Deceiver, by C.J. Cherryh, $25.95
I continue to find Bren Cameron’s dance of survival as the lone human in an alien culture to be fascinating as it reaches 11 volumes. He thrives as an often reluctant player in vicious battles of high-order politics.
Cameron’s estate has become quite crowded. Cajeiri, the young heir to the country, ran away to visit Cameron attracting enemies eager to strike at the young lord. His great-grandmother has come to look after him and finds an opportunity to make some major political changes that fit her agenda. Cameron’s brother has sailed in to visit, unfortunately accompanied by Cameron’s ex-wife, Barb.
The estate became a war zone because the young man left in charge of the neighboring estate allowed it to become a beachhead for enemies of the leader Cameron supports. The young man is now a prisoner in the basement, and his uncle is returning from the space station to also stay with Cameron.
This makes Cameron’s home an irresistible target for his enemies. When Barb is kidnapped, she has to be pursued into enemy territory. This begins a new era in relationships with the enemy faction.
Cherryh builds up slowly to the action with the interplay Cameron has with the elite, his bodyguards and his various servants. A lot of attention is also given to the growing Cajeiri, who keeps learning new ways to maneuver for his interests.
Tongues of Serpents, by Naomi Novik, $25
Naomi Novik’s books are set in an alternate history where Napoleon is threatening to conquer the world and there is an aerial front to the war waged on dragons.
The dragon Temeraire and his rider, Captain Will Laurence, have been transported to Australia after being convicted of treason. Australia provides Temeraire with little more than a thin diet of kangaroo. Their only prize from England is three dragon eggs which Temeraire jealously guards.
William Bligh has been named governor of Australia. Twenty years after the mutiny by his crew on the Bounty he is faced with a rebellion by the Australian settlers. The next ship to Sydney brings a new dragon pilot and an old nemesis in Laurence. Temeraire and Laurence disapprove of the way Rankin treated dragons back in England, but he takes the first egg to hatch for himself.
Temeraire insists on taking the remaining eggs with them on a scouting trip into the interior. If they can find the route used by smugglers, they may be able to settle down somewhere with actual cattle to eat. This becomes a long trek across the entire continent. Water holes are scarce and far apart and contain hidden dangers unique to Australia.
Novik conveys the emptiness and danger of the Australian outback in a wonderful cross of native legends and her own universe of dragons with the attitudes of Regency dandies.
Omnitopia Dawn, by Diane Duane, $24.95
Omnitopia is a popular computer game and one of the biggest companies in the world. As the company plans to release a new version of the software, it is besieged by computer attacks designed to destroy the company. Dev Logan is the popular CEO and designer of Omnitopia. He lives on the idyllic corporate property in Arizona with his wife and daughter. A visiting reporter is deeply suspicious of all these seemingly happy people dedicated to their jobs.
The computer attacks, many at the behest of Dev’s former business partner, aim to raid corporate accounts and are pitched symbolic battles with accounts taking off their suits and getting down and dirty.
The happy player is represented by Rik, a.k.a. Arnulf, who has been chosen to design his own world in the Omnitopia framework. Rik doesn’t know why he was chosen, but he has big dreams for what he will build.
The main science fiction element is introduced late in the story, and is apparently being saved for subsequent volumes. There is a fantasy feel from the snippets of game worlds and the war against the hackers. Duane has created an interesting world to explore with pleasantly appealing characters despite the “too good to be true” feelings raised by the cynical magazine reporter.
Fred Cleaver is a freelancer who writes regularly about new science fiction.
