Prador Moon

Neal Asher's brand of SF is not for the squeamish. Prador Moon is set within his Polity universe. The Polity is the collective group of worlds which is run by AI and policed by Earth Central Security agents. Unlike the first Polity novel, Gridlinked (which I've read), this one does not feature ECS agent Ian Cormac. Prador Moon is a standalone novel which details the first contact with emissaries of the Prador Second Kingdom. The alien race known as the Prador are huge crab-like beasts who give new meaning to the world hostile. For instance they enjoy dining on humans and occasionally will eat their own young. (I found much to admire in their parenting skills.) This tale has two main characters: Jebel Krong and Moria Salem. Jebel Krong becomes a revenge-driven leader of the defensive forces; Moria Salem is getting used to having a new aug implanted on her skull. Think of an aug as like a small super-computing wi-fi connected interface to universe-spanning data bank. That would take some getting used to. Anyway, Prador Moon is a short book that moves quickly. It occasionally gets lost in head-scratching technobabble but only for a paragraph here and there. It's a nice diversion for Asher fans. But if you're interested, I'd suggest checking out Gridlinked first. That said, The Skinner is my favorite Asher tale and one I plan on revisiting some day. The Skinner also features some Prador characters. They are nasty!