This is my favorite classic science fiction novel. It is rich in incident, ambitious in conception, terse and unemotional in style, and fiercely Romantic in theme. Although it is a revenge tale based on The Count of Monte Cristo, its heart is perhaps closer to Frankenstein, but to a Frankenstein in which the monster is capable of self-redemption, of moving beyond isolation and bitterness toward an enlightened humanity. And all the things that are good about this novel are embodied in its hero—Caliban and Hamlet, Satan and Samson, Cain and Prometheus combined—the brute-genius Gully Foyle. Despite being published over 60 years ago it doesn’t come across as that dated either. Alfred Bester did a lot of well thought out world building as to what this space faring society that has also mental powers like telepathy and the ability to teleport would be like. Some of the stuff he did here like a conflict between factions fighting for the resources of our solar system are still used today in sci-fi like The Expanse series, and the idea of powerful corporations being as much a force as government has been used countless times as well. The ending also seems like a leap forward to a kind of sci-fi that something like 2001 would do a decade later. A purpose had been found that could open up all of the potential this beast-man had within him: vengeance. From here we follow Foyle as he lifts himself out of the pit (physically at least) by his bootstraps and ingeniously contrives both his own rescue and the plans that set him on the path that will allow him to fulfill his oath: “I find you, ‘Vorga’. I find you, I kill you, ‘Vorga’. I kill you filthy.” All the while his spirit stews in the morass from which his body could escape and he becomes a rapist, thug and purveyor of violence in pursuit of his goal. No price is too high to reach it, whether it be imprisonment or social isolation; no obstacle can stand in his way, whether it be the most powerful institutions in the world, or the human dignity of those he uses. Beware, Gully Foyle is on his way. HE HURTLES THROUGH SPACE & TIME & MISADVENTURE, HE WEARS MANY FACES, A LOVER AND A RAPIST, THE MOST VIOLENT MAN IN THE ROOM, THE ANGRIEST BOY EVER, A HUMAN TIMEBOMB!

Toward the end of the novel, after he has returned to human life and become something of a hero, he states:From Nobody to Nightmare: Gully goes from the most insignificant cog in the machine to one of the few who truly lives outside its control. Peter Y'ang-Yeovil: Head of a government Central Intelligence agency based on ancient Chinese principles who is also trying to find Nomad. He is "a member of the dreaded Society of Paper Men, and an adept of the Tsientsin Image Makers". Although of Chinese descent and able to speak fluent Mandarin, he does not look Chinese. Took a Level in Badass: Goes from a living object to relentless killing machine to effectively transcendent through the course of the novel, all because some passersby decided not to rescue him. Walking Wasteland: Dagenham. Mildly subverted in that he can avoid causing damage if he limits his interactions with the world outside his radiation-proof chamber. Because of Alan Moore's love for this book, he became the basis of Dr. Manhattan.

The novel included some early descriptions of proto-science and fictional technology, among them Bester's portrayal of psionics, [13] including the phenomenon of "jaunting", named after the scientist (Charles Fort Jaunte) who discovered it. Jaunting is the instantaneous teleportation of one's body (and anything one is wearing or carrying). One is able to move up to a thousand miles by just thinking. Alfred Bester was an American science fiction author, TV and radio scriptwriter, magazine editor and scripter for comic strips and comic books. Wow. I can see now why this is considered one of the greats of sci-fi. It ought to be required reading for anyone setting out to know the history of the field and what sparked the imagination of so many other writers. The very ending was somewhat weak, but the climax was great. The emotions were the strongest part of the whole tale. Gut wrenching and visceral doesn't begin to describe it. Great setup, straightforward adventure/revenge tale, and a great twist. Loved it, loved it, loved it. The last couple of chapters are wonderfully trippy, surreal, philosophical and cosmic! I suspect these last chapters play a large part in pushing the book to its classic status. urn:oclc:67871283 Scandate 20090825191825 Scanner scribe2.sheridan.archive.org Scanningcenter sheridan Worldcat (source edition)Many musical groups, including Stereolab, roadside picnic, NASA Space Universe and Slough Feg reference Gully Foyle and/or the title of the novel. Foyle appears on the cover of Sough Feg's Hardworlder album, along with a song entitled "Tiger! Tiger!". Merchant Prince: Businessmen like Presteign of Presteign have so much power that they essentially are the government, and their family names are treated as titles. Cavallaro, Dani (2000). Cyberpunk & Cyberculture: Science Fiction and the Work of William Gibson. London: Athlone Press. p.9. ISBN 978-0-485-00412-0. American Science Fiction: Five Classic Novels 1956-58 (LOA #228): Double Star / The Stars My Destination / A Case of Conscience / Who? / The Big Time . America Classic Science Fiction Collection) The book has received high praise from many fellow science fiction writers. After generally criticizing unrealistic science fiction, Carl Sagan in 1978 listed The Stars My Destination as among stories "that are so tautly constructed, so rich in the accommodating details of an unfamiliar society that they sweep me along before I have even a chance to be critical". [16] By 1987, when the author died, "it was apparent that the 1980s genre [ cyberpunk] owed an enormous debt to Bester and to this book in particular". [ citation needed] Neil Gaiman wrote in the introduction to a 1999 edition of the book: " The Stars My Destination is, after all, the perfect cyberpunk novel: it contains such cheerfully protocyber elements as multinational corporate intrigue; a dangerous, mysterious, hyperscientific MacGuffin (PyrE); an amoral hero; a supercool thief-woman..." [3] James Lovegrove called it "the very best of Bester", [17] and Thomas M. Disch identified it as "one of the great sf novels of the 1950s". [17] Joe Haldeman wrote: "Our field has produced only a few works of actual genius, and this is one of them", [17] who also added that he reads the novel "every two or three years and it still evokes a sense of wonder".

Story - The central plot is fairly entertaining. It takes a little to long to wrap up and there are far to many tangents that are not fully realized. The book should have been shorter and some of these tangents edited out or it should have been longer with the tangents fleshed out. Either way not quite there. Secret Police: Central Intelligence is quite obviously this. They even have a secret language that is called...the Secret Speech. It is a journey both physical and symbolic. When Gully has to take on an alias to remain in disguise, as his pseudonym of “Fourmyle of Ceres” he is witty, literate, well-spoken, a character light-years away from the near-monosyllabic survivor seen at the beginning of the book. Strange characters exist throughout, with even stranger relationships. He almost meets his match in a woman who is his equal (again, unusual for the 1950’s!) as he attempts to take on enigmatic business leaders in his search for the crew of the spaceship Vorga who left him. There was no blast; there was no flash. A new crater opened in the asteroid below him and a flower of rubble sprang upward, rapidly outdistancing a dull steel ball that followed leisurely, turning in a weary spin. A man is a member of society first, and an individual second. You must go along with society, whether it chooses destruction or not.a b Gale, Steven H. (2003). "Bester, Alfred". In Serafin, Steven; Bendixen, Alfred (eds.). The Continuum Encyclopedia of American Literature. London: Continuum. pp.93–95. ISBN 0-8264-1777-9. Kelleghan, Fiona (November 1994). "Hell's My Destination: Imprisonment in the Works of Alfred Bester". Science Fiction Studies. 21, part 3 (64) . Retrieved May 14, 2011. The first installment of The Stars My Destination was cover-featured on the October 1956 issue of Galaxy. The Shape of Things To Come Episode 8 Tiger! Tiger!". Miranda Richardson Radio Appearances. Archived from the original on December 20, 2010 . Retrieved January 2, 2009. Aristocrats Are Evil: The Presteigns, one of the new breed of corporate nobility, are quite fond of saying that they love blood and money.