I am an Edgar Rice Burroughs historian and have published
over 1600 articles about the writings and history of Edgar Rice Burroughs.
In spite of my expectations to the contrary, Rob Dorsey’s “A
Prince of Mars” is a very very good book. I readily admit that I was pre-disposed
not to like it. I’ve read dozens of books and stories based on the Barsoom
novels of Edgar Rice Burroughs, most with high anticipation followed by
inevitable disappointment. I’ve even written a few that mercifully will never
be published.
I expected no better from this one and read the first
hundred pages looking for things to nitpick and complain about, but before long
I realized that I wasn’t doing that anymore, I was reading and enjoying the
story. Instead of trying to find fault, I cared about the characters. Captured
by the narrative, I willingly accompanied and cheered for the characters as they
battled the Zodangan forces.
Rob used a disclaimer on the copyright page. “The author is
not an employee of or related to the estate of Edgar Rice Burroughs and these
works are not intended to represent any work by Burroughs or any other author,
living or dead.” Be that as it may, the story is worthy sequel to the Barsoom books.
It is the first of five novels, THE BARSOOM PENTALOGY and I look forward to
reading the next four. His treatment of John Carter, Dejah Thoris, Kantos Kan,
and Tars Tarkas does homage to those characters. He expands their personalities
while remaining true to Burroughs’s vision for them. That’s a hard task, but write
reviews that contain spoilers and so I won’t write about the storyline. I will
say that Dorsey’s background as a pilot makes his descriptions of how the
Barsoomian lighter-than-air ships function and maneuver absolutely spot on.
