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Blind Waves
by
Steven Gould (Goodreads Author),
Jim Burns
The author of Jumper returns with a near-future SF novel, set in an America whose coastline has been drowned by melting Antarctic ice.
In the world where hundreds of millions of people have been displaced from their homes by the Deluge--a hundred-foot-rise in sea level from melting ice caps--Partricia Beenan is lucky. She is still an American citizen with the right to live...more
In the world where hundreds of millions of people have been displaced from their homes by the Deluge--a hundred-foot-rise in sea level from melting ice caps--Partricia Beenan is lucky. She is still an American citizen with the right to live...more
Hardcover, 352 pages
Published
February 12th 2000
by Tor Books
(first published 2000)
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After the brilliant Jumper, I really looked forward to this underwater adventure by Steven Gould. While the premise was intriguing, the story was rather a disappointment. The plot started to pick up pace after the early boring submarine scenes, but the science was nearly non-existent, the mystery was predictable and the romance was pathetic. It was a novel that didn't fit neatly into any genre, yet it failed miserably at all of them. The quotes from Shakespeare were irritating and the dialogue b...more
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This is the first standalone book of Gould's that I've read and I'm happy to say it retained it's appeal for me. His focus on creating well developed characters who don't behave like idiots in order to create drama is always something I appreciate.
This book had a few more downsides for me than the "Jumper" ones. First, the beginning is overloaded with minutiae of how the diving and submersible works. The author is himself a diver and I think he let his obsession bleed into the text overmuch, th...more
This book had a few more downsides for me than the "Jumper" ones. First, the beginning is overloaded with minutiae of how the diving and submersible works. The author is himself a diver and I think he let his obsession bleed into the text overmuch, th...more
When the world's ocean rose as a result of melting ice, most of the populated areas of the world became flooded.
Patricia is a jack of all trades (Council Woman, salvager, landlord, school principal) based out of a floating city off the new coast of Texas. On one diving mission, she finds a ship, apparently sunk by the INS, with the bodies of fifty men, women and children still on board. Worse, they were alive when the ship went down. The resulting investigation leads to white supremacists and da...more
Patricia is a jack of all trades (Council Woman, salvager, landlord, school principal) based out of a floating city off the new coast of Texas. On one diving mission, she finds a ship, apparently sunk by the INS, with the bodies of fifty men, women and children still on board. Worse, they were alive when the ship went down. The resulting investigation leads to white supremacists and da...more
Of all the books I've read by Steven Gould I like this one the least. He's a great writer, but I enjoyed the subject matter of the "Jumper" and "Wildside" books much better. This one is basically a political crime mystery set in a slightly near-future setting. I say future because the ice-caps have melted causing wide-spread flooding--not because there's any hint of science fiction in the book. Besides the lack of science fiction the main problems I had with this story were the excessive use of...more
Jul 13, 2009
Michael Havens
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Science Fiction fans
'Blind Waves', by Steven Gould is reminiscent of the golden age of Science Fiction, that is, rather than being futuristic, it is a work of speculation. Let me explain. As far back as Jules Verne and H.G. Wells, Science Fiction gave a purview of where society was heading not only by extrapolating it into the technological future, but by creating a microscope by which to view contemporary issues. Ray Bradbury (Fahrenheit 451), George Orwell (1984), and the many works of Philip K. Dick are excelle...more
With this, I think I've read all of Steven Gould's sci fi novels. Unfortunately, I pretty much liked each one less than the one before.
In this book, the oceans have risen and most of the world is covered in water. (OK, I know that most of the world is already covered in water... I mean mostER of the world is covered in water, now.) There are some bad dudes that are racist and kill a bunch of people, and then the heroes try to stop them and the bad guys try to kill them, yawn. I didn't care about...more
In this book, the oceans have risen and most of the world is covered in water. (OK, I know that most of the world is already covered in water... I mean mostER of the world is covered in water, now.) There are some bad dudes that are racist and kill a bunch of people, and then the heroes try to stop them and the bad guys try to kill them, yawn. I didn't care about...more
This was Steven Gould trying to break out of the mold/ghetto of YA science fiction. It's okay, but nothing special. It's like a slightly less goody Dirk Pitt novel.
While it wasn't a bad book by any means, there were far too many elements that just made me stop and say "that's a bit ridiculous and/or pointless". It really seems like Gould did a lot of research on submarines and was absolutely going to put every piece of information and terminology into the book, whether it made sense or not. There were far too many elements of the book like that, things that ultimately I thought would mean something, but never did. Why was the hero scarred? Other than to sh...more
Mar 08, 2009
Matt Mazenauer
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Quick sci-fi read fans, Gould fans
Recommended to Matt by:
Jumper
Surprisingly quick read, it feels good to have a book really catch you - it's been a while for me. In fact, this probably gets an extra star just for how it broke my readers block, because in reality it has some pretty rough spots. The ludicrously unbelievable (and sudden, and shoved-in) romance is distracting, especially when compared with the more realistic sci-fi parts. Also, despite most of the action taking place in this futuristic floating city, I have no picture in my head of what the pla...more
I really have like Steven Gould's other books. This one was good but not my favorite. I'm not sure why it didn't draw me in like his others have.... I read it twice, thinking maybe I was just not in a receptive spot last time. I did like the central relationship arc of the story, just was a little too predictable for me.
It was interesting to see Texas underwater in the future, I've been to the places mentioned and that was fun.
It was interesting to see Texas underwater in the future, I've been to the places mentioned and that was fun.
This book had me at exploring underwater ruins of Houston. In a one-person submarine. I'm not sure a post-apocalyptic America gets any better than this, unless the heroine had run into some Mirelurks, but as it is even without the Mirelurks it's pretty dang good.
The heroine of the story is a scavenger who finds salvagable items for clients. The book also contains some twisty politics (are there any other kinds?), a bit of smut (which surprised the heck out of me) and some daring escapes and som...more
The heroine of the story is a scavenger who finds salvagable items for clients. The book also contains some twisty politics (are there any other kinds?), a bit of smut (which surprised the heck out of me) and some daring escapes and som...more
Murdered immigrants, love at first sight, wild goose chases and submarines. Also my favorite, some sex. Who could resist?
Set in a future where much of the world's landmasses are drowned beneath the polar ice caps meltwater.
Set in a future where much of the world's landmasses are drowned beneath the polar ice caps meltwater.
I read this book in one sitting, then went back and read the beginning again. It is a dense world and as other reviewers have commented, there is a lot of technical information about submarines, which I enjoyed, though it was sometimes hard to follow.
I also enjoyed the kick-ass heroine and the troubled hero, though their romance was a bit thin. Most of all I enjoyed the "prediction" aspect of it, a real and believable picture of what could happen in the world when the waters rise. We need to be...more
I also enjoyed the kick-ass heroine and the troubled hero, though their romance was a bit thin. Most of all I enjoyed the "prediction" aspect of it, a real and believable picture of what could happen in the world when the waters rise. We need to be...more
Not terrible, but a little slow and predictable.
As I love the books Jumper and Reflex by Gould, I was sadly disappointed with this novel. It was entertaining enough, but not engaging. It kind of reminded me of the the last Dan Brown book I read Deception Point. I know Gould can do better than this and it made the book mundane.
Really, this book felt like a beach book. Something you take while you soak in the sun, but not something meaty enough to read without distractions.
Really, this book felt like a beach book. Something you take while you soak in the sun, but not something meaty enough to read without distractions.
This is the book that started me reading Dorothy Sayers, when the author said he modeled his couple on Lord Peter Wimsey. Their back-and-forth was a lot of fun, and when he proposed (in front of her mother!) I was in giggle fits.
I've read almost everything Gould has written, and I've enjoyed them all... until this one. This was just painful. The romantic story line between the two main characters seems like it was written by a teenager.
fun read. perhaps i was a bit nostalgic for the gulf, as the heroine runs a salvage business using a submersible. in the good trash category as an old friend used to say--not a waste of time, but ? redeeming value
Absolutely loved this one, could not put it down. Steven Gould never disappoints - this is the fourth book of his that I've read and I can't wait to read more.
Re-read 3/22/10 for probably the fourth or fifth time. Gould's books are just so fun to read, so smooth going down.
latest re-read 11/3/2011
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Steven Charles Gould is an American science fiction author. His novels tend to have protagonists fighting to rid government of corrupt antagonists. The struggle against corruption is the focus, rather than the technology.
More about Steven Gould...
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