Review: Sci-fi light
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 08 24, 2013
At the end of Alpha, Taylor Hohulin says that Data from Star Trek Next Generation is his favorite robot. I suspect that would offend Data since he is an android, but that does explain the vibe of Alpha. While this is a sci-fi novel, with robots created for military warfare it is very light and irreverent in tone (even though violent).It is even softer sci-fi than my own book, Lifeboat. At least I think so.When I read, one of the things I enjoy about reading is that I can stop and think along the way. As I was reading Alpha I noted that a couple of very different movies came to mind. Alpha is really in no way like these movies and yet...Ever see the movie Multiplicity with Michael Keaton? Michael Keaton has himself cloned and then the clone has HIMself cloned? A copy of a copy is never quite as good - remember? When you read Alpha, there is no cloning involved, but that movie came to mind for me when Beta and Gamma arrived. I don't want to give too much away here though, so no spoilers. Sorry.Another movie that came to mind, believe it or not, was The Wizard of Oz and the "If I only had a..." song sung by the Cowardly Lion, the Tin Man and the Scarecrow."If I only had a heart..." "...a brain..." "...the noive," (that is "nerve" in that Cowardly Lion accent). Yup that went through my head as well.Alpha was given a human heart in his robotic body in the hope that it would make him feel loyalty toward his allies in the anticipated military intervention of Earth's military in the Mars/Venus war. The sci-fi is so light we never learn where the heart comes from or how it is obtained, and yet there is some pretty dark subject matter as well lightness and humor here in this book .This book won't change your life. It won't change the world. But it will entertain you for a while.See more of my reviews at abshepherd dot net.