By Nic Lindh on Monday, 22 August 2005
Set in Alastair Reynolds’s Revelation Space universe, Chasm City departs from the grand epic scale of that trilogy, instead focusing on Chasm City after the ravages of a horrific disease dubbed the Melding Plague, and the history of Sky’s Edge, a world trapped in perennial warfare.
Basically, the novel feels like a grand homage: Chasm City is the bleak, rain-drenched Los Angeles of Blade Runner, and the protagonist, Mirabel Tanner, has more than a touch of Raymond Chandler, while the core of the plot gives more than a nod and a wave to Philip K. Dick.
All good influences to have.
On the plus side, Chasm City is taut and interesting, with more ideas per page than most literature and a well-engineered plot.
On the minus side, some of the characters are under-developed, and some of the dialogue is wooden.
As a whole, though, Chasm City is a thoroughly enjoyable romp with a gleam in its machine-infested eye.