SOJALS rating:

Unrated (0/5)

I first read this in 1994 and most recently on the 4th September 2005

A hundred years in our future, humankind has reached out across the solar system. They've had it easier than we would have expected although they're not aware why. For eighty years there have been no sunspots and no solar flares, not bursts of radiation shooting out of our Sun to play havoc with the electronics and the edges of atmospheres. But now sunspots are back with a vengeance and a enormous solar flare is exploding out from the Sun.

Thomas and Zelazny got together to write a book, with a terribly disappointing result. There's some good stuff in here. There are interesting characters, there's space travel, and even aliens, but is there actually a plot? Well, there is something of one, but it's scampered off into the background and is largely ignored. Instead all we get are these little vignettes of a whole host of characters that don't meld together. I can only guess that the book was intended to be somewhat longer, but they decided to cut it short and wind things up quickly. There's some nice writing in there. There's drama and there could almost be excitement, but it ends up stodgy and disconnected.

For a disaster novel it's a disaster. And remember, I love Zelazny's writing - "Lord Of Light" is my current No 1 all-time favourite SF novel.