Fofo’s #CBR4 Review #19: Mindstar Rising by Peter F. Hamilton
Target: Peter F. Hamilton’s Mindstar Rising(The Mandel Files #1)
Profile: Speculative Fiction, Science Fiction, Mystery
I haven’t read a lot of Peter F. Hamilton’s work. He’s generally considered to be one of the better New Space Opera writers out of the U.K. I enjoyed his Void trilogy when I read them in Cannonball 3, but they didn’t really inspire me to pick up the rest of his cannon. Rather, it was my commentary on Space Operas itself that spurred me to check out both Hamilton and his contemporary, Ken MacLeod, in a little more depth; particularly their early novels, which I knew almost nothing about.
It is somewhat interesting that we segment out science fiction from regular fiction, when there is really no such thing as a ‘science fiction novel.’ More accurately, science fiction isn’t a real genre, just a setting in which other stories are told. Mindstar Rising is very much a detective/mystery novel that utilizes a semi-apocalyptic future earth to create unique conflicts. In the wake of global warming induced ecological collapse and multiple wars, the communist leadership of England is forced from power and the monarchy reinstated. The country is in shambles and its revitalization lies almost entirely in the hands of the megacorporation Event Horizon and its ailing chairman, Philip Evans. The company was one of the critical factors in the downfall of the communist regime, and has taken it upon itself to rebuild Great Britain’s failing infrastructure.
Cannonball Read IV 