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Tomorrow and Tomorrow (Bantam Spectra Book)

Tomorrow and Tomorrow (Bantam Spectra Book)

List Price: $19.00
Your Price: $19.00
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Very good but not perfect..
Review: Charles Sheffield does a fine job here in this eons spanning tale, to me at least it mostly appears plausible. Here you will read of cryonic suspensions, control of matter at the atomic level, downloading of minds into other vessels of thought, a universe of post-humanity, and many other amazing things, it was page-turning material for me. The primary character is Drake Merlin, his wife died of an untreatable condition and he had her cryonically suspended, willing to do practically anything to bring her back to him, an obsession indeed. He goes through many trials and tribulations along the way, all of this is believable in the hard science fiction tradition. I could relate to the refreshing world-view permeating this novel, no myth filled views here, this is a journey into unimaginable stretches of time, well worth reading. The only real criticism I found in this book is how Sheffield treats the subject of cryonic suspension, he does seem to present many inaccuracies, a minor point here, but I do take one star off for it. For a better description of how cryonics actually works in real life read "The First Immortal" by James Halperin, or "Tech Heaven" by Linda Nagata. These two are very fine novels and not to be missed for the science fiction aficionado.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A mind-boggling scifi romance of epic proportions...
Review: Charles Sheffield is a very unique author. Though in this story there is a lot of "techno jargon" and theories about space and time, the inner plot and underlying story presented in this novel are as pure and fresh as any love story, regardless of how strange the words may seem. Drake Merlin's quest to revive his beloved Ana and the sacrifice he endures to save her life, evokes an extraordinary feeling in the reader. You pass over the technological aspect and scientific descriptions and are left with the same feelings that Drake is going through. His obsession with Ana may seem to most a bit drastic, or maybe even on the verge of insanity, the way he puts away everything in his life and gives up his dreams just so he can see her face again. However, I found it touching. This is a very unique love story, in that it differs, in part, from the sterotyped love stories, and at the same time is something that everyone can enjoy. I rate "Tomorrow and Tomorrow" five stars and recommend it to anyone who is looking for something out of this world.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A mind expanding voyage
Review: Excellent, excellent story. What sci-fi reader wouldn't find the idea of a journey millions of years into the future fascinating?

Very well written and awe-inspiring. I know we can only guess about what the far future holds in store for humanity but this book presents a captivating glimpse into what the author calls "the undiscovered country of the future".

I loved it.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: For the hard-core SF reader
Review: I became involved with the Drake at the beginning as the story established his love and relationship with his wife, Ana. This was paramount since the rest of the book gets into heavy content. Drake is an unusual hero, a sensitive musician/composer, who must become an expert in many sciences to rescue Ana.

This was not an easy book to read. Drake's quest through millennial millennium of time and space are details concocted in the mind of a physicist/mathematician author; words or paragraphs couldn't be skipped if his concepts were to be understood. The author worked with different paradigms, but anchored them in the constants of physics. However, he went beyond my feeble reasoning many times.

What kept me going was Drake's love for Ana which carries him through to a final reunion.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Ambitious, but not always successful
Review: I dunno. Charles Sheffield knows his science; in fact, to prove it, he's included an appendix that summarizes the astronomical/cosmological theories on which this tale is founded. He even makes reference to Frank Tipler's _The Physics of Immortality_, making this the second book I've recently read that does so. (The other is Robert Sawyer's _Flashforward_.)

But the story itself is Asimovian in the best and worst senses. Like the Good Doctor, Sheffield is ambitious in his reach: this is a _cosmic_ story, with a breathtakingly wide scope. But also like the Good Doctor, he tends to give his characters made-up-sounding pseudo-futuristic names like Fundular Threem or Gordis Pulge (both of which I just now made up, but they sure sound Asimovian, don't they?). And like the Good Doctor, he sometimes lets the scope of the tale get in the way of the telling, resorting to broad, summary expositions rather than actual drama.

Well, the story is captivating, at least. The first portion -- Drake Merlin making arrangements for himself and his wife Ana to be cryonically preserved until a cure is available for her disease -- is well-written and well-paced. The first round of Drake's future awakening is handled well too.

But it starts to come apart after that. First of all, Drake does something so incredibly, astoundingly, outrageously, mind-bendingly _stupid_ (I won't tell you what, but you'll know when you get there) that it just about ruins the character and the plot. Second, the end of the first portion of the book leaves (let's say) something to be desired in the way of personal continuity.

And third, the latter portion of the story -- the stuff in the way-far future -- is probably just a little more than Sheffield should have bitten off. I won't give away any details here, but it's just not possible to tell that part of the tale without resorting to the summary exposition I mentioned above. The narrative tends to drag, there isn't much dramatic action, and we don't even get to see the final resolution of the problem Drake is supposed to be trying to solve.

The ending is pretty good, considering. And I can't fault Sheffield for aiming high, so I give him lots of points for ambition. Nevertheless there are enough unsatisfying features that I have to deduct a star.

Still, it's nicely done overall, and well worth reading.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Really two books: one fantastic, one boring.
Review: I really hesitated whether I would give it a chance after I read "The Mind Pool" by Charles Sheffield, which started excellent, but ended as a big mess. But then I saw that people had given "Tommorow and Tommorow" such good reviews, and I figured Charles Sheffield deserves another chance.

The book started really well: the story is set at the end of the 20th century and tells about Drake Merlin, a musician and a composer. Drake and his wife, Ana, live a happy life. Both do not pursue money or power but instead concentrate on their professions (Ana is a singer), and live in bliss. But this doesn't last for too long, as Ana contracts a strange and lethal disease, leading to her death in a fairly short period of time. Drake is heartbroken, but decides not do despair. He contacts a company called "Second Chance", and freezes Ana in a cryotomb - hoping that sometime in the future technology would be high enough to revive her and cure whatever she has. Afterwards, Drake works for a few years, collecting knowledge which he figures would be very useful in the future as well as making money so he could afford keeping Ana frozen for a long period of time, and also afford to freeze himself. Drake hopes that in some time in the future, both of them will be revived, Ana be cured, and they can continue their life. His love for Ana is really strong, and he is determined not to give up. The time comes, and Drake is frozen - only to be awaken 500 years in the future, in a totally changed society.

This is but one of the many times Drake will be frozen only to be woken up in the yet farther future.. things have not gone as smoothly as Drake had hoped..

This took exactly one half of the book, and was really fantastic. The author built a completely believable future (actually, several futures), and the story was very captivating:
I totally thought I had misjudged Charles Sheffield, and couldn't put this book down.
However...
Then Drake wakes up, and the book takes a very strange twist. Apparently in the very, very distant future, Drake (as an "ancient and primitive human") will be needed to save the descendants of the human race, as they are fighting for their survival against a force from outside our galaxy which cannot be fathomed. Drake must take control, find out what is the problem, and then solve it. Other reviewers commented on the accuracy of the science in this part. I agree. However, it is still very boring. For me it was a distraction of the main story, and frankly, I think this shouldn't have been put in this book. I read the entire second half of the book in one long evening, because I really wanted to get to the end, which wasn't very satisfying (but better than not reading the end at all). I really wanted to see whether Drake and Ana will be united.


To summarize this book: first part is really good, but the second part might disappoint you. Overall it is still definitely worthy of a read.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The concepts sweep you away...
Review: The story of a late 20th century man whose wife is dying. Rather than let her go, he has them both cryogenically frozen in the hopes that she may be cured in the future. He is awakened much later only to learn that she was irrevocably lost to him. Instead he is needed as the last remnant of humanity's violent times to combat a new menace to the vast but peaceful human space empire.

This book tops my list of Sheffield favorites. Even if you despise the story - and I don't see why you would - the concepts of what man may accomplish in the distant future will leave you in wonder for days. Sheffield introduces an incredible amount of fascinating ideas about the future of genetic engineering, artificial intelligence, society, music, space travel, communications, immortality, and even the nature of reality.

I withheld the fifth star from my rating because the ending baffled me. This may have been the fault of my hurry to see what happens, rather than any poor writing on the author's part. But I was a little disappointed by it. Still, I heartily recommend this to anyone interested in sci fi or just exploring possibilities.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: This book goes beyond time and science...
Review: This book is amazing, reminding me slightly of 'Last And First Man' by Olaf Stapledon and also 'The Time Machine' by H.G. Wells. It's not just a science fiction book, but a book about the human spirit, the human soul, the human mind. Yes, it has aliens, and strange planets, and mankind's many different forms in the future, but at a certain point it goes beyond the hard science to explore our dreams and what the future may bring. Love and death, waste and power, peace and war. No matter what body we may create, no matter what mind we may think in, no matter how we evolve, we can't give up. We may give up our forms and even link our minds, but in the end we are all searching for something that only WE need and only WE can understand. Drake is after something that is special only to him.
Yes, there are a few weak ideas, like when future man turns to Drake for help, because thy don't know how to fight against an 'alien menace'. Yet I found it funny, and even refreshing, because Drake was just as useless when it came to fighting a war as they were. My only complaint is that after 387 pages the ending was also kind of weak. I wanted something more, something solid. Not a re-read, if you get my drift. Check it out of the library or get a used copy.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: This book goes beyond time and science...
Review: This book is amazing, reminding me slightly of 'Last And First Man' by Olaf Stapledon and also 'The Time Machine' by H.G. Wells. It's not just a science fiction book, but a book about the human spirit, the human soul, the human mind. Yes, it has aliens, and strange planets, and mankind's many different forms in the future, but at a certain point it goes beyond the hard science to explore our dreams and what the future may bring. Love and death, waste and power, peace and war. No matter what body we may create, no matter what mind we may think in, no matter how we evolve, we can't give up. We may give up our forms and even link our minds, but in the end we are all searching for something that only WE need and only WE can understand. Drake is after something that is special only to him.
Yes, there are a few weak ideas, like when future man turns to Drake for help, because thy don't know how to fight against an 'alien menace'. Yet I found it funny, and even refreshing, because Drake was just as useless when it came to fighting a war as they were. My only complaint is that after 387 pages the ending was also kind of weak. I wanted something more, something solid. Not a re-read, if you get my drift. Check it out of the library or get a used copy.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Thought-provoking science fiction
Review: This is one of those books which after you finish it leaves you thinking. After I was done my mind raced all over the place with the possibilities of possibilities. I liked it so much that I bought it and make it a point to read my favorite passages every so often. I highly recommend this book to anyone who not only likes science fiction but also enjoys thinking about the future and all the possibilities of life.


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