Leo Korogodski reviewed Shadow Of A Dead Star by Michael Shean (The Wonderland Cycle, #1)
Review of 'Shadow Of A Dead Star Book One Of The Wonderland Cycle' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Mild spoiler alert!
Shadow of a Dead Star is a futuristic detective story, set in a world where technological enhancements to the human body and mind have become commonplace, at least in certain portions of humanity: cops (legally) and criminals (illegally). The main character is, interestingly, an unenhanced cop, working in the good old way by intuition. And boy, does he get himself into a fix! Not just a single fix, but a rapidly developing sequence, each time with higher stakes.
Indeed, rather than being a traditional detective tale about a single case that gets solved toward the end, this story is divided into a successive ladder of cases, each, when resolved, leading toward the next one, and ultimately into an intriguing sequel. [spoiler]Starting with the ethical issues of modified some unfortunate girls' brains to turn them into highly lucrative sex slaves, the story leads on to military applications, to …
Mild spoiler alert!
Shadow of a Dead Star is a futuristic detective story, set in a world where technological enhancements to the human body and mind have become commonplace, at least in certain portions of humanity: cops (legally) and criminals (illegally). The main character is, interestingly, an unenhanced cop, working in the good old way by intuition. And boy, does he get himself into a fix! Not just a single fix, but a rapidly developing sequence, each time with higher stakes.
Indeed, rather than being a traditional detective tale about a single case that gets solved toward the end, this story is divided into a successive ladder of cases, each, when resolved, leading toward the next one, and ultimately into an intriguing sequel. [spoiler]Starting with the ethical issues of modified some unfortunate girls' brains to turn them into highly lucrative sex slaves, the story leads on to military applications, to zombies (yes, really!), to aliens.[/spoiler] As a result, the ending lacks the resolution clarity, leaving too many loose ends flapping in the wind, and you don't get to appreciate the relevance of the book's title until the very end. But the perspective that opens then! Considering that several cases actually end up resolved (and quite dramatically), it may be a decent trade-off.
With a well imagined future, good characterization, and fast pace, this book will satisfy many a science fiction fan.