The Terminal Experiment by Robert J. Sawyer

 

The Terminal Experiment is a terrific science fiction thriller set in what was the author’s near future. It was written in 1995 and set in 2011. The novel has a prologue, so the reader knows that a murder is going to happen, and a police officer is also going to be poisoned.

The plot starts with a scientist, Dr Peter Hobson, accidently discovering the electrical signature of a soul leaving a body. This discovery has all sorts of implications for society. Some people suicide so their soul can go to a better place, some go on health kicks as they fear where their soul might end up. But this is only the beginning of Hobson’s experiments with the human mind.

Hobson then teams up with another scientist to conduct an experiment where copies of his mind are uploaded onto a computer. He alters two of the copies in different ways and a third is a control copy. The experiments don’t go as expected, with Hobson’s marital problems having an effect on them.

As mentioned, the novel was written in 1995, so it is interesting to see what technology Sawyer has people using in 2011. Obviously, no one uploaded human minds that functioned as such in 2011. And no one had tracked the human soul in 2011. But, for the most part, the technology is what it actually was like in 2011. Sawyer had a really good grasp of what the internet might be like. The one major missing technology is mobile phones, with characters often having to find a phone to use. Many of the phones did have video screens though.

The novel has some wonderful speculations on what uploaded minds might get up to. It also has some very interesting insights into how police can manipulate the people they investigate. Sawyer seems to have a keen interest in police procedures due to the nature of his novels, like Flash Forward.

I have not read many “crime” novels set in the future, so reading The Terminal Experiment was an enjoyable different read for me. It may be the type of novel that introduces readers of crime fiction to science fiction. It is very much a page-turner.

The Glad Shout by Alice Robinson

The Glad Shout is a novel that will shake many readers expectations of their future prospects. It portrays a potential future for many of us, especially those who live near the coast. The novel is set in 2045 after a massive storm has flooded Melbourne, destroying much of the housing and infrastructure, including power.

The story is about one family: Isobel, her three-year-old daughter Margaret, and Shane her husband. It is told almost exclusively from Isobel’s point of view. The family have just made their way out of the floodwaters to higher ground in a sports stadium. It could be the MCG but that is never made clear. It is supposed to be an evacuation centre but has limited supplies, limited staff and virtually no communication with the outside world.

The family sets up a tent in the muddy stadium field. They then wait to find out the extent of the damage to Melbourne and where they might eventually be relocated to. There is a lot of tension in the camp. As the novel is set in Australia, it fortunately lacks the American gun and gang culture. No one tries to take control with guns as would happen in many similar American novels. For the most part, the survivors still behave like they are part of a continuing society that has order to it.

In between the story of Isobel and her family’s attempts to survive, the novel explores her backstory. Isobel and her older brother, Josh, were brought up by their mother, Luna, a real estate agent. To Isobel, Luna seemed more concerned about having a house that looked like it belonged in a magazine photoshoot than being a caring mother. Isobel frequently escaped to stay with her bohemian grandmother who also lived in Melbourne. Her and Josh also frequently holidayed at their grandfather’s small farm.

Through the backstory we learn that Isobel has had an emotionally unfulfilling childhood. She longed for a mother who took more interest in her and her brother. We also see the creeping effect of climate change, and how it changed the character’s lives over the years.

The plight of internal climate change refugees is one of the themes of the novel. As climate change destroys the environment and the economy, more and more people are displaced. 

The novel is much more than a disaster story. It is about how a woman needs to take control for her family to survive while exploring her fears, desires, concerns for her child, and sense of abandonment, as well as her questioning whether she could have done more to prepare for the disaster and climate change.   

The story is written in first person and present tense, giving it a real urgency. It is very well-written as it immerses the reader in the main character’s life.

This is a fantastic novel that should scare climate change complacency out of many of its readers. It should have them asking if it is even possible to prepare for coming climate change disasters. It asks these questions while exploring a woman’s life and the effects of her family on it.