Chimera

ISBN: 0-312-86630-5 Order from: Amazon.com Barnes & Noble.com

A noir mystery set in the near future, this has all the good parts of the genre: bleak setting, wise-cracking sirface on romanticism, beautiful and deadly women, action, danger, villains; and some flaws including obtrusive politics and lack of originality.

Reviewed by David on October 01, 2000

Genre: Science Fiction (Private Investigator, Mutants, Mystery, Near Future, Conspiracy, Slavery)

Synopsis: In some future, partly dissolved United States, two classes of beings struggle with being treated as property: the AIs and the gene-spliced humanoid Chimerae.

The nearly broke private investigator Chase Maxwell, better known as Max, doesn't accept "critters" as clients. But when he gets involved with the catlike Zoe Domingo who is suspected of murder, survival seems more important than business practices. The plot quickly thickens, as enemies proliferate and politics intervene.

Full Review: Will Shetterly has recreated the detective subgenre perfectly. The gritty streets, the wise-cracking PI, the brutally direct gangsters all come to life in this novel. The politics, affected by the Libertarian Revolution in Southern California make the ruthless free enterprise, together with voluntary indenture and slavery of the chimerae feel right. The dash of romance and the neverending roller-coaster of hope and fear keeps the reader entertained right until the satisfying end.

The setting for this novel resembles Swan's Moreau books (Fearful Symmetries and others). However, Shetterly's critters are less different, the animal characteristics could be transformed to skin color a few decades earlier, without much plot change. Some of the political agenda, exposing the problems of unrestrained capitalism, is intrusive at times.

Despite the bleak setting and painful adventures, this book is almost too optimistic to be true noir. While skilled and entertaining, the novel offers few original elements, borrowing most of the ideas, motivations and character types from well-known mystery and science fiction archetypes.

Overall: 6; Plot: 4.5; Characters: 6; Style: 6; World-building: 5; Originality: 5.5;

ISBN: 0-312-86630-5 Order from: Amazon.com Barnes & Noble.com