HEAVY WEATHER

Everybody talks about the weather; but Jane Unger and her band of Storm Troupers hack the weather. In the late 2030s, as a legacy of the greenhouse effect, millions of people have died or been displaced due to heavy weather. A renegade band of meteorologists and computer experts, the Storm Troupe, prowls the Texas plains, chasing funnel clouds, gathering data, and waiting for the meteorological equivalent of the Big One: an F-6 tornado, a twister so big that it could mean the end of civilization. Using flying robots, cross-terrain vehicles, virtual reality, and raw courage, the Troupe risks life and limb for the sake of scientific knowledge (and for the attendant thrills). Into the somewhat unstable society of the Troupe comes Jane's younger brother Alex, professional invalid and family ne'er-do-well. To everyone's astonishment, Alex thrives and brings a perspective on loyalty, family, and sacrifice that helps pull the Troupe into the solid team they will need to be if they are to survive an F-6. Lucid and tremendously entertaining. Sterling (The Hacker Crackdown, 1992, etc.) shows once more his skills in storytelling and technospeak. A cyberpunk winner.