Skip to main content

Whalesong (SF) - Miles Cameron *****

When I read Miles Cameron's Artifact Space back in 2021 I was very impressed - somehow, I've not kept up the author who, for me comes closest to Alastair Reynolds in writing intelligent, engaging space opera. As a result it was a delight to return to the Artifact Space universe with the third book in his Arcana Imperii series. (I've also added book 2 to my reading list).

Cameron shines by giving us both a complex political background and genuinely likeable central characters in the small crew of what initially seems to be a simple freighter but ends up being far more. Although not a direct parallel, for me Cameron gives the same warm feeling that fans get from the best of Star Trek, with the opportunity a novel provides to give significantly more depth. It was simply a joy to read.

My main complaint with Artifact Space was the length - thankfully this volume pulls back from the wrist busting 568 pages to a more modest 406, much to its benefit. The central character of the first book, Marca Nbaro, is more in the sidelines here and we get a new crew - in fact the only time I was a little irritated with the book was when the storyline flicked back to Nbaro, simply because I was so invested with the central crew, I didn't want to lose their story for a minute.

Another strength here is the use of AI characters - with some highly relevant thoughts about the dangers of putting AI in charge coming through in a subtle way. However, this never gets in the way of the very human, straightforward adventure of the story arc, with a couple of impressive space battles. This isn't a book trying to put across a message (thankfully) - it is just pure, engaging entertainment, which is not a bad thing. 

My only other small moan is more technical. There is no mention of shields or the equivalent to protect ships - a lot of the damage in battles is done by conventional projectile weapons. But we also find out that it's possible to exit from artifact space, Cameron's hyperspace-like solution to interstellar travel, at high speeds - at one point 0.2c is mentioned. Tank shells travel at around 1,700 metres per second - That's around 35,000 times slower than 0.2c. A 1 gram speck of dust would have the same impact as a 35kg shell at 0.2c. At that kind of speed, shields would be essential. 

In the end, though, this can't get in the way of an effective page-turner at the very peak of space opera delight. 

You might also find an interview with Miles Cameron from 2021 interesting.

Hardback:   
Kindle:  
Using these links earns us commission at no cost to you
These articles will always be free - but if you'd like to support my online work, consider buying a virtual coffee or taking out a membership:
Review by Brian Clegg - See all Brian's online articles or subscribe to a weekly email free here

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mathematics with Love – Mary Stopes-Roe *****

Admittedly it’s early days (this review is written in January), but this, for me, is the surprise hit of the year so far! I approached this book with trepidation, but found it absolutely delightful. It is described on the cover as the “courtship correspondence of Barnes Wallis, inventor of the bouncing bomb”, and contains a series of letters between Wallis and his cousin and eventual wife Molly Bloxham, along with some useful annotation by their daughter, Mary. The courtship itself is not without difficulties, as Wallis was 18 years older than the 17-year-old Molly at the start of the correspondence, and her father, not surprisingly, wasn’t too pleased about the interest of such an elderly suitor, but that isn’t the only reason the letters are interesting – it’s also because of maths, and Wallis’s position in the UK as the engineering hero of the Second World War. (Incidentally, it seemed very strange to see letters addressed to “Barnes” – I had always assumed Barnes Wallis was a ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Data Empire - Roopika Risam ****

The central thesis presented by Roopika Risam is that information gives us (and particularly countries) the power to organise, control and dominate others. Although I have a couple of issues with the presentation, this is a genuinely interesting trip through the history of our use of stored information from the earliest tallies to the latest information technology. I loved a quote from Lisa Gitelman that data is is always 'cooked' so 'raw data is an oxymoron'. This neatly underlines Risam's thesis that data and information are not neutral facts, but rather tools that (like everything from fire to electronics) can be used for good or evil. As we are taken through the historical context, it can sometimes be a little difficult to judge whether Risam regards a particular example as bad or good, even when the outcome is disastrous. One thing I didn't like too much is the adherence to a popular science writing approach that has got distinctly hackneyed: opening chapte...
Post a Comment
Read more

Andrew Jaffe - Five way interview

Andrew Jaffe is professor of astrophysics and cosmology at Imperial College, London and director of the Imperial Centre for Inference and Cosmology. His new book is The Random Universe. Why science? I’ve always been interested in science, in particular in  astronomy, astrophysics, and space. One of my earliest memories - back in nursery school in New Jersey, I think - was watching one of the moon launches. I wanted that excitement to be part of my life! I never got to be an astronaut, but I did get to be part of the Planck Satellite team, and was privileged to be able to travel to the ESA Spaceport in French Guiana to watch the launch.  In between, I was lucky enough to have a supportive family, get a good education, and find inspiring teachers, mentors, and collaborators. They helped me model the universe, and helped me learn how to refine those models in the face of experimental and observational evidence. That is, they taught me to be a scientist. Why this book? The Random...
Post a Comment
Read more