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A review by ineffablebob
Vast by Linda Nagata
adventurous
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Vast picks up right where Deception Well left off, with a small group venturing forth on a journey to find the origins of the alien Chenzeme. Unlike the prior book, in Vast there's pretty much always something happening, either encounters with Chenzeme or others, or internal conflicts between the crewmates. What hasn't changed in this novel, though, is confusion on both the part of the characters and the reader about where this is all going. By the end, there is a resolution to the story of the main characters, but still a lot of unanswered questions about where all of it began. But along the way, there's a lot of interesting concepts that come up regarding how these specimens of augmented humanity live their lives, from memory editing to body modification to communication with alien life.
This is the final book in a trilogy, though it really felt like two separate stories. There's the first book, describing humanity changing themselves via nanotechnology and leaving the confines of Earth. Then there's the other two books, which are all about the Chenzeme and their cult virus, viewed through the lens of a small group of fairly ignorant characters trying to understand what's going on. I empathize with them, because I also wasn't sure what was going on most of the time. Lots of interesting ideas came up along the way, though, about how humans live when they can reshape themselves and their world effectively at will, via advanced nanotech. I found the concepts more interesting than the actual story, and that made the read worthwhile, even without resolution to many of the questions raised along the way.
This is the final book in a trilogy, though it really felt like two separate stories. There's the first book, describing humanity changing themselves via nanotechnology and leaving the confines of Earth. Then there's the other two books, which are all about the Chenzeme and their cult virus, viewed through the lens of a small group of fairly ignorant characters trying to understand what's going on. I empathize with them, because I also wasn't sure what was going on most of the time. Lots of interesting ideas came up along the way, though, about how humans live when they can reshape themselves and their world effectively at will, via advanced nanotech. I found the concepts more interesting than the actual story, and that made the read worthwhile, even without resolution to many of the questions raised along the way.