As I (slowly) go through the Gardner Dozois anthology The Year's Best Science Fiction, Sixteenth Annual Collection, which includes his picks of short sci-fi-from 1998, I've once again encountered one of his several novellas...so there's just one entry below. In 1998 I briefly tried running again, after some 22-23 years of having abandoned the activity. Still, I had maintained a good level of cardiovascular condition through much bike riding over those years, and got to a three-mile/per run level of activity during the first few months of the years before I again lost interest...not to pick back up on it until 2007. Anyway, here's my reaction to that story...
SEA CHANGE, WITH MONSTERS by Paul J. McAauley
After reading Arthur C. Clarke's novel 2061 (in the 2001: A Space Odyssey series) a few years ago, it was fun to see Jupiter's waterbound, ice-covered moon readdressed. This time it was in greater detail, with of course a much different story line. Here it's many more years into the future and humanity has explored and settled throughout the habitable solar system. A recent war between Earth and those living on Europa has resulted in the former's victory and the latter's subjugation under their resented occupation. The war involved Earth sending genetically-created "monsters" to Europa's seas to wipe out their indigenous life and starve out the people. A local, mysterious monastery on the moon requests an investigation into what they say is one of the monsters still prowling around their premises. When the investigator (the story's protagonist) arrives, she not only encounters prejudice from the all-male order there, but also more mystery than she had anticipated. It's a good tale, and I blame myself and my current circumstances for not having been fully involved with it...
Next Wednesday, we'll see if I can't come up with another installment in this weekly series...
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