To say that Marusek’s follow-up novel to Counting Heads is high-concept, complex science fiction would be an understatement. Any attempt to describe the intricacies of his futuristic vision would take at least a dozen blog posts, because one cannot possibly understand how detailed his world is without actually reading the books and being immersed in it. That said, Mind Over Ship is the answer to all those that think science fiction has run out of ideas, because Marusek sure as hell is not short on them at all.

Having said that, I am going to use the blurb from the jacket of the book to describe Mind Over Ship, because I can’t describe the book any better without going on for a week:

The year is 2135, and the international program to seed the galaxy with human colonies has stalled as greedy immortal power brokers park their starships in Earth’s orbit and begin to convert them into space condos. Ellen Starke’s head, rescued from the fiery crash that killed her mother, struggles to re-grow a new body in time to restore her dead mother’s financial empire. And pre-Singularity AIs conspire to join the human race just as human clones, such as Mary Skarland and her evangeline sisters, want nothing more than to leave it.

Marusek has earned his place in my book of amazing science fiction writers with this piece. While Mind Over Ship is not an easy read, once you get past the initial “culture shock” it is truly gorgeous in its design. The story itself is remarkable in how it can be both insanely complex, but yet approachable and fascinating. The characters, each of them with unique plot arcs, all woven together like a fine carpet, are each equally interesting. Many of them are actually clones, a fact that seems to complicate every inch of the story as they deal with issues of “clone fatigue” or “flaws.” The way Marusek weaves all of this together is indicative of his talent as a novelist. Less skilled writers would end up with a garbled mess of jumping POVs and confusing futuristic nonsense.

Perhaps the only issue with Mind Over Ship is that for casual science fiction fans it may be too difficult to get into. For seasoned readers, or readers with tastes for complicated and unique universes, Marusek’s novel is a welcome retreat from the perceived death of science fiction as an ideas-genre. Mind Over Ship is what I would call a contemporary answer to Dune. Once you grasp the way Marusek’s world works, it’s not all that hard to follow him to the end of the story.

Having said all of the above, I’d recommend this novel to anyone interested in high-concept, complex, far-future science fiction. If you’re looking for amazing ideas and unique perspectives on our future, then you need not go farther than Marusek’s Mind Over Ship. It’s brilliant in its complexities and one of the few novels that does everything that good, serious science fiction is supposed to do. You can take that term “serious” however you like. ( )

Review by Christine Tursky Gordon:

Mind Over Ship is a sequel to Counting Heads in which powerful financier Eleanor Starke is killed and the damaged head of her adult daughter Ellen has been grafted onto the body of a child. The interwoven plot lines deserve some concentration and are satisfying and intricate, but the real joy of this book is in the wealth of fascinating concepts that David Marusek has developed.
This is a richly detailed world, with differences and extrapolations from our own that shape society in surprising ways. Communities of human clones have formed their own cultural norms and collective reputations, corporate power blocks are trying to derail a galactic colonisation program, a marriage between members of two different clone groups is being put under strain by conflicting yet overlapping group agendas, and a sequestered research group has done some really amazing things with fish.
Marusek’s world is full of intricate detail and fascinating examinations of new concepts. This is exactly what I look for in a new book, and he certainly delivers.

http://booklog.molehill.org/2009/03/1... ( )

Modern science will tell you—reproductive cloning ain’t easy. A multitude of issues currently makes it difficult. Techniques are inefficient. Surviving cloned animals are generally unhealthy, suffering from defects to their vital organs and premature aging. Not to mention the ethical questions involved. Just because we can do it—should we? It’s a veritable dream for ethical philosophers. And a nightmare for everyone else.

Being a clone’s clearly even harder. (And forget about being an A.I.—that’s just brutal!)

David Marusek’s latest sci-fi extravaganza Mind Over Ship shows us it isn’t all Bing cherries and organ harvesting being a clone. It’s actually hard work. With clones giving up more sweat than stem cells. More labor than lungs. But that’s what happens when you’re the working class. When you’re society’s economic foundation and the shoulders which the privileged rest upon. A test-tube grown labor pool exploited like the immigrants in America today. Underpaid and undervalued. Clones, however, are a more specialized working class, each clone line engineered for specific occupational tasks. And like all jobs, some are definitely better than others.

So clones get a full dose of life’s little kicks in the butt—but only a few tablespoons of individuality. It’s a poor trade off—all the work, not much selfhood—and they’re getting tired of it. Really tired of it.

2135. Humanity is on the brink of interstellar colonization. Oships are poised in orbit, waiting to launch, cryogenic colonists tubed up inside. But a divisive corporate boardroom battle within the Garden Earth Project (GEP) is brewing, threatening to scuttle all colonization efforts.

Profiteers on the board want to abandon the GEP’s mission of colonizing space. More money could be made by keeping the Oships in orbit. And converting them to space condos. Only a small minority of board members—intent on continuing the GEP’s original mission—opposes this for profit scheme. So it’s colonists or condos, both sides plotting behind-the-scenes with Machiavellian guile. Doing whatever it takes to win.

Ellen Starke recuperates from the accident that killed her mother, Eleanor Starke. As the new head of the massive conglomerate, Starke Enterprises, Ellen struggles to gain control of her mother’s vast financial holdings. Complicating matters, only Ellen’s head survived the crash, her body completely destroyed in the explosion. Now her adult-sized head has been attached to a new body, infant-sized and growing slowly. Leaving her a helpless grotesquerie cared for by nurses and her devoted evangeline companions, Mary, Cyndee and Georgine.

But Ellen is not safe. Threats lurk everywhere. The people responsible for orchestrating Eleanor Starke’s murder still remain unknown. And Ellen may be next on their list. To save herself and her mother’s empire, Ellen must uncover the people responsible for her mother’s death. And she’s got to do it quickly.

Marusek’s imagination is striking. Jaw-dropping-on-the-floor striking. Like a nuclear implosion mushrooming your lungs, knocking the air out of you. Leaving you knocked on your ass at the same time. Immense and intensely creative, there’s a powerful intelligence to Marusek’s imaginings. He re-imagines everything. Not just technological issues, but political and social ones too. Nothing in the novel feels normal, or comfortable. Uneasiness prevails. The setting is alien and strange—like it should be—with only a tinge of modernity to it. The imaginative force behind the novel is impressive, strong and blunt.

But also intimidating. Like being dumped into the ocean—with no land in sight—and not knowing how to swim. Which makes Mind Over Ship difficult to get into. The learning curve is steep. And the story throws no life lines. So you struggle, enormous waves pounding you, keeping you under. Leaving you gasping for air.

Catching up with Marusek’s maniacal imagination can be a slow plod, requiring tremendous effort. Mind Over Ship isn’t an easy read. More a rigorous intellectual exercise than a leisurely Saturday afternoon SF read. Like doing abstract algebra problems. Some find that fun, for others—not so much. The novel challenges you, always demanding more. Always demanding you think. Marusek’s sheer creative force overwhelms the narrative early on. But once you catch up the novel is a rewarding experience, rich and nuanced. And worth the effort.

The storyline is, not surprisingly, complex. Marusek follows a host of characters in the novel, interweaving their lives together, always creating a larger tapestry, painting the world in bold, broad strokes. When pieces start to slid together in the final act, the effect is magical. Things click rapidly. Like machine gun epiphanies.

Last Word:
Mind Over Ship is wildly inventive, piling ultra-cool ideas upon killer speculations. Leaving you scratching your head, asking: Where did that idea come from? Marusek is a creative juggernaut, delivering more bundles of speculative joy than a midwife on meth could ever imagine. Challenging and thought-provoking, the book demands effort, a sci-fi drill sergeant. A hard taskmaster, it raps your knuckles for failure, but rewards you richly for success. ( )