Spin
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Synopsis
After witnessing the onset of an astronomical event that has caused the sun to go black and the stars and moon to disappear, Tyler, Jason, and Diane learn that the darkness has been caused by a time-altering, alien-created artificial barrier and that the sun will be extinguished in less than forty years. Reprint.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
24 of 24 people found the following review helpful
By RH
Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
The Spin is the name given to a mysterious veil that one October night in the near future, shuts off the stars and isolates the earth, but not only that, for every minute that passes on Earth, three years pass outside the veil.
The three main characters deal with this in three very human ways. Jason tries to understand who created the Spin, and why, emersing himself in science. Jason's twin sister, Diane, follows the path of faith, spirituality and enlightenment. Tyler, childhood friend of both takes the middle road, dedicating himself to helping others, becoming a doctor and attempting to simply live life.
Wilson exposes the vulnerability we all feel when we look at the sky and wonder, "What if we're not alone?". When an event so powerfull as to dwarf every human endevour occurs, one cannot help but feel completely overwhelmed.
Spin is not hardcore SciFi, but good tale, well told. involving everything you'd expect from a good scifi book, but without the technobabble. Technical issues that do arise are well explained, as Tyler is just your everyday, cynical Joe, and requires a lot of explanation.
Spin is shortlisted for the 2006 Hugo awards, and well deserved so.
The three main characters deal with this in three very human ways. Jason tries to understand who created the Spin, and why, emersing himself in science. Jason's twin sister, Diane, follows the path of faith, spirituality and enlightenment. Tyler, childhood friend of both takes the middle road, dedicating himself to helping others, becoming a doctor and attempting to simply live life.
Wilson exposes the vulnerability we all feel when we look at the sky and wonder, "What if we're not alone?". When an event so powerfull as to dwarf every human endevour occurs, one cannot help but feel completely overwhelmed.
Spin is not hardcore SciFi, but good tale, well told. involving everything you'd expect from a good scifi book, but without the technobabble. Technical issues that do arise are well explained, as Tyler is just your everyday, cynical Joe, and requires a lot of explanation.
Spin is shortlisted for the 2006 Hugo awards, and well deserved so.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
In my continuing mission to encounter modern science fiction authors to rival the classical masters of the genre, I happened across this book while browsing Amazon's recommendation. Although first published in 2005, it reads like a novel from a good 25 years earlier. This is a good thing; there is no showing-off of the author's understanding of particle physics, cosmology or esoteric mathematics (a frequent failing these days) , just a good old fashioned first person account, with flashbacks, of a momentous event in the evolution of humanity's view of their place in the universe. It is also not peppered with a profusion of shallow characters with unpronounceable names; the events in the book are seen through the eyes of the narrator as they impact upon the lives of just three main protagonists. There are, of course, secondary characters but the focus of the novel never strays far from the main narrative so that we end up with believable characters acting in a plausible manner with whom the reader can empathise.
The story is told skilfully at a consistent pace in a very readable style making for an enjoyable, comfortable read. It's not an edge-of-the-seat page-turning rollercoaster of a novel; more of a favourite armchair in front of the fire on a winter's night sort-of a novel. There is enough science-fiction to warrant its place in the genre but not so much that it intrudes on the narrative. All-in-all, an excellently balanced & well written story and I shall definitely read more of Wilson's work - probably `Axis' although I fancy `The Chronoliths' and `Blind Lake' too... So much choice, so little time to spend reading...
The story is told skilfully at a consistent pace in a very readable style making for an enjoyable, comfortable read. It's not an edge-of-the-seat page-turning rollercoaster of a novel; more of a favourite armchair in front of the fire on a winter's night sort-of a novel. There is enough science-fiction to warrant its place in the genre but not so much that it intrudes on the narrative. All-in-all, an excellently balanced & well written story and I shall definitely read more of Wilson's work - probably `Axis' although I fancy `The Chronoliths' and `Blind Lake' too... So much choice, so little time to spend reading...
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Good characterisation and a novel idea, what more does a good SF novel need? I confess the female lead irritated me and maybe the narrator was a bit supine but I really cared what happened to them.
Great pace throughout and excellent cutting from now to the end to keep the tension going. I was left only worrying that the technical explanation we get near the end might be disappointing or unconvincing but once again Robert Charles Wilson did not let me down.
I'm going to read the sequel, Axis, for sure.
Great pace throughout and excellent cutting from now to the end to keep the tension going. I was left only worrying that the technical explanation we get near the end might be disappointing or unconvincing but once again Robert Charles Wilson did not let me down.
I'm going to read the sequel, Axis, for sure.
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
By CS
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Some SF writers use deliberately obscure language to presumably enhance the complexity of the ideas or the plot. The more difficulty you have undestanding what's going on, the more technically/scientifically complex the story is supposed to be. What happens, in fact, is that you plod through virtually unintelligible text to hopefully glean some kind of meaning.
What I appreciated in this novel is that it reads like a novel. It is clearly written, it respects the reader and it is very exciting!!
What I appreciated in this novel is that it reads like a novel. It is clearly written, it respects the reader and it is very exciting!!
17 of 20 people found the following review helpful
By Patrick Shepherd
TOP 1000 REVIEWER
Format:Hardcover
`Hard' science fiction novels, all too often, get bogged down in their `gee-whiz' science, to the detriment of their story and characters. Happily, such is not the case here, as the characters of Tyler Dupree and Jason and Diane Lawton are well depicted, and their story, of just how they react when all the stars suddenly disappear one night, remains front and center throughout this book.
The `gee-whiz' science here is the `Spin', a membrane folded around the earth that slows the time rate experienced by its denizens by a factor of 100 million versus the `normal' universe. This has an implication: in just 40 Earth years, 4 billion years will have passed on the outside, our sun will be nearing the end of its life, and will have expanded to the point that an unprotected Earth would be immediately fried. Where did this membrane come from? Who put it there, and perhaps more importantly, why? What can be done about it? Wilson's characters, in one way or another, attempt to answer these questions, an involvement that shapes much of their lives, and the lives of everyone on Earth, who are effectively facing a true end of the world scenario.
Wilson presents his science in fairly small, well explained chunks - you don't need to be an actual rocket scientist to grasp what he is presenting, and this presentation doesn't interrupt the story flow, unlike all too many books that belong to this sub-genre.
While all the above is quite good, I found I was disappointed in the final answers the book provides. I saw most of the answers long before they were directly shown - not good for a concept of this grand scope. Nor was I greatly impressed by the philosophical points raised.... Read more ›
The `gee-whiz' science here is the `Spin', a membrane folded around the earth that slows the time rate experienced by its denizens by a factor of 100 million versus the `normal' universe. This has an implication: in just 40 Earth years, 4 billion years will have passed on the outside, our sun will be nearing the end of its life, and will have expanded to the point that an unprotected Earth would be immediately fried. Where did this membrane come from? Who put it there, and perhaps more importantly, why? What can be done about it? Wilson's characters, in one way or another, attempt to answer these questions, an involvement that shapes much of their lives, and the lives of everyone on Earth, who are effectively facing a true end of the world scenario.
Wilson presents his science in fairly small, well explained chunks - you don't need to be an actual rocket scientist to grasp what he is presenting, and this presentation doesn't interrupt the story flow, unlike all too many books that belong to this sub-genre.
While all the above is quite good, I found I was disappointed in the final answers the book provides. I saw most of the answers long before they were directly shown - not good for a concept of this grand scope. Nor was I greatly impressed by the philosophical points raised.... Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good story
This is the first book I've read by this author, but am now looking at others. Enjoyed it greatly; good story, well developed characters and the concepts involved are both... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Lugus Luna
4.0 out of 5 stars
Part hard Sf, part family saga
David Brin's Existence is a near future novel which attempts to solve the problem of communication on a galactic scale in a relativistic universe without resorting to worm holes... Read more
Published 6 months ago by P. G. Harris
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very enjoyable
I have enjoyed reading Science Fiction after picking up Clarke's 'Childhood's End' in a junk shop on holiday when I was about ten. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Ralph Bartlett
4.0 out of 5 stars
Quite Enjoyable
If you liked Vernor Vinge's 'Across Realtime' then you are likely to like 'Spin'. There is a similarity of feel to protagonists traveling, one way, into the future of the solar... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Robert
5.0 out of 5 stars
A well spun yarn.
I really enjoyed this book and i'm keeping it to probably read again sometime. The characterisation is excellent and I don't think it mattered what the underlying story ( in this... Read more
Published 15 months ago by mike
3.0 out of 5 stars
Do I like it?
I read this a while ago now but I still can't decide if I really liked it - although I haven't bought the two sequels. Read more
Published 16 months ago by welshwitch
5.0 out of 5 stars
Science Fiction At Its Best & A Good Story For Non Sci-Fi Fans
This is just a really such a good read on so many differing levels - science fact, science fiction, a good human story and appealing characters. Read more
Published on 3 Nov 2010 by T. Wright
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good yarn, easy to read
A good easy to read story - the conclusion isn't that great - but the story is told well - a little predictable if you know Sci-Fi
Not a mega block buster, but good if... Read more
Not a mega block buster, but good if... Read more
Published on 20 Oct 2010 by CjW
4.0 out of 5 stars
Real science. Real characters.
Wilson's work is regularly nominated for awards, and rightly so. He writes dense, complex novels in which the scientific elements and characterisation are both admirably dealt... Read more
Published on 14 Sep 2010 by Rod Williams
5.0 out of 5 stars
A worthy Hugo award-winner and one of the best SF novels I've read for...
Why? Here's a point by point review.
It's well written with three interesting characters at the core of the story. Read more
It's well written with three interesting characters at the core of the story. Read more
Published on 7 May 2010 by Ian Williams
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