View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who does Mzu go to meet when her car is followed by Joshua and his companions, Monica and Samuel, various other agents, and the local police?

2. When Bonney gathers together the possessed to hunt and kill Dariat, what does Dariat agree to enter in Valisk?

3. Who transforms herself into a giant, winged creature to fly up to the spaceport?

4. Whose ship makes contact with the Mindor, a blackhawk turned hellhawk possessed by Rocio Condra?

5. Who does Baranovich throw to death from a walkway inside the foundry?

Short Essay Questions

1. How do Samuel, Mzu, and Monica try to escape the possessed via the basin?

2. What could have the different factions on Nyvan achieved if they cooperated instead of bickered over Mzu?

3. What is the cliffhanger pertaining to Tranquility at the end of the book?

4. What happens when a possessed is killed?

5. Why is Bonney intent on killing Dariat?

6. How does Rocio going to Capone help Gerard in his mission?

7. How does Quinn view the planet Nyvan from above like a prophet?

8. In Chapter 9, how does the possibility of defeating Capone seem plausible?

9. How is Quinn's deranged mental state evident in the bloody massacre of Dwyer?

10. What does the revelation that Mzu's husband Peter was left on Beezling reveal about her motivations?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Power in society is a prevailing theme of "The Neutronium Alchemist Conflict." Hamilton frequently refers to this theme, painting the picture of scholarly knowledge being rewarded by power. Which characters appear honest and which appear corrupt and why? Which characters appear to rise above corruption even if they were initially vulnerable to it? What is your opinion of the society that Hamilton describes?

Essay Topic 2

"The Neutronium Alchemist Conflict" is particularly effective in conveying meaning through powerful imagery. Powerful imagery to establish connections in the minds of readers with the story's characters and plot. Imagery is the picture we form in our minds of the story we read. It can involve, visual, auditory, olfactory, gustatory, tactile, kinetic, and kinesthetic. Hamilton uses these imagery to translate words into a visual story that we can see and participate in within our minds. Describe the use of imagery in this novel.

Essay Topic 3

Zero-tau is a form of stasis that will freeze a person or thing in the space-time-continuum. How does time move and change as a result? Which characters express this and in what ways? How is sensory feeling suspended?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 689 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample