A bleak view of the future and immortality are the subject of this edition of the Book Review.  This is what Sue Dawson made of Richard Morgan's sci-fi novel, Altered Carbon..

This is a scary foretaste of how things might be in the future.  Award winning Richard Morgan has created a future where technological achievements far outstrip mankind`s ability to use them wisely.  Human consciousness has been digitised and every person`s life experiences and memories are recorded in a small, indestructible “stack”, embedded in the base of their skull.

Suits-you sir

This stack is then put into a new body after death, so life can continue almost interrupted.  Obviously, rich people can afford the best, custom-designed bodies, lesser mortals have to put up with cheap, android type, any-old-thing-will-do-bodies.  (So not so much “My body is a temple”, rather “My body is a small corrugated iron shack – in Royston Vasey– on a wet Sunday afternoon!”)

Anyway, our hero, Takeshi Kovacs is awoken from prison hibernation (after having been killed in the first chapter of the book), to track down a murderer.  Unusually, he is hired by the victim himself, multi millionaire Laurens Bancroft, who, although snug inside his top-of-the-range new body, is pretty peeved that someone has had the nerve to off him.  And he definitely wants revenge.

There are a host of bizarre secondary characters, including a hotel – The Hendrix – which possesses artificial intelligence and suffers from homicidal tendencies.  (Definitely not somewhere to complain about room service!)  Plus a police detective, Kirsten Ortega who takes issue with the fact that Kovacs has been given the body of her ex-lover, the victim`s sex-mad wife, Miriam (married for over 100 years – surely this qualifies for some sort of endurance medal) and the wonderfully psychotic nastiest piece of work you`ll meet in a long time, Rayleen Kawahara.

Altered Carbon was widely acclaimed on its release and there are two equally good sequels – Broken Angels” and “Woken Furies”

Morgan has created a fascinating window into the future.  There are throwaway references to archaeological and technological discoveries made on Mars which by themselves would warrant a whole book.

It’s a bleak vision of life as it might be.  Would you want to live forever?

This book costs 20 TL and is available from The Card Shop 2, Calis.

The Fethiye Times Book Review is written and sponsored by The Card Shop 2, Calis, where you can buy or order new books, exchange or pick up second hand books as well as find cards and other gifts.