Red Mars

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: Books becomes incredibly boring midway. Buy this book if you need an safe alternative to sleeping pills.

Rating:
Summary: Where was Robinson's editor?
Review: Frankly, I was surprised by this book. Having read Robinson's other novels, "Icehenge," "Wild Shore," "Gold Coast," and "Memory of Whiteness," I expected that this, his first really long book, would have his usual touch for well-drawn, interesting characters. But the crew of explorers/terraform experts in Red Mars was a group of dull, tedious, one-dimensional, people that I wouldn't cross the street to chat with. I'm guessing that Robinson got caught up in the technical details, and lost the characterization skills of his shorter novels. Where was his editor this time, who should have pointed this out to him? I decided to give Green Mars and Blue Mars a pass. Maybe Robinson should get back to the California setting of his earlier work.

Rating:
Summary: Great book!
Review: I absolutely loved this book. The conflicts between the terraformers (people wanting to change Mars to have an Earth-like climate) and the people opposed to this idea weave a great plot and always make you read on. A great storyline, it paves the way for a sequel wonderfully, and I bought the sequel to this book within a day of finishing Red Mars. I would strongly recommend all three of the books in this trilogy if you want a great science fiction story.

Rating:
Summary: nothing but wow!
Review: I just finished Red Mars and I have to admit I was stunned by how wonderful it was. Especially in the last few parts, Robinson continually threw shocking plot developments, philosophical moments, and compassionate storytelling together to create a book I will never be able to forget. I am about the same age as the protagonists, and I couldn't help thinking, "Now I'm 62," and so on throughout the book, and wondering if such dramatic changes really could happen during my lifetime. I don't want to leak any of the story to people who haven't read it yet, but do read it. This is the best sci-fi novel I've read in a very long time.

Rating:
Summary: A stunning read!
Review: Robinson's complex character development is wonderful. Going way beyond the usual, characters (and Mars itself) grow and regress in unexpected ways. I fell in love with those individuals - they were so alive and humanly ornery! He skillfully creates a society that is plausible and inspiring. Psychology interweaves with geology, botany, philosophy, politics... and the scenery is breathtaking. You will be heading to the store for volumes 2 and 3 before you even finish Red Mars.

Rating:
Summary: Shikata Ga Nai...( there is no other way...)
Review: grand in scale, personalities, politics, and science. this is the dream ( of sorts)for a colonized Mars. Rich in hard SF and realsim, this trilogy will be one of the measuring sticks for SF of the future.

Rating:
Summary: Jack of all trades, master of none
Review: The chances are, you'll either love it or hate. Being me, I just didn't mind it (but then I've actually bothered to comment on it, so it must have had something). The book tries hard to master every single aspect of literature there is - from intrigue, politics, character studies... all the way to science fiction and beyond. What a shame that the plot is fairly uninspiring and ultimately unimaginative (the phrase "ran out of steam" might well apply), which also seems to sum up each aspect of the book as a whole. Worth reading, but by no means an epic.

Rating:
Summary: Best of the decade so far...
Review: This book (and the trilogy)is awe-inspiring. Robinson blends political and psychological intrigue, fantastically well researched high-tech, broad dreams and terrible horrors into a novel with a huge cast of incredibly detailed, well developed characters and a truly epic plot. Everything about this book is huge, from the landscape to dreams of it's characters. After reading this book I felt like I had taken a course in planetology, physical geography and orbital mechanics (and I enjoyed it!). Do yourself a favor and read this book and then it's two sequels (like you'll be able to read just one of the trilogy.)

Rating:
Summary: Red Mars is a poetic vision of mankind's future
Review: I think that this story is about more than just Mars. The desolate, primal, breutiful landscape of the Red Planet provides a stunning backdrop for this epic story, which penetrates to the heart of human nature. The central message that I got out of it was this: It takes only so much acceleration to escape the well of the Earth's gravity, but what does it take to escape the well of Earth's history? Don't get me wrong, though--I thought the story itself was spectacular. I've been obsessed with the planet Mars ever since I picked the book up. Much of the story rings true--in both science and in human nature, the two of which Robinson did a fine job (for a SF writer) to blend. I can practically see Reds and Greens taking sides already. Don't believe me? Ask anyone what they think about terraforming Mars.

Rating:
Summary: A good book on the colonization on Mars
Review: I found "Red Mars" to be a rather interesting book on the colonization on Mars. The descriptions in the book are pretty detailed (to be honest, a couple of times a got a bit bored) and this adds to the general realism of the book. Personaly, I found the scientific details of the book quite interesting (maybe one of its strongest points), the characters pretty detailed (and most of the time quite believable) and the plot rather interesting. As another reader said, the book is definitely successful as a thought experiment; I believe this expresses in the most accurate way my impression from "Red Mars," as well as the other books in the series. In any case, reading this book made me curious enough to continue with the next books on the series (Green Mars, Blue Mars).