"Ken Macleod - Fall Revolution 3 - The Cassini Division" - читать интересную книгу автора (MacLeod Ken)

failed to impress me. The characters act and talk as if they are telling the "reader" about ethics and
the implications of genocide. It makes for some very childish dialog throughout the later pages of
the book.
PRO: The Concepts are interesting. And the political backdrop for the novel has above average
depth - C. J. Cherryh, Jack Vance, and Lois McMaster Bujold are still better at politics and
sociology however.
CON: The Concepts are not given the attention they need. The book starts slow and doest pick
up till after 100 pages into it. The character dialog is horrible. The interaction with the Jovians
lacks imagination. And the Cassini Division has a very predictable ending.
RECOMENDATION: Skip this book and "maybe" look for it at the library. --This text refers to
Terrific hard SF in the Vernor Vinge tradition, July 31, 2000
Reviewer:
Idea-packed science fiction driven by the ramifications of a group of humans who have passed
through the evolutionary "singularity" and become something beyond our knowledge, and who now
live in Jupiter, emitting radio viruses forcing Earth to radically change its technology. If that
weren't enough, McLeod also presents an anarcho-socialist society and contrasts it with an anarcho-
capitalist society and does so in a much more plausible manner than (say) Robert Heinlein ever did.
Protagonist Ellen is a key member of the Cassini Division, tasked to deal with the post-humans if
necessary, and on a mission to secure a manner in which to do so. Her point of view is decidedly
prejudiced, which is a big part of what makes this book enjoyable: It's got characterization, world-
building, AND a plot. One of the best novels I've read in several years, it's hard to believe it's under
300 pages. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
All Customer Reviews
Ideas That Push The Envelope Of Possibilities!, June 9, 2002
Reviewer:
Ellen May Ngwethu is the central character in this sequel to THE STONE CANAL, and this
novel begins many years later. Ellen is a member of the Jupiter system based 'Cassini Division',
their purpose is to destroy any posthuman life they encounter, primarily around the planet Jupiter.
In the beginning of this novel Ellen travels to Earth as the commander of the fusion ship 'Terrible
Beauty' to enlist the help of Dr. I.K. Malley, the physicist who knows more about the wormhole
near Jupiter than anyone else, connecting our solar system to where New Mars is located,
thousands of light years distant. The Cassini Division would like to travel through the wormhole to
New Mars so they would be able to search for and destroy any posthumans found there.
There is debate as to whether or not the posthumans are conscious at all, and Macleod illustrates
a racism here that one day may actually take place to our detriment and shame: is posthuman life
conscious or just a computer program emulation of consciousness? Also discussed is the question
of identity when a mind is uploaded into a computer, is the person the same as the original, or just a
copy, with the original alive or dead giving added debate. This is a very complex topic and
Macleod touches on it briefly as he presents to us a far ranging philosophical view of what it means
to be human in this future he has spun, several hundred years from now, a future after the
'Singularity' in which science and technology has very nearly totally transformed life as we know it
and how we live, great reading indeed. Plot and character development were good, and this novel is
full of many interesting ideas, not necessarily original, including nano-fabrication of food and
almost anything else, mind viruses, wormholes (most unlikely part of the book), anti-aging pills for
eternal youth, mind back-ups in computers (with it's ensuing questions of identity), cloning,
artificial people, smart suits (the book is worth reading just for this).
The book was a page turner for me, and I loved it's no-nonsense forward looking philosophy.
Decent Adventure Novel, March 18, 2002

Reviewer: