sis is the most Earthlike planet ever discovered, a world of unspoiled
natural beauty, vibrant with life--and all of that life is deadly to humans.
The entire planet is a "hot zone." Isian life has evolved complex
patterns of predation and symbiosis against which Earth-based life is
utterly defenseless. Even subcellular fragments of Isian life prove
lethal.
Scientists study the planetary biology from inside several heavily
shielded outposts on the surface. Into this unpromising environment comes an
eager Zoe Fisher, who arrives with an experimental, lightweight armor far
superior to the cumbersome suits currently used for brief outdoor forays.
And Zoe is a clone genetically engineered specifically to explore Isis. She
comes armed with a souped-up immune system and a limited need for human
companionship. To Zoe, Isis is home, even if the entire planet wants
to kill her.
Yet Zoe hasn't been quite herself lately. A subversive doctor has secretly
removed Zoe's "thymostat," an artificial organ common to all Earth-born
humans. The thymostat regulates body chemistry, serving as a buffer against
fear, depression and fatigue; it also stunts creativity and confines
individuals to a limited emotional repertoire. Zoe's own mind becomes a
strange and disturbing landscape. She feels panic for the first time, her
preprogrammed loyalty falters, and she falls in love with a handsome
biologist.
Meanwhile, life on Isis is adapting to the humans' defenses against
contamination. As more systems malfunction, catastrophe appears imminent.
Even Zoe is unlikely to survive the all-out assault by the Isian
biosphere.
Thrills but no frills
Bios is a short book, and Robert Charles Wilson--author of the
Hugo-nominated Darwinia--wastes no time setting the story in motion.
Zoe has barely arrived on Isis when infected characters start gushing blood
from every orifice. Her backstory is parceled out with economy, and readers
have little time to catch their breath before the next disaster strikes.
Wilson has provisioned the novel as if it were a spacecraft, where every
kilogram of payload has to justify its fuel cost. Bios is sleek,
efficient and rather austere. The plotting is solid and uncomplicated.
Characters are sketched out roughly. The excision of Zoe's thymostat sets up
the story of Zoe's journey of self-discovery, but there isn't time for her
to do much more than vacillate between states of fear and arousal, and
occasionally reflect on her traumatic childhood. Her newfound love, Tam, is
an honest, hard-working scientist with just the obligatory note of
misfortune in his past.
The most interesting, fully realized character is the craven and spectral
Kenyon Degrandpre, who manages operations on Isis from the safety of an
orbiting space station. Desperation drives him to commit atrocities, yet
Degrandpre is no more evil than the deadly microbes of Isis; he is the
inevitable product of his social ecology. Unlike Isian life, he is limited,
sterile and ineffectual, and thus the perfect emblem of the humans' losing
battle against the planet.
Bios is a thoroughly gripping novel, though readers might wish
Wilson had invested it with the same complexity and diversity as Isian
life.
I was fascinated by Wilson's invention of a completely alien biology. I wish
he had explored it in more detail.
-- Curt
onique Calhoun, a citizen/shareholder of a public relations/events
coordination syndic, has been assigned to a very big project. She has to manage
VIP services for the sixth United Nations Annual Conference on Climate
Stabilization . The world has warmed considerably, flooding many
coastal regions. One leading climatologist, Dr. Allison Larabee,
predicts that the Earth is close to reaching thermal runaway, a
situation she calls "Condition Venus." The UNACOCS conferences are an
attempt to remedy the situation. Unfortunately, not much has
been accomplished, partly because the exisiting climate models are not accurate,
and partly because two economic alliances have differing interests. The
Blues will profit from cooling the world, while the Greens are prosperous
under current conditions. Past conferences have been held in Blue
strongholds.
This year's conference is different, however. It's being held in Paris,
a Green stronghold, and Monique's boss reveals that the purpose seems to be
to convince Green organizations to pay for Blue projects, since the Greens
have most of the money. It appears to be a major financial gamble that
could bankrupt the Blue forces if they can't convince the Greens that
Condition Venus is imminent. Monique also learns that UNACOCS has hired Mossad (an independent syndic) to provide security, and that Mossad will be
giving her some assignments.
Her first assigment is to rent a riverboat operated by Prince Eric
Esterhazy. The boat is actually owned by another syndic with Green ties,
the Bad Boys, which wants to know what UNACOCS is up to. And UNACOCS wants
access to the boat's surveillance equipment to spy on its VIPs. As
their organizations manipulate these two espionage novices with the fate of
the world in the balance, Monique and Eric find themselves forced into a
strange relationship of deceptive cooperation.
Exploring human behavior
In Greenhouse Summer, Norman Spinrad has written a novel that
tries to be many things: satire, spy novel, morality tale and
social critique, all with a bit of scientific extrapolation. It doesn't accomplish all its goals
successfully, but Greenhouse Summer does
integrate these elements in a way that, in the end, adds up to more than
the sum of its parts. For example, as a satire, the book often isn't
really funny. But the funny parts are often very funny and pointed,
especially after two Siberians, Ivan and Stella Marenko, show up in the
second half of the book. These two characters play flamboyant fools in
public, but they become intelligent, ruthless--yet still conscientious--business people in private as they try to determine whether wealthy and
warm Siberia must pay to cool down the world in order to save it. And
that's how the morality tale fits in--despite the deception and
corruption on both sides during the conference, nearly everyone must make
choices that might work against their short-term self-interests, knowing
that the wrong choice might mean ultimate disaster.
Spinrad doesn't make these decisions easy for his characters. The
novel is constructed around missing and partial information, and Spinrad
exploits this to its full potential, especially in the end, which is a wonderful and surprising resolution. He nimbly balances
absurd elements with tension and suspense, and the
awkward relationship between Monique and Eric--who are aware of their
adversarial roles while struggling to deny that they
are genuinely attracted to each other--builds and maintains much of the
tension.
Greenhouse Summer is an effective exploration of human
behavior during times of great uncertainty when the wrong choice
might lead to disaster.
The many different elements working together synergistically really bring a
depth to this book that doesn't make itself apparent until well into the
novel.
-- Clint
sis is the most Earthlike planet ever discovered, a world of unspoiled
natural beauty, vibrant with life--and all of that life is deadly to humans.
onique Calhoun, a citizen/shareholder of a public relations/events
coordination syndic, has been assigned to a very big project. She has to manage
VIP services for the sixth United Nations Annual Conference on Climate
Stabilization . The world has warmed considerably, flooding many
coastal regions. One leading climatologist, Dr. Allison Larabee,
predicts that the Earth is close to reaching thermal runaway, a
situation she calls "Condition Venus." The UNACOCS conferences are an
attempt to remedy the situation. Unfortunately, not much has
been accomplished, partly because the exisiting climate models are not accurate,
and partly because two economic alliances have differing interests. The
Blues will profit from cooling the world, while the Greens are prosperous
under current conditions. Past conferences have been held in Blue
strongholds.
