im Stanley Robinson's Mars novel trilogy (Red Mars, Green Mars and Blue Mars) told the story of the colonization of the Red Planet by a group of one hundred Americans and Russians. The books explored not only attempts to terraform the planet but also the political struggles of the Martian people to attain their independence from Earth. Robinson has now returned once more to his future Mars with an eclectic collection of stories and related works.
Two of these stories were actually published prior to the trilogy. "Exploring Fossil Canyon" was Robinson's first Mars story, about scientists who believe they have discovered fossil evidence of ancient life on Mars. "Green Mars" is the well-known novelette about a mountain climbing team that sets out to scale Olympus Mons, the highest mountain in the solar system. The stories also share the same protagonist, Roger Claybourne.
This collection also features original material, including almost two dozen new works of fiction that range from short stories to vignettes, poetry, and even nonfiction. Two of the stories, "Michel in Antarctica" and Michel in Provence," are set in an alternative history where the mission of the first one hundred colonists to Mars was canceled.
Other new short stories include "A Martian Romance," a sequel to "Green Mars" that features the same characters ice sailing during a time when Mars is freezing over again, and "Maya and Desmond," which spans many decades of the relationship of these two major characters. In fact, many of the stories focus on memorable characters from the trilogy , including (in addition to Maya and Desmond/Coyote) Michel, Sax, Jackie, Zo, Roger Clayborne and Nirgal. One story is even a humorous tale of playing baseball on Mars.
Also included in the collection are several Martian myths, poetry, abstracts from future scientific journals, a copy of the Mars Constitution with commentary, and an unclassifiable work that describes Robinson taking his finished manuscript to the post office while caring for his two-year-old son.
A sublime collection
Red Mars, Green Mars and Blue Mars make up one of the finest trilogies in the history of science fiction. Readers who enjoyed Robinson's brilliantly conceived vision of Mars and the people who colonized it cannot help but welcome The Martians.
As with the novels, Robinson's primary focus in these works is usually the people of Mars or the starkly beautiful landscape of the planet itself. Like the trilogy, the collection abounds with interesting scientific and sociological concepts. Especially interesting are Robinson's ideas about the terraforming of Mars, the potential for ancient life to have developed there, and the possible new social structures and attitudes that could evolve among a diverse group of colonists in a place so removed from Earth.
Unlike the novels, there are few strong plots among the new works of fiction here. Indeed, many of the stories have virtually no plots at all and are simply vignettes that serve to further explore various characters, landscapes or ideas. Several of the stories are comprised of characters meeting by chance and having a long discussion. One piece features Coyote reminiscing briefly about various other characters, and one is comprised of humorous but instructive anecdotes about Sax, the consummate scientist.
Robinson's amazing skills make this eclectic mix never less than fascinating for any reader who has read his trilogy, and who is therefore intimately familiar with its landscapes, characters and concepts. Even the Martian Constitution makes for fascinating reading, and it also provides the basis for endless socio-political debates.
The Martians is a fitting coda to one of the most beautiful works of science fiction ever created. No reader who had the pleasure of reading Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars trilogy can afford to miss this last chance for a farewell visit.
t seemed like a perfectly harmless experiment: studying the effects of
zero gravity on microbes harvested from volcanic fissures on the
ocean floor. But less than a day after physician Emma Watson joins the crew
of the International Space Station this experiment goes horribly awry.
One astronaut dies of a horrible, fast-acting disease. The crew of a
shuttle taking the body to Earth for autopsy falls ill; during re-entry a
brain hemorrhage blinds the pilot. The sickness spreads among the space
station crew, and the entire human race might be at risk.
The culprit is an organism called Chimera. Freed from the crushing
pressure and searing heat of its native environment, Chimera turns into a
staggeringly efficient predator. It can feed on any life form, digesting
victims from the inside out while incorporating their genes into its own
DNA. Watson faces the ultimate medical challenge: curing a disease that is
literally part human.
When news of the outbreak reaches Earth, U.S. Army scientists take over
NASA. They declare the International Space Station a "hot zone." Astronauts
trying to return to Earth are to be blasted out of the sky.
Watson's estranged husband, Jack McCallum, thinks NASA's new managers
know more about Chimera than they're letting on. He threatens to tell the
press what he does know, forcing the Army to share its data and give
Jack a fighting chance to find a way to save his wife. Emma's survival,
however, depends on Jack somehow getting into orbit without the Army knowing
about it.
Of exploding mice and dying men
Gravity is billed as a "medical thriller," and Tess Gerritsen
(author of Life Support and Bloodstream) puts her medical
background to good use as she crafts an intriguing, suspenseful narrative with
some truly stomach-turning scenes.
For such an accomplished thriller, however, Gravity gets off to a
surprisingly rocky start, wringing melodrama from a string of marginally
relevant scenes. Readers may start feeling jerked around before Gerritsen
settles down and delivers the real goods. Had she not been so keen to hit
the ground running, Gerritsen might have been able to veer the plot around
some implausibilities that crop up later, including Emma's mystifying
inability to realize the connection between the exploding lab mice and the
death of the astronaut who tended them.
Devoted science fiction readers will probably wish that Gerritsen had also
explored the biology and life cycle of the Chimera in a bit more depth. This
is not necessarily a flaw. Gravity straddles two genres with
differing conventions and expectations, but most of its weight rests on the
thriller side. Exposing monsters to the full light of day usually makes them
far less terrifying. The author gives fear priority over fascination, and
with a $500,000 publisher's advance and a film-rights deal with New Line
Cinema, she must know what she's doing.
Gerritsen's writing is inelegant but efficient. The characters are not
particularly deep or complex, but they are diverse and believable enough for
readers to care what happens to them.
