Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by mullane45
Blood Music by Greg Bear
4.0
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.