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A review by archergal
The Frozen Sky by Jeff Carlson
2.0
The Frozen Sky starts off with a dramatic discovery (alien life) and a dramatic chase/escape FROM that alien life.
There's life under the frozen surface of Europa. This is a novel about discovering that life and deciding what to do about it. There's also a rogue AI, not to mention nationalistic issues and conflict between different countries doing research on Europa (i.e., politics).
I hate stories with politics like this in them. Because usually nothing is done for GOOD reasons, just for what is expedient and what can be compromised on. And these folks may have heard of a Prime Directive, but they're definitely Not Having It. I kinda hated all the characters too. :(
That said, it's a competent hard SF book. I couldn't quite visualize how the "sunfish" (what the researchers called the aliens) moved around under the frozen surface of Europa. I was also astonished by the amount of tech -- bio and non-bio -- these researchers had with them. They could replace damaged eyes and limbs, even. Wow.
All that caused a bit of a strain to my WSOD, along with how quickly they decoded the aliens' communications. Hence the low rating. :(
There's life under the frozen surface of Europa. This is a novel about discovering that life and deciding what to do about it. There's also a rogue AI, not to mention nationalistic issues and conflict between different countries doing research on Europa (i.e., politics).
I hate stories with politics like this in them. Because usually nothing is done for GOOD reasons, just for what is expedient and what can be compromised on. And these folks may have heard of a Prime Directive, but they're definitely Not Having It. I kinda hated all the characters too. :(
That said, it's a competent hard SF book. I couldn't quite visualize how the "sunfish" (what the researchers called the aliens) moved around under the frozen surface of Europa. I was also astonished by the amount of tech -- bio and non-bio -- these researchers had with them. They could replace damaged eyes and limbs, even. Wow.
All that caused a bit of a strain to my WSOD, along with how quickly they decoded the aliens' communications. Hence the low rating. :(