Ports of Call

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Myron's parents insisted that he study economics, and Myron dutifully applied himself. But Myron had an aunt--his great aunt Hester Lojoie, a woman of great wealth inherited from a dead husband, and even greater flamboyance of nature. And when Dame Hester came into possession of a space yacht, Myron suddenly saw his long-supressed dreams of adventure bloom into new life.Amazon.com ReviewJack Vance, an undisputed king of science fiction, outdoes himself in this space exploration novel. Myron Tany has been given command of a space yacht by his crazy aunt Hester, giving him the perfect chance to live out his childhood fantasies of intergalactic adventure, alien encounters and exotic romance. Set in Vance's Gaean Reach universe, Ports of Call is a veritable catalog of adventures, replete with richly-detailed encounters and characters worthy of the series that will no doubt follow this book. This is a light, often comedic space adventure that suffers only a bit from a meandering plot. Vance fans will revel in a terrific read. From Publishers WeeklyClassic space opera is alive and kicking in this latest interstellar spree from Vance (Night Lamp), who turns 82 this year. In the far future, young Myron Tany seems destined to be a misty-eyed dreamer, pining away for interstellar intrigue, until his rich and eccentric great-aunt, Dame Hester, gains ownership of the space yacht Glodwyn and pushes Myron into the captain's chair. The stresses of family relationships prove too difficult, however, and Hester soon kicks Myron out on his own, forcing him to sign on as a majordomo for the cargo ship Glicca. As one of a hearty and fearless crew, Myron begins the education that makes him a sailor of the spaceways, learning how to placate difficult passengers, romance women of exotic worlds and make it back aboard ship with his purse intact. While his future is unclear at the novel's end, Myron has grown into a confident and capable fellow, if not exactly a swashbuckler. Readers who demand a complicated, hard-science milieu might find Vance's narrative occasionally too chauvinistic, or too simple, or just too plain silly, but this jaunty, politically incorrect tale provides first-rate escapist entertainment. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.