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Known Space
The Patchwork Girl
sci fi paperback
208 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 1, 1980
12 people are currently reading
634 people want to read
About the author
Larry Niven
687 books3,311 followersLaurence van Cott Niven's best known work is Ringworld (Ringworld, #1) (1970), which received the Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards. His work is primarily hard science fiction, using big science concepts and theoretical physics. The creation of thoroughly worked-out alien species, which are very different from humans both physically and mentally, is recognized as one of Niven's main strengths.
Niven also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories. His fantasy includes The Magic Goes Away series, which utilizes an exhaustible resource, called Mana, to make the magic a non-renewable resource.
Niven created an alien species, the Kzin, which were featured in a series of twelve collection books, the Man-Kzin Wars. He co-authored a number of novels with Jerry Pournelle. In fact, much of his writing since the 1970s has been in collaboration, particularly with Pournelle, Steven Barnes, Brenda Cooper, or Edward M. Lerner.
He briefly attended the California Institute of Technology and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics (with a minor in psychology) from Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas, in 1962. He did a year of graduate work in mathematics at the University of California at Los Angeles. He has since lived in Los Angeles suburbs, including Chatsworth and Tarzana, as a full-time writer. He married Marilyn Joyce "Fuzzy Pink" Wisowaty, herself a well-known science fiction and Regency literature fan, on September 6, 1969.
Niven won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story for Neutron Star in 1967. In 1972, for Inconstant Moon, and in 1975 for The Hole Man. In 1976, he won the Hugo Award for Best Novelette for The Borderland of Sol.
Niven has written scripts for various science fiction television shows, including the original Land of the Lost series and Star Trek: The Animated Series, for which he adapted his early Kzin story The Soft Weapon. He adapted his story Inconstant Moon for an episode of the television series The Outer Limits in 1996.
He has also written for the DC Comics character Green Lantern including in his stories hard science fiction concepts such as universal entropy and the redshift effect, which are unusual in comic books.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/larryn...
Niven also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories. His fantasy includes The Magic Goes Away series, which utilizes an exhaustible resource, called Mana, to make the magic a non-renewable resource.
Niven created an alien species, the Kzin, which were featured in a series of twelve collection books, the Man-Kzin Wars. He co-authored a number of novels with Jerry Pournelle. In fact, much of his writing since the 1970s has been in collaboration, particularly with Pournelle, Steven Barnes, Brenda Cooper, or Edward M. Lerner.
He briefly attended the California Institute of Technology and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics (with a minor in psychology) from Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas, in 1962. He did a year of graduate work in mathematics at the University of California at Los Angeles. He has since lived in Los Angeles suburbs, including Chatsworth and Tarzana, as a full-time writer. He married Marilyn Joyce "Fuzzy Pink" Wisowaty, herself a well-known science fiction and Regency literature fan, on September 6, 1969.
Niven won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story for Neutron Star in 1967. In 1972, for Inconstant Moon, and in 1975 for The Hole Man. In 1976, he won the Hugo Award for Best Novelette for The Borderland of Sol.
Niven has written scripts for various science fiction television shows, including the original Land of the Lost series and Star Trek: The Animated Series, for which he adapted his early Kzin story The Soft Weapon. He adapted his story Inconstant Moon for an episode of the television series The Outer Limits in 1996.
He has also written for the DC Comics character Green Lantern including in his stories hard science fiction concepts such as universal entropy and the redshift effect, which are unusual in comic books.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/larryn...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews
April 5, 2018
In Harlan Ellison's Dangerous Visions (1967), Larry Niven wrote of a future where criminals were given the death penalty so that their bodies could be harvested to benefit the upstanding members of society. Apparently this theme is of continual interest to the author, because he revisits it in this 1980 novel.
At a law conference on the moon, a speaker is nearly assassinated. The only suspect is a beautiful woman called Naomi, who has an agenda of her own, but is she really the killer? ARM agent Gil Hamilton, who knew Naomi years ago and doesn't believe she could have done it, investigates. If Naomi is found guilty, she will go to the body banks to be harvested.
The story is a pulp-style mystery, complete with femme fatale and other standard elements--Gil even observes this aspect himself--with a speculative twist. I enjoyed it. This edition is also nicely illustrated by Fernando Fernández. It's too bad publishers don't do that any more.
At a law conference on the moon, a speaker is nearly assassinated. The only suspect is a beautiful woman called Naomi, who has an agenda of her own, but is she really the killer? ARM agent Gil Hamilton, who knew Naomi years ago and doesn't believe she could have done it, investigates. If Naomi is found guilty, she will go to the body banks to be harvested.
The story is a pulp-style mystery, complete with femme fatale and other standard elements--Gil even observes this aspect himself--with a speculative twist. I enjoyed it. This edition is also nicely illustrated by Fernando Fernández. It's too bad publishers don't do that any more.
May 15, 2016
This part of a series of short (the others are novellas) stories following ARM agent Gil Hamilton, which is in turn part of the larger series Tales Of Know Space. The series follows the exploits and life of Gil which are presented as much as a detective Noir story as they are science fiction.
This story is slightly longer than then others in the series and as such is set slightly different with Gil being away from is usual duties at ARM to act now an a UN delegate at a lunar conference. However the story really is yet another detection story this time a spin on the classic locked room mystery.
What appeals to me is that there are so many referenced cliches in this book - but if you are the first to write then surely they are not cliches. Yes its a crime noir locked room mystery - but if a fantastical situation. It has crime scene investigation - but nothing like this was attempted before (well at least in main stream science fiction). So yes reading the book out of context it feels a little predictable and staid but at its time it was something new and different.
So yes I have read this book before when I ate up all things Larry Niven but reading it again I didn't feel bored or uninspired reading the same surprises and plot twists more a growing feeling of nostalgia. Well I guess there is only more place for me to stop off on the career of Mr Hamilton.
This story is slightly longer than then others in the series and as such is set slightly different with Gil being away from is usual duties at ARM to act now an a UN delegate at a lunar conference. However the story really is yet another detection story this time a spin on the classic locked room mystery.
What appeals to me is that there are so many referenced cliches in this book - but if you are the first to write then surely they are not cliches. Yes its a crime noir locked room mystery - but if a fantastical situation. It has crime scene investigation - but nothing like this was attempted before (well at least in main stream science fiction). So yes reading the book out of context it feels a little predictable and staid but at its time it was something new and different.
So yes I have read this book before when I ate up all things Larry Niven but reading it again I didn't feel bored or uninspired reading the same surprises and plot twists more a growing feeling of nostalgia. Well I guess there is only more place for me to stop off on the career of Mr Hamilton.
January 1, 2013
I know this is also included in the Flatlander collection, which is also on my shelf, but I chose to read this seperately, mostly for the added funky old school sci-fi illustrations in this edition.
This isnt a very good book. Not a great mystery, wrapped in not a great setting, filled with not very great characters.
This will not call to mind the person of Louis Wu, or spark the imagination like the integral trees. It will mostly take of 2 or 3 hours, and having you saying, "eh"
Gil Hammilton is on the moon attending a conference, and someone tries to kill one of the members.
The ride finding out who, wont thril you, but if you are a completist like me, you will read it, no matter what a guy like me says about it. If you arent just trying to fill in all the blanks, skip this, or at least, dont make it your first Niven read.
This isnt a very good book. Not a great mystery, wrapped in not a great setting, filled with not very great characters.
This will not call to mind the person of Louis Wu, or spark the imagination like the integral trees. It will mostly take of 2 or 3 hours, and having you saying, "eh"
Gil Hammilton is on the moon attending a conference, and someone tries to kill one of the members.
The ride finding out who, wont thril you, but if you are a completist like me, you will read it, no matter what a guy like me says about it. If you arent just trying to fill in all the blanks, skip this, or at least, dont make it your first Niven read.
October 19, 2025
3.5 stars
March 25, 2017
This short novel features Niven's Gil Hamilton in a very enjoyable science fictional mystery. The trade-sized first edition is lavishly and very pleasingly illustrated; it's a fast and fun read. I never figured out why he used the name of another contemporary science fiction writer for the name of a main character in this book, but that's a minor distraction. Niven is always a pleasure to read.
February 16, 2013
I saw some less-than-favorable reviews, but I really enjoyed this book. The mystery was better than the last one, but perhaps that's a function of being longer and more fleshed out.
Like most of the Ringworld series, I felt that the overt sexual promiscuity detracted from the story.
Like most of the Ringworld series, I felt that the overt sexual promiscuity detracted from the story.
May 21, 2015
Gil "The Arm" Hamilton uses his imaginary left arm to magically produce evidence that will solve the big murder mystery. Gil also uses his "middle arm" to satisfy all the lusty lunar babes. It's CSI In Spaaaaaaaace! Meh...
December 27, 2024
Two months ago I read *The Long ARM of Gil Hamilton*, a collection of three "long short stories" featuring Gil Hamilton, a detective for a global police force in a 2120s plagued by "organleggers" and a political landscape built around dismantling criminals' organs so they can be used to keep living people alive for longer. I enjoyed that collection quite a bit, and coincidentally, when I got that book upon my uncle's recommendation (we were used bookshopping in the Nashville area together), I also got *The Patchwork Girl*, a short novel also featuring Gil Hamilton, and I started it during a two-night trip where, like Gil Hamilton here in *The Patchwork Girl*, I was away for work. Now, I didn't get roped into a murder mystery like Mr. Hamilton, but at least I could live vicariously through him and then explain it to all of you...
Unlike Hamilton's first three mysteries, this one is set on the Moon, where there's a committee with members from Earth, the Moon, and the Belt making decisions about lunar law. For example, at a past committee, Earth and the Belt bullied the Moon into cutting up its criminals for organs, despite the Moon's resistance guaranteeing that convicted criminals be held in suspended animation for six months after a guilty verdict so they have time to be proven innocent. Now, though, that provision may be coming under fire. Hamilton is serving as an ambassador for the U.N. since the original appointee was unable to make it, and he soon meets up with a couple old lovers - there's one currently in a relationship with a lunar doctor who's still able to sleep with Hamilton on the side, and then there's Naomi Mitchison, Hamilton's first love - a sensual blonde who teased Gil more than ever woman he ever knew. She sets up a dinner with him, but before they can get together, one of the Belt delegates - Chris Penzler - is shot through his room's window with a laser from the lunar surface. Hamilton's at the scene of the crime relatively quickly and hears the name of the only person was checked out to be on the surface of the moon when the laser was fired: Naomi Mitchison.
Mitchison is arrested for questioning and all that, but Hamilton doesn't believe she did it, and he promptly throws himself into the investigation. He starts by ...
If you've ever read a Larry Niven novel before, you know what kind of prose you'll be getting in *The Patchwork Girl*. It's kind of direct and simple, but it's not blocky; it's just not lyrical either. You also probably know what you're getting out of the characters - not offensively or really badly written, but not too layered either. Gil Hamilton is a cool guy, but none of the other characters are... great. And some people may take offense to characters like, say, Laura Drury, a lunar cop whose first scene in the book revolves around Hamilton being impressed with the size of her breasts. Niven arguably tries and make a societal statement with her character and - but... I've never found Niven to be a great social science fiction writer. Still, these kind of polyamorous setups and solar system politics have influenced a ton of authors since, most notably James S. A. Corey with the *Expanse* series. Thankfully, something Niven is a little better at writing than characters is plot - *The Patchwork Girl* is a detective mystery through and through, and Niven does a pretty good job of dangling questions and pacing answers so it never feels too slow or too fast. Now, I do have some problems with the plotting once we get to the end of the book, but for the vast majority of the whodunnit, it works.
This story is probably more interesting when read in the context of Niven's previous three Gil Hamilton shorts, where plot elements like organlegging and Gil's psychic third arm have been explained. Niven doesn't dwell on rehashing all of these fine details, and while you could probably enjoy the mystery without those explanations, it helps to have that background. And in the context of the series it functions as a good fourth act - it changes things up by dragging Hamilton off to a new setting (the Moon) and explores the intersection of Earth/Belt politics with the Moon's stance on organlegging, which was never really clear before this novella(?). If you liked the other stories, you'll like this, as it colors things in very nicely and prevents the detective formula from going stale.
I will say, though, how things go towards the end let me down again - there's virtually no room for the final resolution to breath, and one of the bombs dropped shortly before (how ) speaks of so much corruption and juicy politics that I can't believe Niven let it go unremarked upon. Like... you could have a lot of fun with that and the corruption it implies, but it goes to waste. There are also some things between some characters' relations that could've been tightened up with a bow at the end - really, if Niven could've written about twenty or thirty more pages, I think that narrative would've felt more comfortable. Those 20/30 pages might not be factoring in the book's illustrations into account, though - the black and white pictures painted (?) throughout the book were kind of a non-factor for me. I didn't mind them because they were pretty, but I also don't think they did any more for how the characters were portrayed to me than the picture of Naomi on the front of the book. Still, if you read a lot of 20th SF mass market paperbacks, it could be a nice change of pace.
I didn't like *The Patchwork Girl* more than *The Long ARM of Gil Hamilton* because its increased word count somehow seems to have given Niven agency to glance over some interesting things; it also doesn't seem to be sticking in my head amazingly well a couple weeks on. I think a 7/10 is a good call for this book - it was good. I will wrap up the Gil Hamilton stuff when I stumble across the chance to (isn't there a fifth novella somewhere?), but for now, my next Niven will probably be something unrelated, unless it's a vaguely connected Known Space story. I can say it'll be a while until then, but somehow, Niven never stays out of my palette for too long - thanks for reading this, and I'll see you for the next Niven, as long as neither of us get wrapped into a killing before its time has come...
Unlike Hamilton's first three mysteries, this one is set on the Moon, where there's a committee with members from Earth, the Moon, and the Belt making decisions about lunar law. For example, at a past committee, Earth and the Belt bullied the Moon into cutting up its criminals for organs, despite the Moon's resistance guaranteeing that convicted criminals be held in suspended animation for six months after a guilty verdict so they have time to be proven innocent. Now, though, that provision may be coming under fire. Hamilton is serving as an ambassador for the U.N. since the original appointee was unable to make it, and he soon meets up with a couple old lovers - there's one currently in a relationship with a lunar doctor who's still able to sleep with Hamilton on the side, and then there's Naomi Mitchison, Hamilton's first love - a sensual blonde who teased Gil more than ever woman he ever knew. She sets up a dinner with him, but before they can get together, one of the Belt delegates - Chris Penzler - is shot through his room's window with a laser from the lunar surface. Hamilton's at the scene of the crime relatively quickly and hears the name of the only person was checked out to be on the surface of the moon when the laser was fired: Naomi Mitchison.
Mitchison is arrested for questioning and all that, but Hamilton doesn't believe she did it, and he promptly throws himself into the investigation. He starts by ...
If you've ever read a Larry Niven novel before, you know what kind of prose you'll be getting in *The Patchwork Girl*. It's kind of direct and simple, but it's not blocky; it's just not lyrical either. You also probably know what you're getting out of the characters - not offensively or really badly written, but not too layered either. Gil Hamilton is a cool guy, but none of the other characters are... great. And some people may take offense to characters like, say, Laura Drury, a lunar cop whose first scene in the book revolves around Hamilton being impressed with the size of her breasts. Niven arguably tries and make a societal statement with her character and - but... I've never found Niven to be a great social science fiction writer. Still, these kind of polyamorous setups and solar system politics have influenced a ton of authors since, most notably James S. A. Corey with the *Expanse* series. Thankfully, something Niven is a little better at writing than characters is plot - *The Patchwork Girl* is a detective mystery through and through, and Niven does a pretty good job of dangling questions and pacing answers so it never feels too slow or too fast. Now, I do have some problems with the plotting once we get to the end of the book, but for the vast majority of the whodunnit, it works.
This story is probably more interesting when read in the context of Niven's previous three Gil Hamilton shorts, where plot elements like organlegging and Gil's psychic third arm have been explained. Niven doesn't dwell on rehashing all of these fine details, and while you could probably enjoy the mystery without those explanations, it helps to have that background. And in the context of the series it functions as a good fourth act - it changes things up by dragging Hamilton off to a new setting (the Moon) and explores the intersection of Earth/Belt politics with the Moon's stance on organlegging, which was never really clear before this novella(?). If you liked the other stories, you'll like this, as it colors things in very nicely and prevents the detective formula from going stale.
I will say, though, how things go towards the end let me down again - there's virtually no room for the final resolution to breath, and one of the bombs dropped shortly before (how ) speaks of so much corruption and juicy politics that I can't believe Niven let it go unremarked upon. Like... you could have a lot of fun with that and the corruption it implies, but it goes to waste. There are also some things between some characters' relations that could've been tightened up with a bow at the end - really, if Niven could've written about twenty or thirty more pages, I think that narrative would've felt more comfortable. Those 20/30 pages might not be factoring in the book's illustrations into account, though - the black and white pictures painted (?) throughout the book were kind of a non-factor for me. I didn't mind them because they were pretty, but I also don't think they did any more for how the characters were portrayed to me than the picture of Naomi on the front of the book. Still, if you read a lot of 20th SF mass market paperbacks, it could be a nice change of pace.
I didn't like *The Patchwork Girl* more than *The Long ARM of Gil Hamilton* because its increased word count somehow seems to have given Niven agency to glance over some interesting things; it also doesn't seem to be sticking in my head amazingly well a couple weeks on. I think a 7/10 is a good call for this book - it was good. I will wrap up the Gil Hamilton stuff when I stumble across the chance to (isn't there a fifth novella somewhere?), but for now, my next Niven will probably be something unrelated, unless it's a vaguely connected Known Space story. I can say it'll be a while until then, but somehow, Niven never stays out of my palette for too long - thanks for reading this, and I'll see you for the next Niven, as long as neither of us get wrapped into a killing before its time has come...
August 6, 2018
I want to rate this higher, but taken as a whole the artwork inside the story concept (done in part to pad this out to book length) just ends up not working for me. The mystery is good, and it's another nice exploration of the ethics of the world that Gil Hamilton lives in, with organ transplantation being the driving force for expanding the death penalty. The other Gil the Arm stories have touched on the Fertility Laws (with 18 billion people on Earth, childbearing is closely governed - Earth is at a point where the population is maxed out but the colony worlds aren't easy to reach) as a motive for murder, and this one spends as much time on that as on the organ banks. Again, the operating premises can be nuts, but they're consistent, which is what you need as a scaffolding for mystery.
There's also a lot of discussion around the sexual mores of 3 different cultures (Earthlings, Belters and Lunies) - especially around what has since been identified as toxic masculinity but back in the 90's was just called Macho - might lead to violence of various sorts. This area of the book is strange to revisit 25 years on, where time gives everyone a different perspective on what SF default assumptions were then. There's a lot of subplot stuff on Gil's relationship with his long time girlfriend, how open relationships work (and don't) when everyone is mature about it, and contrasting that to how issues of fidelity lead to violence and death.
The book
There's also a lot of discussion around the sexual mores of 3 different cultures (Earthlings, Belters and Lunies) - especially around what has since been identified as toxic masculinity but back in the 90's was just called Macho - might lead to violence of various sorts. This area of the book is strange to revisit 25 years on, where time gives everyone a different perspective on what SF default assumptions were then. There's a lot of subplot stuff on Gil's relationship with his long time girlfriend, how open relationships work (and don't) when everyone is mature about it, and contrasting that to how issues of fidelity lead to violence and death.
The book
February 11, 2024
Oh dear. What a mess this book is. And after I gave Larry Niven a second chance too. He must have done something good to have had so much published, but this book is not it. It's a kind of amalgam between sci-fi, romance, and murder mystery. Set on the Moon, we have a locked-room murder attempt with only one suspect, and Gil 'The Arm' must prove how that one suspect is not guilty.
So much for the plot, which is perfectly respectable. The setting too, is interesting, a futuristic lunar society with its own social and legal codes. But wow, for a short book there's a lot of fluff. Our hero, Gil, bed-hopping between gorgeous women for example, which serves very little purpose, except perhaps an excuse for pillow talk and demonstrating that Gil is a real man. Then there are Gil's psychic abilities - a cool idea, but not used much, other than for him to find something that could have been found by conventional searching. The setting on the Moon has potential, but even that is rather overloaded in such a short book and it's hard to follow the nuances/world building which would make more sense if reinforced in a longer book. For example, we are given a run down on different human societies, but it's difficult to follow or discern between them, apart from the excessive height of the 'lunies' which is shoe-horned into relevance to the plot, but doesn't really matter.
Even the final reveal is pretty weak for a murder mystery. Or perhaps I had just stopped caring by then.
So much for the plot, which is perfectly respectable. The setting too, is interesting, a futuristic lunar society with its own social and legal codes. But wow, for a short book there's a lot of fluff. Our hero, Gil, bed-hopping between gorgeous women for example, which serves very little purpose, except perhaps an excuse for pillow talk and demonstrating that Gil is a real man. Then there are Gil's psychic abilities - a cool idea, but not used much, other than for him to find something that could have been found by conventional searching. The setting on the Moon has potential, but even that is rather overloaded in such a short book and it's hard to follow the nuances/world building which would make more sense if reinforced in a longer book. For example, we are given a run down on different human societies, but it's difficult to follow or discern between them, apart from the excessive height of the 'lunies' which is shoe-horned into relevance to the plot, but doesn't really matter.
Even the final reveal is pretty weak for a murder mystery. Or perhaps I had just stopped caring by then.
December 30, 2024
When there is an attempted murder on the moon, there is only one suspect - the beautiful Naomi Mitchison. But to Gil Hamilton (of Amalgamation of Regional Militia - ARM), on the moon to examine and re-negotiate lunar law, the apparently simple solution and quick trial place Naomi in a holding tank before she is to be broken up for spare parts. What follows is essentially a 'locked room' mystery with a limited number of potential suspects. Solving the mystery will also impact lunar law... The relationships between Belters, Flatlanders (Earther's), and Lunies is complex as each group has developed their own customs and attitudes. This complexity extends into the relationships between men and women, yet Gil seems to navigate this complexity quite well...
A quick read, I would classify this as an illustrated novella. Strangely, I found the story difficult to follow at times - Larry Niven is one of my favorite hard sci-fi authors and I have read a lot of his work. The story, and solution to the mystery, make for an interesting read, however. A good book overall.
A quick read, I would classify this as an illustrated novella. Strangely, I found the story difficult to follow at times - Larry Niven is one of my favorite hard sci-fi authors and I have read a lot of his work. The story, and solution to the mystery, make for an interesting read, however. A good book overall.
December 27, 2025
I bought this book somewhat at random in a used book store along with 3 others from Niven because my bookhunter gut said, "oh, old-timey sci-fi and 4 novels from the same author, this should be a fun romp" but completely failed to give proper credence to the cover art. Woe it is to me.
To the positive, this is straightforward light crime sci-fi. There's a hardboiled cop on the trail of a killer and oh, it just happens to be on the moon. It feels very like this novel was built around an interesting "insert tech here" and came out pretty much along standard lines after that. It's simple and easy to read with episodes of unnecessary pornography.
To the negative, much of what I said above. I didn't expect the outright sexuality that really does nothing to advance the story and I'm hopeful that the other two Niven novels I bought don't have this odd attribute.
Summary: Well darn. At least it was short.
To the positive, this is straightforward light crime sci-fi. There's a hardboiled cop on the trail of a killer and oh, it just happens to be on the moon. It feels very like this novel was built around an interesting "insert tech here" and came out pretty much along standard lines after that. It's simple and easy to read with episodes of unnecessary pornography.
To the negative, much of what I said above. I didn't expect the outright sexuality that really does nothing to advance the story and I'm hopeful that the other two Niven novels I bought don't have this odd attribute.
Summary: Well darn. At least it was short.
November 16, 2024
I was surprised this book was published in 1980, because it reads far older than that. I liked the setting on the moon and the various adaptations to low gravity living; like baths, for example, and the way water sticks to you when you stand up. The three sub-sets of humanity were cleverly concieved; those that live on the earth, the moon (tall and very thin) and Belters, from the asteroid belt. The Belter’s spacesuit paintings were also very imaginative. Unfortunately, the central detective story is all over the place. What's more, the central character sleeps with three different women over the course of a very short book, despite his intention to soon start a family with one of them. There were some twists, but overall this was a messy and confusing read.
January 17, 2019
Niven, Larry. The Patchwork Girl. Ace, 1980.
This murder mystery set on the moon is part of Niven’s Known Space universe and features UN policeman Gil, The Arm, a man who acquired minor telekinetic abilities when he lost an arm in an asteroid mining accident. On the moon, even the most minor crimes get the death penalty, because the lunar government profits from selling body parts of the executed. Niven uses his mystery plot to explore the legal and social issues of this policy. “Organlegging,” as Niven calls it, was not a very viable idea even in 1980, but it works well in this story as a social frame on which to hang the plot. It bothers me, though, that the title contains a spoiler.
This murder mystery set on the moon is part of Niven’s Known Space universe and features UN policeman Gil, The Arm, a man who acquired minor telekinetic abilities when he lost an arm in an asteroid mining accident. On the moon, even the most minor crimes get the death penalty, because the lunar government profits from selling body parts of the executed. Niven uses his mystery plot to explore the legal and social issues of this policy. “Organlegging,” as Niven calls it, was not a very viable idea even in 1980, but it works well in this story as a social frame on which to hang the plot. It bothers me, though, that the title contains a spoiler.
December 17, 2018
Fantastic, as far as Gil "The Arm" Hamilton stories go. Falls a bit short as far as Niven and Known Space goes.
I did enjoy the book though. A perfect length for what it was... fleshed out in the way the "Long Arm of..." stories lacked and just short enough not to be tedious when what I want out of a Known Space book is completely missing from this story.
Didn't see the whodunnit coming, even though I surely made as many guesses as Gil did himself during his time on the moon. But still, its one of my least favorite out of the now 15 Known Space books I've read.
I did enjoy the book though. A perfect length for what it was... fleshed out in the way the "Long Arm of..." stories lacked and just short enough not to be tedious when what I want out of a Known Space book is completely missing from this story.
Didn't see the whodunnit coming, even though I surely made as many guesses as Gil did himself during his time on the moon. But still, its one of my least favorite out of the now 15 Known Space books I've read.
January 14, 2019
The Patchwork Girl is a murder mystery/detective story set on the moon. It was published in 1980 so if you read it with the late 70's/early 80s cop show in mind it fits with that mentality. That was the way I approached it, it was an OK story, but didn't grab me and pull me in. I liked the idea of the organbanks and the issue related to having children and how it needed approval, I also liked the illustrations. There were bits of the story I felt were left unresolved, which might be resolved elsewhere as this is part of a series. However, I'm not going to go out of my way to find out.
December 24, 2025
This is such an interesting novel. I love all the illustrations! The way the Lunies and Belters differentiate themselves by space suits and crests. The context for the moon and Gil's imaginary arm are fascinating. I loved the cast, especially Gil and Taffy. The murder mystery was super satisfying and the consequences for Naomi were low-key horrifying. I would definitely read more from this world. 4/5
July 6, 2017
This was an interesting science-fiction/mystery hybrid. My main complaint was that some aspects of the future world's culture felt a bit artificial. But I thought it was well-plotted. Also, Larry Niven's prose style is more vibrant than those of most other science-fiction writers. And I liked the illustrations.
October 25, 2022
Just as the Gil Hamilton stories might be Larry Niven's best work, The Patchwork Girl is his finest hour, taking the issues seeded in the preceding novellas and tying them together in a compelling vision. Oh, and there's a damn good murder mystery there too. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/202...
November 13, 2022
Sci-fi meets detective fiction.
Old fashioned sci-fi with lots of closed room mystery tricks. Set in the early years of "known space".
Slightly flawed but very enjoyable.
Hope to find more.
Old fashioned sci-fi with lots of closed room mystery tricks. Set in the early years of "known space".
Slightly flawed but very enjoyable.
Hope to find more.
May 16, 2025
I don’t know where this one ranks in the larger collection of Gil “the Arm” Hamilton stories, but it was solid enough to make me want to read the three others and venture further into Niven’s non-Ringworld output.
November 5, 2017
A SF detective story. Love it.
July 29, 2019
I always enjoy reading a Larry Niven book and this is a good one.
December 31, 2019
Plays out like a good noir-era detective novel, with the ethical and moral shades intact, but set on the moon. Gil Hamilton could be Philip Marlowe's future, more-successful-with-dames, son.
September 28, 2020
A good short story about solving a crime on the moon.
May 7, 2022
Space noir!! A self appointed hard boiled detective, political drama a mistery and great art to go with it all.
Loved it!
Loved it!
June 29, 2022
This was an interesting read. Murder mystery on the moon. Once started I just had to keep on to see how it turned out! I enjoyed it!
August 27, 2022
Fun mystery.
April 7, 2023
Decent sci-fi murder mystery
The book has a 60's science fiction feel
I found Gil's power a little hard to suspend disbelief
The book has a 60's science fiction feel
I found Gil's power a little hard to suspend disbelief
February 28, 2022
Gil Hamilton, the police agent with the telecinetic arm, is sent as a negotiator to a conference on the moon. There is murder attempt on one of the delegates via a laser through the window.
Decades ago I read some of Niven's "big" books like Lucifer´s Hammer. I was duely impressed.
In recent years I read some short stories. I was not impressed. Now this is the first novel for a long time. It was clear that this is not one of his important works, but still I was disappointed. I expected a quick an easy read, but I needed much longer than expected. I often read whole paragraphs and then noticed that nothing had registered at all.
Who-done-its in Science Fiction are rarely good. The author usually offers some technical solutions that nobody (or at least not me) could have foreseen.
The plot is shoddy and goes all over the place. Then the relationships! Every woman wants to sleep with the protagonist. In the end it is also left open which of the women will have the honor of continuing their relationship.
Decades ago I read some of Niven's "big" books like Lucifer´s Hammer. I was duely impressed.
In recent years I read some short stories. I was not impressed. Now this is the first novel for a long time. It was clear that this is not one of his important works, but still I was disappointed. I expected a quick an easy read, but I needed much longer than expected. I often read whole paragraphs and then noticed that nothing had registered at all.
Who-done-its in Science Fiction are rarely good. The author usually offers some technical solutions that nobody (or at least not me) could have foreseen.
The plot is shoddy and goes all over the place. Then the relationships! Every woman wants to sleep with the protagonist. In the end it is also left open which of the women will have the honor of continuing their relationship.
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