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"Darwin's Children is the extremely well researched sequel to Nebula award-winning "Darwin's Radio, Bear's "chilling portrait of humankind on the threshold of a radical leap in evolution concludes a complex near-future thriller of a metaphoric Adam and Eve and their family's courageous journey and quest for acceptance. Bear masterfully weaves hard science with marvelous imagination, compelling plot and likeable characters into a rich tapestry worth following to its bitter-sweet and thought-provoking end. "Darwin's Children provides graphic detail for the eager student of genetics and virology. However, those less inclined to such detail will find that it detracts somewhat from the elevated theme otherwise portrayed: of finding God in every aspect and level of our world. As his heroine, Kaye Lang, eloquently says near the end of the book: "We are shaped, but in ways we do not understand . . . The caller speaks to all of our minds . . . to all of our minds, from the lowest to the highest, in nature, the caller assures us that there is more . . . To succeed or to fail is all the same it is to be loved."

"Darwin's Radio (Del Ray/Harper Collins UK, 1999), the original book of this series, recounts a frightening tale of an ancient retrovirus that has been "sleeping in human DNA for millions of years and is waking up. Bear chronicles the story of a microbiologist, Kaye Lang, and an intuitive archeologist, Mitch Rafelson, as they struggle to solve an evolutionary puzzle of the terrifying viral disease that threatens to become a deadly epidemic. What Kaye and Mitch find is that mutations in the human genome caused by this SHEVA virus are heralding the arrival of a new wave of genetically enhanced and feared humans. And their own child is one of them. The sequel, "Darwin’s Children (Del Ray/Harper Collins UK, 2003), follows Kaye and Mitch and their own "virus child as they face an uncertain future in a hostile and fearful world where "survival of the fittest takes on new meaning.

Some books are plot-driven, others are more character-driven or a combination. Both Darwin books are definitely science-driven. Certainly the characters are fully realized and full-bodied like espresso (a hallmark of Bear's writing); however, they still take a back seat to the science. In fact, readers with a previous knowledge or an avid interest in biology will have an advantage over others. I found Bear's portrayal of "scientific life painstaking in detail, reminiscent of Michael Crichton's work and perhaps more than I needed, and it ultimately slowed the pace of the book. I do give him credit, however, for refusing to compromise his science. He plunges the reader in the thick of it, abstruce scientific terms and all, and lets them wade through. He is the only SF author I know (apart from me) who has included a glossary and reading list at the back of his book.
In "Darwin's Children Bear draws upon existing knowledge and theory on ancient retroviruses, retrotransposons or "jumping genes, autopoietic systems, and fractals to create an impressive interpolation, both wild and exciting and extremely plausable. His suggestion of the existence of communication of "minds from within cells to ecosystems is supported by the current work by many scientists willing to look outside the box, in what is currently termed "systems biology. I am thinking particularly of current investigations by Nobel-laureate physicist, Brian Josephson at Cambridge University, and Henry Stapp at the University of California on biological use of quantum nonlocality.

Bear explores the parallel of human evolution as it plays counterpoint with the myth of Original Sin and the expulsion of Adam and Eve from Paradise. Kaye, the heroine, a scientist and mother of a "virus-child, writes in her journal early in the book: "Viruses and transposons most likely arose after the invention of sex, perhaps because of sex . . . Truly they are like original sin. How does sin shape our destiny? She does answer this difficult question, though obliquely, at the end of the book.

"Darwin's Children focuses on young Stella, the eleven year old child of Kaye and Mitch, both scientists who were once at the forefront of the discovery and study of the SHEVA outbreak. Feared by the rest of humanity as potential harborers of other viruses that may extirpate the "old human race, most SHEVA children have been quarantined by the government in "special schools.

Stella remains one of few SHEVA children not interred, who lives in quiet exile, precariously sheltered by her cautious parents, yet impatient to learn about her world and meet others like her. All SHEVA children bear the mark of the SHEVA virus: melanophoric concentrations, like moving freckles, that morph with emotions like screaming tatoos of one's inner thoughts. As with Adam and Eve's offspring, Cain, who murdered his brother then received the mark of protection from God, Stella must navigate a hostile world who fear what she may do to them and consider her mark as anything but "of God": survival of the fittest. Bear propells us into tense conflict early in the book as Stella becomes separated from her parents, forcing her to grow up fast and collide head-on with life.

At first glance the title of the book suggests the main focus is on the virus children and mainly on Stella and her coming-of-age. It is in fact Kaye, the mother, who interests me the most and remains the central and unifying character in the story's over-arching theme. While Stella makes her pilgrimage to maturity through confronting her outside world of prejudice and finding her own way with those like her, Kaye embarks on an inner journey of epic proportions as she searches endlessly for her lost child and an explanation for what is happening. The two story arcs unfold much like a Mandelbrot fractal illustration, one blossoming outward, reaching skyward toward something new, and the other folding ever-inward toward its own infinity of what has always been. Each mimics the other in their final epiphanies: we are all made of the same stuff and all answer to the same caller.

Which brings me to Mitch, the father, our Adam, and Bear's subtle message of what it means to be human. Stella's first meeting with hostile non-SHEVA humans is both stirring and frightening and cements her own belief that she is something other than human. This, despite her father's insistance that she should consider herself "human by focusing on how she is still similar rather than different from her parents. That this strong message underpins Bear's theme, is made clear in a pivotal scene between father and daughter at a crucial archeological excavation. It made my throat close.

In keeping with its theme, the book's end was complex and richly                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               terraced. On one level it was tragically sad but on another level it captured an ethereal birth of something both wondrous and strange. And, like good fiction, it left me quietly pondering.

Biography of Greg Bear

"It seems apparent that God does not micromanage either human history or nature. Evolutionary freedom is just as important as individual human freedom."- Greg Bear

Greg Bear was born in San Diego, California in 1951 and traveled extensively in the world as a child. He is the author of more than twenty-five books, which have been translated into seventeen languages. He was the recipient of two Hugo awards and five Nebulas for his fiction and is renowned for his thoughtful and thoroughly researched biology and genetics in his fiction. He has been called the "best working writer of hard science-fiction by the Ultimate Encyclopedia of Science Fiction.

Bear wrote his first story at age ten when he lived in Alaska. He sold his first story at age fifteen to Robert Louwndes Famous Science Fiction and began to sell regularly at age twenty-three. His first novel, Hegira (Dell) appeared in 1979. Bear is also an accomplished illustrator. His art has appeared in Galaxy and Fantasy & Science Fiction magazines. Greg Bear lives in the Pacific Northwest with his wife and two children.

Bear approaches his writing like he obviously does life, with tremendous imagination and an open mind of tolerance and acceptance. Says Bear regarding the greater question of our maker and the destiny of humanity: "Imagine epiphany that touches our subconsciousness, our other internal minds the immune system or that reaches beyond us to touch the forest, or an ocean . . . or the vast and distributed "minds of any ecological system His response to this incredible premise is one of reverence: "If the only honest approach to understanding both nature and God is humility, then surely this should help by making us feel humble.

For more information on the author, his work and related biology, visit his website: www.gregbear.com.

(This review first appeared in Aoife's Kiss).

The three books of "His Dark Materials trilogy include: "The Golden Compass"; "The Subtle Knife"; and "The Amber Spyglass."

Wrongly (I think) categorized by many as just a YA (young adult) fantasy, this SF-fantasy slipstream should appeal to readers of all ages. It is, after all, a multi-layered tale of universal scope. Pullman, himself, de-emphasizes the fantasy elements of his tale, calling it "stark realism because these elements (such as daemons) are used to embody phycological truths about human personality. Say's Pullman, "I am trying to write a book about what it means to be human. The coming-of-age of an intrepid girl and boy serves as an elegant metaphor to explore the story of everyman's journey toward enlightenment and whose every step comes with it a price. It brings to mind a quote by Victor Frankl: "What is to give light must endure burning."

For those of you wishing an alternative - for whatever reason - to the insanely popular "Harry Potter fantasies (to which Philip Pullman's trilogy has been compared), Pullman's tale offers a bracing change. Here's why: even though it has very obvious fantasy elements such as magic and witches and talking bears, it doesn't fit the traditional mold of a fantasy because it draws upon scientific knowledge and theory, which pushes it into SF. However, like other good fantasy, Pullman's tale is also strongly interwoven in myth. Milton's "Paradise Lost forms the basis of Pullman's overarching theme, woven by a rich fabric of setting and characters, each journeying toward their own sense of purpose and final destiny on this world. This is a book of great scope, unfolding, aptly, through the eyes of a child.

Jordon College in Oxford is not an ordinary place for a girl; but then Lyra Belacqua is no ordinary girl, she can hear the hushed messages of truth uttered to her by the strange particles that animate her golden compass. Abandoned to the care of old scholars who know nothing about children, the little scamp runs wild through the streets of the university town, seeking adventure and not quite recognizing her yearning for "home and love. She finds it - or it finds her - in the most unlikely place when she blunders into a vortex of danger, love, betrayal and intrigue. And it all begins with dust. Again, not just ordinary dust, but "magical dust. Dust that provides a gateway to thousands of other worlds. . . .

As our intrepid heroine journeys through a rich tapestry of worlds, she meets and recruits the services of an amazing variety of strange creatures in her quest to uncover more of the mystery of dust and the shattering truth of its role in her own destiny. Lyra journeys first to the far reaches of the north, where strange experiments are being conducted and where she meets the formidable armored bears. As she continues on to a mysterious tropical land, Lyra meets Wil, a young boy looking for his lost father, and together they flee the soul-eating Spectors who stalk the streets. Neither is aware that their destinies lie on a collision course with the otherworldly struggle of good and evil and that their innocence will only be one of the casualties.

Pullman spins imaginative and metaphorical worlds both familiar yet unfamiliar - giving us a strange but titillating sense of déjà vu. This is surely what phasing into another universe may well feel like. Pullman pulls off (pardon the pun) what few fantasy writers are capable of doing: he marries arcane SF with the lyrical elements of fantasy - the epic adventure of good vs. evil. He does this by using scientific facts and logical premises and weaves his heroic tale around them. For instance, the idea of parallel universes is not only old but very much in vogue with physicists these days. Check out the May 2003 issue of Scientific American for a good summary on this topic. While Pullman borrows His Dark Materials title from Milton, he also takes the concept of dark matter from real science. Dark matter is some form of matter theorized to exist that cannot be observed by radio, infrared, optical, ultraviolet, x-ray or gamma-ray telescopes and is theorized to be MACHOS, WIMPS, or GAS (see http://chandra.harvard.edu/xray_astro/dark_matter3.html for more info on this incredible particle).

I suppose I was spell-bound by Pullman's imaginative worlds, his sensuous descriptions and his creatively bold use of scientific concepts but it was his complex and passionate characters who captured and still live in my heart. His main character, Lyra, has learned to spin the tallest tales to get by yet she possesses the most sincere and brave heart, and her interactions with her daemen (an alter-ego, part of her soul embodied in an animal bonded with her) are touching and humorous. It is her paradoxical combination of traits that makes her both charming and sweet: she is brave yet vulnerable; enveigling yet genuine; innocent yet crafty; naïve yet wise. She personifies the child in all of us, the child who must grow up and lose something to gain something else. So we laugh with her and we cry for her.

The ending of the third book, which is bitter-sweet but provides excellent closure, leaves the reader - as all good fiction should - fulfilled yet drained, and wondering about both our own personal destinies and how we fit in with the larger questions of our universe. This is a must read for those seeking compelling adventure that does not compromise intelligence for action, character and setting for pace, heart for thrill, depth for speed; and imagination for story.

Biography of Philip Pullman
"Stories are the most important thing in the world. Without stories, we wouldn't be human."-Philip Pullman.

Philip Pullman was born in Norwich, England, in 1946. He spent the early part of his life travelling all over the world. He taught at Oxford before becoming a full-time writer and has lectured widely on various aspects of the relationship between text and images. His first book, Galatea, was published in 1979. "His Dark Materials trilogy appeared on the New York Times bestselling list and received numerous honors, including the Carnagie Medal (England), Publishers Weekly best book of the year, and the Whitbread Bood Award ("Amber Spyglass, in 2002). He now lives in Oxford with his family and likes to write in a shed at the bottom of his garden.

His passionate appreciation for the power of the story is reflected in this quote from his autobiographical essay (see the Alfred A. Knopf website): "I was sure that I was going to write stories myself when I grew up. It's important to put it like that: not 'I am a writer' but rather 'I write stories.' If you put the emphasis on yourself rather than your work, you're in danger of thinking that you're the most important thing. But you're not. The story is what matters and you're only the servant, and your job is to get it out on time and in good order."

(This review first appeared in Imagikon, a webzine in Romania)