John Varley's Steel Beach is a daring, well-conceived work of science fiction. Humanity has been ejected from Earth by enigmatic aliens trying to save cetaceans. Homo sapiens finds itself exiled to strongholds throughout the solar system, foremost of which is Luna. There, human beings live in great comfort with almost all of their needs met and very little to worry about. As a result, they are losing their minds. Through the unremarkable antagonist Hildy, Varley asks what happens to human beings who lack challenges and who lack any real direction. Comforts there are aplenty in Luna. Technology makes sex changes routine and has all but defeated death itself. So now what? Humanity has slumped into a self-absorbed torpor that would be bad enough if the unimaginably complex supercomputer that controls every aspect of Lunar life weren't on the edge of a catastrophic breakdown. Hildy gains an increasing awareness of this problem as the narrative progresses; and he (later she) manages to struggle out of the cocoon of smothering comfort that threatens to make humanity incapable of responding to the imminent central computer breakdown. As with much good science fiction, Varley uses Steel Beach to ask what humanity ought to do with its capabilities. He suggests that it is human nature to use awesome abilities for small-minded diversions. We are our own greatest limitation, though we are also our own greatest resource. The story is overlong, though. The pace drags a bit. More ruthless editing would have yielded a story that was better-paced but still covered the important points. Though it can be uncomfortable to read (or perhaps because), Steel Beach is quite worthy of the reading.

From the moment John Varley burst onto the scene in 1974, his short fiction was like nothing anyone else was writing. His stories won every award the science fiction field had to offer, many times over. His first collection, The Persistence of Vision, published in 1978, was the most important collection of the decade, and changed what fans would come to expect from science fiction.Now, The John Varley Reader gathers his best stories, many out of print for years. This is the volume no Varley fan-or science fiction reader-can do without.

From a master of science fiction comes a brand-new noir novel set in the Eight Worlds universe, where a detective hunts for the biohackers who have created a dangerous new disease.Christopher Bach was a policeman in one of the largest Lunar cities when the A.I. Lunar Central Computer had a breakdown. Known as the Big Glitch, the problem turned out to be a larger war than anyone expected. When order was restored, Chris's life could never be the same. Now he's a private detective, assisted by his genetically altered dog Sherlock, and emulates the tough guys in the noir books and movies that he loves.When Bach takes the case of a woman involuntarily infected with an engineered virus, he is on the hunt to track down the biohackers in the infamous district of Irontown. But if he wants to save humanity, he'll have to confront his own demons.

"A cosmic coming-of-age novel... enthralling everyman heroics."—Paul Di Filippo, SciFi.com"Mars sucks." And if anyone's allowed to say it, Ray Garcia-Strickland is, since his father was one of the first men to set foot there. Ray's father is now the manager of the Red Thunder, one of the swankiest hotels on overdeveloped Mars. And Ray has seen his share of gravity-dependent Earthies. Which doesn't stop him from fearing the worst when Earth is struck by an unknown object, causing a massive tsunami. Living high on his father's glory was okay, but now Ray must literally come down to Earth—and help solve one of its greatest mysteries...From the Paperback edition.

Hugo Best Short Story Winner (1982) Locus Best Short Story Winner (1982) Nebula Best Short Story Nominee (1982) Science Fiction Chronicle Poll Short Story Winner (1982)

Lieutenant Patricia Kelly Elizabeth Strickland-otherwise known as Podkayne-is a third-generation Martian. Her grandfather, Manny, was one of the first men to set foot on Mars. So Poddy has some planet-sized shoes to fill. That's why she's joined the Music, Arts, and Drama Division of the Martian Navy. Though some may say her voice is a weapon in itself, Poddy passed the audition. And now she's going to Europa, one of Jupiter's many moons, to be an entertainer. But she's about to learn that there's plenty of danger to go around in the Martian Navy, even if you've just signed on to sing.From Publishers WeeklyNebula and Hugo–winner Varley continues the space opera saga of the Garcia-Strickland clan (last encountered in 2006's Red Lightning) in this enjoyable if simplistic tale. Patricia Kelly Elizabeth Podkayne Strickland-Garcia-Redmond, daughter of an earlier series hero, Ray Garcia-Strickland, is glad for any excuse to escape her job as the Martian consul in California, but the news calling her home is dire: her great grandmother is ill and about to go into suspended animation. After a family reunion, Podkayne heads to Europa, where a disaster forces her own suspension. The solar system she awakens to 10 years later is radically different. Podkayne learns of looming trials threatening the survival of mankind and tackles them with undiminished determination. Varley has deliberately made Podkayne an uncomplicated figure who lets major events and traumas roll right off her, rendering her a less than satisfying protagonist despite her heroics. (Mar.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From BooklistVarley concludes the solar system exploration trilogy of Red Thunder (2004) and Red Lightning (2006) with a zany Heinlein homage, whose immediate tip-off for the fans comes with the disclosure that the protagonist prefers to be called by one of her middle names, Podkayne (see Heinlein’s Podkayne of Mars, 1963). Assigned to the cultural affairs wing of the Martian Navy, she is sent to the Jovian satellite Europa, nominally as an entertainer. She is shortly hip deep in intelligence work, for which she has hardly any training, but also for which she could end up paying with her life. Meanwhile, she becomes the erotic mentor of young Juba, a role for which she has more qualifications and more interest. Readers who have by this time stopped giggling won’t stop reading until they reach the end, where they may launch a peroration largely composed of the titles of the classic Heinlein juveniles, on which at least two generations of readers cut their sf teeth. Not for the humor-impaired, definitely for Varley fandom. --Roland Green