Vectors

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining and interesting until------
Review: the climax. Totally ridiculous ending that makes NO SENSE in light of what preceeded it. The main character's climactic actions are hinted at once in the middle of the book, but the motivation behind them are never fully explained. I really liked this book up to the last four pages, but I could have written a far, far better ending, absolutely no lie!

Rating:
Summary: Chilling and hopeful look at life and death
Review: This is a story that explores the unknowable and tries to put the lie to the phrase "the country from which no traveler returns". Do we have a soul? Can it be measured?
The background and texture of the very near future is well crafted. I was impressed by his vision of our society's development under "Homeland Security". The on-going issues of university politics, and the general tendency of science to be more reactionary than many would expect make this believable and real.
I very much look forward to any future books in this universe.

Rating:
Summary: Good Plan
Review: Ugh. I thought I had liked some of his stuff in the past, this was really crap. Scientist takes pictures of brainwaves, unique as fingertips, discovers identical ones from an old man and a kid born after the old man's death. His Wiccan, video game genius new girlfriend is killed by gang-bangers after he has scoffed at her suggestion that this is proof of reincarnation, so he goes on a mission to prove her theory. After a bunch of plot, he kills himself so he can be reincarnated soon after she is, so he can hook up with her again ASAP -- good plan.
I had thought he was more of a hard science guy, what's with the fuzzy reincarnation bit???