Rating: 
Summary: This book is about Eternity...I thought it was great.
Review: Titan, what claustrophobia that trip to Saturn was! I didn't care about the likelihood of the scenario and even less about NASA politics - though it had a kind of modern post-restructured gloominess about it that resonated right for me. And when they arrived ... it was worse! (You knew it would be). I loved what the Chinese did! It kind of outdoes Dr Stangelove for whacky, nihilistic absurdity. Fatalism! It works! But the best bit - and again I didn't care at all about the LIKELIHOOD of it happening - was the ending. Out of that claustrophobia, grief and loss, comes an opening up of an incredible vista of space and time. This book has terrific perspective. It says a lot about Life, The Universe, and our very small puffed up place in it.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Book
Review: This is a great Book. Stephin Baxter creates seens that seem to come alive in your mind. Don't pass up this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Ridiculous and unbelievable account of American politics
Review: I worked on the Shuttle program in Houston through Challenger, and there is no way that after a major accident the US would then turn around and say, "hey, how about dusting off that Saturn 5 out there by NASA Road One just for grins, and let's hop on over to Titan". I can overlook the science fantasy junk at the end, but I found the extremist politics back in America to be so distracting and annoying that I would give this book zero stars (I gave "Voyage" five stars). The only reason I gave "Titan" three stars is that I enjoyed the details of the hardware, such as the Shuttle OPS keyboard entries and such.
Rating: 
Summary: Ridiculous Near-Future hurts promising book
Review: I have read many of Stephen Baxter's novels and have enjoyed them to one degree or another. This book treads in very dangerous waters, however, by putting itself just a few years into the future. To beleive Baxter's vision of the U.S. and the World situation is to ignore everything that is happening today. A good "future history" needs to draw from a reasonably objective view of recent past and current trends in society. Baxter does neither, and displays a shocking lack in his grasp of the basic American culture. He has a single political figure changing the course of America overnight. When has this ever occured? Answer - in the U.S. - never! A single person, no matter how powerful, might get us going down a bad road (Hearst, McCarthy,Reagan) but we almost always sniff them out quickly and restore the centrist type of Democracy that we have thrived on for over two hundred years. His idea of a right wing takeover is probably better suited to Europe, which has a long history of embracing radical political ideals. And the idea of succesion is absolutely ludicrous. With a right-wing conservative at the helm it would surely lead to a military occupation of the offending state. Additonally - throughout this book - the time line just doesn't jibe. We have a major character travelling around the US and then just a year or so later he is a blithering senile old man in a nursing home. Where is reality in the drawing of any of these characters? Or the ridiculous plot line? Answer - nowhere. Even his view on the future of the manned space program seems off the mark, though it might have been slightly more reasonable a few years ago when he wrote the novel. The science involving Titan is fascinating and on some level I'm glad I stuck it out to the end, but the overall tone of this book is incredibly pessimistic and any reader should be ready for a real "downer" of a read. Baxter has a lot of really great ideas that might have been better suited to a standard exploration novel set fifty years into the future.
Rating:
Summary: Didn't like the characters, plot absurd, worthwhile science
Review: Baxter works out the science. You have to give him that. But I don't think I would want to spend an hour with any of the characters. Add death, desperation and decay, and you don't have a fun read. A five page science article would have been fine. If you like the "great ending," and the way he works out the science, try Hal Clement. All the pluses, none of the minuses.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely excellent.
Review: I found this book to be one of the most absorbing, awe-inspiring novels I have ever read. The characters were real, the events both in space and on Earth were riveting, and the climax was very emotional. I cannot recommend this book more strongly.
Rating:
Summary: Good texture, dismal tone
Review: The texture, that is the feel of the experiences described in this book, as well as the powerful sweep of events stayed with me. A strong effect. The plot and character relationships and attitude about human fate is depressing and unrealistic. Kind of like Ayn Rand--there are a few sacred, fine people and the rest of humanity is to hell in a handbasket. Not...
Rating:
Summary: A Dark, Depressing Future
Review: I couldn't quite figure out what was bothering me about this book after enjoying his other works, then I realized it was that the future described here was really dark and depressing. Especially considering it is the near future. Personally I like the details that go into his books about the shuttle and such and was not disappointed here. But while Baxter seems to be knowledgeable concerning the space program its clear he isn't as familiar with the military when writing about it. Also to believe that in 10 years or less we would launch a mission to Titan and the world comes to an end is streching it a little. And the last part of the book is really more fiction than science. I suppose it is an okay read, kind I would recommend when I can't find anything better.
Rating:
Summary: A somewhat tedious road--to a fantastic finish!
Review: Baxter's talent shines best when he manages to capture on paper the unfathomable possibilities of the extremely distant future. In that he succeeds here as well. However, the first 70% of the book is sometimes agonizingly contrived to allow him to do just that.
Rating: 
Summary: My book actually gives hope in space exploration.
Review: What I really meant when I wrote Titan was that it was to be both a true scientific 'guide' for the propagation of the exploration of Titan, which I now believe is warm and inhabitable, and also a good read. Not a short read, you have to spend some time with it, savor it, It may be to 'scientific' for some, then I suggest pick up a Star Trek book. Congrats to all of my readers who picked up the meaning of the book.
| 
