Icarus Hunt | |||||||||
Timothy Zahn | |||||||||
Bantam Spectra Books, 362 pages | |||||||||
|
A review by Donna McMahon
Things can only get worse -- so naturally they do. After the death of a crew member, McKell realizes that he
has a murderer on board, and then he discovers that every government in the quadrant is in pursuit of the
Icarus. Before long he begins to suspect that his cargo could change the future of the galaxy -- and now it's
his responsibility.
The opening chapters of Icarus Hunt promise a strong mystery/suspense novel, and indeed this book does
not disappoint. Timothy Zahn rockets the reader along, lobbing plot twists at every turn. The characters are stock,
yet well drawn and entertaining. I especially enjoyed McKell's partner, Ixil -- an alien whose
two symbiotic pet 'ferrets' act as his extra eyes and ears.
Zahn has written a number of Star Wars novels, and Icarus Hunt reads as though it was originally outlined
for the Star Wars series (with Han Solo and Chewbacca as protagonists?), and then the set dressings
were changed slightly to make it more mainstream. But who cares if the technology is WWII with blinking lights,
and every spaceport has a Star Wars bar scene?
Well, I didn't. I got swept right along.
This is a terrific airplane book or a good cure for a rainy day.
Donna McMahon discovered science fiction in high school and fandom in 1977, and never recovered. Dance of Knives, her first novel, was published by Tor in May, 2001, and her book reviews won an Aurora Award the same month. She likes to review books first as a reader (Was this a Good Read? Did I get my money's worth?) and second as a writer (What makes this book succeed/fail as a genre novel?). You can visit her website at http://www.donna-mcmahon.com/. |
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
If you find any errors, typos or anything else worth mentioning,
please send it to editor@sfsite.com.
Copyright © 1996-2014 SF Site All Rights Reserved Worldwide