Doesn't play fair with world- or character-building.
Murder mystery fused with SF can be very effective, if the author plays fair with their readers -- establishing the society and technology early and clearly, and then resisting any "deus ex machina" explantions (alien technology that explains everything, unexpected aspects of the world of the novel that puts everything in a different light ...)
Thompson has so many deus ex machina moves, he needs to install an elevator. Again and again, he "remembers" to tell you something crucial, that changes everything -- It rapidly becomes impossible to care about the solution to the mystery of who killed 31 of the passengers who were in stasis transport from Earth to the far off planet of Bloodroot.
Murder mystery fused with SF can be very effective, if the author plays fair with their readers -- establishing the society and technology early and clearly, and then resisting any "deus ex machina" explantions (alien technology that explains everything, unexpected aspects of the world of the novel that puts everything in a different light ...)
Thompson has so many deus ex machina moves, he needs to install an elevator. Again and again, he "remembers" to tell you something crucial, that changes everything -- It rapidly becomes impossible to care about the solution to the mystery of who killed 31 of the passengers who were in stasis transport from Earth to the far off planet of Bloodroot.
