ISBN: 0-88677-834-4 Order from: Amazon.com Barnes & Noble.com
In this grim, dangerously familiar vision of the future, Swann describes the story of societal and personal alienation, racial paranoia, and the desperate fight for survival.
Reviewed by David on August 01, 1999
Genre: Science Fiction (Conspiracy Theory, Near Future, Epidemic, Mystery)
Synopsis: In the near future, the world is changed by the legacy of a series of brutal wars. More than the wars themselves, it is the legacy of the war's soldiers—the genetically engineered animal-human hybrids—that haunt the society. With a brand new series of racial division, America manages to survive: a bit darker, a bit more splintered, but still recognizably the same country.
Nohar Rajasthan is an aging Tiger, a moreau derived from the tiger genes. Suffering from quick aging, a legacy of the genetic engineers unconcerned with the longevity of his ancestors, who were designed as cannon fodder, the disillusioned private investigator wishes little more than to be left in peace in his remote cabin.
However, when he refuses to take on a missing person assignment, some very determined humans make a very thorough attempt to kill Nohar, as well as everyone connected with the missnig person. Forced to return to the sprawling, dangerous cities, Nohar encounters a shadowy but brutally effective organization intent on stopping his search for the missing moreau boy.
The aging Tiger has little choice but to continue, as the case turns out vital to the survival of Nohar, his family, and perhaps all of Moreaus.
Full Review: A dark, tense plot full of fear, injuries, bigotry and suspicion is leavened by occasional ray of hope. While full of cynicism, this book of racial division, shoot-outs, flawed but independent press adds a technical and biologic framing to a society that could have come from any large city. As in most of Swann's books, the plot concludes with some success and hope, while the larger issues continue to threaten. This is certainly not a typical live-happily-ever-after plot, and a bit too much grimness is only partly compensated by the interesting, occasionally droll exploration of the future.
This is a good, if rather unexceptional book. The rather too-grim tone is appropriate to the plot, but is somewhat of a strain due to lack of a clear resolution.
Overall: 5.5; Plot: 5; Characters: 5.5; Style: 5; World-building: 6; Originality: 6;
Copyright date 1999, DAW, April 1999, Mass market paperback, 280 pages
ISBN: 0-88677-834-4 Order from: Amazon.com Barnes & Noble.com