Science Fiction

I realise the idea of me actually exercising is going to stretch the imaginations of one or two people, but sometimes, I do attempt a little bit.

Not often and certainly none of that raising a sweat panting and puffing palaver.

If I can't read a book while I'm doing it, I'm not doing it. And HAL SPACEJOCK was a rather good book to choose. Although I'm not sure that "perfect for when you're exercising" is going to be a description that anybody's going to be drawn to...

Funny, silly, touching in places, the first book in the series is a bit of a madcap romp style of book, set in the future, where the hero's are robots, one particular human really shouldn't still be breathing, and big business villains are left right and centre. So not an unexpected plot, but there's enough of the "future" sort of stuff to make it that little bit different, without being too hard of a leap for a non-science fiction fan like me.

But then, anything, repeat ANYTHING, that can make me forget how long I've been walking up and down on the same spot is a good thing.

Something very strange happened to me recently. I loved a book, thoroughly enjoyed reading it, couldn't put it down at points, and still have absolutely no idea what the hell was going on. None whatsoever.

Post-apocalyptic Melbourne again. Not my favourite place at all, although in TOBACCO-STAINED MOUNTAIN GOAT we don't seem to be too far in the future, and we don't seem to be that far from current day Melbourne, particularly in the way the city is divided into the have's and the have nots. The division is by way of the Dome - uptown paradise where rampant consumerism and mindless bullshit rules (doesn't sound all that far-fetched does it...). Outside the Dome we're talking dangerous, run down, mean streets, bars, fast food, and nasty goings on (another tick in the not that difficult to believe column).

Populate the place with Deviants and Seekers who keep them in line, add a central hero that's a chain-smoking, loud mouthed smart arse with a drinking habit and a surprisingly touching reason for doing the job, and frankly, I was in lunacy heaven.

What really works in TOBACCO-STAINED MOUNTAIN GOAT is the characterisations, as well as some very funny and mad storytelling. I suspect you're going to get even more than I did from this book if you're in any way a follower of popular culture on TV and in films.

Ask me before reading this book and I'd have told you I'm really not into post-apocalyptic scenarios. I'm also not a follower of popular culture and certainly not science fiction, yet somehow even I managed to notice the Blade Runner references in this book....

But honestly, didn't care I had no idea what was going on. Didn't care it's not the sort of book I'd normally read. Don't even care that I'm not even sure if it was crime fiction. It's definitely a thriller, and it's somewhere in the Science Fiction realm... probably. I'd guess. Honestly - no idea. Did I mention I loved it, did I mention I've got no idea what the hell was going on....

The ABC tv series has prompted the re-release of the paperback but has little resemblance to the events of 2009 that Sawyer created.

The best science fiction novels will always have you firmly believing in the writer's vision of our future world.  It is a given that there will be some hellishly dire warning as to where humanity will head if it trips merrily along its current path of debauchery and selfishness.  Science fiction offers up all the cool stuff like great technology and at best, grounds this reality from whatever stage of advancement the world is at as the novel is written (which would be 1999 for FLASHFORWARD).

It is interesting to compare how we are now, to how Sawyer thought we might be a decade into the future.  A layman's knowledge of quarks, the shelf life of a Supernova and the behaviours of neutrinos etc and suchlike might have been of valuable assistance to understanding what it is that causes the Flashforward, and it may be this aspect of the read that will appeal to the little space geek hidden inside of you anyway.  (CERN's real life website will be helpful here ).

As the novel is multi perspective (necessary for a novel where catastrophes occur on a global scale) we are privy to the immediate after reactions of the scientists who work together at CERN, and how their lives spiral outwards from that couple of minutes when the whole conscious world goes bye-bye.

It's an incredible premise that is not fully explored and the complexities of space and technology swamp the human interactions in this novel.  This does not necessarily detract from the read, however it strips away opportunities for possible morality explorations and "survivor" personal angst on a grand scale.  FLASHFORWARD will make its readers question themselves - it is quite impossible not to project yourself right into this story.    Is it best not to know your own future, so as to not consciously steer your life towards what may or not be a fixed path - one that was always going to be determined by your own actions?

FLASHFORWARD has enormous potential throughout the book but with such upward momentum, anything less than an apocalyptic conclusion might only serve as a let down.  It is easy to see why this novel is so awarded and highly regarded in science fiction circles.  Having every person on earth facing the same dilemma is an ambitious premise for a novel.  The ideas are put out there with a lot of theorizing  left to the reader - and perhaps that was always the intention.

TIME MACHINES REPAIRED WHILE-U-WAIT arrived recently, intended probably for my science fiction reading partner, but something in the blurb made me want to snaffle it first, and I'm very very glad I did.

This is one of those books that come along every now and again to tip the whole concept of "genre" on its head.  It's a crime story, in a Science Fiction style world.  Set in 2027 Western Australia, 'Spider" Webb is an ex-cop, recently separated, working now as a Time Machine mechanic.  In 2027 suburban Malaga, a lot of people have time machines, but the future isn't completely mad - these machines come with some limitations.  You can slip backwards and forwards to visit, say the relatives, but you can't interfere with major world events (you only get to visit in "ghost" mode).  Time machines though, have their problems, mostly to do with cats it seems, and there is a never-ending stream of them needing fixing passing through Spider's workshop.  (In a very nice twist it doesn't matter how long it takes to fix one of these things, Spider just goes back in time to just after he picked it up to deliver the repaired machine back!).  

Spider's own life is complicated (of course!).  He lives in a hotel since his wife threw him out, yet he's forever being summoned to his old home to fix whatever it is piece of technology that's playing up.  Urgently.  He works long hours, at a job he doesn't like; for a boss he can't stand - even if he does insist that everyone call him Dickhead (McMahon).  No matter how hard he tries he cannot coax a decent cup of coffee out of the robot coffee machine (even though the company receptionist has no problems at all), and with all the advances in science and technology, traffic jams are still the bane of his existence.  It almost seems inevitable that one day, a repair job is going to get complicated, just to prove to Spider that his life really does suck.  So the arrival of a woman's dead body when he's trying to analyse an unstable Time Machine, well it had to happen.

Despite the authorities taking over the investigation, Spider can't leave well enough alone, and as events get more and more complicated, Spider finds himself in the fight of his, and his wife's, lives.

Given the advent of Time Machines, it's hardly surprising that investigating a crime could go in a very different direction from what you'd expect in 2009.  But there are some unexpected twists and turns that make the expected or seemingly obvious, well not.  There's also delightfully bizarre stuff going on with Spider who ends up working with Future and near-Future versions of himself as he goes backwards and forward in time, and right out to the End of Time.  Or somewhere.  It all gets very crazy at points with Future Spider sleeping with current Spider's unrequited lust, with Spider's wife being threatened, or not threatened, or dead, or alive, or something...  At some points things do seem to get a little muddled, but I'm not sure that it was muddled in a totally bad way.  I liked the idea that even a time-travelling repair man, ex-cop, accidental detective, saver of the universe could get a tad confused about where or who or what on earth was going on.  Or not on earth as the case may be.

For an infrequent Science Fiction reader, this book had real appeal if for no other reason that it was incredibly entertaining.  Mind you, I gave up looking for the detail in any of the alternate timelines and just opted for going along for the ride.  The ride greatly enhanced by the character of Spider, whose reluctant hero status was actually quite appealing.  Add to that the surprise package of Dickhead, so gloriously over the top that he just had to an anti-hero - somehow.

The only possible complaint is that the book did sort of crash to a bit of an ending, and it may be that a crime fiction fan would find that the investigation component took a secondary seat to the alternate timelines and a threat to the entire world type scenario, but who's to say what the rules are in a cross-genre book like this.  Personally I just thought this was tremendous fun.  And I profoundly hope that I never have to meet up with my Future / Near-Future or Past self.  There are some things from the past that would be best staying there, and I certainly don't want to chat to my future up close and over breakfast.

Opening Sentence: "...BlackWidow has entered the room..."

PD Martin's second novel is simply amazing. It is so chillingly plausible it leaves you feeling very uncomfortable. Most internet users belong to some sort of online discussion group or forum. Many of these forums are for the use of its members only. THE MURDERERS&#

Now about author Steve Mosby (third novel in, more to come). It can be said with certainty, after reading THE 50/50 KILLER, that the man has a nice hand with the British police procedural and isn't too shabby at the finer points of characterization either. There is just enough of the peeking behind the parlour curtains, observing as we do here the private details of a marriage, which satisfies some voyeuristic urge to spy on the ripple effects with what might be imagined happens to the afterhours relationships of homicide detectives. The viewing and investigation of some seriously disturbed crimes - we expect that to have a kick-back into an officer's personal life. It all balances beautifully with the relentless drive forwards of the police investigation, though it can come across unexpectedly as a little prim and restrained in its execution (good and solid British reserve, even as things go to pieces).  This is a finely worked novel, so the attention to order remains in keeping with how the many personal relationships are meticulously examined.

The line between gratuitous descriptions of the horrific acts man commits against fellow man, as opposed to more clinical observation is treaded with caution. Showing restraint here (considering his background in horror) Mosby includes just enough to have his reader  squinting and wincing but reading on regardless. As we near the pointy end, as with all good crime/thriller novels, Mosby delivers his major plot twist beautifully.

Into British police procedurals? Can't stomach a crime novel that's all about the heinous act itself? Scratch your itch for both with THE 50/50 KILLER.  This is smart and absorbing stuff that will have you flicking over to the author's website clickety-click to see what's next on Mosby's plate.

39; CLUB opens in one such forum - only this one consists of four members - and they are all established serial killers.
 

There's a slightly odd feeling about sitting down to read a book that if somebody asked you why you were reading it - the best explanation you could come up with was ... well ... "it sort of sounded slightly mad - and besides the central character wants to become part of a book.... ".  You've got to be intrigued by that premise.

THE END OF MR Y doesn't telegraph what sort of a book it is from the cover blurb - it sounds a bit like a mystery, it could be fantasy, there's even some elements that sound a bit like traditional science fiction.  It's all of those things and a lot more because at the basis of everything else in this book there is the story of somebody's life that is fascinating, there are characters that you can care about.  There's a story of disaffection and alternative ways of living your life that is intriguing.  THE END OF MR Y is unpredictable, brash, exciting, slightly edgy and ever so slightly odd.

At the centre of the book is Ariel.  Ariel's a great character and narrator - she's very much in control (sort of), she's very focused (sometimes) and she's somebody who knows where she's going (okay now I'm stretching...)  Ariel's engaging, she's fascinating, she's also slightly crazy, but what she really has is acute self-awareness.  She's an impoverished PhD student from a decidedly dodgy background, she's got a very active sex life - many might say it's a very dangerous and unorthodox sex life.  Some people might find a building dropping into a hole in the ground a bit unexpected but Ariel can let that roll, just as she can discover a copy of a mythical long lost book and not question where it could have come from.  She can find a way to handle her odd sex life with her married lover becoming increasingly risky.  She can even develop an attraction to Adam, the ex-priest forced to share her University office because of the collapse of the other building.  And finally she can enter the Troposphere and find it threatening and comforting all at the same time.  But Ariel is used to the unexpected.  In fact she really doesn't know what is supposed to be normal - life is just what happens.  There's a great quote on the back of the book which explains her attitude perfectly:

"Real life is regularly running out of money, and then food.  Real life is having no proper heating.  Real life is physical.  Give me books instead, give me the invisibility of the contents of books, the thoughts, the ideas, the images.  Let me become part of a book".

It's impossible to read THE END OF MR Y and not consider the possibility of the Troposphere.  And compare the possible absurdity of the idea of an alternative reality with a current day obsession like Second Life.  Fantasy and science fiction blurring into reality in a very intriguing way?

Along the way Ariel must try to find out about the two strange men and their two childish offsiders pursuing her.  She must find her PhD supervisor - Professor Burlem - because he alone also seems to understand the ramifications of the Troposphere.  She must work out what she wants with the equally troubled Adam.  She must also decide how or where she wants to live her life.

Australian FBI Profiler, Sophie Anderson, is taking a break in Arizona with a colleague and friend, Detective Darren Carter. He knows her secret. That she can mentally connect with the victims through visions and dreams, she actually sees them through the eyes of their murderer.

No sooner has Sophie arrived in Arizona than a body shows up at the University - followed by a second and a third. Darren is assigned the case and Sophie joins him in the investigation . Can her visions of a woman's horrific death help solve the crime and stop any more victims?

The story is propelled through two main points of view. The investigators and the murderers. The reader soon knows what is going on - there is a group of captives that are locked away in an underground bunker. They are being watched by the four members of the murderers' club as they vie for the chance to murder their favourite captive through an auction. The hairs on the back of your neck stand up as you read the lighthearted discussions between the criminals - the complete lack of compassion and guilt.

Sophie and Darren have to work out the secret behind their latest serial killer and then try and catch them and stop them. There are twists and turns right up to the very end.