Helpful Score: 1
John Varley has long been one of my favorite authors, so I was eager to pick up this latest novel to see what he's thinking about now.
The premise this books starts off with, that something's happened to the oil supply to make it essentially unusable by humanity, was fascinating and quite interesting to think about. The book starts with a fantastic scene, and frenetic panic that keeps the pages turning.
But then it morphs into a "Escape from LA" disaster plot that just doesn't do the premise justice. The "slow" from the title is quite apt; this apocalypse takes forever, and the second half of the book tends to drag a bit as our protagonists muddle about, trying to figure out what to do.
I did enjoy the book, but this is definitely not Varley's best. (But I love the premise! The idea that started the gestation of this novel is apropos to our time and its implications are important to consider. Asking an author to "try again" isn't something that's effective, but I sure hope some other author does.)
4 of 5 stars.
The premise this books starts off with, that something's happened to the oil supply to make it essentially unusable by humanity, was fascinating and quite interesting to think about. The book starts with a fantastic scene, and frenetic panic that keeps the pages turning.
But then it morphs into a "Escape from LA" disaster plot that just doesn't do the premise justice. The "slow" from the title is quite apt; this apocalypse takes forever, and the second half of the book tends to drag a bit as our protagonists muddle about, trying to figure out what to do.
I did enjoy the book, but this is definitely not Varley's best. (But I love the premise! The idea that started the gestation of this novel is apropos to our time and its implications are important to consider. Asking an author to "try again" isn't something that's effective, but I sure hope some other author does.)
4 of 5 stars.
