On the Steel Breeze (Alastair Reynolds)

 
Yes, I am really addicted to Reynoldian works. I thought I have escaped that by reading many other works, yet, during my birthday this year, my students brought me (or 'bought', to be specific) Alastair Reynolds' latest work, On the Steel Breeze (short as in OTSB below).

I was delighted, of course, not to mention they brought me a hardcover version, which is the first book I have ever owned from Alastair's. There are, *ahem*, some books by Alastair that I did not quite like in terms of uniformity and consistency. I mean the cover, of course.

OTSB, the only hardcover version I own now, is somewhat duller in a sense. Perhaps my expectations are too high when he announced some sneakies about the main character Chiku Akinya having split herself into three clones, including herself, to embark on adventures that cannot be experienced simultaneously.

I thought the content and plot will be dense.

The plot is heavy, but not dense, I tell you.

Chiku (spoiler ahead) splits herself into Chiku Red, Yellow and Green. Continuing from previous book, Blue Remembered Earth, loosely, Red chose a destiny to meet with the mythical or legendary ancestor of her own, Eunice Akinya, the one who brought the stars to humanity. Green, however, chose the journey to a planet called Crucible where hints of alien intelligence are found. Yellow, being the most prudent, chose to stay behind in a rather bland life.

Or so it seems.

To really punch a review, I would give some note of disappointment. Several familiar occurence dotted in the book. First, the art of splitting an individuals to multiple clones. This has already been introduced in House of Suns from his earlier books, though the timescale for that book is extremely vast. Second, the cored-out asteroids called 'holoships' which housed several million people living and breathing to keep them warm throughout the journey to Crucible, which took them 120 years. This is much more boring compare to Alastair's Chasm City's generation ship launched to the direction to 61 Cygni-A star system. Third, BDO or Big Dumb Object. In OTSB, there are 22 huge structures orbiting Crucible which does nothing except (apparently) cleaning up atmosphere. This is similar to Pushing Ice's Janus and the Structure.

Well, not too negative eh. I still find that Alastair is able to bring awe and sighs to the appearance of the legendary Eunice. He has successfully made me want to really really meet this godlike lady. The discovery and bringing back of her real body gives me a huge emotional plunge and her grand appearance in riding on elephants to 'war' really makes me imagine the war in ancient Asia.

Well done, Alastair, but I am a little unhappy about the ending.

It's a bit too... simple. Lacks detail. Perhaps I have been reading too much of your material, but I would now have a much higher expectation for your last Poseidon's Children series. I want things in a much grander scale. Much more epicness. I want operatic. I want a little dose of goth, or maybe Lovecraftian horror. I want a sense of awe that when I finish reading these three books of yours, I have the chance to breathe out one single sigh and say, 'Akinya, I salute you.'

Thanks, Al!

I love your letter to me!