The Engines of God (Unabridged) [Audio Download]

This is best of McDevitt's books that i have read. We have his standard small group of intrepid travellers (too small and too intrepid really, but it makes them fun to read about) charging between the stars in pursuit of a hunch that something big is happening and that we need to know about it. They're right of course, and in the face of (the usual) political interference all is ultimately revealed. Okay, it isn't really - The book is quite long already and would have to be one of those tedious great trilogies in order to have space to offer a full explanation. This is a failing really, and prevents the book from becoming more than a decent page-turner - it is certainly that, although some action set-pieces do have a feeling of having been stuffed in to hot the pace up ('hmm, the plot is sagging, lets put everybody in deadly peril for a bit'). Read it anyway though.

The Engines of God is the first book in a series of six involving Priscilla 'Hutch' Hutchins as the main protagonist, albeit her role in the books changes over time, along with her career. I liked this, rather than having a hero and fixing them at a set point in time, she is able to develop and allows for other characters to come to the fore (and move on again afterwards). Having read all of them in a condensed period of time and in the right order, I can say that the Engines of God lays the foundation for what is to come in the later books in the series. That said,they are all totally stand-alone, but you do find out a little more along the way and the final book answers some of the bigger questions that might seem to have been left hanging in the earlier novels.

As it is the first book in a series, the author has taken the time to set out and populate his universe and I liked the detail which he consistently applied across the novels. It was not done in a repetitive way and avoided the almost 'copy and paste' set paragraphs that some writers fall into. Like all of his books, I think you can divide them into two halves. The first is 'scene setting', 'getting ready', 'dealing with things' and generally taking the reader on a journey up to the top of a 'big dipper' roller coaster. It can be a little slow for those who are eager to leap ahead. But, equally, it is detailed, well written and engaging. As the first half comes to an end and you drop off the edge, rushing to the story's conclusion, it all falls into place and is well paced and keeps you turning the pages.

Jack McDevitt is a very consistent writer and I believe that if you like one of his books, you will like them all. If you are going to read this series, I would suggest you try to keep them in sequence: The Engines of God (1994), Deepsix (2001), Chindi (2002), Omega (2003), Odyssey (2006), Cauldron (2007).

On the strength of this novel, I went out and bought everything the author has ever written and enjoyed them all. Engines of God is well written with a fasinating plot regarding the mysterious destruction of alien civilisations. If you enjoy well-written hard SF, then this is a great book for you.