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Fiction. Science Fiction. Thriller. HTML:Greg Bear�s Nebula Award�winning novel, Darwin�s Radio, painted a chilling portrait of humankind on the threshold of a radical leap in evolution�one that would alter our species forever. Now Bear continues his provocative tale of the human race confronted by an uncertain future, where �survival of the fittest� takes on astonishing and controversial new dimensions. Eleven years have passed since SHEVA, an ancient retrovirus, was discovered in human DNA�a retrovirus that caused mutations in the human genome and heralded the arrival of a new wave of genetically enhanced humans. Now these changed children have reached adolescence . . . and face a world that is outraged about their very existence. For these special youths, possessed of remarkable, advanced traits that mark a major turning point in human development, are also ticking time bombs harboring hosts of viruses that could exterminate the �old� human race. Fear and hatred of the virus children have made them a persecuted underclass, quarantined by the government in special �schools,� targeted by federally sanctioned bounty hunters, and demonized by hysterical segments of the population. But pockets of resistance have sprung up among those opposed to treating the children like dangerous diseases�and who fear the worst if the government�s draconian measures are carried to their extreme. Scientists Kaye Lang and Mitch Rafelson are part of this small but determined minority. Once at the forefront of the discovery and study of the SHEVA outbreak, they now live as virtual exiles in the Virginia suburbs with their daughter, Stella�a bright, inquisitive virus child who is quickly maturing, straining to break free of the protective world her parents have built around her, and eager to seek out others of her kind. But for all their precautions, Kaye, Mitch, and Stella have not slipped below the government�s radar. The agencies fanatically devoted to segregating and controlling the new-breed children monitor their every move�watching and waiting for the opportunity to strike the next blow in their escalating war to preserve �humankind� at any cost.… (more)
User reviews
One of the things that’s funny and patently obvious in this novel, is how caught up in the right now humanity is. Our life spans are so short, that we cannot see anything in perspective. Biological time has almost no meaning and geological none. The inevitability of the Sheva virus is inescapable. Try as we might to put it down and eradicate it, evolution will win out in the end. Our emotional attachment to the earth as it is at this minute is really very funny, but also has some interesting ironies. We lament the fact that humanity is ostensibly the cause of “global warming”, but I haven’t heard one person say we should actually make less people. Funny. And so what if the earth is warming (it’s done so before and quite without human intervention). Things will not end, they will only change. And that’s what we fear so much. Darwin’s Radio & Darwin’s Children are about exactly that; change, our fear of it, and what results because of that fear.
One of my main dislikes of the book were the time leaps. If I was to draw out the sequence of this book, it would rise to fever pitch twice before plummeting back to a starting point. Bear basically continues to increase the suspense and draw out the story, only to pull back at the last moment and shoot forward three years to see the aftermath of that event. While this technique could be successful in some cases, I believe it falls flat here, especially since after the time jump, it often takes several chapters to get back into the flow of the story. This jerky exposition creates a disconnect with the story, which did not allow me to fully immerse myself in Bear's world for most of the book.
Another problem is the seemingly random instance of God, which is never fully explained and is not necessary in the least to making the rest of the novel a comprehensive story. However, as always, Bear's science is flawlessly elegant and well-explained, even to those of us without extensive biological backgrounds (namely, me). Before reading this series I knew nothing about retroviruses or the various schools of thought on the function of viruses. While I am still not interested in biology, Bear creates a wonderful synergy between the reader and his subject matter.
All in all I would recommend this book to the discerning scifi reader. While it takes some heartiness to get through a thick Bear novel, it is worth it in the end as long as you stop periodically to reflect on his revelations.
More sociology and less science in this book than the first. This work proceeds on a more personal level following characters we got to know in the first book. The political intrigues are not as fleshed out so policy decisions are less charged. I would have liked more
Still a very good book, criticism mainly because the ideas in this book (and the first) had a potential to be GREAT but fell a little short.
I felt drawn in by the characters, although the action never really grabbed me. I enjoyed seeing the characters develop and change as events evolved around them.
Mitch, Stella, and Kaye had lived a dreamy, tense, unreal existence, no way for an energetic, outgoing young girl to grow up, no way for Mitch to stay sane.
As I had copies of both books, I decided to read the sequel straight after finishing "Darwin's Radio". I found myself much more interested in what Dicken and Augustine discovered in the 'new children' school, than in Kaye and Mitch lying low to avoid their child being taken from them. Although it was never stated in the book, I think the main reason that Kaye dumped Mitch as soon as he was no longer useful for protecting the family, was because he was showing signs of depression, and she didn't want another husband with mental health issues after her experience with Saul. So them getting back together again later made no sense to me; in fact, nothing about their relationship rang true. And why the obsession with Mitch's hands - yes he used to be an outdoors Type who worked with his hands, and now he isn't - I get it!
The plot has some interesting twists and turns, especially in the end. The plot also is very believable in terms of people's reactions to new 'things' and other people's
Unfortunately, this book falls far short of the first book. The writing drags in areas and is confusing in spots. The characters are only slightly more developed over the first book and most become caricatures of themselves. This book had the feeling of a "sequel demanded by the publisher", without a lot of heart in the writing by Greg Bear.
Overall, I was very disappointed in this book and in some ways, wished I had not read it. It nearly spoiled the wonderful feelings I had for Darwin's Radio.
Thumbs down, I'm giving this away.