Adventure story set in the 2060s, projecting crises of our own time into the not-too-distant future.

I spent the first third or so of this concluding book of the Jenny Casey trilogy missing the things that I had really enjoyed most about Hammered (fast paced action and intriguing characters like Mitch and Razorface). But things certainly picked up when Jenny and crew go EVA to explore the “birdcage” alien ship, and the pace never really slows down again after that. Some of the political machinations required a whole lot of suspension of disbelief, but the book succeeds in providing an entertaining story that builds suspense and leads to a satisfying climax with a real sense of closure.

I enjoyed Bear’s aliens (particularly the profoundly different-from-humanity birdcage aliens). At a fundamental level this book is about establishing communication, and the challenges of communicating with the aliens prove appropriately daunting (as opposed to the “we blink our lights three times, they blink their lights three times, and in no time we’re talking” approach). Leslie’s experiences with the birdcage aliens brought to mind the beautiful conclusion of James Tiptree’s Up the Walls of the World, one of my favorites.

I never connected with Charlie or Leslie or Riel in the way that I had with some of the characters in the first book, and Gabe and Elspeth are reduced to bit players. I wasn’t entirely convinced by the characters’ responses to the traumatic events of Scardown, but then it’s hard to know how people would respond to such events. Still, I recommend the series and look forward to more from Bear. ( )

Big rock blast sacrifice aftermath.

In the wake of a large object being dropped on Canada from a very great height, the problems of the planet still remain, evne with the sacrifice of one of Jenny's pilot proteges to help ameliorate the damage. Space exploration is still vital, and Jenny Casey is considering her own expedition given her current position and materiel.

Luckily for the meat-based population of the planet, Richard Feynman is happy to use his basically now planet-sized brain resources to help with the rebuilding effort on the surface of the planet.

Political enemies who want things to stay as they are would really like to stop any successes Casey and her allies might be able to manage. Not all of them are human.

Again, a book that is tricky to sum up in a phrase, and well worth a look. It is perhaps even a bit better than the last two.

http://notfreesf.blogspot.com/2007/08... ( )