I often try to explain my frame of mind going into a novel. In this case, between the Nebula awards’ consistent inconsistency, the fact that this is an entry in a sprawling space opera epic that I’ve never heard of, let alone read, and the harlequin romance cover and cover description…well, I wasn’t looking forward to this one. But, it kind of surprised me. Emphasis on "kind of."
In Asaro’s Skolian Empire books, ancient humans, with some
mysterious alien intervention, colonized large segments of the galaxy. This empire was ruled over by genetically
engineered psychics. It eventually
collapsed, and by the time Earth caught up to it, the whole thing was reeling
in the midst of an interstellar war.
I’m sure that background is apparent in the other novels,
but in The Quantum Rose we start on the backwards planet of Balumil, where no one
is aware of any of this. Kamoj is the
beautiful young ruler of Argali, and she is betrothed to the cruel, older Jax
Ironbridge. However, the strange masked foreigner
Vyrl Lionstar makes a better offer and wins her away (brides on Balumil are
more or less bought by the highest bidder).
Kamoj is initially horrified, but she soon learns that Vyrl is not
merely a rude foreigner, but a heroic exile from another planet. His clashes with the local culture are
misunderstandings, and he is kind, handsome, and wants to treat Kamoj as an
equal. He introduces Kamoj to
technologies from computers to advanced medicine to spaceships. He does have his own troubled background;
he’s been caught up in a conflict with the Earth Alliance, and it’s left psychological
scars that have driven him to alcoholism and a distrust of his Skolian
allies. Meanwhile, Ironbridge still
fights for Kamoj, and she has to balance her sense of duty to her planet with
her love of Vyrl and complex interstellar politics.
It does have some of the trappings of romance novels that
the cover and description imply; I don’t have any particular problem with a
romantic storyline, but the genre does have a set of tropes, some of which I find somewhat offensive, and others are just worn out.
Here we do get the beautiful, damaged man, and the initial fear and
roughness in a relationship that quickly turns to abiding love. There’s all sorts of sexual coercion here,
and Kamoj is often a victim. We’re told
that her people have been genetically engineered as compliant slaves, but
watching her allow herself to be trampled for duty or love for most of the
novel can get annoying. Also, the
characters are a little too perfect in their beauty, heroism, self-sacrifice,
and love for each other, not to mention their superhuman abilities. Hey, Vyrl can even dance like a god among
men! Is their a term for this sort of
romance-novel, perfect mate Mary Sueism?
All of this grated, but there was also plenty to like in the
novel. Contact between advanced and primitive
societies is old hat in sf, but Asaro handles it quite well here, slowly
unveiling the Skolians to us at the same time she reveals them to Kamoj. The overall plot has a lot of momentum, and
the scale of action gets bigger as the novel goes on, eventually moving to
another planet. Despite their
unrealistic perfection, the main characters are solid and interesting, and some
of the side characters, especially the crew of the ship that brought Vyrl, are even
more intriguing. Asaro has a PhD in math
herself, and she keeps the technology interesting and familiar, while also
drawing bigger metaphors from mathematical processes (“couple-channeled
quantum-scattering”). I can’t say that I
ever really grasped this aspect of the novel’s structure, but I do appreciate
that Asaro tried something different.
All in all, I'd call this a mixed bag. When I wasn't rolling my eyes, annoyed by cliché, I was usually caught up in the book and enjoying myself. It gets a middling grade from me, but I'm rather glad that Nebula went with something different this year.
Grade: B-
I've heard "Gary Stu" for the male Mary Sues...
ReplyDeleteI have never read Asaro but I had to pick up a cheap copy of one of the books in this series for the wacky cover/premise alone. It is called "Diamond Star" and is about an intergalactic pop star who gets stranded on Earth. And the hardcover comes with a CD.
I've seen that cover. It's.....interesting.... :)
ReplyDeleteI would like to check out more Skolian stuff, though I think I have a few hundred books that are higher on my priorities list at the moment.