The Wellstone: A Queendom of Sol Novel (The Queendom of Sol)

The Wellstone is the sequel to Wil McCarthy's The Collapsium, set some time later. Tech called fax filters has led to practical immortality (or immorbidity), which is a problem for the children. What will they do when they grow up? Their parents aren't about to vacate their jobs, for the most part. Some of these kids turn delinquent as a result -- or perhaps they would have been that way in any case. A number of kids are being disciplined by confinement to Camp Friendly, a "summer camp" located on a tiny "planette". One of these kids is the POV character, a young engineer named Conrad Mursk. Another is the Crown Prince Bascal, the son of Bruno de Towaji (hero of The Collapsium) and the Queen. Bascal is extremely talented, a noted poet and a born leader, and he is very rebellious, as well as very spoiled. He incites the boys to an act of sabotage -- they escape via fax to Denver and release a dangerous substance that turns programmable matter to junk. They are soon captured, and Bascal's furious parents return them to Camp Friendly, with even stricter confinement (no working Fax gates). But Bascal is not to be thwarted. With Conrad's sometimes reluctant help, with the help of a semi-accidental recruit, a teenaged girl named Xmary who was arrested by mistake in the earlier incident, and with the continued help of Bascal's less intelligent henchmen, he hatches another audacious plot. They use the properties of programmable matter to create "homemade" solar sailship from the planette, and they head for the nearest working Fax gate. But a surprise awaits them there ... I thought this even a better book than The Collapsium. It lacks the previous book's almost insouciant inventiveness -- the "Tom Swift" nature I referred to above. But the characters are done better, in particular Conrad himself, and Bascal as seen by onrad. Bascal is an interesting creation -- a nice mixture of admirable and dangerous characteristics. Conrad and Xmary are nicely handled positive characters -- their frustration at heir lot as children in a world with no room for them as dults is well portrayed. The book remains inventive, and often funny, with a dark undertone (reinforced by a downright grim prologue and epilogue) that lends a certain (forgive me!) gravitas to the theme.

I was perhaps expecting something...different after reading the first book of the series (COLLAPSIUM). It was a tale of adult intrigue, romance, science fiction and an exploration of how longevity affects our society. The totally inappropriate title (WELLSTONE) suggest a foray into the wondrous possibilities of this miraculous material but alas we are left with a young male coming of age story. This is not to say that the plot is bad or that the action is not authentic. As the father of two teenage boys, the author nails it on the head with his descriptions of group rivalry, efforts to be liked, the innner thoughts of teenagers, their moods and quick jealousies and inability to control their mouth or their actions. But it needed to be more than this. The one outstanding device was the use of Conrad, the reflective lad who never tried to fool himself although he did manage to fool others. The opening and the closing featuring the matured young man (who for some reason changed his name) are like bookends, enclosing a wild tale of rides to the heavens, group pranks and enough angst to build a wellstone cathedral.Perhaps this was only a preliminary tale for the next in the series. Hopefully the boys will have matured and their actions will be more attuned to adult conduct. This is a good - though not great - read.

I really liked THE COLLAPSIUM, but this sequel is even more fun and leaves me hoping for more. The ending is open enough for another sequel.While THE COLLAPSIUM had a "Tom Swift" type quality, this one is a boy's adventure story retold for adults. While satirically light hearted, it does have a disturbing underlying theme reminding me of THE LORD OF THE FLIES. This adventure is quite independent of THE COLLAPSIUM and just as enjoyable whether or not you've read the earlier book. The conflict between the main two characters fuels the book. Like THE COLLAPSIUM, the themes of immortality and of cloning duplicate selves are thoroughly examined, especially in light of the psychological effect on human nature. This time, it's the effect on young people being raised with expectations of immortality that's spotlighted. Highly recommended to all science-fiction fans, and to those periphally interested in the genre.

I think this book would stand well on its own, but it is equally amazing as a sequel to The Collapsium, which seemed impossible to top. I rarely have the feeling that I can't put a book down, but this one kept me up all night and home from work the next day. The realism and depth of this society, and its fascinating uses of technology such as programmable matter and solar/laser sails, do not stop the book from being both funny and moving at the same time. What is it really like to be immortal, in an immortal society where every need is fulfilled? McCarthy's answers are surprising but ring true. Wow.

Prince Bascal is frustrated as the heir to the solar system-wide Queendom of Sol because everyone is immortal so he can never become the ruler. Currently the bored royal attends summer camp at a remote locale where "troubled boys" are exiled so that they can gain an appreciation for civilization after time in the wild. However, Bascal has had enough of the confines of Camp Friendly and with several other campers, he uses Fax Technology to escape to Denver on planet Earth.Bascal and cohorts cause havoc until the Constabulary arrests them. His mother Queen Tamra lectures him on behavior of a future monarch, but Bascal points out he will never be the ruler. Having a taste of revolt and sneaking an earthling female Mary into his entourage, Bascal begins a revolution against the ruling party while the government bungles in their efforts to stop the wild bunch from winning the Fax Wars.THE WELLSTONE is a wild futuristic satire that entertains while pushing the audience to think through to outcomes of current solutions to problems. The story line hooks the reader the moment Bascal and horde escape camp using Fax technology. Their subsequent adventures are fun to follow as if Wild In the Streets occurred across the Solar System. The key characters seem real enabling fans to believe in Fax Technology and immortality though wonder why we do. Will McCarthy provides a winner that will leave the audience applying his logic to modern day issues in order to estimate the outcome not just the output.Harriet Klausner