Benford, Gregory

• Series: The Galactic Center

  • I first picked up "In the Ocean of Night" at a big used bookstore in Portland, thinking this would be a good way to find out about Benford. Little did I know I was buying the first book of what was a Foundation-like series for Benford, published as it was over a span of many years with long lapses between books. Turns out it was a SIX BOOK series with the 6th and final book not coming out for another two years (in hardback, no less). Argh! Now I'd gone and broken my rule about never buying a series until it is all out in paperback. I reviewed each book as I read it, so you can kinda see a work in progress...my review of the whole series.

  • In the Ocean of Night (7)

    • Set in the near future, this story starts with a mission to explore the comet Icarus, whose recent geological activity has altered its course toward Earth. The main character, a very likeable Englishman named Nigel Walmsley, discovers a surprise there that ignites controversy and gets the attention of not only the population of Earth, but also a passing interstellar probe. The first 2/3 of this book is quite good with lots of promising plot developments. The problem, I guess, is that the plot developments just never end...not much is really resolved by the end, and a lot of different threads feel unfinished. At first, when I didn't realize this was part of a larger series, I was fairly annoyed. Now I'm willing to give Benford the benefit of the doubt and plunge ahead. The series looks promising enough to be among my top ten favorite series.

  • Across the Sea of Suns (8)

    • While it doesn't resolve many of the plot threads left hanging from "Ocean", this is a strong continuation of the story. Set several decades after "Ocean", the book again focuses on Nigel Walmsley (who takes advantage of the life-extending technology available in the future), who is part of a large scientific research team sent outward from Earth to follow up on the findings of Earth's own set of interstellar probes to nearby stars. In the meantime, Earth is apparently under attack by a new race of ocean-dwelling creatures placed in the oceans from an unknown origin, and part of the novel involves one man's attempt to communicate with the creatures. Both stories serve to gracefully uncover more clues about the history of the Galaxy. After all the good things I saw in "Ocean", I wasn't disappointed here. Benford uncovers new pieces to the puzzle very deliberately, keeping the subplots stirring very well. I look forward to the later books.

  • Great Sky River (6)

    • Argh. Nigel Walmsley has been replaced with a bunch of human savages who speak in pig-latin half the time! At least, that was my first thought. This book basically leaves all but a ghost of the plot from "Sea of Suns" behind and gives us roving bands of humanity trying to survive on a mech-dominated world near the Galactic Center. It's kind of tiresome until the last third or so, which has some promise of a good future for this series (and for the humans). Some good plot twists, but the character interaction just doesn't "hum" like it did in the first two books, and the plot just isn't that inspiring. Well, I've gotten this far, so...

  • Tides of Light (6)

    • Somewhat of an improvement over Great Sky River, this book picks up where "River" left off, with the refugees from Snowglade arriving at a new planet to find many surprises. Of course, this doesn't change the fact that they still spend all their time either dealing with tech that's way over their heads and/or on the run from something that wants to wipe them out. Some character growth and the introduction of a new life form that seems to be about as immature as it is technologically advanced. I liked what was done with the humans on the new planet, and I liked the way this all started congealing into a larger picture. I look forward to the concluding books.

  • Furious Gulf (7)

    • The Snowglade refugees, still led by Killeen, now plunge toward the Center with only Killeen's will to hold them to their course (and the fact that most other options look equally bleak). What they find there is somewhat surprising. Killeen's son, Toby, figures more prominently here as the refugees find themselves once again in over their heads but at least this time they seem to be among more friendly "aliens". The physics of their new world is reminiscent of the old Amber series in some respects, and the plot continues to be interesting. Unfortunately, the last book is out in hardback, so I won't be able to finish this series for perhaps another 3-6 months while I wait for the paperback.

  • Sailing Bright Eternity (4)

    • The series ends (for me) with bitter disappointment. I was hoping for a grand adventure to tie up all the threads. At first, with both Nigel and Toby together exploring their surroundings, I had hope, but the book quickly turned into mush. It turns out my analogy to Amber was only appropriate in the sense that there are lots of different worlds to explore. Unlike Zelazny's work, however, Benford's world has no logical continuity, which may be consistent with his world-view but makes for painful reading. I like to read speculative fiction when it studies the human condition under new and unusual circumstances (which is why I like Nigel's character so much). Here, though, the situation and the characters are so far removed from "reality" that I just couldn't bring myself to care about or relate to the story. If I had to do all over again, I would've stopped after the second book (or maybe even the first).

• Timescape (6)

  • This novel, written back in 1979, has a very interesting premise: Some physicists in 1998 have discovered what they think is a way to send messages back in time to 1963. The problem is, how can the people in 1963 understand what they're seeing, assuming they even see the message? Not only that, what kind of message can one send? If you send a message that creates a paradox, does the message actually get through?

    Fascinating stuff. Unfortunately, while these ideas would be enough to make a magnificent 80-page short story, they have been stretched out to the limit in this behemoth of a novel, diluted by countless pages of pure boredom. For every page where you get to see how the politics of controversial results work in the world of science or how Benford speculates that these messages might be sent, received and interpreted, you must read 5 pages about a dinner party that has no bearing on the plot or 8 pages about a physicist's relationship with his live-in girlfriend that just doesn't lead anywhere interesting (given the number of pages devoted to it).

    I read this book quickly, more out of frustration than anything else. I kept waiting to get back to the meaty parts, which were great, but then I'd get frustrated again waiting for another development. The ending was also somewhat unsatisfying for me, but that's just a matter of taste. It was hardly implausible, if I dare to use that word when describing speculative fiction.

• Artifact (8)

  • Another big, stand-alone novel, but I felt this one was a big improvement over Timescape. In this story, archaeologists discover a strange artifact that turns out to have some extraordinary physical properties. Half of the book is politics as the main characters try to find out a way to continue to study the artifact in the face of a nasty political situation and even nastier politically motivated characters. This part reads a bit like a soap opera. It is engaging (much more so than the various Timescape subplots), but not the meat of the story.

    Truly, the strength of this book lies in the methodical process of discovery, as facts are slowly revealed about the artifact. The politics of academia and research ring true (no surprise, given Benford's academic background), and I really enjoyed the very slow "unraveling" of the strange artifact. Near the end, the plausibility factor got in the way just a bit (very similar to Brin's problems with "Earth", actually), but that's only a quibble. If you can find this little gem in a used bookstore, snag it for an enjoyable weekend read.

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