Alternate visions and worlds

The science fiction genre has long been noted for themes such as exotic exploration and alternative futures. Some of the best writing in the field extrapolates today's social, economic, and political trends into the near-term future and examines their impact on the quality of human and alien life. Joe Haldeman in Worlds; Robert Heinlein in The Sixth Column; Arthur C. Clarke in 2001, and certainly Kim Stanley Robinson in his Gold Coast series and Mars trilogy, mastered this school of futuristic fiction.

Robinson continues his recent near domination of this sub-genre in Antarctica. In Robinson's panoramic saga, a radical environmentalist political group plots an "ecotage" -- their form of sabotage used to protest the corporate pillage of Antarctica -- as they cut off communications for explorers, scientists, and commercial interests in the region, and destroy oil exploration encampments. As you might anticipate, these eco-saboteurs have the best of intentions, but in this harsh environment, even organized plans may not be realized and small mistakes produce large and terminal disasters.

Robinson depicts Antarctica itself so well that it seems almost like an alien world. Intrigued by the fact that it is the part of earth most like his beloved Mars, Robinson took literary research to new heights with the help of a grant from the National Science Foundation, which afforded him a six-week adventure in Antarctica.


A distinctly different alternative kind of future is depicted in The Innamorati by Midori Snyder.

This fantasy novel establishes an alternative Renaissance movement centered in a fictitious Italian city called Labirinto. Four companions, the innamorati band together in this land alive with magic and seek the great labyrinth which is at the heart of Labirinto. Their adventures are replete with mystery, comedy, and imagination as they follow their heart's desire through the Maze.

--Larry D. Woods


Melissa Scott's The Shapes of Their Hearts presents readers with an all too easily imagined future in which the desire for information has become the driving force at all levels of society. Power rests with those who have the ability to access and harness data, regardless of their motivations.

In a world where religious cults abound, it should be no great stretch to imagine an artificial intelligence (AI) as a deity. It is easy to envision an army of believers who accept their deity's command to convert others to their beliefs by whatever means necessary -- including violence.

The Deity and its followers have made the planet Idun (also called Eden) a risky place to leave unguarded, and the Territorial authority responds with a complete blockade to the planet. To complicate matters, there is a programming bug in the Deity that threatens to destroy all computer systems -- on Eden and beyond. Only Anton Tso, blackmarketeer and software genius, has the expertise to repair the damage -- a task that endangers both Tso and the Deity.

The Shapes of Their Hearts is entertaining and chilling. Scott has created an alien world with characters that readers will recognize, and a society that is almost too familiar. The true terror comes with realizing what little separates our world from theirs.

--Lisa DuMond


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