The Venom Trees of Sunga
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| The Venom Trees of Sunga | |
 First edition of The Venom Trees of Sunga |
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| Author | L. Sprague de Camp |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Darrell K. Sweet |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Kukulkan |
| Genre(s) | Science fiction novel |
| Publisher | Del Rey Books |
| Publication date | 1992 |
| Media type | Print (Paperback) |
| Pages | 211 pp |
| ISBN | ISBN 0345375513 |
| Preceded by | The Stones of Nomuru |
The Venom Trees of Sunga is a science fiction novel written by L. Sprague de Camp, the twelfth book in the his Viagens Interplanetarias series and the second in its subseries of stories set on the fictional planet Kukulkan. It was first published in paperback by Del Rey Books in November 1992.
[edit] Plot summary
The lead character Kirk Salazar, a second-generation Terran colonist on the planet Kukulkan, is near the end of his education to become a biologist, lacking only field research to complete his studies. Interested in the evolutionary background of the dominant native species, the intelligent reptilian Kukulkanians, he focuses on a related animal species whose habitat is the poisonous "venom trees" on the remote island of Sunga. To reach his destination he joins a tour group headed for the island, among whom are some family friends worried about their daughter, who has joined a band of Terran cult members there. They discover she has become the cult's leader, and Salazar finds himself caught in the crossfire of a power struggle between the cultists and a Terran logging magnate intent on clear-cutting the venom trees. He is able to save his neck and preserve the habitat of his research subjects by an unorthodox use of his findings, a spectacularly unlikely disguise, and a healthy dose of dumb luck.
[edit] Setting
Kukulkan, a planet of the star Epsilon Eridani, is inhabited by intelligent dinosaur-like creatures possessed of a civilization far older than Earth's. Due to the natives' inherent conservatism and an environment deficient in fossil fuels, its technology has not advanced beyond edged weapons and steam-driven vehicles. The Kukulkanians, or "Kooks" as they are known among Terrans, are honest, honor-bound, and dull in personality. Terrans have obtained land for a colony by treaty, and the colonists, comprised primarily of descendants of North American, Russian, and Chinese settlers, co-inhabit the planet in a somewhat uneasy relationship with the natives. The cultural level of the aboriginal race places the Kukulkan stories firmly within the Sword and Planet genre, though the non-humanoid inhabitants are an unusual feature. The Kooks' rational and dispassionate observations allow the authors to present a rather arch perspective on the comparatively less stable Earthlings.
[edit] Problematic placement in the Viagens series
The status of the Kukulkan novels as part of the Viagens series has been disputed on three grounds.
The first objection is that the Viagens Interplanetarias is never actually mentioned in the novels. This difficulty is explicable; as the Terran settlements on Kukulkan are well-established they are not dependent on the space organization for support as are Terrans on other worlds. The fact that all the action in the Kukulkan novels takes place on-planet also lessens the likelihood of Viagens involvement.
The second objection is that the novels portray a future in which Americans, Russians and Chinese appear prominent, while the Brazilians usually portrayed as the dominant Earth society go unmentioned. This difficulty has also been rationalized; emigrant societies are more commonly drawn from struggling countries than affluent ones, and America and Russia, at least, are no longer great powers in the Viagens future. Therefore it is reasonable for these nations, and not the prosperous Brazil, to have sent settlers to Kukulkan.
The third objection is that the name of the planet Kukulkan appears to violate the naming system previously established for the planetary system of Epsilon Eridani, which according to the introduction and title story of The Continent Makers and Other Tales of the Viagens utilized the names of Norse gods like Thor, not Mayan gods like Kukulkan. This discrepancy remains unresolved, but since no Viagens story is actually set on any of the Norse worlds, the identification of their star as Epsilon Eridani is perhaps best regarded as an error.
Regardless of these issues, an explicit reference to the key Viagens planet Krishna in The Venom Trees of Sunga definitively places Kukulkan in the Viagens universe.
| Preceded by The Stones of Nomuru |
Kukulkan novels of L. Sprague de Camp The Venom Trees of Sunga |
Succeeded by none |
