The Restoration Game

I've recently read 'The Restoration Game' by Ken Macleod and thought it would be worth blogging about it. This is no book review, but might give an insight into the sort of stories I'm looking to place in Jupiter. I'm not sure if the fact I'm reading this book 2 years after it was published has anything to do with it (I don't think so). But in terms of basic plot, his book didn't seem to do anything new. I felt the main plot and route the story was going to take was easily worked out by the first few chapters. However, despite that, perhaps because of that, I loved this book. Ken created some wonderful characters, some wonderful landscapes, and just produced a book at was a joy to read. It didn't need some flashy gizmo, or some ground breaking idea. What it had is exactly what I look for in a story, characters to fall in love with, who you wince for when they do something you know is going to turn out silly. This was a book that the plot felt old, felt done before, but told in such a beautiful way, that it was impossible for me not to like. And that folks is that I look for in stories for Jupiter. You don't need flashy gizmo's or massive spaceships (OK, they help), what you need is a canvas that feels real, and characters that you can care about. Either love them or hate them, just don't write indifference! Ian