Customer Reviews

COSMONAUT KEEP

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Once again, Ken Macleod has produced an original, intelligent work of science fiction in "Cosmonaut Keep". As usual, he has created a world that is by turns familiar, in other words it has its basis in a plausible future Earth, and completely bizarre. The bizzare aspects, in this isntance, being an earth-like planet that is home to humanoid (and regular) dinosaurs, native humans, and humans from Earth, and starships piloted by giant squid.

Much like his previous books, Macleod has filled this one with quirky, conlicting (and conflicted) politcal theories. It is in this regard that he shines as one of the smartest authors around today. He writes with the authority of a polical scientist, but never comes across as dogmatic. I suspect that in real life he is left of center, but the politcal philosophies his characters espouse are really just vehicles to drive the plot.

Finally, one positive, one negative. On the positive side, the characters in "Cosmonaut Keep" are Macleod's best yet. They show a level of depth that is just amazing; a level I didn't find in his previous works. On the negative side, "Cosmonaut Keep", like Macleod's other novels is told in alternating time periods. This proves to be a very creative way to intertwine seemingly disparite storylines, but it is handled poorly in the first half of this novel. Macleod should have been more careful in the details he reveals, as I found myself hopelessly confused 50 pages in. In the end all becomes clear, but this is a tough novel to get into as a result.

Ultimately, though, "Cosmonaut Keep" is a smart, entertaining beginning to what promises to be a great series. Enjoy!

What's happening to Ken MacLeod?

It seems to be a kind of authorial mid-lfe crisis for SF authors that they have to write a three-volume space opera or they won't feel complete. Some of these are superb though: for example, Peter Hamiliton's 'Night's Dawn' sequence and Paul J. MacAuley's recent trilogy. Macleod's (at least judging by this first volume), doesn't measure up.

Despite having reservations about his ability to really sustain a story, and his often wooden or stereotyped characters, I've always enjoyed his books, not least because of their determinedly idiosyncratic left-wing politics and situations. This one is also enjoyable enough, and has some great individual scenes (in particular the dinosaur-herding-by-flying-saucer bit), but it is too much of the same: parrallel stories (again), beautiful dark-haired heroines (again) etc. And, some of the devices needed to keep the plot going just make you go "D'oh!". I also found the nearer future story-line featuring a group of very dull computer hackers and their friends, uninvolving.

I was left feeling unsure whether the whole thing wasn't meant as parody, and perhaps that the author wasn't sure either. Oh well...

Cosmonaut Keep is the first in a new series by Ken MacLeod, who wrote The Stone Canal and The Cassini Division. As in those earlier works, this novel skillfully interweaves the personal and the political in a tapestry of transcendental posthumanity.

MacLeod again uses two narratives spanning an unknown amount of time to tell his story, and this conceit (while a bit confusing at first, at least in this novel) works. The "present" narrative takes place in the near-future, albeit in an alternate world where the EU is part of a larger Communist bloc and where alien technology, specifically a starship and drive, are being discovered. It follows one Matt Cairns as he makes his way from Edinburgh, Scotland to Area 51 in New Mexico to a space station and the future. The "future" narrative takes place on a world called Mingulay, which is inhabited by humans and saurs, intelligent descendents of the terrestrial dinosaurs. (Other forms of intelligent life in the novel include the kraken, superintelligent spacefaring squid, and god-like colonies of microorganisms that inhabit millions of asteroids in the solar system. There we follow one Gregor Cairns in his quest to solve the Great Game---to discover the secrets of interplanetary navigation believed to be possessed by his ancestor, Matt.

If the rest of the series is as fascinating as this volume, then reading it will be a real joy. Once again, MacLeod shows himself as one of the smarter writers in contemporary SF and speculative fiction.

I suspect this is one of those series that gets better as you go along. The opening salvo in a space opera saga is always going to be difficult. There is so much world building going on that there is little room for the story. So the writer faces a challenge, does he produce something on the scale of fellowship of the ring, which is so large it will put many readers off? Or does he write something small enough to attract purchase, but which will never satisfy expectations.

So this Author has gone for a small book as a sampler of things to come. And he has done an excellent job in that regard. The story jumps between two universes, a near future earth, and a distant planetary confederation. And the latter is the more interesting place, reptilian saurs who live thousands of years, Gigants and elegant Pithkies, star travelling merchant traders who are transported on ships belonging to giant squid, and planet bound humans who are somehow descendants of those in the near future earth thread.

A lot of homage is paid to cold war politics, workable communism (as if) and Area 51. There are some good laughs for computer programmers in a world where an archeology degree may include a module on MS-DOS or Windows applications. Technologically this book brings nothing new to the table, and as a result has a certain comfortable familiarity that makes all the technology seem accessible.

I think I'll invest in book 2, and see where it goes from there!

My rating's an average. The book is two stories in one, and the one set on Mingulay gets 4 stars. Mr. McLeod's description of a colonized world inhabited by humans and "saurs" (they get drunk and stoned together) and the briefly mentioned two other hominid species (imagine what dinosaurs might have evolved into had they had the chance), with traders from the stars passing through and the world's tech wearing out is fascinating (although you may feel that the romantic attachments Gregor Cairns goes through are solved rather smoothly). This part of the book is told in the odd-numbered chapters.

Unfortunately the other story, told in, of course, the even-numbered chapters and narrated for the most part by Gregor's ancestor Matt, is a rehashing of Heinlein--and not done especially well (think "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" with cyberpunks and Deadheads instead of Libertarians and you sort of get the point). The author's notion that a resurgent Russia will gain control over the EU (something called an "oil war" is hinted at) is, to be charitable, bizarre; his economic theories aren't worth discussing; the by the numbers "up against the wall bureaucrats!" plotting is something we've all seen before, and done far more coherently.

First of a trilogy.

I had to sort of work my way through this novel. I was interested in the characters and in the depiction of relationships between the 'saurs and the humans. However, the jumping back and forth between the two time periods, novel & interesting at first, became rather annoying to me.

However, this is rather good space opera, and should satisfy those who enjoy "hard" science-fiction. It's good enough that I'll be reading the second part of the trilogy.

The first book in MacLeods Engines of Light series and the first thing that he has written since the Fall Revolution series.

It's clear to see that MacLeod has had better time for planning before he started this series - the universe seems better structured and the foundation a lot more stable than it did in The Fall Revolution. MacLeod seems a lot more secures as he shows us glimpses of his universe.

This book has two story lines. One telling the tale of how man found faster-than-light travel and one about a marine biologist (and his friends) on the planet of Mingled. And then there's the gods to connect them.

MacLeod is better than ever in this book.

Unfortunately he looses it a bit the sequel (Dark Light), but that's another story.

Matt Cairns is in our near future, in the 21 Century when the European Space Agency makes first contact with aliens. Gregor Cairns is in our FAR future, is a exobiology student who must REDISCOVER the secrets of interstellar travel. The two stories have been woven together. The First Chapter starts off with Gregor, the Second with Matt and so on. The author is somewhat a tease, because right when something seems about to happen, right when some new piece of information is about to help answer an important question, he ends the chapter and starts a new one in the other story line!
Don't worry, the book is full of cool stuff. Smart squids, starships, REAL dinosaurs, Area 51 (Dreamland), tiny Gods, flying saucers, spies, cyberpunk and more. YES, he likes to deal with politics, but it is part of the setting, not thrust into our faces. If you enjoy mystery, alien races (that turn out to be less than alien) and high-tech in your Sci-Fi, this is the book for you!

Sometime in the future when the Russians control all of Europe and the US is ruled by corporations, some scientists discover something odd up in space...

An interesting book. I like very much the way it weaves political theory and extraterrestrial/theological speculation.

What I like less is the way that the book jumps between times. It was confusing and distracting and I found myself going back and re-reading in a state of confusion rather than moving forward. I hope that in a second series installment I would be able to enjoy the book more instead of spending all my time trying to figure out what is happening.

Ken MacLeod does an amazing job of combining real politics with great sense of wonder science fiction. Cosmonaut Keep, the first book in a new series, is his best book yet. The book does a great job jumping between the stories of two different timelines: one a near future Earth dominated by Russia, another an alien world humans share with various aliens. It even manages to add in some UFO mythology in an interesting (and realistic) way.

I look forward to the next book in the series.