Cenotaxis

Astropolis #1.5

by Sean Williams

In the far future, in the aftermath of a mysterious galactic catastrophe, a false prophet comes face to face with his greatest adversary a man who thinks he's god, and might very well be right. While the battle for Earth rages around them, they face off, one wanting to conquer the world and the other to redeem it, and the victory may well decide the future of the galaxy, and of humanity itself.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction

128 pages, Paperback

First published December 12, 2007

About the author

#1 New York Times bestselling Sean Williams lives with his family in Adelaide, South Australia. He’s written some books--forty-two at last count--including the Philip K. Dick-nominated Saturn Returns, several Star Wars novels and the Troubletwister series with Garth Nix. Twinmaker is a YA SF series that takes his love affair with the matter transmitter to a whole new level. You can find some related short stories over at Lightspeed Magazine and elsewhere. Thanks for reading.

Reviews

[Fara Curry · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novella set on earth a million years in the future focuses on irrational faith, and ultimately the dark side of organized religion. It’s the battle of two egos - Jasper, believing himself to be God and Imre, determined to save humanity by conquering it.
All in all, Cenotaxis is an interesting read. Certainly worth it for those who like Sean Williams and a little space opera.

[Tracy Smyth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a Novella and quite enjoyable.

[Matthew Tait · Rating 4 out of 5]

A novella that fits nice and snug in between the first two books of Astropolis, Cenotaxis bridges Saturn Returns and Earth Ascendant to a form a short yet complicated piece that focuses on a variety of elements.

From the first, it felt good to be back in familiar territory. Just hearing the proverbial terms used in the Astropolis universe was like a homecoming. There are the Frags, Fort components that resemble Primes or Singletons but possessing little true individuality. There's the 'Slow Wave' itself - a cataclysmic advent that destroyed the Continuum and Forts and sent humanity reeling backwards throughout the galaxy. It had been awhile since Saturn Returns permeated my senses, but stepping back into the setting was like stepping into old shoes. The painting on the cover is highly imaginative and seems to sum up the intricate webbing that is the Continuum and the characters whom inhabit it.

But Cenotaxis is also a stand alone novella in itself, and, although it does take place during the same time-line, the action occurs far off on the long abandoned and scarred planet of Earth. It is here that a divine human has arisen, in the form of Jasper, the leader of the resistance and the only thing stopping Imre Bergamasc from taking the Earth into the cradle of his bourgeoning empire and false religion. As the clash for Earth erupts into all out war around them, Imre and Jasper face off against each other.

There are many concepts to like in Cenotaxis. Firstly, Williams has made a similar creation to the Forts with 'the Apparatus’, a seemingly artificial intelligence that is Jaspers advisor. It eventually intrigues Imre enough that he changes tactics to find it. The fact that Jasper believes himself an incarnation of God is utterly fascinating in itself; it gives Williams the opportunity to postulate how religions and creed play such an important role in shaping humanity's future.

Probably the most interesting facet of Cenotaxis is Jaspers uncanny, superhuman abilities. He has an 'achronistic' way of experiencing time, jumping through it in ways that suggest he is the product of something that is at least omniscient in nature. Through this prescience, Jasper escapes many traps laid out by Imre - which leads our false prophet to question the origins of his prisoner in more ways than one.

As always, Sean Williams gives us a tasty afterward detailing the origin of the title, and the many influences that brought the novella into being. Fans of Saturn Returns have much to applaud here, as Sean Williams has given us another riveting chapter that celebrates his imaginative genius.

[Ron Henry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really a novella, and a quick read. Better written by far than Saturn Returns, probably because it digs into a real character rather than spinning out endless action scenes.

[Joshtafari · Rating 2 out of 5]

Combine the loopy deism of late Battlestar Galactica with Vonnegut's 'unstuck in time' literary device and the result is as comprehensible and illuminating as you would expect.