Chasm City - Alastair Reynolds Book Review

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Review Summary

Ace, April 2002, 23.95, 528 pp.
ISBN 0441009123

   In the twenty-sixth century, mankind may have conquered the stars and found the secret to immortality but it hasn't been able to eliminate war. Since humanity colonized Sky's Edge there has always been war and arm merchants like Cahuella, who sell munitions to both sides have become rich men. Tanner Mirabel, former soldier and mercenary, is now a security consultant to Cahuella. When an ambush in the jungle kills his employer's wife, Tanner vows to avenge their death.

   He knows the man who was behind the killing is a rich aristocrat whose family was killed by ammunition Cahuella sold to the enemy. Tanner's search leads him across the galaxy to CHASM CITY on the planet Yellowstone, a place decimated by the nano-technological Melding Plague that changed the political and social structure of that world. In the course of hunting down his prey, Tanner has many life threatening adventures and discovers things about himself that are extremely shocking to him.

    CHASM CITY is a space opera at its fantastic best. The story line is so intriguing that the audience will want to read all 528 pages in one sitting. Tanner, the flawed anti-hero, is likable despite the fact that when he gets into mercenary mode, he has no compunction about killing people. If this novel is any indication of his talent, Alastair Reynolds will attain the skies of Robert Heinlein and Andre Norton.

Harriet Klausner

Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar

Detailed literary breakdown of Chasm City

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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot

Composition of Book
Descript. of chases or violence - 10%
planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 60%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 20%
Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 10%

Tone of book - depressing/sad
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - science fiction story
Spying & Investigations Yes
What is main char. doing? - finding a killer (criminal) - deposing an evil leader
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book

Main Character
Identity: - Male
Profession/status: - bodyguard
Age: - long lived adults
How sensitive is this character? - middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - average physique

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male
Age: - long-lived adults
Profession/status: - killer
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a little/some
How sensitive is this character? - hard edged
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - average physique

Setting
A substantial portion of this book takes place on a non-Earth planetary body: - humans in a futuristic society - empty, or nearly empty world
Planet outside solar system? Yes

Style
Person? - mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
scientific jargon? (SF only) - a significant amount of technical jargon
How much dialogue? - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog

Most similar books to Chasm City
The Return of Santiago by Mike Resnick
The Mocking Program by Alan Dean Foster
Mindworlds by Phyllis Gotlieb
Dark Ararat by Brian Stableford
A Time to Die by Mickey Zucker Reichert

Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).

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