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Title: Mars by Ben Bova, Harlan Ellison ISBN: 1-57453-476-9 Publisher: Fantastic Audio Pub. Date: 09 January, 2002 Format: Audio Cassette Volumes: 4 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.52 (64 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: Life on Mars?
Comment: Ben Bova's novel 'Mars' is slow, a little too slow at times, but nevertheless is a fun journey to the red planet. The story deals with an international expedition to Mars whose primary mission is to search for signs of life. Along the way rivalries and romance spring up among the crew. While the science-fiction is hard and entertaining, the story more often delves into the realm of soap opera. Bova is an author that no doubt has done extensive research on the subject of space travel but this proves to be both a plus and a minus. Sometimes it feels as though he's forcing situations into the book to show off his research, more often than not to the detrement of the plot. Of course, the plot itself is rather thin. But I do have to say that Bova throws in more than a few twists and turns that will hold your interest and gives us a clever ending. If you're looking for something that's fairly easy to read and you enjoy B-movie characters, this one could be for you.
Rating: 3
Summary: MAY NOT BE GREAT LITERATURE, BUT I LIKED IT
Comment: Man's first expedition to Mars, the political and financial intrigue behind the scenes, the crew's training here on Earth, the interaction of the crew in transit, the struggle to maintain sexual self-discipline for five months in space, the indescribable excitement of being one of the chosen few to walk upon the Red Planet.
This book is entirely believable, and in many passages reads like nonfiction. Ben Bova patiently--but not condescendingly--explains the science behind the characters' activities. He also does a fine job of portraying the characters' child-like enthusiasm for finding evidence of life on Mars--an obsession tempered by their skeptical scientific minds.
This story can be quite frightening: there are several mishaps--several injuries--that just might make you yelp. Through these mishaps, the reader comes to care for the characters.
HOWEVER, Mr. Bova always likes to interject romance into his novels, and I'm afraid his portrayal of romantic feelings on the printed page is rather two-dimensional. His romantic characters seem to always suffer from an inability to adequately express themselves, and are shackled by miscommunication. In short, his portrayal of romance is immature.
But don't let that stop you. This book is worth reading. Especially now (April '04), for as you read these words, two rovers from Earth are prowling about the frigid red sands of Mars.
Rating: 3
Summary: Slow, Slow, Slow... But Good Ending
Comment: Perhaps I was spoiled by Bova's other work (I started with some of the latter books in his "series" before going back to Mars, which is considerably older), but I found this book to be agonizingly slow to start. In the beginning of the book, the flashbacks to the training really chop the book up and break up any kind of flow that might have been going. The story at this point feels VERY disjointed and slow, as there is very little actually going on, other than back story that moves too slowly and should've been handled in a different way, in my opinion.
HOWEVER, towards the last 150 pages or so (I know, quite awhile to wait in a big book like this), the action starts to pick up, as does the science. I found myself trudging through the first half of the book, but unable to put the book down for the second half. Bova started gripping me with the suspense factor towards the end, and it was this that saved the book. The science was fun and interesting, and has greatly increased my interest in the Red Planet. However, I don't feel it was nearly as creative as his science in "Jupiter", but maybe I was spoiled by that book.
My only other complaint is a minor one that has to do with the "Martian disease" that the explorers come down with (this is not new information: it's on the back cover). I felt that it was handled wrongly and was only suspenseful because of misinformation. Overall, I enjoyed the book, but it was too slow to start. 3.5 stars overall.
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Title: Return to Mars by Ben Bova ISBN: 0380797259 Publisher: Eos Pub. Date: 01 July, 2000 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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Title: Venus by Ben Bova ISBN: 0812579402 Publisher: Tor Science Fiction Pub. Date: 15 May, 2001 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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Title: Moonrise by Ben Bova ISBN: 0380786974 Publisher: Eos Pub. Date: 01 March, 1998 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: Jupiter : A Novel by Ben Bova ISBN: 0812579410 Publisher: Tor Science Fiction Pub. Date: 18 February, 2002 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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Title: Empire Builders by Ben Bova ISBN: 0812511654 Publisher: Tor Science Fiction Pub. Date: 15 March, 1995 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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