← Back to search
Cover of Night Lamp

Night Lamp

Jack Vance (1996)

SubgenreHigh Fantasy
Age groupAdult 18+
Content ratingPG-13
Pages (Standard (250-400))
SeriesGaean Reach #
Setting
CSM age14
Goodreads3.78

Content levels

ViolenceModerate
Sexual contentNone
LanguageMild

Heroine archetypes

Heiress

Protagonist archetypes

QuestFish out of Water

Synopsis

Jaro Fath has been troubled by visions all his life: a garden, a menacing man in black, a woman screaming. Voices fill his head sometimes, saying words that Jaro cannot quite understand. Jaro is an orphan, but he had been adopted under mysterious circumstances by the Faths, a scholarly couple who loved him dearly. They raised him on the planet Thanet, where they gave him everything he could ever desire - except one thing. They would not tell him about his origins, always saying that the time was not yet right. But the Faths were killed on the world of Ushant, bystanders and witnesses of an act of ritual self-destruction by one of their more radical colleagues. Jaro was left their sole heir, but without the legacy he truly wanted - his identity. He now finds himself threatened on all sides by men who wish to exploit or, worse, kill him. His friends are few - a young woman named Skirlet, who has very high social status but very little wealth, and a mysterious man who calls himself Evan Tarr. Tarr knows something, it is clear, and now he has encouraged Jaro to abandon the life his adoptive parents had planned for him, and to set out on a quest to discover his identity.

Is Night Lamp appropriate for my child?

Suitable for most readers 14 and up.

Sci-fi mystery with an orphaned protagonist pursued by dangerous forces as he searches for his true identity. Contains moderate violence (deaths, threats) but no sexual content or strong language.

What to know going in

This book has moderate violence, no sexual content, and mild language. Content notes include death of parent, violence, and abandonment.

Publisher age: Adult·Our content rating: 14+

Publisher ages reflect reading level; our rating reflects content maturity — they can differ.

Who'll love this

Teens who love space mysteries and protagonists uncovering their hidden past will enjoy Jaro's journey to discover who he really is.

Tags

Science FictionSpace OperaMysteryAdventure