Coalescent: A Novel (Destiny's Children, Bk. 1)

This was the second Baxter book I read, first was evolution, and I'm now on a mission to read all his stuff. I'm a science geek familiar with the conceptual underpinnings of the stories. What I like about Baxter, so far, is that he supplies a feeling for what a person or thing might see or feel from the inside of a "grand concept" such as the fall of a society. Coalescent specific bits... He briefly touched "coalescent" society in Evolution, which made it all the more intriguing. The hero ( Poole) looking back at recent events reminded me of Lovecraft without the horror or pay-by-word adjectives. Intertwining two main story lines separated by over a millennium was cool. I also enjoyed that the story supplied a feel for what it might feel like to have an advanced civilization (Rome) fall around you and how life might change. Throw in some religious conspiracy and a good read results.

How can anyone write a science fiction novel about ancient Roman and English civilisations. Baxter can!Breathtaking scope and (one can assume) historical accuracy of a decaying Roman culture. This book has value on many levels and in my case opened an addicted science fiction (and fantasy) reader to the possibilities of ancient history.While the hive culture emerged as a central theme for exploration in subsequent novels, it was the dismay of the central character as her society declined around her that held my interest. On many levels this story appeals and creates interest. I hope he can maintain this historical fictional content in future novels, as I for one found it quite engrossing.The hive development was fascinating and well developed, though ever so slightly overdone. He could have left a bit more for the reader to discover, ponder and have the lights come on, particularly as he proposes future novels. I can never play with my ant farm again and not picture the streaming of mindless, white smocked women from a hole in the ground moving off to create another hive.Very nearly a 'must read'. Well done Mr Baxter, let's get the next one out soon!

I liked this book more than some of the other reviewers. The theme clearly extends from his earlier works, most notably, Evolution. In this case the pace is slower, as our 2 protagonists, one in the ancient Roman empire, and the other contempory, spin the texture of the novel. The central concept, the evolution of a human hive species, while not original, is reasonably, if a little implausible biologically, characterized. More importantly, we are given a rationale for its existence and structure. We are are also given tantalizing clues as to where Baxter may want to go with this idea. In one case, the hive engineers the destruction of a another, nearby. In the second, we see a vignette of a familiar Baxterium universe where hive societies have spread out to the stars.The book is weakest with its side plot of the discovery of an alien artifact in the Kuiper belt, and the possible suggestion of detection of a photino bird. I sense that Baxter wants to ensure the threads of his Xeelee sequence are incorporated into the plot, but in this book, the first of a promised series, this thread seems gratuitious. Perhaps the following novels will expand on this backdrop.As other reviewers have argued, the hive is a living cellular automata. Because the rules for this particular hive were created by a founder, there is the possibility of exploring other structures based on different rules, defined by different constraints. Given the space of viable possibilties, one can easily see this idea expand like another "Manifold".In summary, this book is a solid read, which entertained this reader with an interesting theme, painted against a detailed historical backdrop. I look forward to more in the series.

I am only rating this a four because I am reluctant to give something by Stephen Baxter a three. At his best, he is one of the best authors and everything he writes is a five star book. However, he is not at his best here.In Coalescent, Baxter is trying to do character development and description, two things which he doesn't use that often. While I appreciate the effort, he frequently misses the mark. Stephen Baxter is strongest when he is writing stories about space, but in this book, he is stranded on Earth.As for the story itself, it is pretty enjoyable. The book is similar to Evolution in that it shows how one event can shape the destiny of a species. In the case of this book, the species in question is a small group of humans who develope a hive mentality. Complicated, I know, but Baxter almost pulls it off.To sum up, Coalescent is an okay read. It moves fast and reading it certainly won't hurt you. However, it will not change you either.

As the Kuiper Belt anomaly grips the planet, George Poole leaves London for Manchester to sell the house of his recently deceased father and split the profit with his Florida based decade older sister. Upon entering his dad's house (his mom died ten years ago), the memories of his youth flash by the now forty-five year old George until his world crumbles. George finds a photograph of two three year old children that look like fraternal twins standing in front of his family home. The male is George, but who is this female version of him?In post Roman Britannia, Regina misses her carefree youth that ended about the time the strange lights arose in the heavens. She travels to Rome where she establishes the Order that lives and prospers under the streets of the city even to George's time Almost two millennium later George learns that he not only has a living twin, but she was given to the Order over two score ago. He treks to Rome to find a perfect hive of evolved humans that plan to expand their web beyond the Roman underground.COALESCENT, the first book in Stephen Baxter's Destiny's Children trilogy, is an exciting science fiction tale that uses social order to propel human evolution. The story line alternates between George in the present and Regina in the past. The clever modern day tale provokes thought on evolution and social conditioning. However, Regina's world fails to materialize as it feels more like an account than a visit. Still readers will appreciate this deep tale and look forward to further debate over the pros and cons of human COALESCENT.Harriet Klausner