I read this in January! I too enjoyed the bio-science, and how the prose included specifics of physiology and chemistry. I appreciated that Bass doesn't hold your hand by over-explaining everything. I found it interesting how the humans are psychologically stunted and immature, while some of the mechanical servants, including the Godwhale, are full of reverence and compassion.
There are so many things about it that are exceptional. I actually had not noticed that he seems to like the mechanicals better than the humans - but that is very true. I'm glad other people are reading it because this is a book that has so much in it.
I find myself really enjoying science fiction that places an emphasis on biology so it sounds like I'd probably get on well with this one. I love hearing about these lesser-known works. Great cover art and a good in-depth review. Cheers!
Thank you! It was so good that I am really surprised more people are not talking about it. Though, I guess it is pretty unusual in a lot of ways, and a niche author with not a lot of SFF to his name. Hope you find it.
That was one hell of a review that had almost as many surprising shifts in direction as the book itself. It sounds like it would be more interesting to actually read than actually explain wtf was going on. As someone who actually does know what squamous epithelial cells are it sounds like it could have done with a good editor to try to tame Bass's obvious desire to chuck everything but the kitchen sink into the plot. It definitely strikes me as a "you had to be there" read. I'm not sure I'd go out of my way to bag a copy but if I came across it I'd probably buy it after your recommendation. After all sometimes challenging reads are the ones I find myself thinking about long after I've read them.
You are dead right 'you had to be there'. It is very hard to review because Bass has so much happening there, there is a lot of medical terminology, as a histology tech, the squamous cells just jumped out at me but there is so much medical that is way ahead of it's time... If you ever do read it, would love to hear your thoughts on it.
@@OmnivorousReader I've definitely added it to be list of books to look out for so I'll probably one day bite the bullet and order a copy if I don't see it on a shelf first 👍
Ah yes - those first few pages/couple of chapters... I was a bit baffled too. I could not see the relevance to what I thought I was going to be reading (to be fair, there was no relevance). It is all Larry Devar running around a parkland, eating fake 'gell fruit' and talking to his 'belt' which I gather is his personal AI. It was odd, luckily I was in the mood for some serious WTF classic SF, so I was mostly intrigued. If you do finish it, I look forward to hearing your thoughts on it.
This sounds great, I like detail-heavy cyber punk, plus far-future speculation. I shall keep my eyes out for it, thanks :) Also I'd never heard of the Botfly, of course had to wiki it and wow, I'm having nightmares tonight for sure!!
You are welcome, the botfly is heavy and it is a pretty nightmarish animal. I think Bass must have actually encountered them, his details are very... detailed. The internet actually gave me less detail than some of his... This is a very detail heavy book overall and I do think it is strange that no eagle eyed spotter has ever claimed it for cyberpunk before. There are some really strong (though early) themes in it, Larry Devar especially.
I read this in January! I too enjoyed the bio-science, and how the prose included specifics of physiology and chemistry. I appreciated that Bass doesn't hold your hand by over-explaining everything. I found it interesting how the humans are psychologically stunted and immature, while some of the mechanical servants, including the Godwhale, are full of reverence and compassion.
There are so many things about it that are exceptional. I actually had not noticed that he seems to like the mechanicals better than the humans - but that is very true. I'm glad other people are reading it because this is a book that has so much in it.
I find myself really enjoying science fiction that places an emphasis on biology so it sounds like I'd probably get on well with this one. I love hearing about these lesser-known works. Great cover art and a good in-depth review. Cheers!
Thank you! It was so good that I am really surprised more people are not talking about it. Though, I guess it is pretty unusual in a lot of ways, and a niche author with not a lot of SFF to his name. Hope you find it.
That was one hell of a review that had almost as many surprising shifts in direction as the book itself. It sounds like it would be more interesting to actually read than actually explain wtf was going on. As someone who actually does know what squamous epithelial cells are it sounds like it could have done with a good editor to try to tame Bass's obvious desire to chuck everything but the kitchen sink into the plot. It definitely strikes me as a "you had to be there" read. I'm not sure I'd go out of my way to bag a copy but if I came across it I'd probably buy it after your recommendation. After all sometimes challenging reads are the ones I find myself thinking about long after I've read them.
You are dead right 'you had to be there'. It is very hard to review because Bass has so much happening there, there is a lot of medical terminology, as a histology tech, the squamous cells just jumped out at me but there is so much medical that is way ahead of it's time... If you ever do read it, would love to hear your thoughts on it.
@@OmnivorousReader I've definitely added it to be list of books to look out for so I'll probably one day bite the bullet and order a copy if I don't see it on a shelf first 👍
I'm looking forward to this one. I tried it once before but found the first few pages baffling. Sounds like i just need to push through it!
Ah yes - those first few pages/couple of chapters... I was a bit baffled too. I could not see the relevance to what I thought I was going to be reading (to be fair, there was no relevance). It is all Larry Devar running around a parkland, eating fake 'gell fruit' and talking to his 'belt' which I gather is his personal AI. It was odd, luckily I was in the mood for some serious WTF classic SF, so I was mostly intrigued. If you do finish it, I look forward to hearing your thoughts on it.
This sounds great, I like detail-heavy cyber punk, plus far-future speculation. I shall keep my eyes out for it, thanks :) Also I'd never heard of the Botfly, of course had to wiki it and wow, I'm having nightmares tonight for sure!!
You are welcome, the botfly is heavy and it is a pretty nightmarish animal. I think Bass must have actually encountered them, his details are very... detailed. The internet actually gave me less detail than some of his... This is a very detail heavy book overall and I do think it is strange that no eagle eyed spotter has ever claimed it for cyberpunk before. There are some really strong (though early) themes in it, Larry Devar especially.