DeBRANDT, DON

Jon Hundred has been made into a cyborg against his will. He retains about 20% of his original body, including his brain, but is not happy with his situation. Jon escapes his owners and makes his way to the planet Pellay, where he works in a mine helping to drill a mountain tunnel. If he focuses on his work hard enough he finds that memories of his previous life come back to him.

Also working the mine is an alien race referred to as Toolies. They are jelly-like beings that can incorporate solid objects into their bodies to perform various functions. The Toolies are a very interesting race with a unique method of reproduction.

MEL is an AI whose job is to oversee the work on the tunnel from the other side of the mountain. MEL has more in common with Jon than he is aware.

This was a great introduction to an author recommended to me by a local SF bookstore owner. I'll have to thank her. STEELDRIVER is a story about the characters and their struggle for freedom in a frontier world, in fact the setting has a Wild West feel to it. There are a number of very interesting stories told by certain characters which add spice to proceedings and would make great stand alone works.

Very Good  (9)

February 2001
 

DeBRANDT, DON

Storysmith is part human, part Shinnkarien Ox and as his name suggests, he likes to tell stories. Not only does he tell them, he has the knack of making others wax lyrical. Skinshifter is a male Toolie and a friend of Story’s. The pair of them are confidence tricksters and are on their way to Kiskikill, the home of the Insussklik (aka Toolies) where their friends, Mike Blink and Melody, are in need of assistance. There has been a disruption to hyperspace that is affecting Mike’s chances of survival.

I would recommend reading STEELDRIVER before tackling V.I. It is set in the same universe, but a couple of hundred years after the events in the earlier story. In this outing we learn more about the Toolies, their planet and their history along with a closer look at the hyperspace dimension mentioned in the Mike Blink story in STEELDRIVER.

V.I. is jam packed with stories. Almost every second chapter introduces a new character who retells their own story which adds to the entire setting within the novel. These new characters are a weird mob. Among them a security guard turned superhero, a bum turned monstrous garbage disposal unit and an 800-pound cabbie with criminal links.

Once again this was a very enjoyable romp with a sense of fun. I did find the abundance of stories within the novel a little too much after a while. They did help paint the entire picture, but I would have liked the novel to move along a bit more smoothly.

Very Good  (8.5)

April 2001
 

DeBRANDT, DON

IRTV, Infinite Range Television, allows us to view TV broadcasts from an infinite number of alternate Earths. Virge Jakobi’s job is to scan these broadcasts in order to obtain useful advanced technologies.

Virge was once a member of a gang known as the Glass Dragons. The Dragons had hoped he would continue his education and become a lawyer working for them. When Virge saw how his friends were being manipulated by the gang, he decided to flee and has been on the run ever since. Working in IRTV has helped him keep a low profile.

A world famous artist, Thann, has decided to suicide and when Virge hears this he sets out on a quest to stop it. This takes Virge back into the world of gangs where his friends of the past have become his enemies. He also encounters an assassin of incredible strength who will stop at nothing to reach him.

I believe this is DeBrandt’s first novel and at 239 pages it is a quick and exciting read. Virge is on the run or in hiding for much of the book and is often confronted by overwhelming odds.

Very Good  (8.5)

February 2003
 

DELANY, SAMUEL R.

Mankind is as war with the Invaders. Rydra Wong is a famous poet who has an uncanny ability to work with different languages. She is given the job of deciphering a strange new language, Babel-17, which seems connected to recent attacks.

She assembles a crew and sets out to find the source and meaning of the code.

This book is a part of the “Gollancz Classic SF” range and like another from its catalogue, Rogue Moon, is a little dated and disappointing. The inside cover blurb says it’s a “dazzlingly flamboyant yet strangely moving” story – don’t you believe it!

Good  (7)

August 2004
 

DICK, PHILIP K.

Earth is underpopulated after a world war that leaves the planet surrounded by an ever present radioactive dust cloud. Those who can afford to and have not been contaminated are able to leave Earth and live in colonies off planet. Most of the animals have become extinct and people keep electric pets in their place.

Eight latest model androids have escaped from the Mars colony and are hiding in San Francisco. Bounty hunter Rick Deckard is given the job of finding and retiring them.

The book has similarities to the movie Blade Runner as you may expect, but it looks more closely at how Earth bound humans cope with their existence and the inner turmoil Deckard goes through during the course of his work.

Very Good  (8)
 

Tribute site www.philipkdick.com/
 

DICK, PHILIP K.

(Belated review)

A group of people arrive at a planet; each promised a new start to their otherwise ineffective lives. One by one they are being murdered and the survivors are desperate to solve the mystery. There appears to be no-one but themselves on the planet to help them.

The ending of the story contains a huge revelation that explains the situation these people find themselves in. An entertaining read.

Good  (7)
 

DICK, PHILIP K.

Germany and Japan won the Second World War. The Nazis have continued their policy of genocide, almost totally wiping out Jews and Negroes. Africa has been laid to waste and the Mediterranean has been drained and used as farmland. Their conquest has also seen them reach to the nearby planets.

The Japanese control half the planet, but with less negativity and destruction. They don't particularly see eye to eye with their allies.

The story takes place on the East Coast of the USA, where the Japanese hold power. We see how a small group of Americans live as conquered people. This Hugo winning novel, while well written, did not impress me. Another award winning tale that doesn't quite deliver as a science fiction story.

Good  (6)

July 2000
 

DICKSON, GORDON R.

Cletus Grahame has travelled from Earth to a planet where opposing factions fight. Cletus studies tactics and believes that with their correct use, any conflict can be won with a minimum of casualties. He proceeds to prove his theories in a number of confrontations, winning the support of locals and upsetting some of the military in charge.

I read this short book (237 pages) in order to get to the second, written 4 years prior, in the series, SOLDIER, ASK NOT, which won a Hugo for best novella. Unfortunately, I found this one a tad uninteresting and predictable and gave up on it two thirds of the way in. This is a book that may appeal to those who like military SF, but it is low on excitement.

Average  (5.5)

July 2001
 

DISCH, THOMAS M.

The Earth is over-run by giant trees which are farmed by aliens. Story centres around  one group of people who manage to avoid the unseen aliens.

Excellent  (9)
 
 

DISCH, THOMAS M.

Bob Glandier is a 40-year-old, overweight businessman who is married to Giselle, an attractive younger woman. Bob murders Giselle after she leaves him and goes to Las Vegas. Giselle's ghost and an assortment of others seek vengeance upon Bob.

This is obviously a very simplistic account of the story. To tell you more would be to ruin what is a humorous, sometimes graphic, but always enjoyable "tale of terror". The start of the story was reminiscent of Douglas Adams' novel DIRK GENTLY'S HOLISTIC DETECTIVE AGENCY with its depiction of the newly deceased coming to realize their predicament.

Excellent (9.5)
 
 
 
 
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