A Mindstar was Rising

To those that follow the science fiction scene Peter Hamilton will most likely be a name that sets bells ringing. For me the name stand up next to all the other modern giants; Banks, Reynolds, Baxter and so on and Hamilton’s Night’s Dawn Trilogy will be familiar to many as the sort of epic space opera that took the subgenre from something regularly worthy of scorn to a legitimate field in its own right. But today we look back at one of Hamilton’s earlier works, the beginning of a series of three books (he is loath to name it a trilogy it seems) starring a hero with a difference; Greg Mandel.

If by some chance you’ve managed to miss Hamilton, or maybe you’ve found the hefty The Reality Dysfunction a little too daunting to take a chance on, I suggest you take a look at Mindstar Rising. Even, perhaps, if you’re not the biggest fan of science fiction I’d say it’s worth a look and is a whole different ball game from what you might expect. Written back in the days when we were just beginning to understand that climate change was a big deal the book is set in an arid wasteland of post warming Britain, a world view that seemed all too realistic at the time. A country that’s finally crawled free of a hard-line government that left the nation in socio-economic tatters, is only beginning to take the necessary steps to recover; a world view that seems all too realistic even now.

So the setting isn’t so very unbelievable, sure there’s a few jumps in technology in there; artificial intelligence for instance is becoming a thing, but in truth the only really ‘outthere’ concept is Greg himself. A retired veteran from the Army’s Elite Mindstar Programme; Greg has been turned into a super soldier engineered to possess unique abilities. Now, we are really entering comic book territory, Dr Doom seems about to leap out of the shadows, but rest assured Mandel won’t be running around in red, white and blue lycra (unless I missed something really important). Instead Greg has a gland that allows him brief periods of telepathic sensitivity and some other lesser mental abilities; nothing that makes him significantly less squishy than your average human being and unlike most comic books the power comes with a price that’s more than just a small amount of social awkwardness.

So if it’s not that science fictional and the protagonist isn’t that much better than everyone else then what’s the appeal? Well if you’re asking that question you may be missing the point; personally I love that the plot plays out in a world that isn’t so very far removed from our own with a character that’s special without being someone that every geek and nerd wants to be. But if that’s not enough the book is a great detective novel; Mandel makes his living as a freelance investigator and is hired to investigate several incidents of industrial sabotage at Event Horizon – one of the large technology corporations that’s leading the push to get the country’s economy back on track. With his abilities rooting out the traitors and following the evidence to the organisation responsible is something Greg was practically designed for and yet, as with all good detective novels, things are never that simple.

I remember how gripped I was by Mindstar Rising; I’d happily say that despite being a real, grown-up novel it maintains itself as an easy read. There’s evidence that Hamilton is still honing his craft at this stage; the detail oriented approach present in the Night’s Dawn Trilogy is not so evident and the plot is more linear than the vast scope of other works. But while there is a time and a place for plots that span the stars and a host of characters that George R. R. Martin would be proud of, I still take great joy from occasionally sitting on the shoulder of just one good character and sinking into the close atmosphere that that can create. Mandel isn’t sitting in a smoky office in 1920s Chicago… but why should history get all the fun.

Peter F. Hamilton will be at Imperial College for Picocon 30 on Saturday. February 16. As one of the Guests of Honour he will give an individual talk and participate in the main panel with Steph Swainston, Richard Morgan, Kate Griffin and Jaine Fenn. For more information, and to register your attendance. visit icsf.org.uk/picocon .