A Deepness in the Sky

The book starts off far more interestingly than it's predecessor - however it takes a steep dive into monotony. The story develops at a painstaking pace and when interesting things do happen, they feel inconsequential - almost as if it was written in serial form.

Most egregious of all is the race the book centers around - a species of aliens in the form of giant spiders. The Spiders are so incredibly similar to human beings that it is hard not to start imagining them as bipedal humans. They drive automobiles (I'm not sure Vernor even bothered explaining how a spider controls a car) and build skyscrapers. Their culture is formed almost identical to ours, differing nation states, armies with generals and engineers, nuclear families with a mom and dad and kids. It's all so incredibly familiar that it's frustrating.

I made it halfway through the book before throwing in the towel and writing this review. Vernor created an interesting universe in A Fire Upon the Deep but he consistently fails to expand on his ideas or to write compelling... anything.