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Boundary (Boundary #1)
What is a paleontologist doing on Mars? Pushing her boundaries. . . ."Problematica," n: a term used in paleontology to refer to fossils that appear to be either of unknown taxonomic origin, or whose occurrence in the location they are found contradicts current beliefs of the field. The find was made by a teenager. A "funny fossil" no one had seen before out in the middle o...more
Mass Market Paperback, 608 pages
Published
January 29th 2008
by Baen
(first published March 7th 2006)
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The title “Boundary” refers to the K-T Boundary, an event 65 million years ago in which a large number of species, most famously including the dinosaurs, became extinct, probably due to the impact of a meteor. A group of paleontologists find a very strange fossil grouping, with bizarre anomalies including what look like bullets. The fossil sits right on the Boundary, meaning it is from the time of the event. A little later, the first mission (unmanned) to Mars’ moon Phobos reveals an abandoned,...more
While entertaining in some ways, this book just didn't handle character conflict well--that is, what little character conflict there is. Everyone gets along more-or-less, no one holds grudges for long, and romantic possibilities are all fulfilled with clock-like regularity. Everyone is chummy and solves difficult intellectual problems for breakfast. Political and cultural differences are described, but cause no significant conflicts (with one anticlimactic exception).
The plot unfolds with the sa...more
The plot unfolds with the sa...more
Since the sequel appears later this year, I finally got to read this one and it's a fast, fun adventure with a mixture of paleontology, space exploration and long-ago-vanished-aliens. It's a very straightforward adventure with pulp overtones but modern sensibilities and it reminded me to a large extent of James Hogan Giants saga which was a big favorite at the time; now I moved on to some extent but in the right mind-frame I can enjoy a tale like Boundary and since the characters and setting gro...more
Do you like near future sci-fi? Do you like actual science with just enough hand waving magic thrown in to make unrealistic things plausible? Boundary does both of those, and adds enough Mars adventure in the tradition of Robert Heinlein and Indiana Jones to add more fun on top of it.
This is a typical Baen sci-fi book. It's campy in places. It's a light read. It's great airport or poolside reading. As such, while hand-waving and unrealistic human relationships normally get three stars from me,...more
This is a typical Baen sci-fi book. It's campy in places. It's a light read. It's great airport or poolside reading. As such, while hand-waving and unrealistic human relationships normally get three stars from me,...more
It's H. Beam Piper's fault really. He wrote this great short story called "Omnilingual", which is about human archaeologists on Mars, trying to decipher the ancient Martian language. I read it at an impressionable age, and ever since I've had this Thing for stories about xenoarchaeology (of which there are far too few, by the way).
Anyway, "Boundary" hits all those buttons. Alien race, now (presumably) dead, check. Alien artefacts still extant, check. Humans now finding said artefacts and trying...more
Anyway, "Boundary" hits all those buttons. Alien race, now (presumably) dead, check. Alien artefacts still extant, check. Humans now finding said artefacts and trying...more
For reasons fans of Baen’s Bar, the fan web board for Baen Books will be very familiar with, this book could be subtitled “The One Where Joe Buckley Doesn’t Die.” (Joe Buckley is the name of a fan who is frequently Tuckerized and “red shirted” by certain Baen authors as something of a running joke.) It could also be titled “Geeks Go to Mars on a Date and Paleontology Happens” for the number of characters who are hooked up and/or hitched by the end of the novel. (I consider this to be a selling p...more
AJ and Joe assist Dr Helen Sutter in a paleontology dig that reveals several whole dinosaur skeletons and what appears to be an alien. A few years pass. AJ and Joe are now working on a private expedition to explore Phobos and Mars. When the unmanned drones find a base containing a mummy of the same alien, a team is rapidly pulled together to go explore the base.
The book has romance, humor, and solid exciting science fiction. I would highly recommend it to sci fi buffs.
The book has romance, humor, and solid exciting science fiction. I would highly recommend it to sci fi buffs.
This was a fast paced and enjoyable sci-fi adventure filled with paleontology, space exploration, and aliens. It starts out with a new dinosaur fossil discovery and ends up on Mars -- I'm actually considering this as one of the more fun-filled books that I've read this year. While it could be considered as "hard sci-fi" it doesn't read like a technical manual, but more like a pulp novel from years ago with a more modern edge to it.
Paleontology crosses paths with deep space exploration in this science fiction novel chronicling the pursuit of history of the remains of a previously unknown life form, "Bemmius secordii". Friend or foe? Long dead relative of some other forms of life on earth or ... something else? The answers take an unlikely crew of investigators on a journey of discovery across an interplanetary void to seek answers that may hold the key to the future of humanity.
I enjoyed this book for its blends of several...more
I enjoyed this book for its blends of several...more
This was an incredible blend of archeology and space exploration. I liked both the premise and the characters as they developed. Highly recommended to anyone interested in visiting Mars.
An extremely well written book with characters you truly care about. However, it fails to ever reach a climax and just kind of comes to an end. A shame, I really thought this book had potential.
I bought this novel because I am a fan of Eric Flints writing. It wasn't until after I had begun reading was I glad I bought it. A very good read. Very realistic.
Oct 30, 2012
Teri
marked it as to-read
I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/11500460
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/11500460
All kind of goodies here -- paleontology, engineering, and space flight; puzzles in linguistics, biology, physics, and evolution. I want more!
Good old fashioned science fiction. Not trying to do anything weird or trendy style-wise, just a great story.
Dinosaurs. Aliens. Space Travel. Enjoyed the story.
Kind of disappointed in this one - it sort of dragged along - more of a space soap opera than SciFi.
baen ebook
This was fascinating to me as an exercise in very creative thinking set to terrible prose. I actually think some clever thinking went into planning a realistic novel set on a space mission to Mars, but it was written like exactly what you'd expect a novel about a space mission to Mars would sound like. Terrible dialog, predictable characters, the whole bad-sci-fi deal.
I think this book is a lot better than the sequel Threshold is. The set up to the characters and the developing of their various voices pulls you in which doesn't really happen in the next book. I have to admit my love for the snarky characters though so that is definitely influencing my view.
May 02, 2008
Michael Sorensen
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Hard Sci-Fi fans--Rendezvous with Rama Fans
This was one of those rare books that I did not want to end. I enjoyed the story hugely, and I really enjoyed the characters. I wanted the adventure to continue. Call me a satisfied but still hungry for more customer!!!
Jan 30, 2008
Mgsmith
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Hard core sci fi fans
Interesting read for hard core science fiction "we are not alone" fans. A little to much technical informatoin for me. I found interesting the link to the end of..................
Not telling!
Not telling!
The book is rather choppy, not bad for a new author, but not what I exspected from a Flint co-author, hopefully book two which I acccidently ordered first is better
Dinosaurs and spaceships... Martians and archaeologists... this was my favorite science fiction novel of last year!
A fun exploration of both paleontology and space exploration.
$4.27 with shipping at:
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Eric Flint is a New York Times bestselling American author, editor, and e-publisher. The majority of his main works are alternate history science fiction, but he also writes humorous fantasy adventures.
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May 16, 2013 12:47pm