Strange Attractors (Hardcover)

Carver develops a world of overwhelming technology... one that envelopes a space the size of our solar system. John Bandicut has been brought here because he was needed. He has no idea where he is or why he is needed by such an advanced civilization.

The plus to this book is the relationship Carver builds between Bandicut, his two robots, and his new friends Ik and La-Jared. He also brings out Bandicut's deep sense of loss at finding himself thousands of light years from home thorugh a developing relationship between John and a human-looking alien named Antares.

I read this book almost entirely without putting it down... and immediately reached for the next book in the series.

To be sure, there are still problems. The "boojum" is a rather vague entity, the characters remain underdeveloped, and I'm getting a little weary of the quarx dying and then resurrecting himself with no memory of past events. A couple of times is one thing, but after four or five generations of Charlie it's getting a little old.

For space opera, though, this is fairly good stuff. Intriguing new worlds (or, at least, environments) are explored and you never know what will turn up around the next corner. There's a fair amount of action and some interesting aliens. It wasn't deep, but it was fun and it held my interest. If good space opera is what you want, give this series a try.

To be sure, there are still problems. The "boojum" is a rather vague entity, the characters remain underdeveloped, and I've gotten a little weary of the quarx dying and then resurrecting itself with no memory of past events. A couple of times is one thing, but after four or five generations of Charlie it's gotten a little old.

For space opera, though, this is fairly good stuff. Intriguing new worlds (or, at least, environments) are explored and you never know what will turn up around the next corner. There's a fair amount of action and some interesting aliens. It wasn't deep, but it was fun and it held my interest. If good space opera is what you want, give this one a try.