...but, by the same token, not all that great, either. Michael Swanwick is one of science fiction's most accomplished literary artists, and for good reason. However, Jack Faust falls short. Mephistopheles, the classic character from the many re-tellings of the equally classic tale Faust (one of the more prominent of which was written by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe), can be viewed as evil incarnate. However, I would put him a notch lower than that, since his malevolence falls short much of the time. As the story goes on, though, Mephistopheles becomes more than simply two-dimensional and fleshes out into a fully realized character, his evil notwithstanding. The novel loses steam, however, when Faust begins to descend, morality-wise. The plot also begins to wind down, until we reach the horrendously predictable ending. Swanwick, I think, couldn't find anywhere else to go with the novel, so he slapped on the ending and sent it off to the publisher. Despite all the bad things I've said about this book, however, it's good and worth reading. Swanwick is clearly a good storyteller, but Jack Faust isn't up to his usual par.

Although not as richly rewarding and complex as "The Iron Dragons Daughter", this is another well-written, dark and ominous work by one of science fictions greatest story tellers. I have read many reviews and comments about this novel that stress (all too strenuously) the faults in Jack's character. Maybe I enjoyed the novel so much because I EXPECTED THEM!! It's a story about greed. The greed for knowledge, recognition, and power by all of the major characters. Knowing well the original tale by Goethe, I was well prepared to deal with Faust and all of his bungles.

Rather I found the true protagonist to be Mephistopheles. True he IS the "devil" in the tale, and the object of his desire IS the destruction of the human race, but he states this in the beginning and Faust still makes the pact! Who is the REAL devil there? Mephistopheles even goes so far as to warn Jack that once begun it will be unnavoidable, but Faust is so naive about human nature, and ignorant of his own faults that he is sure he can prevent it. The way that society exploits Jacks 'wonders', and its leaders wrestle over the newfound power, by the end of the novel I WANTED Mephistopheles to win. Humanity gone by-by. But then again, maybe that's because I (unlike Faust) understand human behavior all so well.

I highly recommend this book. If not for the challenging and emotional work usually derived from Swanwick's novels, then for the thought stimulation alone. Even those who disliked it have strong views about it, and anyone with an interest in history, science, sociology, (or all of the above) should read it and form their own opinion. And if that fails to stir your imagination, it is still a well-paced, fun read. And certainly worth your while.

Few science fiction novels are set in pre-renaissance Europe. In fact, I can think of none besides "Jack Faust". I see this book largely as an allegory for the present day, in which we invent new technologies--often astonishingly powerful ones, with far reaching effects--faster than society can come up with new mores and social structures for dealing with them. As such, the author does a good job of presenting his warning to us by means of a fictional history whose events seem as obvious and unavoidable as tomorrow's dawn once they are set into motion. And yet he does so in a way that kept me turning pages one after the other.

As a whole, however, I found certain aspects of the book somewhat disturbing. More so because I cannot tell whether they come from the author himself or are natural artifacts of the story and the characters' evolutions. If you do purchase this book (and don't get me wrong; I'm not sorry I bought a copy), be prepared to confront some subtle mysogynies, racist attitudes, and the like. But as I say, I cannot tell whether these are the author's own beliefs or simply reflections of the times in which the novel is set.

This is a fast read and very easy to understand, but, contrary to my sci-fi class's belief, I consider it mind candy. The futuristic ideas seem well thought out and almost plausible, but as for the actual details, it seems like Swanwick had a little TOO much fun with it. The details of sex between the mutated creatures was repulsive to say the least, and it kept me from taking the book seriously. It's almost pure fluff... Like combining a romance novel and an old black and white "horror" movie. This can be good or bad, depending on the type of science fiction a reader enjoys.

If you are from Philadelphia, or know anything about Philly, read this book! If you were here during the TMI crisis, believe me, you will get it. But I guess I can understand people from out of town not understanding what it is all about. Its about the Mummers, stupid! No other books that I know of so adequately takes the Philadelphia proletarian New Years holiday and projects it into an alternative radioactive present. It is the Kiss of the Killer Mummers. Glue some feathers to your Geiger Counter! Mummer up your plastic booties! Oh! Dem Golden Slippers, indeed!

Swanwick is one of my favorite writers working in science fiction/fantasy-- I've been a fan since I read the Iron Dragon's Daughter. His novels often don't cross over into being more popular successes, largely (I believe) due to the complexity of his plots and characters.

I agree with the reviewer who said that Bones of the Earth is the most accessible Swanwick novel to date. However, it still requires some attention and careful reading to get the full rewards of the book, particularly as it relates to the time travel aspects. This is not a bad thing, however, as Swanwick's ability to handle complexity allows him to create one of the best imaginings of time travel available to date in speculative fiction.

Well worth reading.

combines several well-integrated (and rather original) SFnal ideas with some neat scientific speculation, interesting characters, a compelling plot, and a powerfully argued theme about the nature of science and the human urge to do science.

The novel concerns a program to send paleontologists back to the Mesozoic Era to study dinosaurs in their natural environment. As such it is both a dinosaur novel and a time travel novel. Perhaps unexpectedly, the thematic heart of the book is in the time travel aspect, though the dinosaur speculations are worthwhile and fun in themselves. The three main characters are Richard Leyster, a brilliant and studious scientist; Gertrude Salley, brilliant herself but manipulative and unbound by law or rules; and Griffin, the tormented administrator of the Mesozoic time travel program.

One key plot thread concerns a scheme by Christian fundamentalists to sabotage the time travel efforts, which ends up marooning a number of paleontologists in the Late Cretaceous. Griffin and his assistants try to loop back and forth through time to forestall this sabotage, but they are frustrated by the insistence of the sponsors of the time travel program that no paradoxes be created: thus anything they know to have "already happened" they cannot stop from happening. The other key thread involves Salley's attempts to subvert that law -- right at the beginning we see hints that she is trying to cause paradoxes, and her attempts continue, though her motive remains unclear to the reader for some time.

The scenes in the Cretaceous involve some well-handled "primitive survival" scenes, and some fascinating speculation about dinosaur social life and about the real causes of their extinction. The other thread involves some very clever handling of time loops and paradox, and an eventual trip far into the future to meet the Unchanging -- the mysterious beings who have offered the boon of time travel to humans. The resolution is surprising, logical, and achingly sad, or at least bittersweet. Swanwick is convincing treating human curiosity, our love of science. He is convincing treating human reactions to the possibility of fixing our past mistakes. The characters are well-drawn, particularly Griffin and his boss, the Old Man. Leyster and Salley are well done as well but a bit less fully realized -- or perhaps too clearly idealized to fit their parts. The minor characters are interesting, too. I loved the book, and I was quite moved by it.

Next to William Gibson, Michael Swanwick may be the most interesting writer to have emerged from the 1980's cyberpunk movement; he's certainly as fine a literary stylist as Gibson. Judging from the rich vein of Swanwick's work, from cyberpunk to fantasy, and now, time travel, it's possible one could argue that Swanwick may be the better writer. "Bones of the Earth" is one of the finest time travel tales I've ever read. It certainly has the best depiction I've seen of dinosaurs in fiction; it seems far more realistic than the dinosaurs depicted in Michael Crichton's "Jurassic Park" novels. Swanwick combines a gripping time travel tale with a splendid elegy to science as a grand quest in search of knowledge. I am pleased that his most despicable character is a diehard fundamentalist Christian terrorist, whose world view is diametrically opposed to the one subscribed by the scientists - and by Swanwick himself - in this exciting, well-written tale. Without a doubt, "Bones of the Earth" is one of the finest science fiction novels published this year.

The protagonist is a loner on the Moon who wants nothing more than to be left alone to commune with virgin territory, but circumstances throw him into proximity with others as well as wake him up to responsibility. This is a grand theme in the old SF tradition--in fact, except for the explicit sex and the up-to-date science references (specifically, nanotech), this is something that wouldn't have been out of place in 50s SF. This is a short book, technically a novella, that oftentimes seems rushed. The pacing was kind of a jump-up and wait proposition, very irregular feeling. Michael Swanwick has done much better than this in both characters and plot. (This "review" originally appeared in First Impressions Installment One [http://www.owt.com/users/gcox/fi.contents.html].)

Swanwick combines hard science fiction speculation about the future of the moon with a fastpaced action-adventure story that wouldn't be out of place in Hollywood. This is a short novel, orginally published in Asimov's Science Fiction as a novella, and it well worth reading in one sitting. So what are you waiting for? Pop some popcorn and start reading.

This is a collection of 14 stories in the sci fi/semi-weird genre. For some reason, I couldn't stop reading although I'm still not sure if I enjoyed every story. One story called "Touring" puts Buddy Holly, Elvis and Janis Joplin together in a fantasy which reminded me of Rod Serling's work or the old "Outer Limits" TV show. There's an Afterword to each story written by the main collaborator, Gardner Dozois. This is definitely a unique collection by some award winning authors.