Manhattan Transfer

by John E. Stith

When aliens abduct New York City, carrying it into space inside a huge dome, the citizens trapped inside must find out why, what they can do to save themselves . . . and to save the dozens of other cities which the aliens have stolen from other planets. A stunning tour-de-force of science fiction storytelling, with gripping action, believable characters, and a plot that will keep you on the edge of your seat!

A Hugo Award Honorable Mention.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Novels, Science Fiction Fantasy

381 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

PUSHBACK , a mystery-suspense novel, was published in November 2018 and is a finalist for the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense, mainstream category.

PUSHBACK : At his ten-year high-school reunion, an investment counselor finds he doesn't know one person there, and soon realizes he must outwit an unknown antagonist who wants him dead.

"...unsettling Hitchcockian thriller...Judicious use of humor provides some relief from the dark plot line. Fans of Daniel Palmer-esque intelligent suspense will be pleased." -- Publishers Weekly

"Ordinary Hijacked by Extraordinary, With Comedy... what’s most captivating about PUSHBACK is that even with people like Dave Barlow—just an average guy doing average things—life can take a shocking turn for the worse. But the book reminds us that, also like Dave, we have the power to turn it right-side up again, with humor at the center of our inner strength." -- The Big Thrill, magazine of International Thriller Writers

Science-fiction author John E. Stith's works include REDSHIFT RENDEZVOUS (Nebula Award nominee from Ace Books), MANHATTAN TRANSFER (Hugo Award Honorable Mention from Tor Books), REUNION ON NEVEREND, and RECKONING INFINITY (on Science Fiction Chronicle's Best Science Fiction Novels list for its publication year, on the Nebula Award preliminary ballot).

His other novels are SCAPESCOPE, MEMORY BLANK, DEATH TOLLS, and DEEP QUARRY.

He's the author of ALL FOR NAUGHT, which collects "Naught for Hire," and "Naught Again" both first appearing in ANALOG. If you hear about "Naught for Hire" verbally, you might think the title is "Not for Hire" but it's not. Check out the Naught for Hire website for even more info on the upcoming webisode series starring Ben Browder.

Reviews

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rereading this after a few decades or so reaffirmed how novel and fun Manhattan Transfer is. This is something of a blend of Golden Age pulp and hardish scifi to produce an adventure story regarding first contact. The story starts off with Manhattan island being first enclosed with a massive dome via spacecraft and then lifted off the planet something like a huge ice cream cone, the cone being the bedrock and such under the city. Next thing you know is Manhattan is located on a sea of grey goo surrounded by other domes containing alien cities. Apparently, it is inside a massive space ship over 100 kilometers wide.

The story coalesces around a handful of characters, the main protagonist being Matt, a military bigwig who just arrived in Manhattan before 'lift off' if you will. We also have an intrepid female reporter, a 'Mary Sue' type mayor of NYC, a civil engineer and buddy of Matts, and a linguist; together, they operate as something of a task force, first to get the city stabilized, and then something else. The alien captors set up 'bird feeders' which supply water, power, and food quickly deemed rabbit food as it comes in small green pellets...

While first published in 1993, the story is set about 2 decades later (e.g., near future) and the science/tech feels about right, so kudos of Stith! Manhattan Transfer is something of a mystery novel (why the hell did aliens 'kidnap' Manhattan, and what do they want?) alongside a more typical hardish scifi plot, where the characters are alas really secondary to the overall story. This stated, the mystery is fun and the alien encounters along the way are better than normal pulp. I can see people being a bit put off by the rah rah humanity expressed along the way, and also the rah rah New Yorkers, but so be it. Manhattan Transfer also suffers a bit from some pacing issues-- a bit stop and go-- and the inclusion of some really unnecessary story arcs, but still, I am a bit surprised how well this story has held up after 30 years. 3.5 stars, rounding up!!

[Dee · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you like long, dry passages where people unnaturally explain the science behind their actions, this book is for you. If you like unrealistic human reactions, trope-ish military man saviour stuff (he's white of course - in fact, except for the mayor and random cameo paragraphs, the protagonists are all white, which is ridiculous considering that one of the biggest melting pots of the US was abducted) extremely tame romance needlessly drawn out with long looks and tepid dreams, and random attempts to be diverse, then this is your book.

None of these things are my things. This was not my book.

The premise is interesting, the characters are dry toast, the aliens are run of the mill, the military guy is an arse I wanted to punch at least 15-20 times throughout the book even though he was supposed to be the hero we cheered for, the ending was anticlimactic. I have definite plans to avoid this author's works in the future.

[Jamie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I won this book in a giveaway and here is my honest review. I decided to leave my reading comfort zone of YA/Thriller/Suspense etc. and enter the Sci-fi genre(after being away for a few years). Oh how I wish someone had stopped me!
From the very first page it was as if I stepped into Stephen Kings 'Under the Dome' book. Makes one wonder which author wrote about the "dome" first?! hmmmm
The story drags on and on at a slow pace. The characters are whiny and I couldn't connect with them at all.
I am happy to report that I am leaving Sci-fi and returning to my comfort zone :)

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

John Stith's "Manhattan Transfer" was first published in 1993 and has been reissued this year by ReAnimus Press. My copy was a free copy for review on Goodreads. The basic plot is fairly straightforward: Manhattan is abducted by aliens and those living in Manhattan decide to do something about it. Or, as the jacket says, "Aliens just kidnapped Manhattan. They messed with the wrong city".

Stith's take on this is pretty straight up if not downright overly technical. Consequently, the book seems to plod along until about the two thirds way point when it picks up speed and begins to move along with some excitement. The twists and turns are coming fast and furious providing some pace, but often with such speed that development of plot or character that would explain the events is lost.

Probably not on my top 10 list of what I would like to see brought back into print, but ReAnimus Press should be applauded for bringing back into print older sci fi.

[Romancing the Book · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed by Lori
Book provided by the author

This was another action packed, tension filled sci-fi goodness from Mr. Stith. This is sci-fi not romance, although there are attractions between Matt and Abby, the two protagonists in this book.

I had read that this book was similar to Independence Day, and I agree, but it’s not Independence Day. I thought it was a cross between Independence Day and the Walking Dead, with the world in chaos, and our way of life is no longer an option. That theme runs wild in The Walking Dead.

I thought about what I would do if I was in a situation similar to The Walking Dead, Independence Day, or even within this book, how would I handle myself? I know myself well enough, that I would probably be one of the first to die, because I have no self-preservation. I don’t have the skills to live in a world where there are no moralities, rules, or structure to guide all of us in our daily lives. Or, I would be a burden to whomever I was with and they would view me as the weakest link and try to off me!!!

Matt has that innate drive in him to survive, to make do with what he has within the situation he’s in. He’s a natural leader. He’s smart, keeps a cool head, and can lead without acting like an overlord.  Abby has the wherewithal to survive in this environment as well. She’s smart, clever, and tough.  Matt, Abby, and a team of secondary characters work together to find out what happened to Manhattan, and will save humanity.

I hope that some readers out there will give this book a try. I’m now a sci-fi fan, and I was sure I never would be. I guess never say never.

[SciFiOne · Rating 5 out of 5]

2017 grade A-

A very good hard SciFi novel with good world building, character building, and story telling. Manhattan is extracted like a tooth by a large alien ship and taken aboard. Can the residents figure out what is going on and save themselves and everyone else? I could have used a little more wind down at the end and a little less of the fanatic preacher but I'm only being nit picky. The opening chapter(s) of the extraction can seem long and a bit gory but most of the characters are being introduced and it gets a lot better after that.

The novel was pretty fast reading and hard to put down. I learned about this one through a suggestion by Goodreads.

[Marc · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a cool sci-fi book - a quick read that I could hardly put down. Plenty of twists. Stith gives humans a lot of credit for ingenuity...perhaps too much at times, but it really helps the story along. I subtracted a star for the ill-considered insertion of a religious-wacko stereotype. It was quite obvious that the author had absolutely no sympathy for this character, which made him seem lifeless and robotic - a hopeless token in an otherwise exciting book.

[Patrick Scheele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This is hard SF the way it should be written. I'm going to be extra careful not to add any spoilers, because this book is actually worth reading unspoiled. A lot of the surprises had me genuinely surprised.

What I liked in this book that so much other SF does badly:
* We meet a team of people that actually works as a team to solve problems. There's no drama or tension or other extreme emotions on display. They know people are counting on them to do their job and they do it. What a concept!
* A lot of SF is about the social consequences of certain inventions or perceived problems of the present are magnified in a future setting. Once in a while that can make for an interesting story, although it usually reads as a social manifesto (i.e.: "We have to stop Global Warming or we'll all have to live on rafts in the future!") But in this novel, science (and the scientific method of trying stuff out) plays an integral part in everything that happens. These people use believable science and common sense (i.e. logic) to figure things out and solve their problems.
* I've read a lot of SF from the bad old days when speed and wordcount were very important to a lot of writers. Stories written like that often read like the writer began with an interesting premise and just started to write. Inevitably, he then ended up writing himself in a corner where only an unbelievable coincidence or a supernaturally capable scientist could get the story back on track. Such stories often end rather suddenly and have a bit of a deus-ex-machina feel to the ending. I found none of that in this novel. The ending was very satisfying and believable.

No book is perfect, of course, but if the story sucks me in, I barely notice the problems. The only problem I remember noticing was that the guy who lost one of his hands at the start of the book died resting his head in his hands. I'm not sure whether the writer missed that one or I just overlooked the guy getting a prosthetic or something, but that was pretty weird.

[Jason Wolf · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my fourth time reading this book. I was always drawn to this book by how descriptive the writer is with the scenes. I could easily picture everything that is taking place. The story, the characters and the flow is 5 stars till the ending. I have always hated how quick the book ends. Reading it again with that in the back of my head still didnt stop me from jumping back into this book. There is another book out there about a dome that also had a tv series. This is where they got a good amount of their ideas just tweaking enough to keep them from getting sued. Forget that story, this one is better.

[Ben Hartwiger · Rating 2 out of 5]

Plain, plain prose that is very focused and straightforward. I enjoyed the wide cast of characters overall, but it suffers from a lack of complexity in the main characters. The plot kept me engaged, and god, the ending satisfied me, not for any particularly unique or special reasons, just pure enjoyment and satisfaction.

[Abonrat · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a lifelong fan of SciFi this book delivers everything a good science fiction story should.
Combining alien invasion with apocalyptic survival dependent on engineering skills, with enough characterization to support the story line.
A thoroughly enjoyable read.

[Irinel Finco · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible writting. I don't think I will ever again read this author.

[Josephine · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting concept, I was mesmerized until the Author took the story line to a Hollywood blockbuster story line.

[Joshua Baber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun book! Don’t remember dates I read it this summer, but a fun science fiction/thriller with a great story and characters!

[Seth Marsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super Fun

[David Silver · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent sci-fi adventure. But felt it needed an epilogue about what happened to all the cities taken

[Nicolas · Rating 2 out of 5]

Manhattan transfert est un roman de John Edward Stith qui part de prémisses épatantes. En effet, dans ce récit largement inspiré par l’antique quatrième dimension, Manhattan se retrouve emporté de la surface de la Terre par d’étranges extraterrestres. une fois le transfert effectué, plus de communication entre l’île et le reste de la terre, un sol désespérément plat, une bulle entourant ce quartier, sont tout ce que les new-yorkais voient de leur environnement. Bref, ça part très bien. Pour être franc, le tout début est sans doute la partie la plus authentiquement jouissive du récit, rappelant par certains côtés le mépris affiché par les extra-terrestres de Mars Attacks.
Cependant, rapidement, on change de style pour aborder les rivages d’une survie d’un groupe humain dans un environnement pas forcément convivial, mais en fait plutôt. Et là, les défauts commencent à arriver, d’abord sous la forme de personnages plus beaux que nature (un colonel de l’armée capable d’improviser à peu près n’importe quel plan en deux battements de cils, son ancien lieutenant, devenu chef des services techniques de New-York (lesquels services sont prodigieusement équipés)), et d’autres encore, dignes d’un superman à la manque, et sans doute représentatifs d’une Amérique urbaine (et encore, j’espère que non, parce que dans ce cas, le miroir tendu donne de la mariée un portrait assez laid). Ces défauts se concrétisent ensuite dans un environnement plus hostile dans Manhattan qu’en dehors, quoique cette espèce de matière mélassoïde ait sans doute un sens caché. Et ils se concrétisent enfin dans les rebondissement, souvent tirés du chapeau d’une espèce de David Copperfield à la manque, qui ne sait à mon sens pas trop où il va.
Ce côté approximatif de l’intrigue devient, fort logiquement, de plus en plus visible, pour être une gêne à partir de la rencontre entre les humains et les extra-terrestres. Car bien évidement, les extra-terrestres sont là, et ils sont rudement laids, même s’ils ne sont pas aussi méchants qu’on pourrait le craindre. Et une fois mis en contact avec nos gentils héros, ils se laisseront manipuler comme les enfants qu’ils ne peuvent qu’être face à la subtilité d’habiles négociateurs, prompts à balancer le vaisseau spatial dans lequel ils sont droit dans le soleil (en détruisant au passage toutes les espèces extra-terrestres hébergées). Quand enfin il est question de faire des manoeuvres dignes d’une guerre des étoiles à la manque, alors là, plus de doute, ce roman peut être qualifié de médiocre, malgré certaines excellentes idées du début. Et je remercie malgré tout Bernard pour m’avoir conseillé cet achat (je le dis avec d’autant moins de gêne que c’est un échange fait chez une bouquiniste : ce bouquin contre les héraults de Valdemar. Malgré tout le mal que je peux en dire, il vaut mieux que ces histoires zoophilo-SM).

[Joseph Carano · Rating 4 out of 5]

Won this novel in a Goodreads give away. I am a sucker for science fiction stories that are not overly complicated. This offering fit the bill. Great story and plot kept me reading non-stop. My only problem was that the characters were a little bit too ordinary and cookie cutter. Other than that, a very good read.

[Timothy Stelly Sr · Rating 3 out of 5]

I purchased a copy of this book after another reviewer at amazon.com wrote that my own novel was reminiscent of it. The story is a survivalist tale of Manhattanites who are whisked away from earth underneath a plastic dome and to a vast alien space ship, where they find the same has happened to many other cultures from various planets.

The story centers on former military man Matt Sheehey, who leads a group of engineers and scientists working to figure out the problem. They make contact with several of the other “bubble cities” and their unusual inhabitants, many of whom they cannot communicate with. The fear is that they might be part of an intergalactic zoo exhibit or worse, the sole survivors of planets due for destruction.

The action unfolds a little too leisurely at times, especially when Stith shifts back and forth between what is happening with Sheehan and his investigative team and what is going on back in Manhattan. It is the former scenes that left me on the edge of my seat.
Another intriguing aspect is the encounters between earthlings and others and how they must learn to communicate. At times Stith’s technical descriptions are convoluted, which tempts the reader to skim over some of the narrative. For once, we find an alien race that breaks the stereotypical mode of earth invaders who are lecturing do-gooders and who are given an atypical appearance compared to what is found in most sci-fi fare.

However, the conclusion serves up a smooth twist that I never saw coming and is not some logic-defying ending pulled out of thin air. It is a well thought out piece of cloth that may not provide full closure, but leaves the reader satisfied. While I haven’t read any of Stith’s other works, and this won’t make me rush out and by them, Manhattan Transfer is a likeable enough story and earns three-and-a-half out of five stars.

[Nikosal · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book in my android / kindle device.

My first thought discovering this sci-fi title was "hmmm... it looks really difficult to handle such a story" and it proves so, with Stith so-and-so successful on the task.

A huge alien ship cuts and lifts Manhattan, putting the whole island city in a glass dome, along with a dozen other alien cities. Then a bunch of people is able to penetrate the wall, travel without been discovered to the heart of the huge ship and bomb it, just to discover this was not exactly needed. Then in a Star Trek TNG mode, heroes find a really un-realistic way to fight the ever bigger menace that appears on the sky and everybody is happy heading home.

While a whole -and busy as we know it- city is in the centre of the plot, its residents disappear (with the exception of a few comical figures here and there) as the author follows a team lead by a colonel in its attempt to free the city. Mind, it is not a parody in the least.

[J.H. Glaze · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story in this book started out with a really cool premise. Manhattan is cut from the earth and taken into space where it is covered with a dome and placed among a collection of cities from various planets inside of a large ship.

Cool.

Problem is, if people are freaking out about it, nobody is acting that way. In fact sometimes the dialog seemed to be there just because dialog was expected and when things happened that should have elicited shrieks and screams. People just talked about it.

I finished the book just to see if the cover notes were true. "Plenty of Aliens and Space Battles" There were some aliens. There was one space battle (which turned out to be anticlimactic) but (YAWN) the second half of the book (except for some things being very inventive and clever) kind of fell on it's face.

Man I hate to sound negative, but maybe next time I'll just not review a book if it isn't a rock n roll, slam bang, well rounded story. I gave it 3 stars for creativity.

[Robert · Rating 2 out of 5]

A recent visit to a new sci-fi film (my first in a long time) reminded me of this book. The island of Manhattan is abducted by alien spacecraft. That's right, the whole island! It takes a lot to phase New Yorkers. So the title and the conept interested me right away. Unfortunately, there are way too many metaphoric sci-fi cliches to make this story special. As I read the story, I knew I had seen something like this before in other books and films. I still found it entertaining enough to finish, however.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won a copy of this book in a goodreads giveaway.

3.5 stars. I found Manhattan Transfer to be an overall enjoyable read. There were several sections in the middle that dragged a little for me because there was more detail than I would have liked about certain things, and less detail than I would have liked about others. That being said, I never felt like I didn't want to continue reading and I was always excited to get back to it and see how everything would work out. I really enjoyed it. I was completely in the mood for some sci-fi, and I'm glad I picked this one up.

[Simeonberesford]

Now available as an ebook it was originally conventionally published. ebooks are its natural home I dont think its good enough to be in print. There are tons of books that nearly made it, here is another.[return]Mannhatten is cut lose from earth by alien spacecraft. [return]Wooden characters and a menace that seemed to change in size and power as the plot requires much as King Kong did in the original film.

[Joan Cornish · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an old book (1993) but since it is science fiction it didn't appear that dated. Interesting premise- a gigantic space ship comes along and using lasers cuts loose Manhattan island. The resients find themselves under a huge dome on a vast gray plain. In the distance they can see other domed cities whose residents do ot seem to be human. Where are they and what are they there for will soon become evident. An easy read, I read it in an evening.

[Baldurian · Rating 3 out of 5]

L'idea alla base de La città sull'orlo del nulla è semplice e accattivante: perché degli alieni dovrebbero rapire uno stupido bovino quando hanno le capacità tecnologiche per prelevare l'intera isola di Manhattan?
Stith imbastisce un romanzo coerente e stimolante dal punto di vista (fanta)scientifico, peccato solo per il mancato approfondimento dei personaggi e per la brusca accelerazione della trama da circa metà libro.

[Don LaVange · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a typical swash buckling, humanity above all, hegelian eventuality, despite our flaws (religiousness) we have that thing that will make us succeed hard core science fiction. Too much hard core for me, though I found it interesting and somewhat enjoyable, despite it's cliched story line.

[Mimi · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise of this book - Manhattan being hijacked by spider-like aliens - and the ensuing action just didn't really work for me. I think if someone has never read science fiction or space opera, this might be a good introduction however.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although there are some weaknesses in the internal logic of the story, it's a concept that can prompt some thought on threaten worlds, "endangered species" preservation and the possible varieties of intelligent species.

[Howard]

10