Whipping Star
Encyclopedia
Whipping Star is a science fiction
novel by Frank Herbert
. It is the first full-length novel set in the ConSentiency universe established by Herbert in his novelette The Tactful Saboteur
.
, Laclac, Wreaves
, Pan Spechi
, Taprisiot
s, and Caleban
(among others) and has helped to form the ConSentiency to govern among the species. After suffering under a tyrannous pure democracy which had the power to create laws so fast that no thought could be given to the effects, the sentients of the galaxy found the need for a Bureau of Sabotage
(BuSab) to slow the wheels of government, thereby preventing it from legislating recklessly at the expense of job creation.
In Whipping Star, Jorj X. McKie is a saboteur extraordinary, a born troublemaker who has naturally become one of BuSab's best agents. As the novel opens, it is revealed that Calebans, who are beings visible to other sentient species as stars, have been disappearing one by one. Each disappearance is accompanied by millions of sentient deaths and instances of incurable insanity.
Ninety years prior to the setting of Whipping Star, the Calebans appeared and offered jumpdoors to the collective species, allowing sentients to travel instantly to any point in the universe. Gratefully accepting, the sentiency didn't question the consequences. Now Mliss Abnethe, a psychotic human female with immense power and wealth, has bound a Caleban (called Fanny Mae) in a contract that allows the Caleban to be whipped to death; when the Caleban dies, everyone who has ever used a jumpdoor (which is almost every adult in the sentient world and many of the young) will die as well.
The Calebans begin to disappear one at a time, leaving our plane of existence (or exiting "our wave") to save themselves. As all Calebans are connected, if all were to remain in our existence, when Fanny Mae died, all Calebans would die. As each Caleban exits, millions of the ConSentiency are killed or rendered insane. McKie has to find Mliss and stop her before Fanny Mae reaches, in her words, "ultimate discontinuity", but he is constrained by the law protecting private individuals by restricting the ministrations of BuSab to public entities.
McKie succeeds in saving Fanny Mae by opening a jumpdoor into space which shunts a large interstellar cloud of (presumably) hydrogen into her stellar body, rejuvenating her from her torture at the hands of the Palenki henchmen hired by Mliss Abnethe.
. While The Dosadi Experiment is not exactly a sequel to Whipping Star, it takes place in the same imaginary universe and has the same main character, Jorj X. McKie.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
novel by Frank Herbert
Frank Herbert
Franklin Patrick Herbert, Jr. was a critically acclaimed and commercially successful American science fiction author. Although a short story author, he is best known for his novels, most notably Dune and its five sequels...
. It is the first full-length novel set in the ConSentiency universe established by Herbert in his novelette The Tactful Saboteur
The Tactful Saboteur
"The Tactful Saboteur" is a novelette by the science fiction author Frank Herbert which first appeared in Galaxy Science Fiction magazine in 1964...
.
Plot summary
In the far future, humankind has made contact with numerous other species: GowachinGowachin
Gowachin are a fictional race of frog-like humanoids featured in the Frank Herbert books Whipping Star and The Dosadi Experiment. Herbert developed the race from a brief mention by Jorj X...
, Laclac, Wreaves
Wreaves
Wreaves are a fictional species of sentient beings in the Frank Herbert science fiction novels The Dosadi Experiment and Whipping Star....
, Pan Spechi
Pan Spechi
Pan Spechi are a fictional species in Frank Herbert's science fiction novels, The Dosadi Experiment and Whipping Star. They first appear in his 1964 short story The Tactful Saboteur ....
, Taprisiot
Taprisiot
Taprisiots are a fictional species in Frank Herbert's science fiction novels, Whipping Star and The Dosadi Experiment.Taprisiots appear to be stubby chunks of wood, almost like logs with their branches broken off...
s, and Caleban
Caleban
Caleban are a fictional major race of beings seen in two of Frank Herbert's novels, The Dosadi Experiment and Whipping Star, which is set in the ConSentiency universe series of stories.-Overview:...
(among others) and has helped to form the ConSentiency to govern among the species. After suffering under a tyrannous pure democracy which had the power to create laws so fast that no thought could be given to the effects, the sentients of the galaxy found the need for a Bureau of Sabotage
Bureau of Sabotage
The Bureau of Sabotage is a fictional government entity set in two of Frank Herbert's science fiction novels, Whipping Star and The Dosadi Experiment, and first introduced in his 1964 short story "The Tactful Saboteur". It is colloquially known as BuSab. Jorj X...
(BuSab) to slow the wheels of government, thereby preventing it from legislating recklessly at the expense of job creation.
In Whipping Star, Jorj X. McKie is a saboteur extraordinary, a born troublemaker who has naturally become one of BuSab's best agents. As the novel opens, it is revealed that Calebans, who are beings visible to other sentient species as stars, have been disappearing one by one. Each disappearance is accompanied by millions of sentient deaths and instances of incurable insanity.
Ninety years prior to the setting of Whipping Star, the Calebans appeared and offered jumpdoors to the collective species, allowing sentients to travel instantly to any point in the universe. Gratefully accepting, the sentiency didn't question the consequences. Now Mliss Abnethe, a psychotic human female with immense power and wealth, has bound a Caleban (called Fanny Mae) in a contract that allows the Caleban to be whipped to death; when the Caleban dies, everyone who has ever used a jumpdoor (which is almost every adult in the sentient world and many of the young) will die as well.
The Calebans begin to disappear one at a time, leaving our plane of existence (or exiting "our wave") to save themselves. As all Calebans are connected, if all were to remain in our existence, when Fanny Mae died, all Calebans would die. As each Caleban exits, millions of the ConSentiency are killed or rendered insane. McKie has to find Mliss and stop her before Fanny Mae reaches, in her words, "ultimate discontinuity", but he is constrained by the law protecting private individuals by restricting the ministrations of BuSab to public entities.
McKie succeeds in saving Fanny Mae by opening a jumpdoor into space which shunts a large interstellar cloud of (presumably) hydrogen into her stellar body, rejuvenating her from her torture at the hands of the Palenki henchmen hired by Mliss Abnethe.
Related works
Whipping Star was followed in 1977 by Herbert's The Dosadi ExperimentThe Dosadi Experiment
The Dosadi Experiment is a science fiction novel written by Frank Herbert. It is the second full-length novel set in the ConSentiency universe established by Herbert in his novelette The Tactful Saboteur and continued in Whipping Star....
. While The Dosadi Experiment is not exactly a sequel to Whipping Star, it takes place in the same imaginary universe and has the same main character, Jorj X. McKie.
Main characters
- Jorj X. McKie - BuSab Saboteur Extraordinary - HumanHumanHumans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
- Bildoon - BuSab Director - Pan SpechiPan SpechiPan Spechi are a fictional species in Frank Herbert's science fiction novels, The Dosadi Experiment and Whipping Star. They first appear in his 1964 short story The Tactful Saboteur ....
- Fanny Mae - CalebanCalebanCaleban are a fictional major race of beings seen in two of Frank Herbert's novels, The Dosadi Experiment and Whipping Star, which is set in the ConSentiency universe series of stories.-Overview:...
- Mliss Abnethe - wealthy female - human