article physicists Lloyd Simcoe and Theo Procipides are in the hunt for
a Nobel Prize, and their success depends on proving the existence of the
Higgs boson particle. On April 21, 2009, the two scientists activate a
massive particle collider, creating near Big-Bang energy levels. They are
hoping to find the Higgs, but what they get instead is entirely unexpected:
the consciousness of every person on Earth flashes forward 20 years. For
two minutes in 2009, the entire human race seems to fall unconscious, and as
people recover, almost all of them report having a vision of their own
future.
Author Robert J. Sawyer's Flashforward, named for the media handle given
to the mass visions phenomenon, has enormous ramifications. The first days
after the experiment are taken up with disaster control--planes crashed
while their pilots were tuned to the future, doctors stopped operating on
patients, and people collapsed and fell while climbing stairs and ladders.
Lloyd and Theo find that they have inadvertently caused thousands of
deaths.
Worse, not all of the tragedy is impersonal. The young daughter of Lloyd's
fiance, Michiko, is killed by a runaway car. Lloyd's vision suggests that
he will be married to a woman other than Michiko in 20 years' time. And,
as pressure builds to repeat the experiment and give humanity another
glimpse into what will be, Theo is forced to accept a shocking explanation
for his failure to have a vision. In 20 years, he will be murdered!
Free will vs. destiny
Flashforward has an innovative core concept, and Sawyer fully
examines the double-edged sword of foreknowledge. As scientists, Theo and
Lloyd must come to terms with the enormous change they have unleashed on the
world, but everyone else reacts blindly. People try to match up partly-seen
lottery numbers in hopes of sharing a prize; a man receives hundreds of
e-mails telling him he will be the U.S. president. Stock markets rise and
fall based on long-term knowledge of corporate success. Political movements
collapse when leaders find out that their goals are unrealized in 2030, and
scores of artists--robbed of their dreams of future wealth and
success--commit suicide.
As characters, Lloyd and Theo are utterly convincing when they are being
petty and self-centered, kings of a privileged scientific world that Sawyer
obviously knows well. But Flashforward falters whenever they are
called upon to show deeper emotion. This should be an utterly cathartic
book: Theo is fighting to prevent his own murder, and Lloyd feels crippling
guilt over the scope of the disaster. Michiko must cope with the death of
her daughter and Lloyd's reticence to enter into a marriage which--according
to his vision--is doomed. Unfortunately, readers are held at arms' length,
and the emotional impact is muted.
All the loose ends do eventually come together, and readers who like full
closure will enjoy Flashforward's stunningly neat wrap-up. Others may
find this tidiness disappointing. The book never entirely realizes the
promise of its brilliant beginning and its rigorously worked-out premise.
Sawyer begins with a disaster and guides readers through a wonderfully human mess
of trauma, wonder, and self-interest, but he finishes this story cleanly, as
if the wounds have healed without leaving any scars.
llen May Mgwethu is a woman on a mission. The mission is to save humanity, and
she doesn't care who or what she must exterminate to do it. Ellen has seen "The
Truth," and, like all true believers, feels that any threat to humans must be
eradicated.
It's a hard line, but she is not alone in her beliefs. Ellen is part of a
massive human defense unit called the Cassini Division. Named after the gap
in Saturn's rings, the Cassini Division stands ever vigilant to repulse an
invasion of humanity's way of life.
The invaders du jour are the Outwarders, a species of post-humans who inhabit Jupiter
(among other planets). These are beings
who have synthesized tomorrow's Pentium IV 500s with the human brain, evolving
into semi-disembodied somethings infinitely smarter, faster, and all-around
geekier than today's carbon-based life forms.
Years ago Outwarder types shot a devastating virus at the humans. The result
was that every piece of Earth's computer-chipped technology
crashed. There was no rebooting this mess, and the Earthers subsequently grew
their own form of nanotechnology to replace it all. The Cassini Division doesn't intend to allow a
repeat performance of that attack.
Ellen, the Division, and a scientist named Malley set off to stop the evil
Outwarders, who in turn are hell-bent on the destruction of humans.
But two questions stand in their way: Are the Outwarders really evil, and do they
really intend to destroy humanity?
An unbelievable romp
The Cassini Division is British author Ken MacLeod's first novel to appear in the United States,
though two preceding volumes were published in the United Kingdom. Those books,
The Star Faction and The Stone Canal, set up the galaxy that The
Cassini Division plays in. It's a good romp. Despite his tendency to numb
readers with droning sentences, MacLeod spins a tense tale. Ellen May Mgwethu is
a pithy character, while Malley is a fascinating cross between Albert Einstein
and Dwight Eisenhower. The story is as unexpected as it is thought-provoking,
although those new to MacLeod's playground may find themselves a bit lost, and pragmatics
may have a bit of a problem swallowing his idea of a universe.
MacLeod has spun a complicated society, in some senses rich, in others
confusing. Earth is nanotech compliant. People thrive in huge, living buildings
that are entirely self-sufficient. Pollution is a word without corporeal
example. It's an appealing concept, a good place to live.
On the flip side of the universe-creation coin, Earthlings exist without an
economy. Folks take what they want, when they want, and presumably return it as
needed. While that may work with backpacks and Swiss Army knives, the concept gets
fuzzy when it's applied to global airlines and spaceports. In the same socialist-anarchist
pattern, the Cassini Division functions without a command structure--an idea that
no doubt rings true until the first man or woman must die .
None of these problems is intrinsically damning. Authors are entitled to their own points
of view, but some readers may find MacLeod's views a bit hard to believe. For
those, the frequent clanging of their mind's "No Way" alarm may ruin the story.
Suspension of disbelief aside, The Cassini Divison is a
solid book. Few readers will lose sleep over this one, but fewer still will
toss it aside. And hey, it beats synthesizing with a Pentium IV.
