Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: Gate Crashers
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: http://www.patrickstomlinson.com/
CITY: Milwaukee
STATE: WI
COUNTRY: United States
NATIONALITY: American
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Married.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Science-fiction and fantasy writer, and stand-up comedian.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Patrick S. Tomlinson is a writer of science-fiction and fantasy novels and short stories with the flavor of hard scrabble murder mysteries. The son of an ex-hippie psychologist and an ex-cowboy electrician, he lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with his wife and a menagerie of houseplants. He also enjoys performing stand-up comedy.
The Ark
Tomlinson has published the “Children of a Dead Earth” series in 2016. In book one, The Ark is a ten-mile-long generation space ship on its way to a new planet. Although crime is rare on the ship, detective Bryan Benson investigates a missing geneticist right before the Ark is scheduled to reach its destination planet. Benson discovers deception, violence, partisan politics, a deranged cult leader, and secrets about the Ark and its mission.
“Tomlinson’s pacing is beyond reproach, as he deftly crafts an ever more elaborate web of intrigue,” declared a writer in Publishers Weekly, who added that it was an impressive first novel. In an interview with Jasper de Joode online at Book Plank, Tomlinson said he was fascinated by the concept of a generation space ship. “I started thinking less about the ship and more about the sort of society that would develop onboard it. Who gets on, and what kind of people get off again centuries later? The basic outline of The Ark came to me in a fit of creativity over the course of just a few hours,” said Tomlinson. The book is “a fast-paced sci-fi thriller, with a central mystery at the core, with some decent characters and well executed prose,” according to Chris Meadows online at Sci-Fi and Fantasy Reviews. Meadows added: “Is it worth the read? If you’re looking for a fusion of excellent hard sci-fi and action thriller, with a soupcon of mystery, then yes, absolutely,” said Meadows.
Trident’s Forge and Children of the Divide
In Trident’s Forge, book two, the survivors of the Ark have landed on their destination planet, Tau Ceti G, only to find that the native inhabitants, the G’tel, believe the humans are their lost gods. But after a misunderstanding leads to death, detective Bryan Benson teams up with G’tel “truth-digger” detective, Kexx, to discover what really happened. On the Strange Currencies website, reviewer Dan Ruffolo commented: “The story was well-paced, managed a few little twists and things, and definitely felt suitably epic and heroic when those things were called for…. While it was just tropey enough to occasionally make me shake my head, the interesting world, the well-paced plot and engaging protagonist more than made up for it.”
Book three, Children of the Divide, the native inhabitants of the humans’ colony planet are not adjusting well to their new neighbors, their advanced technology, and forced segregation in ghettos. Benson investigates a kidnapping and a secret installation inside the planet’s moon. According to Dan Ruffolo online at Strange Currencies, “An absolutely shining example of using SF to hold a mirror up to our own society, Children of the Divide deals with racism, prejudice, ghettoization, gentrification, gender politics, sovereignty and terrorism. All in a compelling world with a fascinating alien species and plenty of unanswered questions.”
Gate Crashers
In Tomlinson’s 2018 novel, Gate Crashers, the Earth research vessel Magellan is exploring the galaxy and comes across an hour-glass shaped structure in space, the sign of a highly intelligent galactic presence. They remove the structure and bring it back to Earth for analysis, causing an intergalactic incident, because it was a piece of their hyperdrive system. When a planet is destroyed, Earth is blamed.
In an unremarkable space opera, according to a writer in Publishers Weekly, Tomlinson writes plodding plot and bland characters, however, “there’s enough action and broad humor to satisfy undemanding readers.” A Kirkus Reviews critic said: “A well-drawn ensemble cast of scientists, soldiers, and aliens enriches this quirky first-contact tale, but that same quirkiness steals some of its impact.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Kirkus Reviews, April 15, 2018, review of Gate Crashers.
Publishers Weekly, April 23, 2018, review of Gate Crashers, p. 68.
ONLINE
Book Plank, http://thebookplank.blogspot.com/ (November 23, 2015), Jasper de Joode, author interview.
Publishers Weekly Online, https://www.publishersweekly.com/ (December 14, 2015), review of The Ark.
Sci-Fi and Fantasy Reviews, http://sfandfreviews.blogspot.com/ (September 18, 2015), Chris Meadows, review of The Ark.
Strange Currencies, https://strangecurrencies.org/ (February 16, 2016 ), Dan Ruffolo, review of Trident’s Forge; (June 24, 2017 ), Dan Ruffolo, review of Children of the Divide.
Series
Children of a Dead Earth
1. The Ark (2015)
2. Trident's Forge (2016)
3. Children of the Divide (2017)
Novels
Gate Crashers (2018)
Patrick S. Tomlinson lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with his wife, a menagerie of houseplants in varying levels of health, a Mustang, and a Triumph motorcycle bought specifically to embarrass and infuriate Harley riders.
Patrick's books swing wildly from hard scrabble murder mysteries, to mil-spec, to the completely ridiculous, but always wrapped in colorful sci-fi trappings.
When not writing sci-fi and fantasy novels and short stories, Patrick is busy developing his other passion for writing and performing stand-up comedy in the Madison, Milwaukee, and Chicago scenes.
When not doing either of those things, he can occasionally be found starting enormous fights on twitter. Follow him @stealthygeek, if you dare.
Patrick S Tomlinson is the son of an ex-hippie psychologist and an ex-cowboy electrician. He lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with a menagerie of houseplants in varying levels of health, a Ford Mustang, and a Triumph motorcycle bought specifically to embarrass and infuriate Harley riders.
When not writing sci-fi and fantasy novels and short stories, Patrick is busy developing his other passion for performing stand-up comedy.
Patrick S. Tomlinson lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with his wife, a menagerie of houseplants in varying levels of health, a Mustang and a Triumph motorcycle bought specifically to embarrass and infuriate Harley riders.
Patrick's books swing wildly from hard scrabble murder mysteries to mil-spec to the completely ridiculous, but always wrapped in colorful sci-fi trappings.
When not writing sci-fi and fantasy novels and short stories, Patrick is busy developing his other passion: writing and performing stand-up comedy in the Madison, Milwaukee and Chicago scenes.
When not doing either of those things, he can occasionally be found starting enormous fights on Twitter. Follow him @stealthygeek, if you dare.
Author Interview with Patrick S. Tomlinson
Author Interview with Patrick S. Tomlinson
Author bio:
Patrick S. Tomlinson is the son of an ex-hippie psychologist and an ex-cowboy electrician. He lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with a menagerie of houseplants in varying levels of health, a Ford Mustang, and a Triumph motorcycle bought specifically to embarrass and infuriate Harley riders.
When not writing sci-fi and fantasy novels and short stories, Patrick is busy developing his other passion for performing stand-up comedy.
You can find Patrick online at his website:www.patrickstomlinson.com, on Twitter@stealthygeek and on Facebook.
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Hi Patrick, welcome over at The Book Plank and for taking your time to answer these few questions for us!
BP: First off, can you give us a short introduction of who Patrick S. Tomlinson is? What are your hobbies, likes and dislikes?
PT: Patrick S. Tomlinson is an author/comedian about yay high who likes to talk about himself in third person. He works out, watches football and baseball, rides motorcycles and drives Mustangs, builds sci-fi models, and argues politics with those not yet fortunate enough to share his views. Oh, and he writes sci-fi novels and says horrible things on stage for money.
BP: You have been writing short stories for a few years now. The Ark is your first full-length book was it difficult to write a full-length story?
PT: The Ark was actually my third book, just the first that someone else thought was as awesome as I did. So I’ve already had some practice with long-form outlining, plotting, etc.
BP: Did you encounter any specific problems when you were writing The Ark?
PT: Very few, actually. It was, as novel writing goes, fairly straightforward and free of stumbling blocks.
BP: What has been your favorite scene, chapter or moment to write about?
PT: There are a couple that really stood out, but Chapter six and seven, during an EVA that goes awry, were really fun action scenes to think through, visualize, and then write out. Also, any scene involving Devorah Feynman, the Museum curator. She was an immensely fun character to write.
BP: What gave you the idea behind The Ark? And how long did it take you to put the thoughts clearly onto paper?
PT: I’ve always been fascinated with the concept of generation ships. One afternoon, I was watching a show on Discovery about the problems and perils of building one. Instead, I started thinking less about the ship and more about the sort of society that would develop onboard it. Who gets on, and what kind of people get off again centuries later? The basic outline of The Ark came to me in a fit of creativity over the course of just a few hours. I wrote the rough draft in six months, which while not nearly as fast as some authors, was still a third the time it took to write my first novel.
BP: If you had to describe The Ark with a single sentence, how would it go?
PT: The Ark is a “Sealed Airlock” murder mystery thriller set onboard a ten-mile long starship.
BP: The Ark is described as Sherlock Holmes meets Space Odyssey. Those are big names. Having your book compared to those must feel good. Does it also put more pressure on your shoulders?
PT: I think the comparisons are very generous. Maybe too much so. I try to keep a realistic view of my work and my own abilities. Otherwise you get ahead of yourself pretty quickly. And my ego doesn’t need any help as it is. No, the pressure I feel comes mostly from within. While I appreciate all of the support, reviews, recommendations, and so forth that I’m getting, they don’t change my opinion of the work, or my desire to do even better on the next project.
BP: The Ark was published earlier this month, if you were given the chance to redact all published books and make one final change, would you do so? If yes, which part would you change and why?
PT: Wow, that’s rough. Like saying, “Your first child was born earlier this month, given the chance, what part of them makes you want to stick them back in the womb until they get it right?” I’d probably say no to going backwards. For one thing, I haven’t touched the book in months already. I’ve written and rewritten the sequel draft in that time. I gave The Ark the best chance I could to be a success. My mind has already moved on to the next several projects. Besides, there’s never ‘One last change.’ Any change I would make would lead to another change, and another. You never really finish perfecting a book, you just run up against your deadline.
BP: The Ark already has one sequel planned, have you already mapped out the events for that book or do you write as you go? Do you have more books in the making?
PT: The immediate sequel is called Trident’s Forge, and it’s all but finished. My editor has already been through it and given me his recommendations for the final rewrite, which I started yesterday. It’s scheduled to come out next April. After Trident’s Forge, I have at least four more books sketched out in the series, should sales of the first two justify a new deal with the publisher. Number four is REALLY cool. I’m excited just by the possibility of writing it.
BP: Do you have any other projects besides the Children of the Dead Earth series that you would like to pursue in the near future?
PT: It’s already happening. The very first novel I wrote was a sci-fi comedy in the tradition of Douglas Adams or Terry Pratchett, two of my biggest literary and comedy influences. It’s titled A Hole in the Fence, and I’ve just finished a massive rewrite of it after four years away. It’s about to go out on submission to editors, and I couldn’t be more excited.
BP: Everyone enjoys science fiction/fantasy in their own way. What do you like most about it?
PT: Hope. The hope of a brighter future, where humanity reaches out and chases after its full potential, both technologically and culturally.
BP: If you had to choose your top 5 favorite books, which would they be?
PT: In no particular order; Speaker for the Dead, Dune, The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy books as a unit, the Discworld books as a unit, Implied Spaces by Walter John Williams.
BP: Can you give us a sneak peek of what will be in store for us in The Ark?
PT: Murder, mayhem, knife fights, and commentary on the modern surveillance state and environmental sustainability, which weren’t planned ahead of time but found their way in regardless.
BP: Thank you very much for your time Patrick and good luck with your future writing!
PT: Thanks for having me.
Posted 12th November 2015 by Jasper de Joode
Gate Crashers
Becky Spratford
Booklist. 114.18 (May 15, 2018): p34.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2018 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
Full Text:
Gate Crashers.
By Patrick S. Tomlinson.
June 2018.416p. Tor, paper, $15.99 (9780765398642); e-book (9780765398659).
The American-European Union starship Magellan, travelling at half light speed in the year 2345, comes upon proof of the existence of sentient aliens in the form of a space "buoy." Captain Allison Ridgeway and her crew work with a secret government team back on Earth to decipher the technology and its origins. Before long, the secret gets out, and politicians, bureaucrats, the military, and even some alien beings start to get involved. In the ensuing political space opera, humor and hard science play off each other with colloquial ease. With a constantly shifting narration between the motley group of characters, Tomlinson (The Ark, 2015) presents a 360-degree view of the world that helps drive the compelling pace as new technologies are developed, new planets are explored, and new species are encountered. Some tropes are familiar, but the many new ideas here will draw in casual and serious genre fans. This is thought-provoking, character-centered sf with a sense of humor in the vein of Becky Chambers' The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (2014) or John Scalzi's Collapsing Empire (2017).--Becky Spratford
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Spratford, Becky. "Gate Crashers." Booklist, 15 May 2018, p. 34. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A541400854/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=61ff5c8c. Accessed 30 June 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A541400854
Gate Crashers
Publishers Weekly. 265.17 (Apr. 23, 2018): p68.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2018 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
Gate Crashers
Patrick S. Tomlinson. Tor, $15.99 trade paper
(416p) ISBN 978-0-7653-9864-2
The discovery of a mysterious alien artifact in deep space sets off events that culminate in a plot to destroy the Earth in Tomlinson's unremarkable space opera. Sixty-two years into its mission, the starship Magellan encounters a device of alien origins. Working with a crack team back on Earth, Magellan's Capt. Allison Ridgeway and her crew analyze the artifact and realize it's a navigation buoy, as well as the key to creating a hyperspace drive. After months pass, an Earth-built warship captained by "chauvinist parody" Cmdr. Maximus Tiberius joins the Magellan just as humankind faces accusations of genocide after the obliteration of a protected planet. Tomlinson (the Children of a Dead Earth series) loads his story down with a plodding plot and bland characters, but there's enough action and broad humor to satisfy undemanding readers. Agent: Russell Galen, Scovil Galen Ghosh Literary. (June)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Gate Crashers." Publishers Weekly, 23 Apr. 2018, p. 68. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A536532899/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=806c9498. Accessed 30 June 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A536532899
Tomlinson, Patrick S.: GATE CRASHERS
Kirkus Reviews. (Apr. 15, 2018):
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2018 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Full Text:
Tomlinson, Patrick S. GATE CRASHERS Tor (Adult Fiction) $15.99 6, 26 ISBN: 978-0-7653-9864-2
Humanity makes first contact with aliens--but humanity being what is, it doesn't go smoothly.
The research vessel Magellan discovers a reason to wake her cryogenically sleeping crew: an object at an impossible dead rest in deep space. Capt. Allison Ridgeway orders the strange, hourglass-shaped object brought aboard and the discovery reported to Earth. The resulting frenzy of activity on Earth matches that on Magellan, except on Earth, the researchers must contend not only with the artifact's high-tech mysteries, but also with budgets, political machismo, tabloid reporters, conspiracy theorists, and the odd cultist or three. Tomlinson (Children of the Divide, 2017, etc.) takes a tongue-in-cheek view of the spectrum of human responses as our species discovers that we're not only not alone, but regarded as little better than clever--and dangerous--apes. But warmongering isn't confined to Earth alone: One alien race, the Turemok, see humanity's debut onto the cosmic stage as the chance to regain lost glory...if they can just frame humans as planetary mass murderers. Magellan's crew will need to navigate aggressive orders from back home--personified in the dispatch of hot-dogging space captain Maximus Tiberius and his shiny new warship--as well as interstellar intrigue. Human ingenuity, grit, and sheer dumb luck are pitted against the technological might of a galactic empire that's had a lot more time to learn about us than we have about them. The high stakes are defused with a humor that's often hit-and-miss: At its best, it reminds us of humanity's foibles, but at its worst it shifts the tone from a tense tale of discovery to a slapstick romp.
A well-drawn ensemble cast of scientists, soldiers, and aliens enriches this quirky first-contact tale, but that same quirkiness steals some of its impact.
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Tomlinson, Patrick S.: GATE CRASHERS." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Apr. 2018. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A534375203/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=e4374c8d. Accessed 30 June 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A534375203
Review of ‘Trident’s Forge’ by Patrick S Tomlinson
Posted by Dan Ruffolo
February 16, 2016
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Trident’s Forge is the second novel in the Children of a Dead Earth series by American author and stand-up comedian Patrick S. Tomlinson. While I once again didn’t realise an Angry Robot Books novel was a sequel and not a first book, I had no trouble picking up and following this interesting and engaging action-mystery. While it was just tropey enough to occasionally make me shake my head, the interesting world, the well-paced plot and engaging protagonist more than made up for it. A solid read, and one I definitely recommend.
The Ark and her thirty-thousand survivors have reached Tau Ceti G and begun the long, arduous task of building their new colony by the sea. Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, Tau Ceti G’s natives, the G’tel, are coming to grips with the sudden appearance of what many believe are their long-lost Gods. But the first official greeting ceremony between humans and G’tel goes catastrophically wrong, visiting death on both sides. Rumors begin to circulate that the massacre was no accident, and the Ark’s greatest hero, Bryan Benson is told to stop coaching his new love of American football and tackle the mystery. Paired up with native ‘truth-digger’ Kexx, against both of their better judgement, Benson finds himself thrust into the heart of an alien culture with no idea whom to trust, how to speak the language, and how to tell who wants to worship him from who wants to kill him. Together, Benson and Kexx will have to find enough common ground and trust to uncover a plot that threatens to plunge both of their peoples into an apocalyptic war that neither side is prepared for or can afford to lose.
It’s often actually quite enlightening to read a second book without the first, though in this case it was accidental. I’m generally of the opinion that if what you want to do is tell one large story and split it into smaller pieces, it had better be one hell of a story, or you should have just pared it down to one book. On the other hand, multiple fully contained stories that happen in sequence are super interesting and at least imply that you’re just interested in telling compelling stories and then, if people like them, telling more. Trident’s Forge didn’t even feel like a second book at all, which is definitely a compliment. What were obviously the events of the previous book The Ark were referenced enough that I knew what was going on, but not so much as to waste space. From context I assume that if I’d read the first book, I wouldn’t be annoyed to have things brought up again. It was definitely handled well.
One thing Trident’s Forge did really well was avoid the pitfall of high-tech humans just completely overpowering the low-tech ‘savage’ native species on a planet. It looked like Tomlinson might have been heading in that direction, which made me a little uneasy, and then the soldiers, with their impregnable body armour and machine guns ran out of bullets and started getting stabbed in the face. There was definitely what felt like a conscious effort on the part of the author to make sure we knew that even though the G’Tel never really stopped thinking of the Humans as Gods or at least so advanced as to be possibly worthy of worship, the humans weren’t, and thinking they were would have been a sure-fire way to get killed. Advanced tech only goes so far. Things break, numbers matter, and when bullets run out, the other guy actually knows how to use his spear.
It’s always interesting to see new even slightly non-human aliens, and how their culture and traditions and customs will interact with ours. The G’tel are about as un-human as Star Trek ever got, which is to say ‘basically person shaped but with more differences than just pointy eyebrows’. They have a whole system of communicating with bio-luminescence to muddy up the lines of communication, but both sides are at least capable of learning and pronouncing the other’s language. In general, they seem a pretty bog-standard Avatar-level society of slightly bendy people. But as the character of the aliens, especially Kexx, develops over the course of the novel, they really distinguish themselves as pretty advanced for their level of technology, and not too shabby a society either. Any culture where their equivalent of a police officer or detective doesn’t even need to carry weapons because it’s just impossible that anybody would interfere with their work seems like it has some good qualities.
Altogether, I rather enjoyed the story. Benson is a relatable and interesting character with a lot more going on than could have been the case. Kexx was a great look at what cops of another species might be like, and he interacted with the other characters very well. The story was well-paced, managed a few little twists and things, and definitely felt suitably epic and heroic when those things were called for. It feels like if this was intended to be a trilogy, I’m not sure what the third book would look like, and that’s also a good thing. This was a completely self-contained story with all the elements necessary to make it a good one. I will assume the first book is the same, and would expect the others to be similar. It’s a credit to Tomlinson’s creativity, and optimism that he’s telling individual stories in the same world, and not feeling like he has to milk one storyline across a whole series. I’d really enjoy coming back to this setting in even 4 or 5 years just to see how the place is coming along. There are implications of a terrible doom that might have been more fully explained in the first book, or might be a mystery still, as to just what happened to the humans, and some more on that would be great as well.
Dan received an Advanced Review copy of this novel from Angry Robot via NetGalley
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Review of ‘Children of the Divide’ by Patrick S. Tomlinson
Posted by Dan Ruffolo
June 24, 2017
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Children of the Divide is the third installment of the Children of a Dead Earth series by American author, comedian, political commentator and provocateur Patrick S Tomlinson. Taking place years after the preceding installment Trident’s Forge, things have not necessarily developed as peacefully and cooperatively as everybody might have hoped. As humanity rebuilds and builds anew, the Atlanteans are finding adjusting to this species with advanced technology and strange culture more complicated and not quite as beneficial as they thought. An absolutely shining example of using SF to hold a mirror up to our own society, Children of the Divide deals with racism, prejudice, ghettoization, gentrification, gender politics, sovereignty and terrorism. All in a compelling world with a fascinating alien species and plenty of unanswered questions to keep us eager for the next book.
No matter how far humanity comes, it can’t escape its own worst impulses, in this far-future science fiction thriller from the author of The Ark.
A new generation comes of age eighteen years after humanity arrived on the colony planet Gaia. Now threats from both within and outside their Trident threaten everything they’ve built.
The discovery of an alien installation inside Gaia’s moon, terrorist attacks and the kidnap of a man’s daughter stretch the community to breaking point, but only two men stand a chance of solving all three mysteries before the makeshift planetary government shuts everything down.
At the end of Trident’s Forge we were left with the very early stages of a shared society that looked hopeful if nothing else. By the time we join events 18 years later, things are not looking quite so good. Humanity is using its advanced technology to bring all kinds of modern improvements to the world, mostly centered in the growing city of Shambhala. Unfortunately for the more egalitarian hopes about this burgeoning shared society, the city is very clearly separated into a Native Quarter and the rest of the city, where by Native Quarter we mean a ghetto. The Atlantean population has exploded since they no longer need to ‘cull’ their excess offspring, and humanity just really hasn’t bothered pointing the fire-hose of technological improvements at their part of town, because they’re still so paranoid that the presumed hostile, presumed real, presumed aliens that destroyed Earth might come looking for them. So while the Atlanteans struggle and build slapdash expansions to their slapdash part of the city, the Humans are building deep space detectors and grooming their topiary. This has exactly the effects you can imagine.
One of the best things about this novel, to me, is just the way that the injustice and imbalance that is going on is just so obvious to us reading it from the outside, and it’s clearly obvious to the disadvantaged Atlanteans, but almost all of the humans in that situation just have a sort of mildly sheepish reaction of ‘oh yeah…I know it isn’t great but’ and that -but- carries them through knowing somewhere inside that what they’re doing is wrong. They’re mining on the planet, they’re mining on the moons which have huge religious significance to the Atlanteans, they’re also growing their population, but they have this overriding focus on the fear of a repeat of the sudden and terrible attack that devastated Earth and sent them fleeing in the first place. Wait…wait a minute. So the advanced society is so afraid of a terrifying attack like one they suffered some years ago that they’re putting all their excess resources into defense even though there’s no real threat that justifies ignoring all the disadvantaged people in the inner citi….I mean….Native quarter? So if that’s the case, surely we can expect the Atlanteans to just accept that the Humans know what’s best for them and deal with it right?
All hell breaks loose, but this isn’t a book about all hell breaking loose. This is a book about how you can try to un-break hell. This is a book about how good and trustworthy allies can earn the trust of the disadvantaged, and how the ability to trust those allies to do the right thing even at the expense of their own kind is how you build bridges. This is a book about how you can’t ever fix a problem until you’re willing to stand up and point it out and not shut up until people listen. This is a book about remembering who you are, and that what it means to be who you are is to step up and get the work done. And then, even with all of that, this is a book about just how difficult it is to actually accomplish effective change and how, once you’re the ones in control with all the power, it is just so easy to justify continuing to maintain the status quo. All it takes is one more disaster, after all, so you can always justify continuing to be prepared. Building walls instead of gardens.
In terms of plot, there’s so much being left out of this review. A mysterious installation full of incredibly advanced technology, kidnapping, terrorism, but all of it feels like a backdrop (albeit an important, interesting and well-written backdrop) to the social elements at play between these two societies. And it isn’t just about politics, and racism and gentrification either. We’ve also got some compelling issues of gender politics and identity. Benson has an Atlantean adopted child. Atlanteans are gender neutral. Bennex, coming of age and acting like a rebellious teenager, keeps reading to zer father as a ‘she’ in spite of his knowing that’s not how their race works. Ze is a ‘bearer’ which are the type of Atlantean that carries young, and that basically forces his human mind to not help but think of zer as a girl, even though Earth has plenty of species that don’t work that way. At one point, ze is accosted by another Atlantean named Jolk, ze is a warrior, and aggressive, and makes some inappropriate remarks to Bennex about zer role as a breeder, and even three books into knowing all about the fact that Atlanteans don’t have genders, ze was such a ‘fuckboy’ stereotype that I definitely pictured zer as a man. That sort of thing goes a long way to helping even people who feel enlightened and modern and liberal realize just how deeply ingrained stereotypes get.
And that really is one of the best things about science fiction. By recasting important social and political issues in completely ‘other’ terms, it can force you to really evaluate what your true core beliefs are by sneaking past all the constructed enlightenment which is what most of us have if we’re truly honest. Xenophobia goes very deep to the animal brain. A human can only really truly fully care about a shockingly small number of people compared to the number of people in the world. That old saw that one dead is a tragedy and a million dead is a statistic highlights that we really can’t think on a global scale.
So for all our closely held beliefs that we’re above the kind of petty ignorance that results in racism, sexism, prejudice, we can go from that lofty pedestal we put ourselves on to reading about aliens we know don’t have gender, read through the cavalcade of zes and zers and then instantly we go “That one’s a man”. We read about how they believe the moons are their deities, and they worship them, and then we read about humanity mining on the surface, deciding basically on their own to blow up a chunk of one, and we go “Well it isn’t like the moon is ACTUALLY their God, it’s just a moon.” Or we look at how they’ve come to Shambhala for sanctuary and to reap the benefits of the technology they’re supposed to be getting in exchange for the use of -their- planet, only to be neglected and ignored in favour of the quite possibly paranoid fears of the upper class, and we say “Well it’s -their- technology, it’s up to them how they share it. The Atlanteans are already better off than they were, with their savage ways and their foolish beliefs.” And they’re aliens, so somehow it doesn’t feel problematic, and then you think about it. And you watch them forced into civil disobedience, and widening mistrust and hostility and of course you say to yourself “That makes perfect sense, why -wouldn’t- they be angry at the way they are….oh…..” Well, at least we hope you have the ‘oh’. And that’s one of the most powerful tools of science fiction, and Tomlinson wields it here like both a scalpel and a shotgun.
Children of the Divide is definitely my favourite of the three books in this series so far, and I’m absolutely looking forward to the next. If you’d like to get started with this series, pick up The Ark wherever you like to buy books, but especially if you like to buy them from an indie bookstore. Those folks are the best.
Dan received an advanced review copy of this book from Angry Robot via Netgalley
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Friday, September 18, 2015
The Ark - Patrick S. Tomlinson
It’s been a good year for novels set on generation ships, and Patrick S. Tomlinson’s ‘The Ark’ continues that trend. It’s a fast-paced sci-fi thriller, with a central mystery at the core, with some decent characters and well executed prose.
One of the central pivots of this book is the world it’s created. A generation ship, carrying the third generation descendants of mankind’s best and brightest. A ship separated with a gulf between crew and passenger. A ship with two spinning modules filled with the last of the human race, with all the petty rivalries that implies. A ship where every birth is tracked, where every citizen carries an implant which allows their every move to be monitored, where there are few weapons, and fewer crimes.
Tomlinson’s ship is a logical extension of our current situation, both technologically and socially.
The technical aspects of the ship are examined in satisfying, if not exhaustive, detail. It certainly feels like the author has done their research. I was delighted on discovering that the ship was brought up to thrust by nuclear blasts, and even more delighted to have a character reference the Orion project, a real-life NASA idea for doing exactly this (eventually canned because letting off nuclear bombs inside an atmosphere is a bad idea). It was suggestive of a writer who was making an effort to be persuasively accurate with their technology. There’s similar watermarks of solid research throughout – the spinning of the habitats, for example – and whilst there’s a few instances of future-tech, these aren’t overburdened with technical jargon of their own. The technology here is used as environmental texture, to build out a more convincing world, without overwhelming the reader in minutiae.
The sociology at play in the narrative is equally interesting. The protagonist, as head of the police force for one of the modules, ruminates on the social conditioning which has led to an almost crime-free shipboard life. Throughout the text, characters reference their ‘plant’, which appears to function as a combined personal AI and (more chillingly) recording device. I would have enjoyed seeing more of the implications that span out of this technology explored – they’re touched on, alongside those of some other truly terrifying technologies, but the idea of a civilisation under constant, mandatory, but effectively community driven surveillance is an intriguing one, and felt like it deserved more room to grow. Still, Tomlinson approaches the issues in this area with a degree of nuance, and integrates them nicely into the plot.
The central point for the characters is Bryan Benson. He serves as the protagonist, the viewpoint character for the reader. From the perspective of the moment, he’s presented very well. Tomlinson gives us a great view on a character who begins as blithe and assured, and who runs aground on the rocks of doubt. Benson’s gradual shift in emotional state is wonderfully portrayed, his increasing level of weariness and cynicism pitched perfectly. We also get to hear a little of his back story – his role in a winning sports team is mentioned every so often, as part of his popular appeal and the reason behind his skills and physical condition. But there’s a lot more – the role of his family in shipboard life, for example, is mentioned briefly, but not, perhaps, closely enough. Through Benson’s eyes, we also get a view on the various social tiers of the ship, through his supporting cast. Here, Tomlinson is on fairly frim ground; the secondary characters fit their roles well, and convey most of their character through dialogue, and asides in Benson’s own thoughts.
Whilst the way the characters act is consistent, enjoyable, and entirely believable, it would have been nice if they’d had more room to grow, as the protagonist does. Benson’s relationship, for example, was always interesting, usually amusing, and occasionally sympathy inducing – but getting past the traits of his lover, and into their character, was a little trickier. That said, each character worked as an individual, and within the confines of the plot – I would simply have enjoyed a little more time with each of them.
Having said that, the lack of time with the ancillary characters may be related to the time taken up by the plot. It starts with a murder, and never really lets up thereafter. There’s a period at the start with a relatively slow burn, as Benson assembles suspects, speculated on motive, and tries to locate a mysterious killer. As is traditional, he’s not assisted by obstructive witnesses, red herrings, and the occasional personal dilemma. The action ramps up as the book proceeds, moving from the tension of a covert investigation into some sterling action sequences, and an impressively shocking denouement. It’s a fast-paced action-adventure of a novel, especially as the stakes rise and the pace ratchets up – but the mystery at the core is both intricate and intriguing – and kept me guessing for quite a while.
Is it worth the read? If you’re looking for a fusion of excellent hard sci-fi and action thriller, with a soupcon of mystery, then yes, absolutely. I’m already looking forward to seeing what the next book in the series has in store.
The Ark
Patrick S. Tomlinson. Angry Robot (Random, dist.), $7.99 mass market (400p) ISBN 978-0-85766-484-6
When a conspiracy threatens the last shreds of humanity, salvation comes in the form of a sports star turned detective. Tomlinson's debut novel follows the exploits of Bryan Benson, the much-beloved detective of Avalon, one of two habitat modules on the Ark spaceship that's carrying humans away from a doomed Earth. As the Ark's bourgeois crew prepares to finally land on an alien planet, a geneticist is reported missing. When Benson tugs at the thread of the mystery, his entire reality unravels around him, and he delves into the underbelly of the Ark to find the truth among stolen paintings, partisan politics, and a cult leader who threatens to destroy everything Benson loves. Tomlinson's pacing is beyond reproach, as he deftly crafts an ever more elaborate web of intrigue within the self-contained setting. The book's few, small hiccups crop up mainly when Tomlinson attempts to work in a piece of 20th-century pop culture that's simply out of sync with his timeline, or when his word choice becomes repetitive. Tomlinson's female characters are refreshingly nuanced, and his use of Chekov's (sometimes literal) gun is sound enough to gloss over the rough patches in this impressive first novel. Agent: Russell Galen, Scovil Galen Ghosh Literary Agency. (Nov.)
DETAILS
Reviewed on: 12/14/2015
Release date: 11/01/2015