The Lure in Espionage Aficionados

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Jul 16, 2014 Philip rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, fiction-standalone, europe

This book reads like a poor man's Contact, except that it (literally) never gets off the ground. The science behind "the signal" is interesting and may even be credible, but the pro and con arguments that take up far too much of the story are debated way too many times, and ultimately comes down to a caricature of what could have been a serious "science vs. religion" argument. There's either no alien life because it's not mentioned in the Bible, or else the universe is teeming with intelligence This book reads like a poor man's Contact, except that it (literally) never gets off the ground. The science behind "the signal" is interesting and may even be credible, but the pro and con arguments that take up far too much of the story are debated way too many times, and ultimately comes down to a caricature of what could have been a serious "science vs. religion" argument. There's either no alien life because it's not mentioned in the Bible, or else the universe is teeming with intelligence because it evolved so quickly here on Earth. (And that latter argument is always annoying in such stories; what we regard as "intelligent" - i.e., human - life evolved only recently as a result of the far more successful dinosaurs going extinct; so while there may well be complex life all across the galaxy, that's no indication that it will necessarily lead to technologically advanced intelligence.)

As a result, with the exception of a few scenes in the final third, the book is mainly all talk and little action. The characters are also cliches - the math nerd hero (a virgin with limited social skills and little interest in women, yet by his own admission he "seemed to attract the opposite sex"); the fat Russian scientist, the plain but good-hearted female assistant, and the hot Norwegian planetologist - guess which one he ends up in bed with?

Writing is so-so, and while the plotting isn't horrible Napier does leave some questions unanswered - who left our hero the enigmatic envelope at the airport addressed to 158 Rock Walk, (which he immediately understands as a reference to 1 Peter 5:8 in the Bible)? We'll never know. Pacing is also strange - some 90% of the book takes place over 4-5 days, but then nearly a month is crammed into the last few pages. That said, I did like the very last chapter, which consists of press snippets demonstrating the spin control and ass-covering that is probably the most accurate part of the book. And I also liked the fact that the story takes place in Slovakia with a number of scenes set in Bratislava, which is really a very pleasant and under-appreciated city, (although Napier doesn't reference any of the city's unique charm to really bring his setting to life, and so his locations remain as flat as his characters).

All told, this really just made me want to go back and read Sagan's masterpiece, which still remains the book to beat in "alien contact" lit. It also made me determined not to take advantage of any more of the embassy's "help yourself - they're free!" books in our little library here; (I must remember that whenever you get something for nothing, that's probably what it's worth). ...more

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Mar 17, 2009 Karen rated it really liked it

Shelves: science-fiction

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Apr 25, 2015 Darren marked it as to-read

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