1043. Plague Zone

On a recent trip I got to finish, "Plague Zone" by Jeff Carlson. It is the third book in his Post-Apocalyptic, Nano-technology, Plague Year Trilogy. (Duh! - Obviously, though, one wonders, if the trilogy might grow to more books...but that's a story for different paragraph). Almost six months after the last book, a little band of survivors, including Cam Najarro and Ruth Goldman, the Nano-technology researcher have holed-up not far from the US Government's seat of power, high-up in the Rocky Mountains. Even though the human race has achieved a level of immunity and can descent below the 10,000 foot level, not too many people stray too far below that barrier still. Yes, the Chinese live in Los Angeles, and the Russians north of them, but most American and Canadian forces are still centered around the Rocky Mountains. Strength comes from numbers, but numbers can be easily attacked when people are located in one particular "zone".

A new "nano" attacks the World, not just the Americans, but everyone. There are few survivors. Among them, Cam and Ruth who try to unlock its secret. The journey in this third book is to figure out where the attack came from, why and who create the new  "nano". I don't know, why the author stopped calling the nano-technology "snowflakes" like he did in the other books... that was a bit jarring. Still, the reveal as to who the "nano's" creator was is quite a bit stunning, and an important part of the plot.  The other part that advances the story spectacularly are the people who survive the attack and respond to it this time. I have always been kind of confused as to Ruth's motivations. I am starting to believe that the reason has more to do with Jeff Carlson's writing and something about the way he writes her character and that I am not picking this up, and nothing more.

For the problems and reviews of the first two books go here:
Plague Year
Plague War

There is a lot more exposition and discussion of the Geopolitical situation as well as the effects of the "nano" on the whole world. It's as if, in the first two books, Jeff Carlson was testing his feet in the water... now he has finally jumped in head first.

I enjoyed the third book in this series, even if the conclusion was a bit uneven, even if I get the feeling that there might be another book. I just wish that Ruth Goldman (and by extension the author) had arrived at some different conclusions and a different course of action. The future of what remains of the human race depends on her, and even after this, I expect greatness, or at least that what Classic Science Fiction of the Golden Age always led me to believe.

All in all, a worthy effort. 4 stars out of 5. The last one for effort.

1038. Dead Until Dark

I had to see what all the fuss was about you know. I had to read for myself, at least the first book in this series about this woman, Sookie Stackhouse who meets this Vampire at her place of work, and falls in love with him. Oh, there are so many books with that theme in the marketplace, and unaccountable number of books on the subject. What makes writers, write this type of book? Is every one of these books a singular creation, or does each of these writers sit down and think, I can do the Vampire Story better than everybody else? So, on a company trip I decided to stop at local Barnes & Noble and pick-up the book (and the first sequel).... oh, it turns out there are lots and lots of these books coming out of the imagination of Charlaine Harris!

Meanwhile, there is TV series that airs on HBO called True Blood that covers the events in the books? I don't know, because a) I haven't read all the books, and b) I haven't watched the TV series since I can't afford HBO. So, back in the real world of an adult male, I decide to read a fantasy book written about a young, good looking waitress from Louisiana who can can read minds, and where Vampires exist (they are an every day accepted phenomenon, accepted, and regulated?) Sookie (our heroine) falls for Bill, a Vampire who lives down the street from her house, and they share something intimate and maybe something more. How far back does their history go back? Is their some relationship in their family's past? But Bill has problems of his own. He has come back into town with reputation problems and maybe people pursuing him? Not that Sookie has the easiest life, having to take care of her grandmother and her brother who seems to get into trouble with every women he beds.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, more as a distraction than anything else. It appears that there are now, 10+ books in the series. I definitely have the second one, and I will read it, but I don't know whether I will read anymore in the series. As for the HBO series, since I know nothing about what is going in the books themselves, even though I have sampled it, I can't say I was impressed by it. It is a pretty graphic series. There is something about the printed word that leaves a lot to the imagination.... I like that!

I suspect this book, appeals to a different demographic, but Charlaine Harris IS a pretty good writer, and her characters are well actualized. For this reason, I will give this book 3 and a half stars.

1029. Plague War

I don't know why anybody would say: "...part George Romero, " when describing Jeff Carlson's follow-up book to "Plague Year", second book "Plague War". There is nothing in it that reminds me of "Night of the Living Dead."  Then again, when you're living in the future without hope, it might seem that the "Living Dead" are roaming the land. Me? I just don't see the comparisons.  I mean, nanotechnology infected people are not zombies. There is hope for them. Isn't there? This book is the second book in Carlson's Plague Year trilogy.

So, does Jeff Carlson succeed in continuing his Nanotechnology-cum-Post-Apocalyptic tale? This, the second book, is a good yarn, taking place immediately after the events of the first book. Events take place at a break-neck speed, and as such leave little room to think. Can Ruth Goldman unlock the secrets of the "snowflake" as the nanotechnology is called? Can Cam Najarro protect her from countless adversaries? What is in it for himself? And let us not forget that the title of this book is "Plague War" so what is this War about?

Events in this book escalate rather quickly. The people that were on the International Space Station with Ruth in the first book go their own ways in the second book. One of them, Ulinov, the Russian commander is instrumental in the events that lead for domination and ultimate war. But, while I can the see the logic that led this author down the path of this sequence of events, I still don't understand why he does not embrace showing us the road to salvation. There are hints at what the nanotech can accomplish. These are the private thoughts of Cam Najarro whose point of view we are treated to always. But if these things and more are possible, why is the hero at least not willing to discuss them openly with Ruth?

Still, because of the expanded exposition and lots more action - Jeff Carlson truly paints on an international canvas this time  - I enjoyed this book more than the first.

I give it 3 stars out of 5.

1028. Plague Year

Plague Year by Jeff Carlson is the debut novel of a new talent in the Science Fiction genre. In the back cover of the paperback edition, no less a master of the genre than David Brin says: "One of the best debut novels in years." And Kevin J. Anderson, a writer whose Saga of the Seven Suns kept me enthralled for years is quoted as saying "Fascinating."

With this kind introduction, a novel of this type has to be good, right? After all, a number of forum members on BookMooch actually recommended this book to me. The book covers a subject matter that I adore, nanotechnology...How I did not become a biochemist or a biological engineer, I don't know. I would have loved to play with tiny little machines. So, my expectation were pretty high going into this book. Not discounting the fact that it's also a book in the "Post-Apocalyptic" sub-genre of Science Fiction.

To be honest, I did enjoy the book on a certain level. And yes, I completely identified with Cam. I thought he was the most well rounded of the characters in the book. But apart from characterization problems such as Cam Najarro and Ruth Goldman, I had issues with some of the decisions the characters were making. I understand these characters belong to a certain author who has to lead them to a certain action sequence and then to a certain outcome, but there were times when their actions made no sense. So, I had problems with the structure of the book.

I also had problems with the language as used throughout the book. Granted, I might not have been an English major in College, but the way a lot of sentences were written seemed odd to me. They weren't particularly wrong, but they were off-putting. Oh, I followed the action alright, but the language made that journey a jarring ride. And this could be because of subtleties in the language that even I am not aware of.

What was the bulk of the story about? Quoting from the back cover: "The nanotechnology was designed to fight cancer. Instead, it evolved into the machine plague, killing nearly five billion people and changing life in Earth forever. The nanotech has one weakness: It self-destructs at altitudes above ten thousand feet..."

So, there are survivors, and a group of scientists who are sent onto the International Space Station (ISS) to escape the Plague. But eventually they are going to have to come back because they are going to run out of supplies and because there is only so much they can do up there. Meanwhile the survivors out West, pick-up one of the creators of the Plague.

You know what I kept waiting to happen in this book? Yes, you have destroyed humankind successfully with this Machine Plague. And yes, there are immense consequences for the ecosystem and the entire planet. Now, show us the next step, show us the ingenuity of the human mind and the promise of the technology. Show us what a well-meaning scientist with the right tools can do with nano-technology...

I give this book 2 stars out of 5.

1009. Revelation Space

Alastair Reynolds is a fantastic new voice in the world of speculative fiction. Although this book was first published in 2000, I did not read it until this year. And boy, was I missing a wonderful book.

But first things first: A little bit about Alastair Reynolds, born in Wales, England. He has a Ph. D in Astronomy. For some reason, many scientists make good science fiction writers. I dunno why. Alastair has done a wonderful job here. This book tackles that eternal question people seem to ask in different ways: "Are we alone in the Universe?"

Now, it is true that question has been asked before, by many Science Fiction authors in many different versions. I always enjoy reading these different "takes" (as they are called) on this theme. What's new, or refreshing in this story is neither the setting or the build-up behind it, but the originality of the characters.

You know, a long time time ago, a science fiction editor by the name of John W. Campbell, decided that characters were just as important to a Scientific speculative fiction story as the underlying science, the story itself. Without characters indeed, there is no story. Alastair Reynolds achieves this in spades. It's the characters that draw you into the story. Oh, there is enough scientific exposition to make you believe that you are 500 years in the future. But Dan Sylveste and Ilia Volyova will make you believe that you are there.

Dan Sylveste is investigating the "Amarantin puzzle", an extinct race, whose archaeological traces humanity has been investigating for years on different worlds. Yet, on this world that humans have colonized, the "Amarantin" seem to have accomplished something. They seem to have achieved a level of technological sophistication, maybe at the humanity's current level or even beyond, a completely unexpected development. WHY? All previously extinct races that humanity had come across had never reached this level, EXCEPT for humans themselves.

There are of course the "Shrouders", an unknown conglomeration of Alien entities or Alien intelligences hiding behind a physical shroud in space which is impenetrable...and then there are the "Inhibitors". Who are the "Inhibitors"? And what do they want with humanity?

I do not want to give more of the plot so as not to spoil it. Suffice it to say, that A.I.s are central to this book, as well as Light-Huggers (ships that accelerate UP TO the speed of light) -- no FTL crap in this book. Dan Sylveste's father was one of the first people capable of downloading his mind into a computer. He was also the first to make contact with the "Shrouders". Since that time, Dan Sylveste himself attempted contact with the "Shrouders". And with this set-up we're thrown into a whirlwind, action whodunit with lots of mystery. The crew of the light-hugger Nostalgia for Infinity is of course central to the plot, as well as events set in motion hundreds of years in the past.

I highly recommend this book. Although, it will leave some questions unanswered, the book reaches a satisfying conclusion -- yet it leaves you hungering for more! Good thing then, that Alastair Reynolds has written 4 more books set in the same universe as "Revelation Space":

1. Chasm City (2001)
   
2. Redemption Ark (2002)
   
3. Absolution Gap (2003)
   
4. The Prefect (2007)

I give this book 4 and one half stars our of 5.