I found Out of the Silent Planet slow to get into but ultimately intriguing, enjoyable and thought provoking. In contrast, Perelandra, the second in C.S. Lewis’s Cosmic Trilogy, gets quickly into the action, was mesmerizing, suspenseful and thrilling by turns, and riveting throughout.
Ransom is sent to Venus (Perelandra) with an undisclosed mission. There he meets the Green Lady, the majestic and perfectly innocent first woman of that world. But Ransom is not the only earthling to have arrived on Perelandra, and Weston is there at the bidding of a different master.
The account of the temptation that follows could best be described as ‘cosmic theological thriller’: a gripping exploration of temptation, obedience, knowledge and service of God and the nature and effects of sin. If I had to limit my fiction reading to ten books for the rest of my life, I’m pretty sure this would be one of them.