Customer Reviews

Paths to Otherwhere

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I've been reading James P. Hogan's SF since the late 1970s, when I picked up a copy of his second novel, _The Genesis Machine_. I still haven't read the "Giants" novels, but I've read quite a bit of his other stuff.

He's got a nice range, from hard SF like this book to espionage thrillers like _The Infinity Gambit_ to nonfiction essays on various controversial subjects. (You can read a lot of his nonfiction on his website...)

The emphasis in his science fiction is on "science"; he knows his stuff and the physical theories on which he founds his novels are pretty plausible. He's also got a keen eye for the absolutely mind-blowingingly cool detail: some event that seems entirely ordinary but has such profound implications about the nature of reality that you just put the book down for a moment and go "Wow."...

Since he's one of my two favorite living SF writers and the only one of the two who writes "hard" SF (the other is Spider Robinson), I've lately been trying to figure out where to start reviewing his books. I picked this one because it registers so high on the Mind-Blowing Coolness Meter, but I could really have started anywhere.

No spoilers here: all the details I'm about to divulge appear within the first few pages of the book. Here's the underlying premise: the Many-Worlds Interpretation of quantum mechanics is correct; it's possible for quanta to interfere with their own counterparts along other branches of events; it's also possible for _information_ to be passed from one branch to another, and even from the future to the past, with devices that detect such interference.

One of those mind-blowing details occurs during a test of just such a device: a woman deliberately mistypes a word on a computer keyboard, but it appears correctly on the screen -- _because the quantum interference detector is determining the output by averaging all the possible futures_. Similarly, the woman finds it amazingly easy to draw a perfect circle on the computer screen, because the device averages _out_ the random errors introduced by her and all her counterparts along the other branches of the Multiverse.

That's just a taste of what this novel has in store for you, and it's just background; the plot is even cooler, and I won't spoil it for you. Let it suffice to say that you'll get your mind blown at least once every forty or fifty pages; every time you think Hogan has run out of tricks, he manages to pull out another one. His characters are, if not altogether gripping, at least interesting enough to keep the plot moving (Theo Jantowitz, for example, is a charming academic curmudgeon) and his standard theme -- "good science getting screwed up by government and corporate interests" -- is treated with Hogan's usual realism and flair.

In general it's a well-written and hopeful book that explores a fascinating "rational mysticism" that I sort of hope turns out to be true. (And I'm not sure why a couple of the other reviewers are dissatisfied with Hogan's handling of a certain "moral problem"; in fact it's not only addressed repeatedly but very nicely resolved.)

But again, I just picked this book to review because I had to start _somewhere_... He's all-but-unarguably the finest writer of "hard SF" out there today.

I found this one a bit difficult to read compared to Hogan's other novels, but as always the story is great as is the scientific theory behind it.

James P. Hogan's novel starts out in a world heading towards crisis. In a not-too-distant future, the United States is slowly rotting from within, with revolutionaries and gangs forcing an increasingly authoritarian reaction from the government. As an increasingly likely conflict with Japan and China looms, scientists develop a device that heralds the prospect of improving decision-making by allowing users to tap into the infinite number of decisions made by their multitude of counterparts in alternate worlds, thus discovering the wisest course of action. But then the scientists discover a means of transporting a person's consciousness into their counterpart in another universe. As the scientists begin to explore the possibilities, though, the military prepares to move in and use the device for their own ends.

Like his earlier novel The Proteus Operation, Hogan provides a plot of considerable interest, one well grounded in scientific theory as befitting an author of hard SF. Yet character development is lost amid the considerable political commentating the author continually engages in, as he uses his premise to both offer his theory on the failings of our world (too much government) and construct an idyllic alternative that in which everything is perfect (thanks to limited government). Some of it is laughable (as in how Britain manages to have socialized medicine WITHOUT government), much of it demonstrates a poor understanding of human history, and all of it gets in the way of the suspense Hogan attempts to build throughout the novel. It makes for an annoying read, one that would have been better is there had been less of Hogan's political views and more focus on the characters and some of the interesting implications of his premise.

This one is better than Thrice Upon a Time. Hogan still tends to get carried away sometimes with lenghthy explanations and suppositions of the science involved, but not to the exclusion of the plot in this one. This was written many years after Thrice Upon a Time, and it shows. I thought it was an entertaining and enjoyable read.

I sat down yesterday afternoon to start in on _Paths to Otherwhere_, and ended up finishing it hours later. I couldn't put it down. Hogan uses ideas on multiple universes (alternate realities) plausibly to create a intriguing story. The main stream of the story lies in the characters desire (and conflict in trying) to get away from the political conspiring and social stratification that they must work in. Simple research in evolution turns into complex cross universe scheming to find something close to utopia.

"Paths to Otherwhere" is an example of a book that I wanted to like. The premise of the Many Worlds theory is fascinating, but the storyline is saddled with tired government/scientist cliches and uncompelling characters.

The story is clearly an excuse to explore cutting-edge concepts. No problem there... science fiction is well-populated with works of the type; Arthur C. Clarke and Michael Crichton come to mind. But Hogan's focus is so slanted towards the science that he forgot the story. He is a good author: The Giants/Ganymede series is a memorable work. Hogan unfortunately stumbles here

...

This is the first novel I've read by Hogan. I was immediately hooked by the premise, and pleasantly surprised that the science held up so well after a decade.
Can't really argue with many of the complaints voiced by other readers, and the book did drag on more than few times. Yes, there were some poorly fleshed-out characters and some vague plot points. I felt the central characters and main plot line were quite intriguing and very well done.
I don't run across many novels that I wish hadn't ended--this was one of them. There doesn't seem to be a sequel, but I'd welcome one gladly.

It was the twenty - first century. The nations of the world headed toward war, and this time it looked as though there was no chance of avoiding a mutually geneocidal cataclysm. However, a small group of scientists had made QUADAR.

QUADAR was a machine. Selected scientists worked quietly on the project, unknown that they were watched by the government. Theory is that anything that COULD happen HAS happened in some universe, some where. There are thousands of universes though. QUADAR sent the selected few to their counter parts in other universes to see what the differences were. Every universe had the same people, but historical events had happened differently. The current world was different. Then there was a world where they never happened at all! Traveling this way was soon called going to otherwheres.

Now the government is ready to steal the whole project for political reasons.

***Mind boggling! A roller coaster of possibilities. Made me stop and think about several "What ifs?"***

This was well written with some great ideas and likable characters with a good story to boot. I did find it unsettling that Hogan hardly ever addressed the issue that when the characters 'shift' to the other universe and 'take over' the bodies of their counterparts what are moral implications of that action? I found it hard to continue reading or want to like these characters whenver this happened.

James Hogan is probably the best science fiction writer alive. He has a solid understanding of science and usually researches his topic well. He also has a knack for taking a known fact and asking the simple questions whose answers are often more complicated then one would believe. My personal favorite from Mr. Hogan was the "Gentle Giant" series where Mr. Hogan asked why is the farside of the moon so different from the nearside? The answer was a classic series, some great books.

In "Paths to Otherwhere," Mr. Hogan explores quantum physics and other realities. In "Paths to Otherwhere" a group of scientists discovery a way to channel themselves into the bodies of people living on other worlds parallel to our own. These people are "duplicates" of the scientist living here. Unfortunately, as compared to his other books, the science here is very weak. This could be a book on demon possession as easily as a science ficton. Worse, demon possession may actually be more believable.

Additionally, the story is weak. Most of Mr. Hogan's writing has an element of governmental conspiracy. Paths to Otherwhere is no exception. Military conspiracy, here, is the central part of the story as evil military scientists want to abuse this new science. Brave scientists attempt to defy this misuse of their findings, including a wise Buddhist man. I never understood why negative racial stereotypes are forbidden while the positive ones are allowed. Buddhist are no wiser then anyone else, they just pray differently.

Anyway, I was very disappointed with this story. It has all Mr. Hogan's weaknesses and none of his strengths. If you love Mr. Hogan, you may like this book. More likely, however, you will be disappointed. "Paths to Otherewhere" was a weak book, not a very good read.