cspeet 's review for:

A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge
4.0

I absolutely loved this book. Vernor Vinge has long been one of my go-to authors in SF. I read this book some time ago, reread just now leading up to reading the recently released sequel. This book is entertaining, with lots of thematic material asking questions about free-will, mind control, and the ethical implications of providing technological advancement to lesser-developed cultures. This novel features a interesting solution to the problem of FTL travel, positing a link between space and intelligence/sapience that separates the universe into zones of thought. I also enjoyed the story lines involving the world of the tines, an alien race that I found remeniscent of the moties in Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle's novels. Entertaining and well worth the read!