins to question himself and his purpose.

The Broken God

The Broken God is the debut novel in A Requiem for Homo Sapiens. The book is a story of Danlo’s brilliant mentor, a mathematician, who believes that knowledge can save all humankind. But when he invents something so dangerous it could destroy Neverness forever, his project wrenches the entire city and its inhabitants far into the future and reveals how they will become their own gods.

Zindell’s writing and storytelling style are magnificent to read, and the world he created was wonderful. It follows Danlo as he leaves his home of Neverness and begins a journey to find out who has caused the plague that wiped out his entire race. He becomes a member of the Order of Mystic Mathematicians and Other Seekers of the Ineffable Flame.

The novel follows him as he goes through his life learning, meeting new people, and growing into a man. It offers a lot of insight into how people lived in the far future. There are many other characters that are introduced throughout the story, all of them just as intriguing and well-developed as Danlo is. Even minor characters were given depth to them for the reader to comprehend fully.
Danlo’s story isn’t the only one that is focused on in this book. There is an entire cast of characters that is enjoyable to learn about. The book shows what happens to Zolar, the leader of the Order, and what happened about Peter’s past. Danlo becomes a member of the community in which he lives, allowing the reader to learn about them as well. One of the great things was the mathematics and scientific theories that were included in the book – for the reader to feel like they are learning something new, which is not common for most novels.

Neverness itself is a place filled with people who are fascinating to learn about as well. Everyone has their own beliefs, from those who are devoted to the Messiah who will save them to those who despise other religions. It is interesting to learn about all of these people and how they come together despite their differences. The book is filled with action, mystery, and science fiction.