by Lincoln Child
Our relatively small community has a peculiar library arrangement. Because of jurisdictional issues, there are two completely separate and independent public library systems. We live in an area which allows free access to both systems, so we use both to select our light reading material.
Interestingly, the author under review here is found in the science fiction stacks in one of the libraries and in the mysteries section of the other. This is not really too surprising since some of his work has a Michael Crichton flavor in which elements of advanced technology are intertwined with suspense and evil goings-on. This is true of this novel.
It fits, I think, in the “caper tale” genre, similar in some respects to the Oceans Eleven or the Great Bank Robbery stories. Here, however, the thieves are decidedly BAD guys, and the institution being preyed upon is trying to counteract them.
The setting provides the novel with its sci-fi tag. We have the world’s most advanced theme park (a super Disneyland if you will) located in the barren desert/canyon area of Nevada. It is a dome-covered extravaganza with many, many advanced attractions, holographic illusions, robots and human staff, and accurately planned historical environs (Arthurian Britain, the 19th century London of Victoria and Jack the Ripper, an illusionary outer-space section, etc.), all playing a part in the plot. The entire complex is controlled and operated by a master computer program which is considered to be fail safe.
That, of course, is the plot’s hinge point. The program’s designer is called in to consult on a series of glitches in the park’s operations which the administration regards as potential errors in the program. These glitches, which are becoming more serious and hazardous, are the product of hacking by the baddies (I’m not really giving anything away here; that’s obvious from the beginning) who plan to extort and otherwise profit from their activities, and our consultant protagonist and his allies are hard pressed to undo the evil ones.
I found this to be a relatively fast-paced story with good descriptive and character-development features. The setting is especially absorbing, and if you’re a techno-freak like me you’ll probably enjoy it. How about a hall-of-mirrors maze in which hologram images of oneself are interspersed with the mirrors? Or a free fall in outer space illusion, again with holograms and mirrors, guaranteed to induce vertigo?
Reviewed by Ken West
Interestingly, the author under review here is found in the science fiction stacks in one of the libraries and in the mysteries section of the other. This is not really too surprising since some of his work has a Michael Crichton flavor in which elements of advanced technology are intertwined with suspense and evil goings-on. This is true of this novel.
It fits, I think, in the “caper tale” genre, similar in some respects to the Oceans Eleven or the Great Bank Robbery stories. Here, however, the thieves are decidedly BAD guys, and the institution being preyed upon is trying to counteract them.
The setting provides the novel with its sci-fi tag. We have the world’s most advanced theme park (a super Disneyland if you will) located in the barren desert/canyon area of Nevada. It is a dome-covered extravaganza with many, many advanced attractions, holographic illusions, robots and human staff, and accurately planned historical environs (Arthurian Britain, the 19th century London of Victoria and Jack the Ripper, an illusionary outer-space section, etc.), all playing a part in the plot. The entire complex is controlled and operated by a master computer program which is considered to be fail safe.
That, of course, is the plot’s hinge point. The program’s designer is called in to consult on a series of glitches in the park’s operations which the administration regards as potential errors in the program. These glitches, which are becoming more serious and hazardous, are the product of hacking by the baddies (I’m not really giving anything away here; that’s obvious from the beginning) who plan to extort and otherwise profit from their activities, and our consultant protagonist and his allies are hard pressed to undo the evil ones.
I found this to be a relatively fast-paced story with good descriptive and character-development features. The setting is especially absorbing, and if you’re a techno-freak like me you’ll probably enjoy it. How about a hall-of-mirrors maze in which hologram images of oneself are interspersed with the mirrors? Or a free fall in outer space illusion, again with holograms and mirrors, guaranteed to induce vertigo?
Reviewed by Ken West
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