Welcome to KIWIreviews - product reviews
•  click here to return to the homepage  •
Welcome visitor.Join us or log in

Product reviews on kiwireviews.nz : Friday 29th March 2024 - 23:06:35

QuickSearch for:    What is QuickSearch?
QuickJump to:    What is QuickJump?
logon name: p/w:  

I want to:

You Are Here...

Home > Categories > Books > Sci-Fi > Poseidon's Children 1 - Blue Remembered Earth review

« James May's Man Lab - series 1 reviewJames MayThe Ingo Chronicles - Stormswept reviewThe Ingo Chronicles - Stormswept »

Score: 9.8/10  [1 review]
5 out of 5
ProdID: 3266 - Poseidon's Children 1 - Blue Remembered Earth
Written by Alastair Reynolds

Poseidon's Children 1 - Blue Remembered Earth
Price:
$29.99
Sample/s Supplied by:
Click to search for all products supplied by Hachette

Disclosure StatementFULL DISCLOSURE: A number of units of this product have, at some time, been provided to KIWIreviews by Hachette or their agents for the sole purposes of unbiased, independent reviews. No fee was requested, offered nor accepted by KIWIreviews or the reviewers themselves - these are genuine, unpaid consumer reviews.
Available:
February 2012

Poseidon's Children 1 - Blue Remembered Earth product reviews

One hundred and fifty years from now, in a world where Africa is the dominant technological and economic power, and where crime, war, disease and poverty have been banished to history, Geoffrey Akinya wants only one thing: to be left in peace, so that he can continue his studies into the elephants of the Amboseli basin.

But Geoffrey's family, the vast Akinya business empire, has other plans. After the death of Eunice, Geoffrey's grandmother, erstwhile space explorer and entrepreneur, something awkward has come to light on the Moon, and Geoffrey is tasked - well, blackmailed, really - to go up there and make sure the family's name stays suitably unblemished. But little does Geoffrey realise - or anyone else in the family, for that matter - what he's about to unravel.

Eunice's ashes have already have been scattered in sight of Kilimanjaro. But the secrets she died with are about to come back out into the open, and they could change everything. Or shatter this near-utopia into shards...

Check out Hachette onlineClick here to see all the listings for Hachette Visit their website Follow them on Twitter Check them out on Facebook They do not have a YouTube Channel They do not have a Pinterest board They do not have an Instagram channel They do not have a TikTok channel



Tags:
advanced technology   akinya   alastair reynolds   aliens   cryogenics   earth   future   moon   nanotechnology   space
Other listings you may be interested in:
Poseidon's Children 2 - On the Steel BreezePoseidon's Children 2 - On the Steel BreezeTripswitchTripswitch
Rating: 8.8
Sil: a novelSil: a novel
Rating: 9.3
The Bridei  Chronicles #2 - Blade of FortriuThe Bridei  Chronicles #2 - Blade of Fortriu
Rating: 9.0
Stick ManStick Man
Rating: 9.4
Dream of Asarlai - 3 - Rogue GaddaDream of Asarlai - 3 - Rogue Gadda
Rating: 9.3
Fifty Shades 1 - Fifty Shades of GreyFifty Shades 1 - Fifty Shades of Grey
Rating: 7.2
The Cabeswater Chronicles 1: The Raven BoysThe Cabeswater Chronicles 1: The Raven Boys
Rating: 9.4
Betrayal in DeathBetrayal in Death
Rating: 8.8
Heartside Bay #10 - Flirting with DangerHeartside Bay #10 - Flirting with Danger
Rating: 8.0
Row, Kiwi, Row Your BoatRow, Kiwi, Row Your Boat
Rating: 10.0
The Invincibles #1: Power Up!The Invincibles #1: Power Up!
Rating: 10.0
WeaponizedWeaponized
Rating: 9.8

Product reviews...

Everyone is welcome to post a review. You will need to Join up or log in to post yours.

Click here to read the profile of tucker

Review by: tucker (Karl)
Dated: 25th of February, 2012

Link to this review Report this review

 

This Review: 9.8/10
Value for Money:
Score 9 out of 10
Level of Realism:
Score 10 out of 10
Rereadability:
Score 10 out of 10
Lose Track of Time:
Score 10 out of 10

I do love a story that takes me to a future that is both high-tech, and yet isn't all smooth steel and ceramics. Throw in nanononics and you have me hooked. This is what Reynolds presents us with in this title - a world dominated by Africa, and The Mechanism - a near-global machine oversight system that can reach into your head and offer you communications options second to none, but also prevent you from committing a crime of violence.

Our two protagonists, both 'black sheep' of their immensely powerful family, are as different from each other as chalk and cheese. Geoffrey is content to live in the Surveilled World - the area under direct guardianship of The Mechanism - but doesn't want to be a global powerbroker like the rest of his clan. Instead, he just wants to study the social structure of a herd of African elephants from the inside. Sunday is a struggling artist who wants nothing to do with The Mechanism and so retreats to The Zone - an enclave under self-imposed digital isolation on the dark side of the moon, out of reach of the Mechanism and it's intrusive influence.

Played as pawns in a larger game of hunt 'n' seek by their dead Grandmother, these two young people must not only stand up to a family secret like no other, they must also willingly ally themselves with both sides of a partially-hidden civil war between the two major factions of the world as it is - the anti-AI society of the land-based population, and the less restrictive but still ruthless societies of the Aquatic nations, who are also aiming their eyes toward the stars.

The world Reynolds has built is brilliant. Well populated with an array of characters from every possible part of the spectrum... from those who have turned their backs on even the basics of life in this new world - living in conditions that in today's terms would still be quite well off, but for the era of the story is considered almost akin to being a homeless destitute - right through to the highest eschelons of society who are almost unrecognisable as human, both in terms of their physical bodies and their mental processes. All are detailled and rich in depth that allows the reader to empathise with them, understand them, or just plain dislike them intensely.

This is a world of many wonders, some powerful, some dangerous, but all are well crafted and woven artfully into the tapestry of the story. It's always amazing to get lost in a tale, but one that pulls me in so deeply that I really want to live in that world, despite the drawbacks and pitfalls inherent in it, that is something truly remarkable and satisfying.

Overall, this is one of those stories that left me feeling like I had lost a good friend when I finally closed the back cover and put the book aside... but I take heart from the fact it is Book 1 in a series! Yay! Sure, it's not going to be to everyone's tastes - nothing ever will be all things to all people - but for those who have enjoyed any of his previous works, or just like gritty sci-fi that doesn't just wave super-science around casually and rely on the reader just accepting it, then this is certainly worth checking out. It has a level of technology advanced enough to be clearly in the future, yet still within the bounds of possibility, based on advances being made in today's real world.

Random listing from 'Books'...

Score: 9.1
Product reviews for listing 3900: Creative Creatures: A Step-by-Step Guide to Making Your Own Creations -  Brand / Author: Donna Wilson

Product image for Creative Creatures: A Step-by-Step Guide to Making Your Own CreationsThis craft book with a difference marries exceptional design quality with appealing, easy-to-make projects - all with the help of a winning cast of knitted friends. Donna Wilson's lovable, highly-sought-after knitted characters have made their very own craft creations, and in this book they show children how to copy them.

Information about the characters adds an irresistible extra dimension: little stories throughout the book ... more...

Go to the listing

General Disclaimer...

Protected by Copyscape Plagiarism Checker - Do not copy content from this page. Creative Commons Licence All trademarks, images and copyrights on this site are owned by their respective companies.
KIWIreviews is an independent entity, part of the Knock Out News Group. This is a free public forum presenting user opinions on selected products, and as such the views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinion of kiwireviews.nz and are protected under New Zealand law by the "Honest Opinion" clause of the Defamation Act of 1992. KIWIreviews accepts no liability for statements made on this site, on the premise that they have been submitted as the true and honest opinions of the individual posters. In most cases, prices and dates stated are approximate and should be considered as only guidelines.

"Character - the willingness to accept responsibility for one's own life - is the source from which self respect springs."
Joan Didion (1934 - ), 'Slouching Towards Bethlehem'