So what the hell is going on in this book and series? Ostensibly, what’s going on is that a giant quantum experiment has gone wrong and opened up gateways between Otopia (a.k.a. Earth), and the lands of elves and demons and other places. Our heroine is assigned to guard an elf who has become a rock star. Only he’s some sort of fallen elf prince. She doesn’t do a good job, he’s kidnapped, and she must travel in a quest-like experience with companions of dubious loyalties to rescue him.
I did not like the book for several reasons. But the primary reason was that book played with loyalties so badly. Typical experience: capture bad elf, bad elf claims he did bad things only because he’s a double agent and needed people to think he was loyal, accept elf’s word (for the time being). Over and over and over again. At one point an elf companion stabs a bad elf more or less just for talking rather than listen to that claptrap. That was my response. Why it had to be repeated I do not know.
Secondarily, it really felt like Robson was making it up as she went along. New scene, new weird unknown facts about elf-land, no connection to already revealed stuff. Wash, rinse, repeat. It also would have helped if I gave a rip about the elf needing to be saved. He’s neither a sympathetic character, nor are the stakes for his kidnapping revealed until late in the game. Thus, no reason to care whether he’s rescued or not. For the better part of the book, he’s a pawn between two vague groups of elves neither of whose intentions are known.
Kickass cover though.
I’m batting zero for two on Justina Robson books so far.
Title: Keeping It Real
Author: Justina Robson
Cover creator: Larry Rostant
Series: Quantum gravity; 1
Imprint / publisher: Pyr / Perseus
Format: Paperback
Length: 333 p.
Publication date: 2007
ISBN-10: 1-59102-539-7
ISBN-13: 978-1-59102-539-9
LC classification: PR6118.O28K44 2007
