Rating: 
Summary: Return to Mars is a trip!
Review: Jamie Waterman gets a chance to go back to the planet that gave him fame & happiness. This time, however, there are forces at work that make this voyage dangerous from within as well as from outside. In this riveting sequel to "Mars", Ben Bova's smash hit, he again has written hard science fiction like no other, setting you right on the surface of the Red Planet. His characters are real people with whom you could easily work & explore. He makes getting to Mars like driving to the Painted Desert & stepping out of your car; I've been to the Painted Desert & Ben Bova makes me want to go to Mars. A great read! ..........
Rating: 
Summary: Standard Bova fare...
Review: Lately, I've read a few of Bova's continuing works (Voyagers, Mars, Moon), and I've enjoyed all of them. I've just ordered _Venus_, which I expect to enjoy similarly.My only disappointment is that they don't tie together; while Mars and Moon take place during the same time period, I recall only small mentions of each other. Given the events on Mars and Luna, I would expect more contact between them, eventually leading up to an alliance. The first Mars book, aptly titled _Mars_ is a more enjoyable read, but _Return to Mars_ is a worthy follow-up. Clearly, if you enjoyed the first, you'll enjoy the second (and hopefully the third...).
Rating: 
Summary: Sequel to Mars loses contact with reader
Review: Mars was an entertaining story and Bova did a good job of describing the technology needed for a first expedition to Mars. In Return to Mars Bova provides a sequel featuring the hero of the first novel, Jamie Waterman, in charge of the second expedition. The story is familiar and there aren't any significant developments in the technology to justify a second novel. Return to Mars is entertaining if familiar. Like Mars crew tensions are a greater danger than an alien planet. Waterman faces his leadership being undermined and there may be a saboteur in the ranks. With 5 men and 3 women there is also some sexual tension. This is extremely familiar ground and Bova doesn't bring anything new to it to justify a novel. Bova does write a good, workmanlike if formulaic novel. He is at his best describing Martian sandstorms and trips across the Martian surface. The Olympus Mons trip is memorable, as are the images of people dangling over huge Martian cliffs. Mars concluded with the possibility that Martian ruins might exist. The possibility is further explored in Return to Mars. Bova does a good job establishing a mystery. Who is losing it and whom will they kill or injure along the way? It's Agatha Christie's "Ten Little Indians" on Mars. Bova generally does a good job with the technology although I had some problems. For instance, the plastic greenhouse that's described doesn't meet the level of technology that's currently available let alone what we might have 40 years hence. An important plot element involves the single sheet of plastic that's used to cover the greenhouse. Current greenhouses use a double layer of plastic with the space between the two layers pressurized providing much greater insulation value. Also, there are loose ends. For instance, the group's repairman has trouble repairing a piece of equipment and the reader expects a revelation but it never comes. The reader is left to wonder what he eventually found wrong. The novel is also politically correct. It has some dubious science like the alpha male concept which is a great idea for wolves. Ultimately it's quite predictable although there are a couple of nice twists. It's entertaining enough and a much easier read than Red Mars but it is an unnecessary sequel.
Rating:
Summary: Socialism on Mars 101
Review: Mr. Ben Bova needs to learn how to hide his atheistic socialist doctrine a little better while writing. I have no problem with his agenda except that, it cluters the book with non-sensical reverse racism. The base line of the story is intense and incredible but, he smacks capitalism at every chance he gets. His books sell because of capitalism. I find the reverse racist innuendo's quite boring. Mr. Bova's science is dead on, it generates good movement until he stumbles upon affirmative action in space. Kim Stanley Robinson has done a much better job, considering they both hold the same agenda. RED MARS, GREEN MARS and BLUE MARS are worth the time involved. Mr. Bova should consider writing socialist doctrine if he feels so strongly about it. Drop the backwater agenda and it's a decent read.
Rating:
Summary: Socialism on Mars 101
Review: Mr. Ben Bova needs to learn how to hide his atheistic socialist doctrine a little better while writing. I have no problem with his agenda except that, it cluters the book with non-sensical reverse racism. The base line of the story is intense and incredible but, he smacks capitalism at every chance he gets. His books sell because of capitalism. I find the reverse racist innuendo's quite boring. Mr. Bova's science is dead on, it generates good movement until he stumbles upon affirmative action in space. Kim Stanley Robinson has done a much better job, considering they both hold the same agenda. RED MARS, GREEN MARS and BLUE MARS are worth the time involved. Mr. Bova should consider writing socialist doctrine if he feels so strongly about it. Drop the backwater agenda and it's a decent read.
Rating:
Summary: Adventure
Review: Ok so the characters are a little sterotypical. It's like being on Mars. The first book is better. Like the first Moon landing the first Mars book only gave us a taste, we only got to stay for a short time. Now we're there and problems are going to arise and we discover a world not just a landing site with a few side trips.
Rating:
Summary: Worth the effort.
Review: Part two in Bova's series about Jamie Waterman, the Navajo Geologist, and his exploits on Mars. In some ways this was better than the first as there was more of a sense of this being a complete novel as the ending here is much more satisfying. A lot of gimmicks take up a lot of time (such as the hunt for a possible saboteur) but overall it was a fun read. The charactors are more fleshed out and develop visibly over the course of the book and Bova makes an effort to make them less shallow, succeeding in several instances. The book almost has a soap-opera feel to it as most of the explorers have sex fairly frequently with several partners along the way. This is used predominately as a tension-creating device and it works well in the context of a small group of people far from home. Not a waste of your time but only read it if you enjoyed the first volume in the series.
Rating: 
Summary: A flawed tale of interplanetary exploration.
Review: Return to Mars is a tale of interplanetary exploration which is flawed by stereotypical charectors (the evil businessman, the "spiritual" American Indian, the man-child who hates his father) and a politicaly correct message. The message, which Bova beats the reader over the head with the subtalty of a sledgehammer, interfeers with what otherwise is an exciting story of exploration rich with scientific and technical detail. Those space enthusiasts who dream of Mars as a new home for human kind will likely take exception to Bova's anticapitalist, antihuman tone and the message that Mars must become a science reserve, closed to human settlement and development. Because of this controversial view, Return to Mars if nothing else might stirr heated debate on what shape space exploration should take in the coming century.
Rating:
Summary: Return home?
Review: Same stereotypes, same clichés. Rich, greedy Daddy sends type A; ego inflated son to Mars to inspect their prospects for commercial exploitation. Give me a break, couldn't he have thought of more original charactors? Guess not. I can't decide if I liked this book better or the first, they were both...okay. Not great, but a good enough read one time around. There are more Mars facts which are interesting, and a twist. A saboteur is onboard. This is more of sci-fi psychological thriller as well, which fits nicely with the situation. I did like Bova's concept that we, ourselves, are the aliens were trying to contact. Perhaps we are it and the powerful moving reactions make you think hard. The gender and nationalities are addressed, again and the fight for the attention of a beautiful and intelligent women. A little romance does make it more interesting, sorry to say. It'll be up to the reader, depending on what you like. If your not into the underlying message and tones of the story, you wont like it. But, if you like a sci-fi novel about Mars and the discoveries made, you'll be fine.
Rating:
Summary: Fast-moving science fiction
Review: Same stereotypes, same clichés. Rich, greedy Daddy sends type A; ego inflated son to Mars to inspect their prospects for commercial exploitation. Give me a break, couldn't he have thought of more original charactors? Guess not. I can't decide if I liked this book better or the first, they were both...okay. Not great, but a good enough read one time around. There are more Mars facts which are interesting, and a twist. A saboteur is onboard. This is more of sci-fi psychological thriller as well, which fits nicely with the situation. I did like Bova's concept that we, ourselves, are the aliens were trying to contact. Perhaps we are it and the powerful moving reactions make you think hard. The gender and nationalities are addressed, again and the fight for the attention of a beautiful and intelligent women. A little romance does make it more interesting, sorry to say. It'll be up to the reader, depending on what you like. If your not into the underlying message and tones of the story, you wont like it. But, if you like a sci-fi novel about Mars and the discoveries made, you'll be fine.
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