Simon Morden

It’s about this tough, foul-mouthed whiz kid named Samuil Petrovich. In these kinds of literature, world-building comes first, characterization second, at least that’s what I think. Petrovich isn’t that likeable a character, but he fits in the world he moves in. He is a survivor. Not only does he struggle with the outside world, he also has some major health problems. In this future world, a Great Calamity of the nuclear variety has occurred decades before, and humanity and society has had to adapt to it. Given that, there did occur technological progress, but as the cyberpunk cliché goes, it’s ‘high-tech and low-life.’ The low-lives are the main characters of the book. Even the supposed harbinger of law and order, the police detective Chain is a bit shady. The whole plot is put into motion when Petrovich, out of some compulsion to do something good, rescues the daughter of a yakuza boss from a kidnapping. From there, things move fast. This is a short, fast-paced novel set in a dystopic city.… (more)

Pros: gets you quickly up to speed with regards to the events of book 1, interesting characters, some ethical dilemmas, hard SF, variety of conflicts

Cons:

After building the base on Mars and surviving XOs attempted assassinations, Frank cuts at deal with the company to impersonate Lance Brack and help the NASA astronauts arriving in a few months with their mission. But XO has others secrets on Mars, and they intend to keep their malfeasance unknown on Earth.

No Way picks up immediately after the end of One Way. If it’s been a while since you read the first book, the author does an excellent job of reminding you of the ending and the more important elements within the first few chapters of book two.

Frank is a sympathetic protagonist despite his past. He faces a lot of ethical dilemmas before the NASA crew arrive, and a few more afterwards. The crew themselves face some tough decisions later in the book.

I appreciated that the conflict was a mix of man vs nature, man vs himself, and man vs man. The book is well paced, with sections where things are going well followed by tense chapters where things go very wrong.

Descriptions of life on Mars circle around the constant danger, the monotonous scenery, and the utter excitement of being on an alien planet. While I personally can’t vouch for the scientific accuracy of everything that happens, the author is a rocket scientist with degrees in geology and planetary geophysics.

There is some thematic overlap with The Martian, though the tone here is more serious. If you like survival stories, or Mars, this is a fantastic book.… (more)

I am SO close to finishing this, but what's the point? I've never been so unimpacted by a book in years. Great swaths of story pass me by and I just... don't... care. Something about a genius, and a fighter who helps crack the Unified Field Theory because he's read a lot.

I'll say that again. He's... read. A lot.

He saves someone. He falls in with a fightin' nun. There's people out to get him. For reasons.

Apparently there was an apocalyptic event. He mentions it a fair amount. In a world that really hasn't changed. Electric, computer controlled cars. Similar tech to today. Hell, they have time to work on that pesky Unified Field Theory. So, more an excuse to change the landscape of London than anything.

Whatever.

I just can't. What a damn mess.

No rating. DNF. I'm out.… (more)