Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, September 24, 1995 TAG: 9509220135
SECTION: BOOK PAGE: 6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: REVIEWED BY PAUL DELLINGER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Gentry Lee, a space science engineer best known until now for his collaborations with science-fiction icon Arthur C. Clarke, is flying solo for the first time with this novel. Interestingly, it reads a lot like his collaborations with Clarke, which raises the question of how deeply Clarke was involved in those books.
Most of the Lee-Clarke novels were set in Clarke's ``Rendezvous with Rama'' universe, with the mysterious Ramans making a return visit to Earth and snatching up some humans who explore the Raman habitats and have conflicts with one another without learning a whole lot about their creators. This story, too, is set in the Raman universe, taking place at a time between Clarke's original 1973 novel and its three sequels. And it deals with a trio of humans snatched up in an alien vessel trying to puzzle out their environment while having conflicts with one another.
At least Lee has given us different characters: a sister of a future religious order who interprets all events spiritually, an engineer who interprets them rationally, and a brilliant villain whose role seems to be to provide as much trouble as possible for everyone around him. The Ramans - if that's what they are - appear in different form this time, too, as clouds of light which, naturally, each character sees according to his or her inclinations. It is the kind of future UFOlogy that Patricia Anthony has proven adept at handling in her recent novels.
When the cast of characters moves from Earth to Mars, Lee is in his element and paints a convincing picture of the grit and problems of interplanetary exploration. And he does resolve the fates of his three major characters in this story. But be warned: the story itself will not be complete until the sequel.
Paul Dellinger reports on Southwest Virginia from Pulaski.
by CNB