The Flying Sorcerers

This is a light and amusing book, easy to read; but the authors didn't just toss it off casually, they gave it the work and attention that might go into a more serious book. So, as well as being pleasant light amusement, it's also a real sf novel with some meat to it.

Bearing the title in mind and the presence of so-called magicians, it's worth noting that this is a work of science fiction and not fantasy. Even the science in it seems fairly solid and not very speculative.

Real imaginative work has been done to construct the bizarre scenario and to work out the low-technology solutions required for the plot. Characterization is amiable and sufficiently varied, though male-dominated: apparently the authors decided that strong female characters would be an unwanted complication in this case. The plot is well constructed and has a beginning and an end.

I haven't read much by David Gerrold; but I've read quite a lot by co-author Larry Niven, and I reckon this is one of his better books. He's written plenty of books that are more ambitious, but with varying degrees of success.