Jake W. (gamefan4564) reviewed on 10/13/2016 + 2 more book reviews

I wouldn't call the original novel a science fiction classic, but it was a good book. It always kept to the point and knew to keep the pace going. And admittedly, writing a sequel was an ambitious undertaking. And while Clarke managed to franchise off the space odyssey series (especially 2010), the Rama sequel in the end in no way lives up to the original story.I feel I can sum up the problems with this novel by comparing the pacing to the original. With the original Rendezvous, the explorers make contact with the spacecraft within three chapters and begin exploration immediately. In Rama II, it takes 100 pages just to get to the craft, and then another 100 before anything actually starts to happen. Rama II is stuffed full of unnecessary ramblings, character development, and bureaucracies that get in the way of what the novel is trying to accomplish.
However, Rama II does have some moments of brilliance. A few ideas contained in the ramblings are interesting. And once the first 200 pages are passed, the actual exploration of the craft that happens, is comparable to the original novel. However, once the exploration ends, the rest of the novel falls back on its overwritten ramblings.
I have no doubt Gentry Lee contributed to this overly indulgent writing. And while we do get characters within a Clarke novel, reading Rama II is pretty much a slog. The book is 460 pages, and could have sufficed as another 250 page novel. I'd only reccomend Rama II for Clarke enthusiasts, or people interested to see where the Rama universe goes. Though this may not be a particularly great book, good conversation can arise on the specifics that could make it better.

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