 THE ANSWER
Andy Bacon
Vanguard press
Sheraton house castle park Cambridge England
First published 2007
ISBN 9781843863113
Number of pages 321
“THE ANSWER”, book one of the “TATLAUE” trilogy by Andy Bacon.
Remove me from this world; I want to live on “Andy Bacon’s” planet “Vacchion”.
Follow the main character “K”, a scientist/soldier who has been assigned a mission on a deserted planet. The mission is to collect information, to study the local plant life and anything else that he finds of interest. Sounds like a cushy little job, no threats detected on the planet, wildlife and forest in abundance, plus a huge upturned pyramid hanging in the sky, point only just in contact with the ground. Who built this “Chun”? How does it sit so brilliantly in the sky with no sign of toppling? Isn’t it supposed to be the other way up? And for a Charles Darwin of the future it must have seemed like heaven, with so many questions to answer.
The ruins of a civilization are discovered, a long dead intelligent race, who lived for thousands of years, and then one day, they just died. They died because of “The Answer”, the answer they and everyone else strives to discover, this is the answer to life and universal existence, the answer to everything.
Things are not so simple for “K”. Despite his best efforts to stay out of trouble, he ends up feet first in it. The sudden unprovoked attack from an unknown assailant stirs the story up.
“Like an army of rabbits starring into the headlights of a giant oncoming vehicle, the noise had made K’s brain momentarily redundant, frozen with adrenalin- induced fear. As quick as they simultaneously stopped, the mass of cells and electrical pulses came back to life..... Every single one of them carrying the same message: RUN you idiot-RUN!
The way this book is written gives a magnitude of visual experiences, the descriptions of the planet, the enemy, and the beauty of the “Chun” is put across from the author with passion, and humour alike.
This Novel was an interesting and pleasurable read, a cross between Terry Pratchett, and Arthur C Clarke. I can’t wait for the next book in this magnificent trilogy.
To top it off, the proceeds from this book are going to charity!
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