Character is a strange subject for this story. The 1st-person protagonist has very little personality, but I found myself not caring. The other "main character" in the story was far more interesting. While no character had a true arc, what we saw of him arced somewhat from the beginning to the end (that is, if the twist ending was really a twist ending...) Characters are definitely not this story's strong suit, yet for some reason it felt fine anyway.
The setting of this story is really cool. It's set on Earth around 150 or so years in the future, perhaps a little further. The speculative element of it (we really are alone in the universe) is kinda unique for a sci-fi story and allows for the conflict to be bold for readers.
Plot acts as a stock car for this story. It's a metal cage with little adornment, except an advertisement (wow, my metaphor is even funnier than I originally thought because there's an advertisement occupying space in the middle). The last twenty-five percent of the story is where the money lies. I already mentioned the twist ending that may or may not be a twist ending (you have to read the story to understand).
This is not my favorite story by any stretch, but it isn't bad, especially not for a story of its length (around 2,000 words I'd estimate). If I notice any stories by Jack McDevitt in future issues of the magazines I subscribe to I'll certainly take the time to read them.
I'm not familiar with the author but need to seek out his writing.
ReplyDeleteI looked into him a bit. He's been around a great while, but he hasn't made a massive splash.
DeleteI like the idea of a sci/fi story where we are alone in the universe. I've never seen one like that and it has potential to be very ominous.
ReplyDeleteApparently McDevitt specializes in such stories. Yeah, they sound very unique.
DeleteThanks for introducing me to McDevitt. I'll have to check him out.
ReplyDeleteNo problem. There are a ton of new writers to discover by reading Analog, Asimov's, etc.
DeleteIt's sad that the protagonist of this story doesn't have much of a personality, which is extremely important for writer's to establish for all of their characters, but at least the other main character makes up for it. Thank you for sharing your review for The Eagle Project. I'll have to read it to find out about the twist ending. :)
ReplyDeleteYou are most certainly welcome. That's the first story I read out of that issue, but it's probably worth the $3.99 or whatever it cost to buy it alone (if you don't already subscribe to Analog).
Delete