Helix

Helix (2007) – Eric Brown
Solaris | ISBN: 9781844164721
Condition: Good | Sold by Crappy Old Books

Space exploration. Humanity’s magnificent attempt to escape the limitations of Earth, discover new worlds and establish civilisation somewhere that hasn’t already been ruined by politicians, property developers and the occasional spectacularly misguided military adventure. Unfortunately, the universe is an exceptionally large place, and the machinery required to cross it has an inconvenient tendency to malfunction at precisely the worst possible moment.

Welcome to Helix, Eric Brown’s ambitious science-fiction adventure, in which an extraordinary interstellar journey leads to the discovery of a world unlike anything humanity has previously imagined.

When Earth faces an increasingly uncertain future, a spacecraft carrying human colonists sets out in search of a new home. Its passengers are placed in suspended animation, trusting advanced technology to transport them safely across the immense distances separating the stars.

Naturally, something goes wrong.

When the surviving travellers awaken, they discover that their vessel has reached a mysterious destination far removed from anything familiar. Before them lies the Helix, an astonishing artificial structure composed of interconnected worlds arranged in a vast spiral.

It is a breathtaking feat of engineering, apparently constructed by an intelligence possessing technological abilities considerably beyond those of humanity.

Which immediately raises several interesting questions.

Who built it? Why? What happened to its creators? And, perhaps most urgently, are the new arrivals welcome, or have they inadvertently wandered into somebody else’s extraordinarily elaborate back garden?

As the explorers venture into this remarkable environment, they encounter unfamiliar landscapes, strange societies and intelligent species whose histories and beliefs present unexpected challenges.

Brown combines the traditional excitement of planetary exploration with the grandeur of big-concept science fiction, creating a setting that offers seemingly endless possibilities for discovery.

The Helix itself is one of the novel’s great attractions: an extraordinary imagined construction that allows different environments and civilisations to exist within a single immense artificial system.

There is something wonderfully appealing about such a concept. Ordinary planets must make do with whatever geography and climate nature happens to provide. The builders of the Helix have apparently decided that the entire business of planetary design would benefit from a considerably more ambitious approach.

Yet the novel is not simply an exercise in spectacular engineering.

Its characters must confront the familiar human challenges of survival, cooperation, cultural misunderstanding and the difficult business of establishing trust in circumstances where practically everything is unfamiliar.

Brown explores questions of belief, identity and civilisation alongside the excitement of discovery, reminding readers that technological sophistication does not necessarily guarantee wisdom, tolerance or good judgement.

Originally published in 2007, Helix offers an engaging combination of hard-science-fiction ideas, alien encounters and sweeping space adventure.

This 2007 Solaris edition, offered in Good condition by Crappy Old Books, is an appealing acquisition for admirers of Eric Brown, enthusiasts of imaginative space opera and readers fascinated by mysterious alien megastructures.

A compelling journey into an extraordinary artificial world, filled with danger, discovery and the unsettling possibility that humanity is not nearly as important as it likes to imagine.

Because discovering a new planet would be remarkable enough.

Discovering an enormous spiral of interconnected worlds is quite another matter.

And when somebody has gone to the trouble of constructing an entire astronomical wonder, it seems only polite to ask permission before moving in.

Preferably before discovering what they use for pest control.

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