The first book in the Galactic Empire series, the spectacular precursor to the classic Foundation series, by one of history’s most influential writers of science fiction, Isaac Asimov His name was Biron Farrill and he was a student at the University of Earth. A native of one of the helpless Nebular Kingdoms, he saw his home world conquered and controlled by the planet Tyrann—a ruthless, barbaric Empire that was building a dynasty of cruelty and domination among the stars. Farrill’s own father had been executed for trying to resist the Tyrann dictatorship and now someone was trying to kill Biron. But why? His only hope for survival lay in fleeing Earth and joining the rebellion that was rumored to be forming somewhere in the Kingdoms. But once he cast his lot with the freedom fighters, he would find himself guarding against treachery on every side and facing the most difficult choice of all: to betray either the woman he loved or the revolution that was the last hope for the future.
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"I enjoy Asimov books. My only regret is not reading them in order. When I finished this one, it clearly continues into the next book, but I haven't read the preceding books yet. Having just finished the Stieg Larsson series, I'm not yet ready to commit to another series but plan to at some point. "
— Jen (4 out of 5 stars)
" This book starts slow and I almost quit reading it. But I soldiered on and by the 3rd or 4th chapter it picked up and I could recognize it as a quintessential Asimov novel. Oddly enough, the end of the book was a bit too short and to the point. I felt like the last few chapters could have been fleshed out a bit more. "
— Ben, 2/18/2014" Never read a review of this book. You'll spoil it. You can only read it once. "
— Wolf, 2/15/2014" This must be the most disappointing book by Asimov I've ever read. As imaginative and brilliant as he might have been, Asimov just wasn't that great at writing romance. But I think I'll forgive him, since I read that even he didn't like the book very much. "
— Sharon, 2/12/2014" Not one of Asimov's best probably accounting for the comparive rarity of this novel and it's counterparts in the Empire Series. "
— Caleb, 2/6/2014" I'm starting to get the feel for Asimov's writing style. His stories seem to fit to a predefined story arc. I guessed very early on what the "document from earth" was and I knew that, come the end, the hero would reveal hidden knowledge that he had worked out in his head, which would of course be true. "
— Cory, 1/15/2014" I like the plot a lot, although the ending is too simple. Nevertheless, I enjoyed it and would read it again. "
— Pkiszk, 1/11/2014" I found this book a lot better written and thought out than the robot series. The characters had more flesh to them and the plot moved along logically. Great twist at the end. "
— Du, 1/5/2014" This is one of Asimovs first works, I believe, and it shows. I'm giving him a mulligan on this one. "
— Kevin, 12/31/2013" Asimov never fails. This is a great ride through the galaxy and he brings it "home" nicely. "
— Andrew, 11/29/2013" Not as quick paced as other Asimov books I've read. It's not a bad book, but it focues more on the logic of who done what to who rather than on the action. Not a bad read, but there are other Asimov books I liked a lot more. "
— Yougo, 11/22/2013" this novel is a subeter jump of my inner child <3 "
— mago, 11/1/2013" (2nd in a trilogy) Typical Asimov - interesting worlds and geostrategic evolution; shallow characters. Fun but light. "
— Tony, 10/21/2013" Dear lord this book was boring and pointless. I read it because it is part of the Empire series of Asimov's but I gained nothing from it "
— Joe, 10/13/2013" This book has a great plot and a nice (if tacky) ending. But Asimov's self-declared "worst book" more than makes up for it with bad dialogue, worse characterization, and a complete lack of "real" sci-fi content whatsoever. "
— Arithmomaniac, 7/5/2013" Not Asimov's best, but definitely a good way to pass the time. :) "
— Scythan, 6/5/2013" For a sci-fi book, it can capture your attention fairly well. "
— Michaela, 2/22/2013" If you're an Asimov completist like me you're going to read this book anyway. It's not his best novel by far, but it's fairly short and interesting all the same. "
— Brady, 1/14/2013" One of Asimov's earlier books. Writing is not up to his later stuff. "
— Thompson, 5/10/2012" I haven't read enough Asimov to contextualize this within all his writings (or whatever series this may be a precursor to), but as a stand-alone story, it was good. Not great, but at least a compelling enough sci-fi mystery to propel me happily to the end. "
— Wendy, 3/16/2012" Revisiting an old favorite from my youth. Classic space opera. "
— Glenn, 1/12/2012" Asimov is one of my favourites but this novel was a surprising disappointment. Well, have to take into account that it was one of his first sci-fi novels. I find it slightly "amusing", especially for the character who used this word a lot ;) "
— Olena, 1/11/2012" As with Pebble in the Sky, this got me hooked on Asimov. And it's yet another book I want to re-read. "
— Chris, 1/1/2012" Decent book.<br/><br/>Ending was a slight downer. Not even close to Asimov's best. "
— Suhas, 4/5/2011" Bit of light space opera that proves that Asimov should stick to writing logical conundra involving robots and steer clear of love. "
— Steve, 3/23/2011" Quite possibly the worst Asimov book I've read. I should have taken the hint when I discovered they were out of print, but I kept looking until I found the trilogy. I absolutely love almost anything Asimov writes, but I'd stay away from this one unless you really want to read it. "
— Mike, 2/13/2011" Definitely the weakest of the the 'Empire' novels, but still a good read. "
— Jim, 1/26/2011" A classic sci-fi by Asimov, written in 1950. You can definitely tell that it was written post-World War II. As others have said, it's certainly not Asimov's best work by any stretch but it is an interesting light read if you're in a nostalgic mood... "
— John, 1/25/2011" I think I've heard that Asimov considered this one of his weakest works. Oddly, I liked it more than either of his other Empire books. "
— Titus, 1/13/2011" For a sci-fi book, it can capture your attention fairly well. "
— Michaela, 11/28/2010" The ending made this book. It was the only thing about it that wasn't old school formulaic. The Robot novels were great...these Galactic Empire interludes between them and the Foundation series are just not up to snuff. <br/> <br/>On to the next! "
— Tim, 11/21/2010" A pretty good read. I didn't much like the main character Biron and had a little bit of a hard time following the logic he applied. I managed to guess most of the ending with the exception of the Director's role. <br/><br/> "
— Chrissyreads, 11/18/2010" Dovrebbe essere un romanzo minore di Asimov, ambientato nell'universo della fondazione ma slegato dal ciclo, l'ho trovato comunque molto bello. Una storia eccitante nel migliore stile narrativo asimoviano... "
— Ettore.bilbo, 11/16/2010Isaac Asimov (1920–1992) was born in the Soviet Union and came to the United States in 1923. He earned his PhD in chemistry in 1948, and in 1958 became a full-time writer. His writings include the Foundation Trilogy; I, Robot; Tomorrow’s Children; and numerous works of nonfiction touching on a range of scientific topics. Among his accolades are six Hugo awards, a SFWA Grand Master Award, and high praise from such luminaries as Kurt Vonnegut, Arthur C. Clarke, and Gene Roddenberry.