Flesh and Gold - Hardcover

Gotlieb, Phyllis

3.35

104 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0312865236 ISBN 13: 9780312865238

Publisher: Tor Books, 1998

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A story of science, slavery, murder and, justice set in the distant future is put into motion when a telepathic woman judge sees an amphibious human enslaved and displayed in a tank as an advertisement for a pleasure house.

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Review:

Don't blink or you'll miss something in Canadian writer Phyllis Gotlieb's richly detailed mystery set on alien worlds seething with seedy life. Travelling judge Skerow, of a race of moral haiku-writing telepathic sauropods, stumbles upon two mysteries while on duty on grimy mining planet Fthel V. The same day she discovers her senior judge and colleague of 25 years was under investigation for accepting bribes, said colleague is murdered in his bedroom; and Skerow espies a genetically-altered, almost-human mermaid held captive in the display tank of a brothel window.

Gotlieb's handling of a wide cast of alien, human, and post-human characters will appeal to fans of James Tiptree, Jr. Most intriguing are the Lyhhrt, who've left their home planet for an indentured servitude of 125 standard years, to act as physicians and metalworkers for the Zamos corporation of casinos and entertainment-plexes. Lyhhrt actually resemble brains, but look like robots since they encase themselves in beautifully-welded metal bodies.

In Gotlieb's future, flesh is bought, sold, molded and used with the ease of gold. But some things are still worth fighting for, and the scales of justice pass sentence on greed, malice, and the breeding of slaves.

From the Publisher:

"Sex, violence, intricate plotting, sight-speed pacing, an amazing variety of aliens, touches of Philip K. Dick's sardonic humor, and Cordwainer Smith's obstinate idealism make this novel dazzling." --Ursula K. Le Guin

"As the sprawling story grinds toward an agreeably neat conclusion, much of the pleasure comes from Gotlieb's ability to suggest an exotic if all too recognizable future in which vast technological resources are mobilized to satisfy age-old urges." --The New York Times Book Review

"The best SF novel I have read in years, reminiscent of the very finest work of James Tiptree, Jr., or Ursula K. Le Guin--superbly plotted, ingeniously imaginative, complex yet accessible, compellingly readable, and decorated with evocative poetry, both human and alien." --The Globe and Mail

"Flesh and Gold reminded me a bit of several other authors--including Jack Vance and Gene Wolfe--but only in the best of ways. Gotlieb knows how to do it right. Highly recommended." --Analog

"An evocative, tightly plotted story written with an intrepid disregard for convention and stereotype; it deserves a broader audience.
"Readers looking for a story to utterly immerse themselves in will find this a satisfying read; it should please Gotlieb's fans, and may even win new converts to her genre." --Quill & Quire

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