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Blood Music
by
The book that launched the career of Hugo and Nebula Award-winning author Greg Bear--and earned him an avalanche of praise from the SF world--Blood Music offers a dazzling flight of disciplined imagination. (It's) one of the most interesting stories to come along in years (Poul Anderson).
...more
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Paperback, 256 pages
Published
July 1st 1996
by Ace Trade
(first published April 1st 1985)
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Community Reviews
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Start your review of Blood Music

Feb 28, 2011
karen
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
thanks-for-prezzies,
the-end
I HAVE BEEN TOLD THIS REVIEW IS SPOILERY!! BEWARE!!
(dude, you seriously want an audio version of this??)
so i read this because bird-brian told me to.
i don't know that i am the best person to review sci-fi books. i have zero background in the genre, but for whatever reason, brian thought it would be amusing if i reviewed this.
so i will try.
soooo - okay - quick plot for you plotty folks out there - genius bad boy scientist gets fired from job for meddling with mammalian cells and conducting exp ...more
(dude, you seriously want an audio version of this??)
so i read this because bird-brian told me to.
i don't know that i am the best person to review sci-fi books. i have zero background in the genre, but for whatever reason, brian thought it would be amusing if i reviewed this.
so i will try.
soooo - okay - quick plot for you plotty folks out there - genius bad boy scientist gets fired from job for meddling with mammalian cells and conducting exp ...more

I believe the only other Greg Bear books I’ve read are “Eon” and “Eternity”. I read both a very long time ago. I enjoyed both, especially Eon, but I remember having a few problems with the stories and was disappointed in the overall ending. Well, my neighbor picks up sci-fi at a used book story on occasion and passes on ones that he liked, as we have similar tastes. So, despite this being first published in 1985, I decided to give it a read.
Overall, it was a similar experience to “Eon” and “Ete ...more
Overall, it was a similar experience to “Eon” and “Ete ...more

Nov 28, 2020
mark monday
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
new-dimensions,
scifi-60s-70s-80s
the science is hard and persuasive; the microscopic beings are soft and even more persuasive. they find themselves born in a strange new universe: the human body! and as many such beings do, they form themselves into groups and they build. they build and build and build and so create a civilization in their universe. a civilization in your body!
Greg Bear is a great writer. the science is carefully explained, understandable even to science-dummies like myself. and he is just as persuasive when it ...more
Greg Bear is a great writer. the science is carefully explained, understandable even to science-dummies like myself. and he is just as persuasive when it ...more

Sep 25, 2007
Paul Bryant
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
sf-novels-aaargh
MOULD, FRANKENSCIENCE AND MIRTH
In Greg Bear's funny and creepy and REALLY insane story, the rogue scientist invents a virus which... goes viral! Ha ha, that's funny right there, ain't it? Well, what did he expect? That it would stay where he told it and just watch tv? No sir. It develops intelligence. Learns the art of conversation. Says stuff like
WORDS communicate with *share body structure external* is this like *wholeness WITHIN* *totality* is EXTERNAL alike COULD DO WITH A BEER
Okay okay, I a ...more
In Greg Bear's funny and creepy and REALLY insane story, the rogue scientist invents a virus which... goes viral! Ha ha, that's funny right there, ain't it? Well, what did he expect? That it would stay where he told it and just watch tv? No sir. It develops intelligence. Learns the art of conversation. Says stuff like
WORDS communicate with *share body structure external* is this like *wholeness WITHIN* *totality* is EXTERNAL alike COULD DO WITH A BEER
Okay okay, I a ...more

“Vergil Ulam had become a god. Within his flesh he carried hundreds of billions of intelligent beings.”
If Blood Music is ever adapted into a movie, the above quote would be ideal for the movie’s slogan. It sums up the central conceit of the novel very nicely. So Vergil Ulam, a not entirely sane scientist working for a biotechnology lab, experiments with lymphocyte (a form of white blood cell) to turn them into smart cells*. This is very far from his employer’s purview so they summarily dismiss h ...more
If Blood Music is ever adapted into a movie, the above quote would be ideal for the movie’s slogan. It sums up the central conceit of the novel very nicely. So Vergil Ulam, a not entirely sane scientist working for a biotechnology lab, experiments with lymphocyte (a form of white blood cell) to turn them into smart cells*. This is very far from his employer’s purview so they summarily dismiss h ...more

'Blood Music' by Greg Bear is a novel about a pandemic, but this one literally changes EVERYTHING (view spoiler)
...more

Jan 20, 2013
Blaine
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2016,
from-library
I read this book as a teenager, when it first came out, and I remember loving it. Rereading it now, 30 years later, it's good, but not great. It deserves full credit for being an early work to focus on the idea of an intelligent virus transforming humanity. And it's not the book's fault that the scenes where the Soviet Union is the big scary villain come off now as dated.
That said, the pacing of the book is odd. The first half focuses on a handful of characters, of whom only the protagonist appe ...more
That said, the pacing of the book is odd. The first half focuses on a handful of characters, of whom only the protagonist appe ...more

3.5 stars. Classic SF novel dealing with biotechnology, nanotechnology (including the grey goo hypothesis), the nature of consciousness and artificial intelligence. On my list to re-read in the near future as it has been some time since I first read this.
Nominee: British Science Fiction Award for Best Novel
Nominee: John W. Campbell Award for Best Science Fiction Novel
Nominee: Hugo Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (the original short story WON the award for Best Short Story)
Nominee: Nebula A ...more
Nominee: British Science Fiction Award for Best Novel
Nominee: John W. Campbell Award for Best Science Fiction Novel
Nominee: Hugo Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (the original short story WON the award for Best Short Story)
Nominee: Nebula A ...more

This week I started and finished reading a trilogy by this author. My first encounter with Greg Bear (see what I did there? *lol*). I wasn't overly impressed although I liked the writing style. According to my buddy-reader and constant volunteller, Brad, the trilogy was NOT the author's best work, not by far, and I should read this short story.
So I did.
The story is about a scientist experimenting with biochips (computer chips that can be put in a human body). In the tradition of scientific horro ...more
So I did.
The story is about a scientist experimenting with biochips (computer chips that can be put in a human body). In the tradition of scientific horro ...more

Aug 21, 2007
Lasairfiona Smith
rated it
did not like it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Those that love horrible writing. I mean bad.
Shelves:
dontbother
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.

book *awesome-on-verge-of-omfg* greg bear MUST SPEND MORE TIME STUDYING AUTHOR
Could you make that slightly more readable for the nice people out there?
*negative* understand. possible mean EXTERNAL GROUPING
Yeah, pretty much.
VERGIL translate CLUSTERS *can-not-translate*
I think they mean that it's a good book.
pause . . . . . . . . EXTERNAL GROUPING nice? nice from *city-nice-in-country-france*? nice *friendly*? QUERY
Nice friendly.
CLUSTERS need learn MORE
Yes, quite right.
- - End transmission. - - ...more
Could you make that slightly more readable for the nice people out there?
*negative* understand. possible mean EXTERNAL GROUPING
Yeah, pretty much.
VERGIL translate CLUSTERS *can-not-translate*
I think they mean that it's a good book.
pause . . . . . . . . EXTERNAL GROUPING nice? nice from *city-nice-in-country-france*? nice *friendly*? QUERY
Nice friendly.
CLUSTERS need learn MORE
Yes, quite right.
- - End transmission. - - ...more

This novel really irked me, for several reasons. I think my primary complaint is in the characters - they were undeveloped, unrealistic, and clearly vessels for the science and story rather than dynamic individuals. I didn't care about any of them, except for maybe the intelligent cells themselves.
It didn't help that the plot was slow-moving and required a lot of suspension of disbelief. I don't know enough about hard science to judge the likelihood of any of this novel's events, but from a laym ...more
It didn't help that the plot was slow-moving and required a lot of suspension of disbelief. I don't know enough about hard science to judge the likelihood of any of this novel's events, but from a laym ...more

Imagine a friendly COVID-19 combined with John Carpenter's The Thing and you will have Blood Music.
Bear is often compared with Arthur C. Clarke and it is easy to see why, both in the book's strengths and weaknesses: an unfortunate lack of characterization, though, is easily overlooked by the sheer batshit craziness of the story itself. Like Clarke, the characters are mostly there for observational purposes and to make questionable decisions. I like this occasional illogic because as the reader, ...more
Bear is often compared with Arthur C. Clarke and it is easy to see why, both in the book's strengths and weaknesses: an unfortunate lack of characterization, though, is easily overlooked by the sheer batshit craziness of the story itself. Like Clarke, the characters are mostly there for observational purposes and to make questionable decisions. I like this occasional illogic because as the reader, ...more

Jul 15, 2016
Bryan
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
science-fiction-read
Greg Bear once said "science fiction works best when it stimulates debate" and I couldn't agree more. Before this Frankensteinian adventure, I'd never read a book by him and I'm feeling like I am definitely missing out. I seriously enjoyed the language he uses.
My interest waned about 70% in but I stuck in there and ended up loving the last 10 or so pages. Overall, I'd say it had a strong finish and in the end it made me think. Sure, there were a few outdated pieces. A majority of one character' ...more
My interest waned about 70% in but I stuck in there and ended up loving the last 10 or so pages. Overall, I'd say it had a strong finish and in the end it made me think. Sure, there were a few outdated pieces. A majority of one character' ...more

This novel was suggested to me by a sadistic prick who I thought was my friend. Turns out he wanted to see if the concept would bother me. Joke's on him. Loved the book. The story itself was original and unlike anything I'd read before. The concept of a man-made apocalypse where the end of the human race comes in the form of an intelligent virus that ultimately rebuilds the likes of humanity is so far out of the box it's no wonder many light readers are thrown into abysmal attacks on sentence st
...more

At a certain point, I had to admit that Blood Music ceased to be about science-y horror stuff, and just became a wild, sci-fi horror novel. And while I liked that, I sort of missed the science part. And the aspects that actually related to being human, and why that's important. A lot of that appears to just drop away in the end (which is fairly abrupt).
For some reason (gee - the cover? the synopsis?), I'd had this impression that the book was going to be about crazy Cthulu monsters. What a let d ...more
For some reason (gee - the cover? the synopsis?), I'd had this impression that the book was going to be about crazy Cthulu monsters. What a let d ...more

Biotechnologist Vergil Ulam creates biological computers with his lymphocytes in a San Diego based research center. When his employer orders him out of a responsible decision to immediately destroy his work, he injects them into his own body and leaves the company. The intelligent cells get more intelligent, multiply by the trillions and start to improve his body. Ulam can hear some music from them, thus the title.
Please, be aware that this is the review for the novelette which Bear turned into ...more
Please, be aware that this is the review for the novelette which Bear turned into ...more

I really, really, really had thought that this was a SFF Book Club monthly choice. But I couldn't find it on the list, so I guess I let my sub conscious sucker me into reading it. I also let my subconscious sucker me into press through the audiobook in one day... and I really should have thought through the thematic issues before tackling a biological horror story in the midst of a pandemic.
About ten years ago, I read the Greg Bear novelette of the same name -- it was creative and chilling and t ...more
About ten years ago, I read the Greg Bear novelette of the same name -- it was creative and chilling and t ...more

Apr 01, 2011
Sesana
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
audiobook,
science-fiction
Blood Music is built around a great science fiction concept: a man-made virus becomes sentient and starts rebuilding the world to their own specifications. (Yes, I know that they're technically lymphocytes, but they act and are treated much like a virus throughout.) And to start with, that concept is indeed very promising. The first half or so of the book seemed to be fairly hard SF to me. There are some issues dragging down the book as a whole, though.
The most immediately obvious thing is that ...more
The most immediately obvious thing is that ...more

I had no idea this book was going to be so weird! I guess the name and cover should have given me a hint, but I try to practice the "Don't judge a book by its cover" rule.
The protagonist is an interesting fellow, a sloppy research doctor. Working in the area of microbiology. Aspersions of greater things and a drive to achieve but he just isn't that careful in the lab.
A germ with intelligence....
That's all I'm saying; it just gets weirder after that. It is a good, imaginative science fiction y ...more
The protagonist is an interesting fellow, a sloppy research doctor. Working in the area of microbiology. Aspersions of greater things and a drive to achieve but he just isn't that careful in the lab.
A germ with intelligence....
That's all I'm saying; it just gets weirder after that. It is a good, imaginative science fiction y ...more

starts out a pretty run-of-the-mill Michael Crichton-type thriller, then segues into a cronenbergian fly-like body-horror thing and then ends as a stephen king The Stand-type situation, with a bunch of characters wandering around in a post-apocalyptic wasteland (only the characters are really flat and none of them were there at the start and you don't care about any of them and... whatever).
BUT! right in the middle, there's this one amazing chapter! narrated by a news reporter in a plane flying ...more
BUT! right in the middle, there's this one amazing chapter! narrated by a news reporter in a plane flying ...more

This novel surprised me with how enjoyable it actually was. The title and cover conspired to give me the distinct impression of "generic SF."
A more up-to-date look at the worries of genetic engineering, "Blood Music" moves from an "Andromeda Strain" bio-thriller into speculation of physics and the nature of reality. It manages to do so smoothly, and without invoking any mystical hand waving, which adds greatly to its effect.
A solid read, and one that would sit well with anyone who enjoys near ...more
A more up-to-date look at the worries of genetic engineering, "Blood Music" moves from an "Andromeda Strain" bio-thriller into speculation of physics and the nature of reality. It manages to do so smoothly, and without invoking any mystical hand waving, which adds greatly to its effect.
A solid read, and one that would sit well with anyone who enjoys near ...more

Vergil Ulam is a brilliant biotechnology researcher who takes matters into his own hands when his company threatens to shuit his work down. Vergil's noocytes are like nano-techonlogy living organisms that begin to evolve and multiply rapidly. Greg Bear knows his science and comes up with some big ideas and concepts while exploring what it means to be human.
...more
...more

Unfortunately, this book does not improve the short story upon which it is based; the main characters are either unsympathetic or two-dimensional, and Bear doesn't provide more than a glimpse of the world created by the Blood Musicians (so to speak). Also, the book's title just doesn't work with the "In My Pants" game.
...more

I'd given this book 2.5 if I had had the option to do so. Closer to "mediocre" than to "multiple-award-winner".
...more

Apr 13, 2017
prcardi
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
hard-science-fiction,
pg-13,
science-fiction,
hugo-finalist,
nebula-nominee,
medical,
horror
Storyline: 3/5
Characters: 3/5
Writing Style: 3/5
World: 3/5
The last epidemilogical hard science fiction book I read was......also written by Greg Bear! Blood Music shared a lot with the Darwin's Radio duology. And when I say, "a lot" I mean the same subgenre, the same general plot structure, more or less the same problem to understand and respond to, and mostly the same types of characters. I did wonder though if I was being too critical. Perhaps some who read military space science fiction novels ...more
Characters: 3/5
Writing Style: 3/5
World: 3/5
The last epidemilogical hard science fiction book I read was......also written by Greg Bear! Blood Music shared a lot with the Darwin's Radio duology. And when I say, "a lot" I mean the same subgenre, the same general plot structure, more or less the same problem to understand and respond to, and mostly the same types of characters. I did wonder though if I was being too critical. Perhaps some who read military space science fiction novels ...more

Now what can i say about this book. It is well-written, imaginative and with a good dose of horror, the story for the most part is well paced and the themes are very interesting to sit and think about, those being the idea of individuality and when does one gain sentience, the first main character was interesting and well developed but he isn't static, there is more than one, and the others are vastly inferior and kinda flat but this book is one you read not for the characters but for the story
...more

The novel begins following maverick biotechnologist Vergil Ulam, and his 'after-hours' creation of lymphocytes capable of passing information between one-another. His research is considered too dangerous, but rather than destroy his work, he injects his masterpiece into his bloodstream - their only chance for survival. This leads to the evolution of intelligence in the noocytes (from the greek word for mind, 'noos'), and they begin to rapidly multiply and evolve further. Vergil begins to notice
...more

What would happen if a socially awkward genius was to tinker with his own DNA until his immune system learned to think for itself? That's the starting point for Blood Music, which spends the rest of the novel answering the question. I don't think I'm giving away any spoilers by saying it's not pretty.
The genius in question, Vergil Ulam, is straight out of central casting. He's the brilliant loner who is much better at solving the problem in front of him than at predicting consequences. He's depi ...more
The genius in question, Vergil Ulam, is straight out of central casting. He's the brilliant loner who is much better at solving the problem in front of him than at predicting consequences. He's depi ...more
topics | posts | views | last activity | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Beyond Reality: Blood Music (11/20): Finished reading (spoilers!) | 7 | 19 | Nov 28, 2020 05:29PM | |
Beyond Reality: Blood Music (11/20): roll call and first impressions (no spoilers!) | 7 | 20 | Nov 13, 2020 09:58PM |
Greg Bear is one of the world's leading hard SF authors. He sold his first short story, at the age of fifteen, to Robert Lowndes's Famous Science Fiction.
A full-time writer, he lives in Washington State with his family. He is married to Astrid Anderson Bear. He is the son-in-law of Poul Anderson. They are the parents of two children, Erik and Alexandra.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/gregbear ...more
A full-time writer, he lives in Washington State with his family. He is married to Astrid Anderson Bear. He is the son-in-law of Poul Anderson. They are the parents of two children, Erik and Alexandra.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/gregbear ...more
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