false 45248 5 Peter Hamilton is famed for SF blockbusters of far-future interstellar adventure. By contrast <I>Misspent Youth</I> is a social comedy set in the year 2040 in England. When gene therapy rewinds Jeff Baker's age back to his early 20s he finds that wisdom and experience are no match for hormones... <p> The rejuvenation treatment, developed by federal Europe to impress laggard America, is so complex and expensive that only one person every 18 months can receive it. Jeff is the first because he's a celebrity inventor, father of the "datasphere" which superseded the Internet. <p> Family upheavals follow. An "arrangement" with his much younger, still beautiful wife Sue lets her enjoy lovers while the aged Jeff turns a blind eye: now things are different. Meanwhile their 18-year-old son Tim is struggling ineptly with teenage sexual pangs and the impossibility of understanding girls. All part of growing up, but Jeff's renewed youth brings farcical complications. <p> It's not just that Jeff now fancies Sue again. He can't resist even younger women. An early one-night stand is publicised all over the datasphere. Embarrassment escalates when he's seduced by the granddaughter of a long-time pub companion. Worse, several of Tim's ravishing female schoolmates are interested in Jeff the celebrity stud. The dishiest of all is Tim's latest, most hopelessly adoring girlfriend.<p> Can it be coincidence that the action mostly happens in Rutland? <p> This comedy of embarrassments and revelations has a darker background: Europe is plagued by separatist movements whose terrorist habits make the old IRA look like pussycats. The turning point in Jeff's tangled relationships comes when he attends a London conference surrounded by protest that breeds riot--with Tim among the protesters. <p> A foreshadowed twist leads to a finale that mixes cynicism with sentiment. En route <I>Misspent Youth</I> is a lot of fun. --<I>David Langford</I> 44511 2002 Misspent Youth total:130|5:13|4:21|3:63|2:22|1:11| 130 393 195 15 5 0 false false Wed Jun 10 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 15 19:24:33 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 15 19:44:18 -0700 2009
That said, this book is fantastic, which to be candid is what I have come to expect from Mr. Hamilton. I have read and enjoyed most of the other works he is known for ...more...]]> 2 0 false false Sat Sep 20 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Jan 19 21:20:00 -0800 2008 Sat Sep 20 03:08:59 -0700 2008
I find that I hold Hamilton to a higher standard then I do most authors, mainly because I know the quality he is ca...more...]]> 2 0 false false Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 27 14:54:17 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 01 07:49:20 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Tue May 26 07:28:55 -0700 2009 Tue May 26 07:29:54 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Wed Sep 23 21:25:28 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 23 21:48:55 -0700 2009 ]]> 3 0 false false Thu Jan 08 18:15:26 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 08 18:16:25 -0800 2009 2 0 false false Wed Jul 08 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 08 19:21:02 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 08 19:22:30 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Mon Jun 01 16:34:48 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 01 16:35:27 -0700 2009 2 0 false true Fri Aug 28 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 12 04:10:19 -0700 2009 Thu Aug 27 20:48:34 -0700 2009
I expected better.]]> 0 0 false false Wed Oct 29 00:15:09 -0700 2008 Wed Oct 29 00:15:09 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Wed Nov 12 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Nov 12 18:50:52 -0800 2008 Wed Nov 12 18:53:11 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004 Wed Sep 03 15:02:23 -0700 2008 Wed Sep 03 15:06:38 -0700 2008 3 0 false false Sat Oct 18 01:37:22 -0700 2008 Sat Oct 18 01:37:54 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Sat Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Mar 04 10:52:16 -0800 2008 Tue Mar 04 10:53:11 -0800 2008 1 0 false false Wed Oct 29 15:37:46 -0700 2008 Mon Jan 19 18:04:04 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Fri Nov 06 16:59:01 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 06 16:59:01 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Thu Nov 05 17:17:41 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 05 17:17:41 -0800 2009 2 0 false false Mon Nov 02 14:54:26 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 02 14:54:26 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Mon Nov 02 11:20:44 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 02 11:20:44 -0800 2009 1 0 false false Sat Oct 24 11:45:22 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 24 11:45:22 -0700 2009