Nach den ersten 70 Seiten kann ich kaum glauben, dass das Buch 1994 geschrieben worden ist.
2015-07-27
Nach 733 Seiten habe ich das Buch durch und kann es immer noch nicht glauben.
Einige Passagen sind etwas langwierig und durchgeknallt, aber voller genialer Einfälle.
Ich werde definitiv mehr von John Barnes lesen. ( )

This was written in 1994:
"Buildings as tall as forty stories are going over, but the World Trade Center seems to be holding firm." (p.393)
"... and the beautiful Earth is being crapped up by an excess of people--lovely as individuals, towns and cultures, but hideous in such profusion." (p.367)

This is a remarkable book, written by someone with a vaster amount of science understanding than I have. I had trouble following the "funnels" of Louie Tynan's ship, but I could get the gist of it. What I did get out of it is the understanding of methane clathrate and what can happen when (not if) our oceans heat up enough to release it from its ice bed. I hope this doesn't happen before my death (~2028-30), but I worry terribly about what will happen to my two daughters when any of the horrible things that can happen because of our"fucking ourselves away from the table" do happen and begin destroying this planet and every Flora and fauna along with it. ( )

Maybe this book gets good later. The little I actually read was so transparently awful as to be almost unreadable. As in, I turned every page with an actual cringe. Ick. Horrid. ( )

An interesting sci-fi update of the old Arthur Hailey formula (a bunch of linked characters, some central connecting thread that we learn lots about (e.g. Airports, Banks, Hotels ... or in this case, storms), and an exciting climax or series of exciting climaxes to finish it off).

I was a little turned off by the (to-me) gratuitous violence--yes, the storms are bound to be destructive, and I don't mind that, but so often the story was punctuated by grotesque human-on-human violence which seemed unnecessary to me ... the plot was interesting enough to keep me engrossed without having to throw in rape/murder flashbacks, for example.

The singularity subplot made very little sense to me (why wouldn't others experience the same thing? Surely once the cat was out of the bag there'd be hundreds or thousands or people willing to give it a go), but the central concept was enthralling and alarming--I'm sure I'm not the first to have read it and then tried to fined out via Google if this is something I need to worry about in real life. ( )

A military action results in rapid escalation of ocean temperatures which seeds superstorms that threaten much of earth's population. But as it turns out, this is more that just a disaster novel. It turns out also to carry a plot that ranges from the realm of cyber-reality to deep space. Despite such disparities, the story holds together well. A wide cast of characters hold varying interest, and while there is a startling turn-of-events about 50 pages from the end, the conclusion itself felt something of an anti-climax. Held my attention throughout. ( )