M.M. Buckner
War Surf (2005)
Author: M.M. Buckner
Genre: Science Fiction (Cyberpunk/Philosophical)
Plot Summary:
Nasir Deepra is a rich, rich man. He is the CEO of Provendia and is 248 years old. There's not much that he hasn't done, and there are only two things in the world he is passionate about: a 20-year physical therapist named Sheeba and war surfing. Sheeba is his unattained conquest. War surfing is the only activity that makes him feel truly alive. Basically, war surfing is when you put yourself in harm's way for recreation, for the adrenaline rush of the moment. Nasir and his friends (who call themselves the Agonists) are all war surfers. In fact, war surfing is something of a sport in the environmental devastated world of the 23rd century. Hot spots are ranked for difficulty, and the hottest spot is Heaven, a lone satellite in polar orbit. The workers of Heaven are revolting against their corporate taskmasters (there are no governments in the 23rd century, only corporations, or Coms). To win her affections, Nasir talks his friends into letting Sheeba become an Agonist. After a fouled surf, the Agonists' rank slips, and there's only one way to get back their first-place rank: to surf Heaven. That's where the trouble begins. SPOILER: Nasir and Sheeba are captured by the inhabitants of Heaven. Sheeba becomes a sympathizer; Nasir slowly comes to realize what a selfish ass he is. You see, Provendia, Nasir's company, owns Heaven, and the war is his fault. He had given the order for the crew of Heaven to be euthanized. Will Nasir escape before the crew of Heaven figure out who he is, and will Nasir be able to win Sheeba's love given her new-found affection for the leader of Heaven's crew? I've spoiled you enough, but the answers are yes and no. Nasir eventually has to sacrifice himself for the sake of Heaven's crew--an act that represents a complete change-of-heart for this spoiled thrill-seeker.
Geographical Setting: Earth, post-environmental devastation; Heaven, a satellite orbiting Earth
Time Period: 2253 CE (the future)
Series: sequel to Neurolink
Appeal Characteristics:
It took me a while to get into this one as Nasir is a completely unlikeable character at first. Chalk up my enjoyment of the book to the way Buckner develops her characters. Told from the first person by Nasir, the reader sees his transformation much more than Sheeba's, and the crew of Heaven as well as the Agonists are fairly two-dimensional and predictable. Still, this book has real depth, and it's philosophical examination of longevity as well as its take on a social system truly polarized into the have's and have not's are food for thought (unfortunately, I doubt many CEO's will read this book and give up there multi-million dollar lifestyles). The book also has a lot to say about the environmental devastation we are wrecking on the planet, and Buckner has done her research in painting her portrait of an Earth fouled by pollutants and over-heated by greenhouse gases. The pace of this book is moderate, and I wonder if I'd have read this book if I hadn't known it was the 2005 Philip K. Dick Award winner. Even so, I'm glad I read the book.
Read-alikes: If you like Buckner, check out her other titles, Neurolink (2004) and Hyperthought (2004). The latter was nominated for the PKD Award in 2003. Readers who enjoyed the militaristic aspects of War Surf should enjoy The Lost Fleet: Dauntless The first in The Lost Fleet series by John Campbell. This novel is fast-paced, with elements of futuristic science and a healthy dose of suspense. Similar to Nasir Deepra, the leader figure in War Surf, Captain John Geary is the head of his fleet. As Nasir has technology that helps his body to stay alive, John Geary's body has been preserved for a century in hibernation and his crew has recovered him from outer space. Now that his world has been almost completely destroyed, he has to find a way to get his crew out of a difficult situation, while dealing with his god-like reputation, and a war that has been going on for a century. Reader's who enjoyed the romance and suspense aspect of the novel might enjoy Spin Control by Chris Moriarty. Arkady, an entomologist, is assigned to a project with his clone, whom he falls in love with. During their research, they come across some valuable information which others want to get their hands on. Meanwhile, the two of them have fallen in love, and Arkady's clone is kidnapped and he sets out to rescue her. Readers who enjoyed the details about the future consequences of the Earth's pollution, and what happens when people are desperate which also reside in War Surf might also enjoy Singularity by Bill Desmedt. In this novel, Earth is in danger from being hit by what was originally thought to be a meteor and turns out to be a large black hole that got into the Earth's surface and never left. They also find out that some evil people are plotting to use the effects of the black hole to control people on Earth. If they succeed in their plot they will involve the Earth in a huge and horrible dictatorship, and if they fail, the destruction of the Earth is certain because the effects of the black hole will increase rapidly. Those intrigued by Nasir's ability to keep his body alive and well after 250 years should try reading Inherit the Earth by Brian M. Stableford. In this novel, Conrad Helier has invented the artificial womb, allowing people to once again reproduce and to continue their race. His son Damon deals with the complex issue of whether or not a person deserves to be immortal and tries to pull his father out of hiding from some other high tech companies. If you're interested in the issue of longevity with a hard cyberpunk edge, you won't want to miss Richard K. Morgan's Philip K. Dick Award-winning debut, Altered Carbon (2003), the first of the Takeshi Kovacs novels. In this novel, technology is used to keep people alive through a cortial stack, which is implanted into their bodies (or a clone of their body), and allows them to download a "saved copy" of their conscious self from a previously-used body. For military-themed tales of longevity in the cyberpunk vein, try titles by Neal Asher. Start with Cowl (2005), which focuses on a near-immortal time traveler who is pursue a mysterious objective. Also try Asher's The Skinner (2005) and Peter F. Hamilton's Pandora's Star (2004) and its sequel Judas Unchained (2006). Another author of militaristic cyberpunk is Elizabeth Bear. Classics of the subgenre include Heinlein's Starship Troopers (1959) and Joe Haldeman's The Forever War (1974). If you "enjoy" the class disparity of this book, try Ursula K. LeGuin's classic The Dispossessed (1974) or Yevgeny Zamyatin's classic We (1924).
Red Flags: some language, mild sexual references
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