The Restoration Game [Paperback]

Ken MacLeod (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 20, 2011

NOMINATED FOR THE BSFA AWARD IN BEST NOVEL CATEGORY

There is no such place as Krassnia. Lucy Stone should know—she was born there. In that tiny, troubled region of the former Soviet Union, revolution is brewing. Its organizers need a safe place to meet, and where better than the virtual spaces of an online game? Lucy, who works for a start-up games company in Edinburgh, has a project that almost seems made for the job: a game inspired by The Krassniad, an epic folk tale concocted by Lucy's mother, Amanda, who studied there in the 1980s. Lucy knows Amanda is a spook. She knows her great-grandmother Eugenie also visited the country in the 1930s and met the man who originally collected Krassnian folklore, and who perished in Stalin's terror. As Lucy digs up details about her birthplace to slot into the game, she finds the open secrets of her family's past, the darker secrets of Krassnia's past—and hints about the crucial role she is destined to play in The Restoration Game...

Combining international intrigue with cutting-edge philosophical speculation, romance with adventure, and online gaming with real-life consequences, The Restoration Game delivers as science fiction and as a sharp take on our present world from the viewpoint of a complex, engaging heroine who has to fight her way through a maze of political and family manipulation to take control of her own life.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...a video game espionage novel where MacLeod deftly mixes Eastern European intrigue with underground gamer culture to create a terrific political thriller. MacLeod is one of io9's chief muses, and his work is a big reason I fell in love with science fiction again after many years away from it." --io9

"In this brash, odd tour-de-force, he succeeds partly by taking chances many authors would balk at and partly by virtue of some solid craftsmanship. The Restoration Game is the first Ken MacLeod novel I've read. It won't be the last." --Green Man Review

"This is a writer at the peak of his powers." --SFX

About the Author

Ken MacLeod's SF novels have won the Prometheus Award and the BSFA award, and been shortlisted for the Hugo and Nebula Awards. He lives near Edinburgh, Scotland.

Product Details

• Paperback: 259 pages
• Publisher: Pyr; paperback / softback edition (September 20, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1616145250
• ISBN-13: 978-1616145255
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.7 x 8.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #366,013 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ken MacLeod's SF novels have won the Prometheus Award and the BSFA award, and been shortlisted for the Hugo and Nebula Awards. He lives near Edinburgh, Scotland.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Gripping SF August 10, 2012

By D. Harris

Format:Paperback

I'd never read any of Ken MacLeod's books before so wasn't sure what to expect (and I don't know if this one is typical). But I did find it absorbing, thought provoking and entertaining. I don't want to give away too much of the plot, but it consists of two greatly contrasting elements - one might say universes. Precisely how they are linked,what is real, and what isn't, is hinted at but not made clear until the end (and I'm not sure even then if you can be completely sure).

Most of the book describes Lucy's (a young woman working for a games developer in Edinburgh) experiences as she is sucked into a bizarre conspiracy which combines the politics of the Caucasus (this is in 2008, the year that tension between Russia and Georgia spilled over), family history, smuggling and the CIA. This is a fast moving strand and there is a good contrast drawn between the stoically ordinary Lucy (who has, though, a dramatic past) and a strange gallery of figures (some relatives) who appear to overturn her life. I was reminded a bit of the setup of a John Buchan novel (though the politics are much further Left). Perhaps the only jarring note here is how readily Lucy agrees to drop everything and go off on a quixotic mission in Krassnia, the Caucasian republic at the centre of things. But that may be explained in the denouement (difficult to say more without giving things away). "Restoration", it turns out, is a theme throughout the book, with a number of different levels of meaning.

But this is more than an action thriller. Framing the book is a different perspective, which recurs here and there in the main narrative, not being resolved until the very end. You can then go back and read the opening section with a completely different level of understanding.

It's all very deftly done, and if this is typical of MacLeod's work, I need to do some catching up with his earlier books.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars More Espionage than SF January 27, 2012

By Justin Landon

Format:Paperback

I'm not sure The Restoration Game is science fiction. Sure, it's technically based on a speculative what-if, but does that make something a science fiction novel? Science fiction, I believe, is all about a discussion on humanity's relationship to technology. I feel a lot more comfortable thinking of it as a Dickian (Philip K.) novel that grapples with issues of human perception more than one looking at our relationship to technology. Or maybe it's just a thriller.

Other than a prologue and an epilogue, the events in Ken MacLeod's most recent novel take place in 2008, leading up to the South Ossetia War (or at least a fictional simulacrum there of). The narrative is recounted by Lucy Stone, an Edinburgh expat from the former Soviet controlled Krassnia. In that troubled region of the former Soviet Union, revolution is brewing. Its organizers need a safe place to meet, and where better than the virtual spaces of an online game? Lucy, who works for a start-up games company, has a project that almost seems made for the job: its original inspiration came from Krassnian folklore. As Lucy digs up details about her birthplace, she finds her interest has not gone unnoticed.

The main narrative is endemic to spy fiction. Lucy's mother, and great grandmother both have some connection to the CIA and their machinations have compromised their progeny. Mystery's abound. Who is Lucy's father? What are the motivations for the revolution? Who stands to gain? This thriller mentality works well as MacLeod revists the how and the why of the fall of the Soviet Union. Through Lucy the reader is exposed to documents detailing KGB investigations, and commentary on Stalin's purges. Ultimately these commentaries become a demonstration of the prevailing power of capitalism and the inherent expression of it in the human spirit.

Early on, Restoration Game seems to be more about how the story gets told than the story itself. MacLeod layers Lucy's narration, starting near the end and backtracking. She reveals things about her life in her own time, often referencing things like 'The Worst Day of My Life' without describing the day until several chapters later. While this technique can be occasionally frustrating, MacLeod is mostly successful in using it to maintain a constant tension.

Additionally, the main plot is bracketed by an prologue and epilogue that set up and conclude the twist that makes the novel "speculative" and not simply an alternate look at Russian foreign policy. Much like the M. Night Shyamalan's The Sixth Sense, once the twist becomes clear, the entire narrative changes - was I reading what I thought I was reading? Unfortunately, this is also one of the novel's weaker points as the 'twist' is fairly obvious from the prologue... wait maybe it is an M. Night Shyamalan movie! The problem isn't so much that MacLeod does a poor job of concealing it, rather it's a twist I've seen used a hundred times. I recognized it early on and kept hoping there would be more to it. Alas.

Telling a story in this manner takes an extremely capable writer. The jumps through time, and back again, into source documents, and then back into Lucy's head, are all done with a deft hand, highlighting MacLeod's command of his story and the language. But, I would be remiss if I didn't say that my opinion of Restoration Game would be loftier with the extraneous bits cut out, which, in this case, means all the science fiction stuff. Most of it comes off as tangential to the larger plot of Lucy and her family's history, making me wonder if the idea for the science came after the idea for the fiction.

Despite a frustratingly transparent and common twist, Ken MacLeod has written a wonderful story about Lucy Stone against the Russians. While it blends history and current events in compelling fashion, the science fiction framing doesn't wash. It's a thriller, that would stand out in the spy fiction market, dressed up as science fiction. All of that makes The Restoration Game a novel worth reading, although not necessarily one that demands to be read.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars The Restoration Game November 1, 2011

By dragon lady

Format:Paperback

Red headed Lucy Stone, a game designer with her own startup company is hired by a clandestine organization to develop a fantasy video game based upon the Krassnia culture and history. The only problem is, the Russian country of Krassnia doesn't exist anymore and Lucy's mom, Amanda a CIA agent, created much of the known history. The game is actually meant to be a way of Krassnian revolutionaries aka CIA agents to communicate and plot an overthrow. The Krassnians struggle with their past while attempting forge some kind of national identity in the midst of political turmoil and spy vs. spy activities which Lucy is now a part of.

Although there are liberal doses of humor sprinkled into this fantasy/thriller, it remains a deep, thoughtful story about a people struggling with their history and potential future. It illustrates how a government can unilaterally change a country with the mere stroke of a pen and the repercussions such actions can have. With the wealth of culture and development of an unusual energy source on a mountainside, this is not a fast-paced story but if you are looking for a stimulating, unusual thriller, look no further.