A capable sci-fi novel, more The West Wing than Kim Stanley Robinson, that focuses its thrills on the political maneuvering...
In d’Arbelloff’s debut sci-fi novel set in the early 2030s, an overpopulated Earth finds hope when Cerulea, a new, inhabitable planet, is discovered.
The book’s title refers to the separation of church and state—a relevant issue when a new off-world colony’s constitution is being written. Second-term U.S. President Virginia Belknap supports colonization to the new planet, but religious conservatives fear that “’a determined minority of Ceruleans will . . . rid this new society of what it should hold most precious: its faith in God.’” A dangerous, violent conspiracy of conservatives soon threatens to sabotage the mission, and when a conservative wins the next presidency, compromises must be made. Readers who chiefly love the awe-inspiring aspects of science fiction—the brave new worlds of never-visited planets, the shared human enterprise of venturing into outer space—may find this novel a bit disappointing, but those with a taste for behind-the-scenes horse trading, debates, cloture, contracts, points of order and dirty tricks, will thoroughly enjoy the book. Although d’Arbeloff develops his characters effectively, he often seems more interested in how things work. For example, he lovingly describes technology, in a manner reminiscent of Tom Clancy: “The V-90 Dragonfly tiltrotor aircraft streamed through the sky. . . . An offshoot of the V-22 Osprey, this was the next generation; with a top speed of 425 mph, it was 30% faster than its sibling.” When the novel renders the spacecraft environment, beauty takes a backseat to form and function: “Before them stretched a small, narrow, forested valley, rich green on either side with a long, thin, crystal blue lake in the center. Within the trees [were] the building units that would serve as the living quarters and recreational facilities for the ship’s crew.” Overall, while some readers may find this style intriguing, others may wish for a bit more wonder.
A capable sci-fi novel, more The West Wing than Kim Stanley Robinson, that focuses its thrills on the political maneuvering required for a new Earth.Pub Date: Sept. 16, 2012
ISBN: 978-1479352258
Page Count: 412
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A weird, wild ride.
Celebrity scandal and a haunted lake drive the narrative in this bestselling author’s latest serving of subtly ironic suspense.
Sager’s debut, Final Girls (2017), was fun and beautifully crafted. His most recent novels—Home Before Dark (2020) and Survive the Night (2021) —have been fun and a bit rickety. His new novel fits that mold. Narrator Casey Fletcher grew up watching her mother dazzle audiences, and then she became an actor herself. While she never achieves the “America’s sweetheart” status her mother enjoyed, Casey makes a career out of bit parts in movies and on TV and meatier parts onstage. Then the death of her husband sends her into an alcoholic spiral that ends with her getting fired from a Broadway play. When paparazzi document her substance abuse, her mother exiles her to the family retreat in Vermont. Casey has a dry, droll perspective that persists until circumstances overwhelm her, and if you’re getting a Carrie Fisher vibe from Casey Fletcher, that is almost certainly not an accident. Once in Vermont, she passes the time drinking bourbon and watching the former supermodel and the tech mogul who live across the lake through a pair of binoculars. Casey befriends Katherine Royce after rescuing her when she almost drowns and soon concludes that all is not well in Katherine and Tom’s marriage. Then Katherine disappears….It would be unfair to say too much about what happens next, but creepy coincidences start piling up, and eventually, Casey has to face the possibility that maybe some of the eerie legends about Lake Greene might have some truth to them. Sager certainly delivers a lot of twists, and he ventures into what is, for him, new territory. Are there some things that don’t quite add up at the end? Maybe, but asking that question does nothing but spoil a highly entertaining read.
A weird, wild ride.Pub Date: June 21, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-18319-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: March 29, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2022
As an adjunct member says, “You’re not a family, you’re a force.” Exactly, though not in the way you’d expect.
The ne’er-do-well son of a successful Irish American family gets dragged into criminal complications that suggest the rest of the Devlins aren’t exactly the upstanding citizens they appear.
The first 35 years in the life of Thomas “TJ” Devlin have been one disappointment after another to his parents, lawyers who founded a prosperous insurance and reinsurance firm, and his more successful siblings, John and Gabby. A longtime alcoholic who’s been unemployable ever since he did time for an incident involving his ex-girlfriend Carrie’s then 2-year-old daughter, TJ is nominally an investigator for Devlin & Devlin, but everyone knows the post is a sinecure. Things change dramatically when golden-boy John tells TJ that he just killed Neil Lemaire, an accountant for D&D client Runstan Electronics. Their speedy return to the murder scene reveals no corpse, so the brothers breathe easier—until Lemaire turns up shot to death in his car. John’s way of avoiding anything that might jeopardize his status as heir apparent to D&D is to throw TJ under the bus, blaming him for everything John himself has done and adding that you can’t trust anything his brother has said since he’s fallen off the wagon. TJ, who’s maintained his sobriety a day at a time for nearly two years, feels outraged, but neither the police investigating the murder nor his nearest and dearest care about his feelings. Forget the forgettable mystery, whose solution will leave you shrugging instead of gasping, and focus on the circular firing squad of the Devlins, and you’ll have a much better time than TJ.
As an adjunct member says, “You’re not a family, you’re a force.” Exactly, though not in the way you’d expect.Pub Date: March 26, 2024
ISBN: 9780525539704
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
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