City Without End
Kay Kenyon
PYR, Feb 2009, $25.00
ISBN: 1591026989

Earth agent Titus Quinn has arranged a shaky truce with the Tarig who still plot to destroy the Rose universe to strengthen their Entire universe. Both the Tarig Lords and Quinn are buying time as the former knows how deadly his nanotech weapons are and the latter knows how deadly the Entire universe is.

The Tarig believe they can use Quinn's estranged daughter Sydney known as Sen-Ni, born in their universe and whom he deserted years ago as their tool to get him out of the way; they fail to understand how deep Sydney's hurt and anger towards her father is as she has her own scheme to get back at him. At the same time former earth agent Helice Maki has set in motion a seditious devious plan to rule the Entire by destroying her home planet's universe the Rose. Desperately Quinn follows her across the Entire to thwart her ambition but is sidetracked when he finally meets his daughter.

The final Rose and Entire science fiction thriller contains a complex story line as so much is going on in the parallel universes (mostly in the Entire). The story line is action-packed as the players eventually converge in a supernova finish. Fans of the trilogy will appreciate this superb ending while newcomers need to start with a BRIGHT OF THE SKY followed by A WORLD TOO NEAR before CITY WITHOUT END; even those who read the previous entries will find the plot multifaceted and at times especially early on convoluted.

Harriet Klausner