Customer Reviews

Galactic Rapture

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4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
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It isn't every day you discover a black comedy about philosophy, religion, and media ethics that is also a kick-butt thriller. Galactic Rapture, which I think is secular humanist radical Tom Flynn's first novel, succeeds on all counts. Devout Catholics or Mormons with blood pressure problems should avoid this book; everyone else should read it at once!

The plot in a snapshot: Earth (now called Terra) is part of a future galaxy-wide Confectory in which only a handful of planets are voting members. Most of the more than 40,000 worlds are colonies, protectorates, or "Enclave" planets which the elite have decided must never know that the rest of galactic civilization is out there. For entertainment, the elites watch "sensos," an updated version of Orwell's feelies, which are shot on the primitive Enclave worlds by Spectators, members of the galactic elite who pose as natives but whose sensory fields are recorded and transmitted around the galaxy. Think of "Mad Max" meets "The Truman Show."

Terra was so primitive it might have been one of these voteless, exploited worlds, if the galactics hadn't been so impressed with earth religions. The Catholics have a planet of their own now, called (of course) Vatican, and they're raking in fortunes by going from world to world and telling the natives which (if any) of their historic holy men was a genuine incarnation of Christ. The elites believe God sends his son to one world after another. But they've never had any advance notice where he'd appear next. A math genius gives such a prediction to the pope; the next incarnation of Jesus will occur on Jaremi 4, one of the most twisted and horrible of all the Enclave worlds. In short order churchmen, con men, and fast-buck artists from around the galaxy are all running their own schemes to get onto the forbidden planet and get a piece of the new Christ (who is actually a huckster the galactics have mis-identified as the new Jesus).

The plot resolves with the fury of a high-speed crash at a six-way intersection. Along the way there's vicious satire of TV news morality, Catholic piety, and everything having to do with Mormonism. Oh, and I almost forgot the lesbian nun shower rape scene (on page 300-and-something).

If you like sci-fi, sharp satire, and plotty thrillers, you gotta read this book.

Flynn's current opus is, obviously, one man's pet literary project gone amazingly right. The reader is confronted at every turn with novel sci-fi themes, technologies, and premises. The characterizations and physical descriptions are vivid and lasting. That said, there is some bumpiness in the narrative.

Readers may be disturbed to find that the Skeptical Inquirer/Free Inquiry obsession with debunking magician and "mentalist" tricks is alive and well in the 24th century, though in an era with subvocalized commands, no-vis fliers, vanisher valises, and implants, you'd imagine that fakery could take a whole new form beyond "cold reading".

Some of the subject matter is innovative and refreshing. Some of Flynn's setups are so old they have white whiskers...religious traditions have their origin in the ritual ingestion of hallucinogens? Never heard that one before.

Also, non-Mormons beware...there's no Joseph Smith fan like an ex-Mormon. Though the rest of us tend to see all religious con men as more or less similar, the present or former citizens of Deseret see something special and unique in their founder, whether or not they accord him Prophet status.

Still, with so much of the science fiction literature awash in tepid religious themes, it is nice to encounter some freethinker futurist writing, colored as it is by a philosophical diatribe.

This book depicts a future in which the Vatican has its own planet and has recognized the existence of Christs on other planets, reality television has evolved to three-dimensional, recordings of experience called "senso," and a con man native to a backward planet is passing himself off as a divine figure. The story follows multiple convoluted threads which ultimately connect back in a cohesive whole; along the way are some historical details of Christianity, Catholicism, and Mormonism, and amusing and interesting extrapolations. I'm looking forward to the sequel.

This is by far the best SF book I have read in ages. A truly involving, convoluted plot combined political/religious intrigue with blinding action, suspense and humour.

Best of all, despite the plot twists and turns, gadgetry and ideas introduced, it all made sense and fitted together tightly, without any holes or logic gaps. This book has some of the most original thinking and ideas in it that I have come across in ages. Well worth a read.

Tom Flynn's book is what I would call a high farce; the work can be taken on so many levels. There are the bad puns and black comedy, there is also a level of sadness because so many people in today's world are like the characters in the book, believers in anything as long as there is a sense of community; or just plain out for themselves. I liken this work as similar to Aspirin's "Myth" series or Adams' "Hitchhikers" series, because it has it's funny moments, and then pages later you are in wonder. The gadgets are very interesting, and the dialogues between the "gods" and their followers are very amusing, to the point where I was laughing out loud.

Refreshing, original, and very entertaining. Nothing is sacred in this witty saga of politics, intrigue, and the human psyche. Galactic Rapture is satisfying on so many levels. Unique ideas and plot twists, well developed characters and an action filled story line, will keep you fully engrossed. Kudos to this new writer on the sci-fi scene.

Flynn pulls no punches in this novel, which is both an amusing and intelligent science fiction novel flavoured with a strong subtext on the perils of religion. Even with the grand scope of the novel, his writing is reasonably accessible and his characters quite believable. Anyone who enjoys Iain M Banks or David Brin will feel right at home. As you might expect from a prominent atheist and freethinker, numerous religions come off second best. He reserves his harshest parodies for the Catholic Church and the Mormons, but no 'believer' emerges unscathed. The deeply religious will no doubt be offended, but then they probably don't read science fiction in the first place. I personally enjoyed every forjeling page of it!

A totally engrossing, and supremely intelligent, epic journey into the imagination. Tom Flynn transports us into the future while exposing a large chunk of human folly with great wit and flair. The book is highly entertaining, thought-provoking, and essential reading for anyone intrigued by the human appetite for unreality. Highly recommended.

I found this book quite enjoyable despite being flawed in several areas. This book added some very interesting future technologies and scenarios to the sci-fi world. It tackled scenarios such as what should an advanced civilization do if it came upon a planet of a less advanced civilization. Should they interfere or let them develop on their normal course. In this book they decide it is against the law to interfere but yet they have spectators with high tech equipment infiltrate the primitives and millions watch these broadcasts as voyeurs. While there were some very interesting ideas and some sacred cows destroyed, the book seemed a bit long and aimless in place. But it was an enjoyable read nonetheless.