Oberheim (Voices)

a chronicle of War

by Christopher Leadem

English, published in 2002

91,023 words (269 pages)

Categories: Science Fiction, Post-1930

This work is copyrighted.

Excerpt

n peaks beyond. Here, some two hundred yards further up, a four foot tunnel, shaded by a boulder, led deep into the mountainside. Stooping to enter, he walked till he was weary and stiff with a sharp pain in his back, then walked much farther.

It was late evening, darkening to full night. Two men walked through the opening with the shield still dissipating. The familiar face came first, then to her dismay the woman saw that the stranger was white. He studied her as they approached, with the same hard cold gleam as the other.

"I don't know," he said, turning to the guerrilla. "She has the looks, but not much grit, seemingly. The face is much too soft."

Lawrence said nothing, hung his coat on a peg by the wall. She half expected him to draw out a hidden knife and bury it in the white man's back. But the two stood side by side, and she realized that she was the outsider, the one in question. The tall, fair-haired man stood looking her up and down like a slave at auction. She got angry.

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Average Rating:

2007.04.23
R Stephan

I agree with reviewers. At the end, the rough edges give a whole picture. The language, containing a few typos, reflects that. Do not expect an easy story. The chess comparison with space battle is probably too simple, he forgot about hiding in orbit and all that (read Weber or Drake). Worth reading but not excellent.

2007.02.09
Gary Thomas

I liked it. I can see how the other reviewer might think it was too intense, but I didn't. It's just a hard look at war, which is never pretty, told in a compelling way.

The multiple viewpoints take a while to get used to, as the scene switches from one battleground to another. But I liked it. It's like "The Illustrated Man" by Ray Bradbury in this way, and you do get to know the characters well enough without getting tired of them.

My only objection was the epilogue, which (I think) is some kind of symbolic life of Hemingway. I couldn't really understand it, though it too was very visual and intense.

2006.10.11
Edwyn Thai

This one (I've read the other two) may be a little too intense. Depends on what you like. The premise is interesting, and suprising unique considering its simplicity: a war in space between existing and evolving world powers.

But it's definitely not Star Trek. The prejudices that lead to war, the horrors of war, no punches are pulled.

It's also told from multiple viewpoints which, while adding perspective, may not be what people are used to. There are characters who come and go, reappear briefly (which is nice, finding out what happened to them), but in the end there is really only one: Olaf Brunner, an East German officer trying to hold off the right wing American aggressive (talk about pulling no punches!). Without ruining the ending, he feels himself no hero, while the author focuses again on the horrors of war.

Good, but very intenes.