Paperback, 336 pages
Published Aug. 1, 2007 by GOLLANCZ.
Twenty thousand years into the future, an experiment in quantum physics has had a catastrophic result, creating an enormous, rapidly expanding vacuum that devours everything it comes in contact with. Now humans must confront this deadly expansion. Tchicaya, aboard a starship trawling the border of the vacuum, has allied himself with the Yielders-- those determined to study the vacuum while allowing it to grow unchecked. But when his fiery first love, Mariama, reenters his life on the side of the Preservationists-- those working to halt and destroy the vacuum-- Tchicaya finds himself struggling with an inner turmoil he has known since childhood.
However, in the center of the vacuum, something is developing that neither Tchicaya and the Yielders nor Mariama and the Preservationists could ever have imagined possible: life.
The first two thirds of the book are mostly very good. I like the worldbuilding and the story. There is a bit too much weird physics, but it is bearable. However, the last third is just too esoteric and almost illegible because of the strangeness of the universe that is being described. I can understand that the strangeness must be made visible, but there is just too much of it.
Once again, a great story constructed by Greg Egan from real theories. Some of the concepts are a bit heavy since they come from physics theory, but well worth the time and effort thinking about them to enjoy the story.
The hell did I just read?
Quantum physics alien encounter story. Clever and heady.
The math/physics quickly lost me, but I really love Egan's far-future people and their moral dilemmas about what it means to be human. And the evolution of sex/gender makes me happy. Basically fantastic world-building, less fantastic plot, especially toward the end where things get so utterly weird it's hard to relate to anything. But also that's kind of the point, so. Solid Egan book, not my favorite of his but I still desperately want his vision of the future to come true.
The absolute best thing about this book is the eponymous concept: a way to ensure that, as you grow and change, you are still true to yourself.
