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marlan 's review for:
The Forge of God
by Greg Bear
If all hard sci fi was like this book, I'd read more hard sci fi. It gave a great "what if" scenario and then used science to answer the questions posed. What if aliens seemed intent on destroying the Earth? The result is so realistic in the details that it created a sense of dread, as if the events were really happening.
The book was published in 1987, and has an old-school sci fi feel - the protagonists are mostly scientists or former scientists, reminiscent of Asimov. It also shows how little power scientists have - they may be able to uncover the truth, but they can't always get people to listen.
There were some aspects of the aliens that were never fully explained, which was a bit frustrating. But I suppose that's realistic, too - if aliens came to destroy the Earth, they wouldn't bother to explain themselves to us.
I'm glad I read this in between global catastrophes (finished just before the 2020 pandemic hit home). This story left me unsettled when things were going relatively well, although it did inadvertently bring home the message of global warming. It captured how difficult a global event is to accept. Because you look around and everything seems fine...until it isn't.
The book was published in 1987, and has an old-school sci fi feel - the protagonists are mostly scientists or former scientists, reminiscent of Asimov. It also shows how little power scientists have - they may be able to uncover the truth, but they can't always get people to listen.
There were some aspects of the aliens that were never fully explained, which was a bit frustrating. But I suppose that's realistic, too - if aliens came to destroy the Earth, they wouldn't bother to explain themselves to us.
I'm glad I read this in between global catastrophes (finished just before the 2020 pandemic hit home). This story left me unsettled when things were going relatively well, although it did inadvertently bring home the message of global warming. It captured how difficult a global event is to accept. Because you look around and everything seems fine...until it isn't.