The Trigger

Rating:
Summary: Interesting...
Review: This collaberation between Clarke and Kube-McDowell takes a simple `what if?' question and develops it in a logical manner to its eventual cyclical conclusion. In this case the `what if?' is `What if we were able to render all nitrate-based munitions impotent?' What would the global, political and social consequences be?
In `Trigger' our authors seek to pursue this to its ultimate conclusion with a massive dose of cutting edge physics and mathematics thrown in along the way.
The story focuses on the Terabyte corporation, whose bright young spark, Dr Jeffrey Horton, experiences scientific serendipity one day and discovers that he has created a machine that destabilises any nitrate-based compound, effectively acting as a detonator. Not only that, it has a range that is dictated only by its power. Inevitably, the realization occurs that this can act as an invisible shield as all known munitions simply explode or decay on contact with the edge of the shield thus paving the way for a fiercely debated topic as to the constitutional legitimacy of effectively removing the second act of the US constitution.
Very quickly, Horton and his boss, Karl Brohier, decide to release the discovery to the US government and President Mark Breland authorizes the development of the Trigger, thus loosing all the inherent issues that come with it. Over the next few hundred pages we are treated to debate at the highest level, amongst all forums possible as to the constitutionality of the trigger, its global impact and the social upheaval that it brings. This debate in its various forms dominates most of the book, Senator Wilman and Senator Trent taking it to its personal conclusion.
As the politics and debate rage, the Trigger continues to be developed, version 2 giving some ability to control a `beam' and then the discovery that a Jammer can be developed that takes the initial `hammer' effect that the Trigger version 1 has and convert it to a tool that safely disables all munitions. This is based on the scientific realization that the universe is simply a set of information instructions that binds energy and that if you change the instructions you can change anything. In a lot of respects, it's the ultimate alchemical answer - lead can truly be turned to gold.
The book's lengthy conclusion has Horton being kidnapped by a group demanding to know how to shield themselves from the effects of the Trigger and his final rescue before the final logical scientific step is taken in the last pages when they realize that as DNA enables them to isolate any specific individual then any single person can be uniquely targeted for expiry. So, by the end, we have come full circle and discovered that the ability of universal alchemy not only gives the means to save lives, but also to take it away.
I found this an intriguing piece of science fiction from the acknowledged master of the genre and Clarke's co-authorship with Kube-McDowell is written in a manner that makes compulsive reading. Laced throughout with the necessary debate that such an invention would engender, this is another fine effort.

Rating:
Summary: Biased gun debate players won't like it but all else will
Review: This is a sensational masterpiece of fiction that has you asking questions as it goes along and wondering what if this were true? This analyses the gun debate from both sides of the story. If read with an open mind you'll get more out of this novel then if you read with a tunnel very pro gun or very anti gun vision.

This is one of the greatest books ever written and is about twice the size of a normal novel so is extremely good value for money. If you want a work of fiction that debates the issue of society without guns while taking you along for a fast paced thrill ride from cover to cover then this is for you. Warning though, once you start you won't be able to put this masterpiece down so buy some blank tapes because you won't be watching TV for a while.

Jeffrey Horton working for Terabyte Laboratories unwittingly invents a device that makes bullets and any other explosive devices explode when 'the trigger' is turned on thereby making guns or terrorist bombs useless in an area covered by the machine. At first this seems like the greatest invention in mankind's history with cowards no longer being able to use guns to rob, murder or even intimidate society. Not everyone however is pleased by this. Not only are there gun totting rednecks who think it is their constitutional right to have guns but the US army can see they will be at a disadvantage to more populous countries without being able to use bombs and guns. The Trigger asks the question will society really be better of without these sorts of weapons? Will Horton be able to manufacture and get his product out world wide before those who oppose it stop him? He soon realises his life will be short lived if he can't get develop, test and get this machine to everyone who needs it before it is too late. Sensational novel, just buy it!

Rating:
Summary: Biased gun debate players won't like it but all else will
Review: This is a sensational masterpiece of fiction that has you asking questions as it goes along and wondering what if this were true? This analyses the gun debate from both sides of the story. If read with an open mind you'll get more out of this novel then if you read with a tunnel very pro gun or very anti gun vision.

This is one of the greatest books ever written and is about twice the size of a normal novel so is extremely good value for money. If you want a work of fiction that debates the issue of society without guns while taking you along for a fast paced thrill ride from cover to cover then this is for you. Warning though, once you start you won't be able to put this masterpiece down so buy some blank tapes because you won't be watching TV for a while.

Jeffrey Horton working for Terabyte Laboratories unwittingly invents a device that makes bullets and any other explosive devices explode when 'the trigger' is turned on thereby making guns or terrorist bombs useless in an area covered by the machine. At first this seems like the greatest invention in mankind's history with cowards no longer being able to use guns to rob, murder or even intimidate society. Not everyone however is pleased by this. Not only are there gun totting rednecks who think it is their constitutional right to have guns but the US army can see they will be at a disadvantage to more populous countries without being able to use bombs and guns. The Trigger asks the question will society really be better of without these sorts of weapons? Will Horton be able to manufacture and get his product out world wide before those who oppose it stop him? He soon realises his life will be short lived if he can't get develop, test and get this machine to everyone who needs it before it is too late. Sensational novel, just buy it!

Rating:
Summary: Preachy and predictable? Somewhat. Entertaining? YES!
Review: This is the story of some scientists who stumble on a discovery that renders explosives useless. The development of this technology, called the Trigger, into a public anti-gun/bomb shield is the basic plot of the book. The book follows the deployment of the devices and the resistance it creates in the US. There is more social commentary than science, but it's an intriguing idea and an engrossing story of how idealistic scientists and politicians battle the gun lobby and society's fear of change.

This book focusses mostly on the political side of events in the US - the court cases and debates (both public and private) between those in favour of the Trigger and those opposed. The balance is heavily weighted on the Trigger side and against the NRA-types. Although I am personally a proponent of gun control, I know that the majority of the gun lobby are not rabid militarists, as they seem to be portrayed in this book. It comes across sounding preachy at times. Another problem is that the narrative seems to run out of steam - the last 100 pages could be cut.

I enjoyed this book immensely - it's entertaining, engrossing, thought provoking, and difficult to put down. Only the slightly preachy tone and 2-dimensional portrayal of the gun lobby robbed it of its 5th star.

Rating:
Summary: best book this year
Review: This long book is an excellent read, with a multi-layered plot that investigates questions that our society has been trying to answer for many years. Rather than science fiction, I would class this book with the best of Clancy or Dale Brown.

Rating:
Summary: A World Without Guns?...Doubt It!
Review: This novel is typical of the influence of the great master of Sci-Fi himself and up incoming star Michael P Kube-McDowell.

Although it is a little long winded to read it does eventually pick up a storyline that totally goes of in a typical Arthur C. Clarke direction and leaves you quite chilled at the story's end.

The basic story is of a handfull of scientists in the not too distant future, who quite accidently stumble across a way of disabling the entire World's stock of fire arms. Using electrons to ignite gunpowder. Soon the discovery reaches the White House and the chance to disarm the world of weapons is undertaken...

If it was only that simple and in doing so the Trigger causes more distruction. However the same scientists later find a way around this and soon the Trigger, in a more safer form is released onto the mass market.

Soon the the enevidable uprising of those who think it is their right to bare arms (as it does say in the Constitution) takes over the storyline. A high paced conclusion is in order and that totally Aurthur C. Clarke twisted ending that he is famous for leaves you hanging and thinking, "Maybe having the world armed with primitive guns is not such a bad idea after all."

sheesh!

Rating:
Summary: It may be preachy...but what an impact!
Review: This review was going to be "only" four stars, but I was only at page 400 at that point. What an ending. One of the rare wonderful times I have seriously gotten chills down my spine from reading a book. (And some of the other times have been with Clarke as well!)

I suspect Mr. Kube-McDowell took the majority of the writing on this one, based on recent collaborations of Clarke's with Baxter and McQuay, but this novel is certainly worthy of the Clarke seal of approval.

You can get the plot preview from other reviews, so let me just say that the preachiness might get to some people, and once in a while it made my eyes roll as well, but in the end I think it's deceptively well-balanced. It never forgets the other side, although most of the enemy characters are near-cartoonish villains. But I can seriously overlook it! (Also, two of the main characters of the beginning seem to disappear about 2/3 through.)

The style is similar to recent books by Gregory Benford: scientist makes schocking discovery...social issues arise...scientist gets personally involved. Of course, I know nothing of Benford's gun-control stance.

Tone down the preachiness just a tad, and this could make a good movie. This book begs to be optioned for a screenplay.

Rating:
Summary: Sadly two dimensional social commentary...
Review: Well, you can see the pattern of this book fromt he reviews before mine - anyone who supports the concept of personal self defense is branded a violence dealing terrorist.

There is NOT ONE character in this book who supports private onwership of firearms who does not "reveal himself" as a paranoid testoreone driven jesus freak.

Think about that. An entire book devoted to the concept of disarmament and societies reactions - and there is not even one character who is both sane and in favor of gun ownership.

Each and every political character who acts in a cautious manner is exposed or confesses to be a power mad dinosaur that simply doesn't have any vision.

This is a mediocre sci-fi book that sadly veers off the road when logic hits. So you render most explosives useless... so what? The answers are ovbious and ignored or brushed aside - the military is shown as collapsing when the reality is that the book itself mentions perfectly suitable alternate propellants.

The science side never really comes together, there is a hint that the machine can transmute any matter at all, but they never discuss alternate uses at all.

It's a political book, and the science gets short changed.... though to be fair there is a lot of fiction.

Rating:
Summary: a 10-page essay straining to fill a 500-page novel
Review: Whether or not you find the premise intriguing, this book is an unmitigated disaster when judged as an actual story. There are no antagonists worth mentioning, no real conflict, no satisfying explanations of the speculative technology, and NO PLOT. By the time I had reached the 300th page I was thinking, "ok, I get it already. Do I really need to read to the end? No." (I did anyway in the hopes of some surprise or twist at the end, of which there of course was none, or none worth mentioning at least.) Why these two gentlemen decided to force a truly lifeless novel out of a small essay's worth of ideas is beyond me. I have enjoyed Mr. Clarke's work in the past, but I was actually quite angry after wasting my time wading through this limp polemic.

Rating:
Summary: A good book, but no Emprise.
Review: [As someone who does not judge a book by the back of its dustjacket, this review has no spoilers whatsoever.]

I've been a devoted reader of Michael Kube-McDowell since his first book, _Emprise_, which is on my personal top 10 list, having read it 3 or 4 times now.

_The Trigger_ aspires to be another _Emprise_. In fact, when I first started reading _The Trigger_, I was quite excited since it seemed to be telling the story of the prolog to _Emprise_, wherein an "antidote" for nuclear reactions is discovered, which throws the world into chaos following the political and energy ramifications.

Unfortunately, _The Trigger_ is not as far-reaching, and I think it could have explored its premise much more than it did. Mind you, it follows the plot on a larger scale more than most novels, which is one of the things that I like about it.

It is an addicting read, and, like the previous Amazone reviewer, I "could not put it down". However, I also felt the ending was weak and uninspired, not following the premise far enough.

As far as the collaboration with Clarke goes, I have to admit that I didn't see any "Clarke" in this book. So, if you're an Arthur C. Clarke fan, I can't say you should read it on that basis alone.

In summary, I recommend _The Trigger_. But if you like it even a little, I suggest you try to track down some of Kube-McDowell's better books, such as _Emprise_, or _Alternities_.