Saturn's Race - Hardcover

Niven, Larry; Barnes, Steven

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0312867263 ISBN 13: 9780312867263

Publisher: Tor Books, 2000

Synopsis

Traveling to Xanadu as a student, Lenore Myles becomes involved with Xanadu citizen Chaz Kato and is horrified when she learns the truth behind the glittering futuristic island, a discovery that causes her to be prompted by the mysterious Saturn to race for her life. 75,000 first printing.

About this title

Reviews

The bestselling team of Niven and Barnes (The Legacy of Heorot; Lucifer's Hammer) have produced another compulsively readable, immensely enjoyable near-future yarn. The year is 2020 and the world is run by corporate conglomerates. Beautiful, brilliant Lenore Myles has just completed her master's degree and is poised for an exciting career in biological research. She is celebrating her graduation on the wondrous floating island Xanadu. Wealthy, attractive Chaz Kato, whose foundation was instrumental in paying for Lenore's expensive education, offers her the chance to do cutting-edge research on the island and be his lover. To entice Lenore to break her current contract, Chaz gives her his security clearance, allowing her carte blanche to the island's many technological secrets. During her exploration, Lenore stumbles upon a plot to sterilize the lower classes. Horrified, unsure of who is in on the conspiracy, she flees the island without telling Chaz of her findings. Saturn, an immeasurably powerful virtual creation run by persons unknown, plants false information about Lenore's whereabouts. This data is dutifully reported to Chaz by his ex-wife, Clarice MaibangDformerly an artist from a primitive culture, now a highly placed member of the island's security team. To save Lenore from the murderous Saturn, Chaz must plug into a program designed to create "squaliens"Dsea creatures who have been augmented for greater intelligenceDand, eventually, risk everything to uncover Saturn's identity and the secret that Lenore has now forgotten. Brilliantly weaving high-tech internets, augmentation technologies and social issues into a fast-paced cloak-and-dagger action adventure, this novel effortlessly moves from the depths of the ocean to the heights of VR to create a dazzling, seamless whole. (July)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Power struggles in a near-future world of privileged floating islands, desperate third-world billions, ninjas, intelligent dolphins, and sharks with arms and computer brains: from the authors of Achilles' Choice (1991). Thanks to secret longevity treatments, Chaz Kato is his own grandfather, and about to join the powerful council of the floating artificial island Xanadu. Then he falls for genius researcher Lenora Myles, and, as proof of his commitment, gives her his top-level access codes into Xanadu's secrets. Lenora stumbles across a plot to sterilize millions of third-world females. The plot's mysterious leader, Saturn, discovers her and attempts to kill her; Chaz saves her life but to appease Saturn he's forced to excise a chunk of her memory. A year passes. As Lenore's memory disintegrates further, she seeks out her terrorist ex-boyfriend for help. He arranges to take her to India for treatment--coincidentally, Chaz is visiting nearby--but, meanwhile, the effects of the sterilizations begin to be felt and riots, orchestrated by Saturn, ensue in India and China. Jointly, the two countries attack and occupy Xanadu, executing several council members. Chaz and Lenore--her treatment's a success--escape India and, pursued by Indian and Chinese armies and ninjas sent by Saturn, take refuge with a Stone Age tribe in Java. But can they survive long enough to expose and defeat Saturn?Inventive and wide-ranging, but cold-hearted and singularly spineless in terms of both structure and morality. -- Copyright © 2000 Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

In this well-done futuristic thriller set in a world in which national governments are giving way to supranational corporations, a so-called council led by a mysterious Saturn and based in a high-tech floating city, Xanadu, attempts to control population growth by causing a whole generation of sterile women. Japanese American computer expert Chaz Kato is actually the grandfather of the young man who, thanks to massive surgery and medication, he appears to be. With his two lovers, American Lenore Myles and Indonesian Clarise Maibang, he discovers an increasingly bloody trail leading to the contraceptive conspiracy, which finally erupts in global war. The narrative jumps about a good deal, but each jump brings new technological wonders and social institutions, tongue-in-cheek bits of cultural history (such as O. J. Simpson portraying Othello), and continuous byplay between the three principal characters. It would be hard to call this book more than an intelligent romp, but it isn't anything less, either. Roland Green
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Tor Books
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0312867263
• ISBN 13: 9780312867263
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 317