SOJALS rating:

Awful (1/5)

I first read this in July 1999 and most recently in June 2002

Humanity's desperate search for more living space leads it colonise even the most inhospitable worlds, as long as there are no sapient life-forms already on the planet.

Kyara is certainly inhospitable. It's a lifeless ball on a long orbit around its star and it has a surface gravity of 40G.

Still even on Kyara, humankind manages, with the aid of immensely powerful anti-gravity engines, to build a city. Saxon Rainer's company Byron Systems built the colony and established its constitution. The rigid application of privacy laws has attracted other companies to the planet seeking to take advantage of the guaranteed confidentiality, but it still remains a company town and Saxon Rainer is the boss.

Gabriel Kylie's sister died on Kyara and he's come here to find out how it happened and to say his goodbyes. It's quickly apparent that her death did not occur exactly as described and Gabriel senses a cover-up.

Now, our Gabriel's a native Australian, he's dogged, persistent and he's clearly going to find out, in his own way, what happened to his sister and who, if anybody, caused her death.

It's an interesting planet and there's a nice conspiracy, but characters are insufficiently interesting. I'm left with a strong impression of the colony on Kyara, but, just a few hours later, no memory of what happened there.