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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Vergil Ulam is a biotechnologist who is quietly working on his own side-project, creating simple biological computers based on his own lymphocytes. When he finds success, the implication of his research scares his employers, and they demand that he shut it down and destroy it all. Instead, Vergil smuggles his little biologic cells out of the lab in the only way that he can – by injecting them back into himself.
The cells, though, turn out to be far more impressive and intelligent than even Vergil could have guessed, and as they begin to multiply and evolve within him, they start to improve their environment. Vergil finds himself growing fitter and healthier, as an entire civilisation of intelligent, sentient cells develops within him. And before long, that impossible civilisation begins to reach out…
This is a remarkable novel, but it’s not a perfect one. There are sections where we’re following characters that aren’t particularly likeable, while a few arrive and then depart without ever really doing much, or getting any sort of arc, making you wonder they were introduced at all. They’re given the cadence of being important characters, but really they’re just a pair of eyes to show us what’s going on in different locations. That’s fine, but don’t pretend otherwise, as it just gets a bit jarring when they’re unceremoniously dropped from the narrative.
On the other hand, a lot of what Blood Music achieves is truly extraordinary. Where the journey takes us is absolutely mind-boggling given the relatively small-scale beginning. Bear presents some enormous ideas that are often difficult to comprehend. The science at play here is complex, but it’s also fascinating, and it led me down more than a few deep, dense wiki-holes. It’s a novel bursting with ideas and striking, evocative images that I’ll be thinking about for a long, long time.
I can’t say too much without giving the game away, as part of the joy here it is discovering this extraordinary, peculiar, and grotesque journey for yourself. While I wasn’t overly enamoured with the first act, the game soon changes – drastically - and I was mesmerised by everything that followed. Bear’s vision is scary, verging on inconceivable, and yet strangely comforting at times. Distinctive and viscerally memorable, what Bear achieves in a fairly modest page-count is incredible, and definitely something I recommend any sci-fi fan experiencing for themself.
The cells, though, turn out to be far more impressive and intelligent than even Vergil could have guessed, and as they begin to multiply and evolve within him, they start to improve their environment. Vergil finds himself growing fitter and healthier, as an entire civilisation of intelligent, sentient cells develops within him. And before long, that impossible civilisation begins to reach out…
This is a remarkable novel, but it’s not a perfect one. There are sections where we’re following characters that aren’t particularly likeable, while a few arrive and then depart without ever really doing much, or getting any sort of arc, making you wonder they were introduced at all. They’re given the cadence of being important characters, but really they’re just a pair of eyes to show us what’s going on in different locations. That’s fine, but don’t pretend otherwise, as it just gets a bit jarring when they’re unceremoniously dropped from the narrative.
On the other hand, a lot of what Blood Music achieves is truly extraordinary. Where the journey takes us is absolutely mind-boggling given the relatively small-scale beginning. Bear presents some enormous ideas that are often difficult to comprehend. The science at play here is complex, but it’s also fascinating, and it led me down more than a few deep, dense wiki-holes. It’s a novel bursting with ideas and striking, evocative images that I’ll be thinking about for a long, long time.
I can’t say too much without giving the game away, as part of the joy here it is discovering this extraordinary, peculiar, and grotesque journey for yourself. While I wasn’t overly enamoured with the first act, the game soon changes – drastically - and I was mesmerised by everything that followed. Bear’s vision is scary, verging on inconceivable, and yet strangely comforting at times. Distinctive and viscerally memorable, what Bear achieves in a fairly modest page-count is incredible, and definitely something I recommend any sci-fi fan experiencing for themself.
Blood Music is the story of Virgil Ulman, who works at a genetics research lab. As his colleagues work away on a biological chip Virgil has been recoding cells to do something quite different. His abandonment of research ethics leads to trouble from his employer resulting in the suspension of his research but not before he injects himself with the results of his experiment. Virgil is the catalyst but his invention gets centre stage.
‘I will never understand men, as long as I live and breathe,’ his mother said, pouring another cup of thick black coffee. ‘Always tinkering, always getting into trouble.’ p43
Let’s start with the power of genetics. The first 100 pages deals with Virgil’s transformation. He’s the host of his experiment but Greg Bear looks at the effect of his transformation of those around him as well as the effect on himself. It doesn’t seem sensible to inject yourself with genetically altered material without an idea of the outcome though this is exactly what Virgil does. In the present we have several genetic modified crops, gene therapy so it’s not by any means implausible to alter genes but we’ve not quite caused the alterations that occur in Blood Music. To be fair to Virgil he just thinks he’s storing them for later retrieval. It shows how naive he is.
For the first section it appears that Virgil is both Dr Frankenstein and his monster. But he’s not a monster as such. His body and health vastly improve and you’d be forgiven that he’s created a new form of superhuman. You’d also be wrong as in the second half everything changes.
While the focus is on Virgil we get to see him gain a girlfriend. And it’s that relationship which is a bit unhealthy, if not creepy. Actually all his interpersonal relationships are a little odd. I’m not sure if Bear meant to give us a warning about scientists working alone in a lab with obsessions focused only on their work but he has.
A tension between Virgil and his friend, a doctor, shows another side to our scientist, but reinforces that he is difficult and demanding. And through Edward we get one of the most dramatic moments of the book. The trouble is that if feels like Bear is treading water up until that moment because he wants to explore the implications of the experiment being out in the wild but he can’t do that until a big reveal. It’s his girlfriend I felt most sorry for, which shows that Bear can create some interest in characters but it’s not his strength. Or at least it didn’t feel like he’d created rounded ones that would have lasted too far outside this story.
After Virgil’s experiment is released things become less plausible but fascinating and it also gives a strong indication of the atmosphere in the eighties between Russia and America and perhaps Bears views on that. We move away from Virgil’s point of view and it’s replaced by those of another scientist but one we’ve already met, a girl who is all alone and Virgil’s mother who gains some twin companions. These three give different interactions with the experiment’s growing reach.
Bear is asking what if we altered our biology via genes? What if we made something intelligent? What would they do when they interact with us?
We’re now tipping into spoiler territory but the experiment has two effects; billions more observations taking place over a finite area and America’s plight causes hysteria around the globe. The implication, at least at first, is that without America the world would turn into chaos. I’m not sure that’s strictly true. But then we have the question of observation and how observing the universe can cause it to stiffen as observed things aren’t as free to change.
Blood Music is a novel of ideas and for that it is well worth reading. The science may feel a little old and dated though it still raises some valid and interesting questions. The structure is a little bit more problematic. It’s a novella expanded to a short novel and it doesn’t feel quite right. It’s not that it’s padded but it spends time in odd ways while before it feels its time to move on. For example the thread with the mother could have been told in one page but there needed to be a journey. But that then took focus away from the scientist and the girl.
Greg Bear makes you wonder how easily the world can change through the power of science and imagination. So does that make it a classic and should it be kept in print? It is a novel of its time and is standing up quite well. It’s a concept that still feels plausible though the worldwide consequences could be a little different now.
‘I will never understand men, as long as I live and breathe,’ his mother said, pouring another cup of thick black coffee. ‘Always tinkering, always getting into trouble.’ p43
Let’s start with the power of genetics. The first 100 pages deals with Virgil’s transformation. He’s the host of his experiment but Greg Bear looks at the effect of his transformation of those around him as well as the effect on himself. It doesn’t seem sensible to inject yourself with genetically altered material without an idea of the outcome though this is exactly what Virgil does. In the present we have several genetic modified crops, gene therapy so it’s not by any means implausible to alter genes but we’ve not quite caused the alterations that occur in Blood Music. To be fair to Virgil he just thinks he’s storing them for later retrieval. It shows how naive he is.
For the first section it appears that Virgil is both Dr Frankenstein and his monster. But he’s not a monster as such. His body and health vastly improve and you’d be forgiven that he’s created a new form of superhuman. You’d also be wrong as in the second half everything changes.
While the focus is on Virgil we get to see him gain a girlfriend. And it’s that relationship which is a bit unhealthy, if not creepy. Actually all his interpersonal relationships are a little odd. I’m not sure if Bear meant to give us a warning about scientists working alone in a lab with obsessions focused only on their work but he has.
A tension between Virgil and his friend, a doctor, shows another side to our scientist, but reinforces that he is difficult and demanding. And through Edward we get one of the most dramatic moments of the book. The trouble is that if feels like Bear is treading water up until that moment because he wants to explore the implications of the experiment being out in the wild but he can’t do that until a big reveal. It’s his girlfriend I felt most sorry for, which shows that Bear can create some interest in characters but it’s not his strength. Or at least it didn’t feel like he’d created rounded ones that would have lasted too far outside this story.
After Virgil’s experiment is released things become less plausible but fascinating and it also gives a strong indication of the atmosphere in the eighties between Russia and America and perhaps Bears views on that. We move away from Virgil’s point of view and it’s replaced by those of another scientist but one we’ve already met, a girl who is all alone and Virgil’s mother who gains some twin companions. These three give different interactions with the experiment’s growing reach.
Bear is asking what if we altered our biology via genes? What if we made something intelligent? What would they do when they interact with us?
We’re now tipping into spoiler territory but the experiment has two effects; billions more observations taking place over a finite area and America’s plight causes hysteria around the globe. The implication, at least at first, is that without America the world would turn into chaos. I’m not sure that’s strictly true. But then we have the question of observation and how observing the universe can cause it to stiffen as observed things aren’t as free to change.
Blood Music is a novel of ideas and for that it is well worth reading. The science may feel a little old and dated though it still raises some valid and interesting questions. The structure is a little bit more problematic. It’s a novella expanded to a short novel and it doesn’t feel quite right. It’s not that it’s padded but it spends time in odd ways while before it feels its time to move on. For example the thread with the mother could have been told in one page but there needed to be a journey. But that then took focus away from the scientist and the girl.
Greg Bear makes you wonder how easily the world can change through the power of science and imagination. So does that make it a classic and should it be kept in print? It is a novel of its time and is standing up quite well. It’s a concept that still feels plausible though the worldwide consequences could be a little different now.
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
"They're not telling me anything, but I think they're sending out scouts. Hey! Astronauts!"
Rest in peace Greg Bear.
This was a ton of fun. A very trippy, fast-paced ride that goes to some uncharted places.
Be advised when you first pick up this book, you're about to be immediately cracked over the head with pages of just explaining how DNA works, but it fades pretty quickly as the real story begins. Initially, I thought we were in for another genius's vanity project to flex how much they understand about microbes and cell behavior-- but what I got was a rich, philosophical thriller wrapped in a body-horror package that John Carpenter would blush at.
Bear looks inwards, rather than outwards for his science fiction. His ideas don't come from space, they come from the bloodstream.
The entire second half of this book is a wild ride through Artificial Intelligence and spirituality. Coming back to the beginning as I flip through and collect my thoughts, I almost can't believe the book I read is the one I started at the beginning. It's such a wild contrast-- but it definitely works.
I'm very hazy on some elements of the ending, but I think there is a very healthy amount of room for interpretation. He manages to paint an abstract picture and let us decide if it's ominous or benevolent. But now I've already said too much.
As someone who has bemoaned the pacing of basically every horror novel I've ever read (though this probably leans significantly more SF--), this was brilliantly paced, aside from a few strange decisions towards the end.
He takes some big gambles with story structure as a whole and I think it mostly paid off brilliantly, with 1-2 miscues that crap out but are yanked off stage so fast it's not all that bad.
Bear has some strange moments writing women in this book. Initially, I thought he was doing "a thing" but I don't think I ended up being right. He
I'll end with my highest praise: Bear manages to invent this language of looking inward, of describing neural pathways and synapse fires as if they're almost physical spaces being traveled-- of unconscious mental processes getting their gears cleaned and it is very, very impressive. Unlike anything I've ever read in that regard.
A great read. Here's to 2023!
Rest in peace Greg Bear.
This was a ton of fun. A very trippy, fast-paced ride that goes to some uncharted places.
Be advised when you first pick up this book, you're about to be immediately cracked over the head with pages of just explaining how DNA works, but it fades pretty quickly as the real story begins. Initially, I thought we were in for another genius's vanity project to flex how much they understand about microbes and cell behavior-- but what I got was a rich, philosophical thriller wrapped in a body-horror package that John Carpenter would blush at.
Bear looks inwards, rather than outwards for his science fiction. His ideas don't come from space, they come from the bloodstream.
The entire second half of this book is a wild ride through Artificial Intelligence and spirituality. Coming back to the beginning as I flip through and collect my thoughts, I almost can't believe the book I read is the one I started at the beginning. It's such a wild contrast-- but it definitely works.
I'm very hazy on some elements of the ending, but I think there is a very healthy amount of room for interpretation. He manages to paint an abstract picture and let us decide if it's ominous or benevolent. But now I've already said too much.
As someone who has bemoaned the pacing of basically every horror novel I've ever read (though this probably leans significantly more SF--), this was brilliantly paced, aside from a few strange decisions towards the end.
He takes some big gambles with story structure as a whole and I think it mostly paid off brilliantly, with 1-2 miscues that crap out but are yanked off stage so fast it's not all that bad.
Bear has some strange moments writing women in this book. Initially, I thought he was doing "a thing" but I don't think I ended up being right. He
I'll end with my highest praise: Bear manages to invent this language of looking inward, of describing neural pathways and synapse fires as if they're almost physical spaces being traveled-- of unconscious mental processes getting their gears cleaned and it is very, very impressive. Unlike anything I've ever read in that regard.
A great read. Here's to 2023!
I thought I knew where this was going and then it just kept on going.
Great concept, lots of big ideas and scientific jargon to make it all sound plausible. The plot was a bit well worn and I didn’t find myself caring about any of the characters but overall an interesting, well told story.
Great concept, lots of big ideas and scientific jargon to make it all sound plausible. The plot was a bit well worn and I didn’t find myself caring about any of the characters but overall an interesting, well told story.
adventurous
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes