The Dark Design
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| Author | Philip José Farmer |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Riverworld |
| Genre(s) | Science Fiction novel |
| Publisher | Putnam Publishing Group |
| Released | 1977 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover & Paperback) |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-399-12031-9 |
| Preceded by | The Fabulous Riverboat, 1971 |
| Followed by | The Magic Labyrinth, 1980 |
The Dark Design (1977) is a science fiction novel, the third in the series of Riverworld books by Philip José Farmer. The title is derived from lines in Sir Richard Francis Burton's poem The Kasîdah of Hâjî Abdû El-Yezdî:
- And still the Weaver plies his loom, whose warp and woof is wretched Man
Weaving th' unpattern'd dark design, so dark we doubt it owns a plan.
The inhabitants of the Riverworld try to deal with the mechanical breakdown of the planet, including the cessation of resurrections. This book combines the storylines of the two previous novels. One thread deals with Sir Richard Burton and crew travelling along the river. Another thread deals with those left behind when Mark Twain boarded the Fabulous Riverboat. These people decide to build an airship and fly it to the Ethical headquarters at the north pole. A third storyline deals with a voyage by Jack London, Tom Mix, and a sufi up the river, again in service of the mysterious stranger.
