The Immortals

Rating:
Summary: A worthy addition to any library
Review: A fan of Hickman's DragonLance/D&D-themed work when I was younger, it was with some trepidation that I picked up The Immortals for I wondered how an author who'd written fantasy could give the attention and seriousness due the topics addressed within this novel. I shouldn't have worried.

The Immortals is a compelling and driving read, with dark yet entirely realistic imagery, a future that is entirely possible, and a look into the mindset of the American--no, the world's-- populous. The characters are engrossing. Hickman develops them with a master's touch, displaying their humanity (for all the good and evil the term encompasses) to the reader in a way that helps to put our own world into a framework that makes a little more sense. One begins to understand the power of denial, the violence that fear and ignorance foster, and the responsibility each of us must assume as human beings.

Beginning with the arrest of the protagonist's son for his infection with an AIDS-like disease, the book carries you through the father's search for his estranged son and turns into a struggle to finding meaning in the madness of society--intolerance, fear, prejudice and apathy.

The design and function of the concentration camps is entirely believable, removed from public eye and administered by a small military force shieled from scrutiny. Though set in the future, the techonology is entirely believable yet thankfully does not take the reader's mind away from the story itself. Ultimately, this is a story about humanity, and one we should all read.

I hope that this is not the last such novel by Hickman. Though his works of fantasy are thoroughly enjoyable, it is works like this that live up to the ideals of what science fiction ought to be--examining and challenging our own lives.

Rating:
Summary: Hauntingly Beautiful
Review: I accidently lost my hard copy of this book and had to rush to the library to borrow a copy and finish it. Compelling, intriquing, there are not enough adjectives to describe the emotional depth of this book. As one who is often disappointed in the SF novel endings, I was satisfied with this one even though it was not a glorious salvation for the characters we had come to care about. The danger is real, and totally credible based on our historic behaviors and fears. Hickman, who should write more solo novels, made me think about my life, my priorities, my values, my prejudices in real time. This is actually my favorite kind of science fiction, that which lies just at the edge of our current earthly reality.

Rating:
Summary: A Haunting Look at an Alternative(?) and Frightening Future
Review: I am an avid reader of Weis and Hickman, but I was unprepared for this one. Very different from their usual upbeat style, Hickman keeps the pace fast, but never lets you forget the tragedy of what is happening. This book is touching, heart-renching, disturbing, and depressing, and yet at the same time triumphant and uplifting, showing the transcendence of humanity even from these worst of conditions. All the horrors of which mankind is capable are spread out for the reader to see in grisly detail, but so are the great works. One warning: this book contains many mature themes, I wouldn't recommend it for anyone who is easily offended by such things. In short, this book is one of the most amazing standalone novels I've ever read, by anyone.

Rating:
Summary: transparent and two dimensional, not a book for readers.
Review: I appear to be the only negative review for this book, but cannot not recommend it at all. The writer has some talent but not enough to either pull off this morality play or to avoid using, both, painful character cliches (wise father/prodigal son; corrupt, power hunger priest; burley, irredeemable man melted and redeemed by a young girl's innocence), and unforgivable phrasing, as if he were trying to prove himself a poet as well as, apparently, a best selling author. Here is an example, not even the worst, if you like it you will like this book, if you find it pretentious, essentially saying nothing, as I do you will hate the book as much as I did.

"Gene Lovett stood under the cold stars shining in the cloudless sky overhead, his own moment of stillness blanketing the camp....a moment of quiet and peace. It was the between time; that instant was the demarcation between two worlds, neither one at rest."

This is a concentration camp story, there are token nods to true human horror, but a series of emotional dominos are set up and no real horror is allowed in to interfere with the author's didactic of mission to paint humanity in two sensitive dimensions. I'll end with his own take on this book.

"This book is about forgiveness and compassion. It is a book about our souls."

If he had the sense to control his flowery, weak poetry, if he'd aimed a lot lower and tried to give us both sides of humanity in each character, then he might have had a book. Instead this is a black and white play, populated with black and white characters, feeling black and white emotions. There is nothing controversial, nothing hard, nothing to make you think about what he so desperately wants you to contemplate, your "soul". It's admirable to want this, it's unforgivable to do it so poorly.

Rating:
Summary: Bad Science, OK Fiction
Review: If you prefer hard science Sci-Fi, avoid this book. The difficulty in writing Sci-Fi set in the near future is maintaining a sense of believability. Unfortunately, the science as set forth in this novel is sadly deficient. Even if the technologigal geegaws set forth in this book were invented in late 1996 (the book was printed in May, 1996) it is implausible that they would have totally replaced the former infrastructure by 2010 (the year in which the main events occur).

However, this Sci-Fi book is more interested in the story than the technical geegaws. Within the technological framework given, the story, although treacly and predictable, is enjoyable as a borrow once from the library book. I would not recommend purchase of it tho.

Rating:
Summary: This one really sticks with you.
Review: It's been about 3 years since I first read this book, and I have yet to forget how I felt when I got to the last page. Hickman's realistic characters and believable social structure go a long way towards the flawless suspension of disbelief. I think people who enjoy science fiction as well as those who just enjoy speculative fiction will both find something in here for their tastes. Hickman does a superb job of discussion the issues at hand without preaching directly to the reader. I just might have to read this one again for pure pleasure!

Rating:
Summary: This one really sticks with you.
Review: It's been about 3 years since I first read this book, and I have yet to forget how I felt when I got to the last page. Hickman's realistic characters and believable social structure go a long way towards the flawless suspension of disbelief. I think people who enjoy science fiction as well as those who just enjoy speculative fiction will both find something in here for their tastes. Hickman does a superb job of discussion the issues at hand without preaching directly to the reader. I just might have to read this one again for pure pleasure!

Rating:
Summary: Imperfect, but Important
Review: The Immortals is the first solo venture of Tracy Hickman's that I have read, and I was ultimately pleased with with the writing; although there were some flaws in style and plot development, that caused me to raise one eye brow slightly and ask, "Where are you going with this?"

The Characters in the book have the depth that Hickman fans have come to expect and the over all storyline is all too plausible. The interacting of characters, amazing sense of community and family, and impending doom that builds steadily towards the novel's end will have you caught in a web of emotional turmoil.

This novel was a daring move for Hickman, who's commercial success has been in the realms of Science Fiction and Fantasy. The Immortals may very well be easily classified as science fiction, but the boldness of the message within slaps society so hard in the face that I feel more inclined to classify it as realistic fiction. Remove the floating cars and magnetic force fields, and your left reading about an event frighteningly similar to the worst parts of recent human history; a history with potential to repeat itself.

So why the five stars if the writing was imperfect? Hickman put our emotions in a blender, and pureed our very souls. He left us in fear, dreadful wondering, and at the same time hope; and not just for the characters within the pages. The message is real.

I don't know if Hickman's risk in writing this novel paid off commercially. I do know that the risk paid off in ways that can not be measured, for those of us who have read this book. It's a shame that a publisher with enough courage could not be found to put this book out years earlier, as Hickman had hoped.