Quote:
Originally Posted by mako88sb
I'll have to check that out. I read Arthur C Clarkes "The Fountains of Paradise" when it first came out but I don't ever recall reading about an actual connection between the Earth and the moon. Sounds pretty interesting.
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The elevator in "Limit" is not connection between Earth and Moon, but Earth linking to a stationary orbital platform. A no more new idea, Schätzing only extrapolates the latest ideas for materials and design features.
He also extrapolates the possibilities of Google glasses, and some more.
However, like many people thinking in these trails, he te3ndfs to be overly optimistic about the flawlessness and possibilitiues of new technologies. In his scenarios, technology always works, and never fails, and all the bugs of new stuff already have been ironed out before the first unit ever sold.
. His idea of how privatized space industry will overtake Nasa ignores the latest setbacks the real privatised space industry has seen. Google glasses have hit an inviusible wall so far, and the concept of the space lift also atrracts critical reflecitons that he ignores.
That does not make his scenario less exciting. Its just ioptimism tralken to the extremne. Something that I sometimes have a hard time to sdwalow so easily - and the reason why I did not like Matt Damon and "The Martian" so much - too optimistic, human psyche being too perfect.
However, Limit is a relatively slow book (what I like, I prefer if writers take their time), considering that it is over 1000 pages. If you want some more thrill, his international bestseller "The Swarm" is the book of his life, and for which he will be remembered. I cannot comment on the quality of the transaltion, however, the first ediiton from severlas years ago seem to have caught soime criticsm there. But if you come new to Schätzing, "Swarm" is the first to read, the Swarm, and always the Swarm
. I read it four times now. And yes, it also is no thin book. 1000+ pages. - The film rights went to James "Avatar" Cameron some years ago, but i do not know what has come of that. If such SF movie heavyweights are interested in a book, this tells you something.
In Limit, it is private entrepreneurs who return to the moon and establish a lasting presence there - a
hotel.
And a fleet of autonomous mining robots.