Reviewed by Robert McCool
It's Monday in a sunny August blur where the world is in full bloom, the weather fine. During the past two days, and in addition to my regular weekend chores, I managed to read two speculative fiction novels where the weather is most definitively not fine.
Those books, Arctic Rising (Tor, ISBN 978-0-7653-1921-0), and Hurricane Fever (Tor, ISBN 978-0-7653-1922-7) by Tobias S. Buckell – an author who lives in Bluffton – take place in a space where global warming is transforming our world with an undesirable outcome.
Arctic Rising
In the first novel, Arctic Rising, the Arctic has melted enough for a Northwest Passage to expose rich oil fields that energy companies compete to drill. In addition, a group named Gaia Corp aims to launch a cloud of tiny mirrors into lower space to focus as an energy source – or a weapon.
Characters Anika Duncan and Prudence Jones discover a plot to explode a nuclear warhead as an EMP to thwart Gaia's plans, and struggle through a plot-driven drive to find the nuclear bomb. The action is engrossing as it grows, ending in a satisfying conclusion. However, the world cannot be pulled away from its endangered status, and the novel becomes an all too real cautionary tale.
Hurricane Fever
In the second book, Hurricane Fever, the action takes place in the Caribbean, amidst a hurricane season grown strong and consistent as the earth has warmed enough to impact the tropical environment, making it deadly.
In this book a character from Arctic Rising becomes the protagonist. Prudence (“Pru”) Jones finds himself in a plot to release a deadly virus into the strong hurricane winds, killing as a way to reduce the population of people of color. Pru is a highly identifiable character, and guides us through the Caribbean environment, with its multiple islands and cultures. This book is a joy to read, and to imagine the danger to Pru and the islands as a real possibility.
Tobias S. Buckell
Tobias S. Buckell is no stranger to speculative fiction, and is known for many accomplishments. He has been a nominee for the Astounding Award as best new author, the Nebula Award, the Hugo Award, the Prometheus Award, and he is a graduate of the Clarion Science Fiction Writer Workshop. In addition he is a New York Times Best Seller author for his HALO game tie-in, “The Cole Protoco.”
He has been called “violent, poetic, and compulsively readable” by McClean's magazine. And he's become a hero to me for his insightful observations and warnings. We are blessed to have him here in our Midwestern community. Read him.
