I am never sure how to take Modesitt. He lives in Cedar City, UT and seems to have a love/hate relationship with Mormons. This book tends more towards the hate side, at least on the surface. Overall a pretty good book though. ( )

I would say that immediately after I read this I would have given it a 2 or 3 star rating. But the longer it sat on my mind for the days and weeks after reading it, it really grew on me. The interesting thing about it is that I can't entirely pinpoint why I liked it so much.

Some of the reviews I have read called it boring, or slow. The plot just didn't move until well into the book, and then when it did, it wasn't for long. This didn't bother me. But I'm not sure why. It should have bothered me. I think what made me really enjoy it was the fact that it was a little slow. And when I say slow, I mean that there was lots of dialogue and deep thought between the main characters. This actually appeals to me more than I thought it would. The characters, taking their time to make decisions, and really waffling over ideas just made it more real to me in some ways.

I think I (at least partly) identified with the main character's inability, or even obstinance to go the direction that everyone wanted him to. The fact that he was willing to work in a (what most would consider) lower class job, doing menial tasks for YEARS, really went to great depths to show exactly how undecided he was about doing what "he was meant to do".

Even the discourse between him and his girlfriend later on in the book continued to elaborate on his indecision, leaving this character entirely relatable in my opinion. Somehow, this book left a memorable impression on my mind. The thoughtful characters, coupled with their decision making and actions, made them characters that we can relate to in real life, but in a much more sci-fi world. Something about this made the book well worth the read. But I can also understand how some people may not be as fond of it, for some of the aforementioned reasons. ( )

this was a schtickload of philosophical crap. I want to label this sophist garbage. It felt like Modesitt was preaching at his audience the WHOLE time. There wasn't much of a plot, needless to say. ( )

http://allbookedup-elena.blogspot.ca/2014/07/gravity-dreams-le-modesitt-jr.html

A thought-provoking story with layers that will make you think. ( )

May11:

Read this again after many years. I think it was probably better this time.

Characters: The lead is a bit confusing. There's a lot of self-discovery, and maybe I just can't discover him the same way. A few important females in his life.

Plot: Self-discovery with one galactic mystery. It really is about this one guy exploring his beliefs as he jumps forward a few millennium technologically.

Style: Well rounded actually. Just enough sci-fi mixed with just enough humanity. Modesitt gets that engaging mix just right. ( )