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The Grand Tour #18
Venus
The surface of Venus is the most hellish place in the solar system. The ground is hot enough to melt aluminum. The air pressure is so high it has crushed spacecraft landers as though they were tin cans. The sky is perpetually covered with clouds of sulfuric acid. The atmosphere is a choking mixture of carbon dioxide and poisonous gases.
This is where Van Humphries must go. Or die trying.
His older brother perished in the first attempt to land a man on Venus, years before, and his father had always hated Van for surviving when his brother died. Now his father is offering a ten billion dollar prize to the first person to land on Venus and return his oldest son's remains.
To everyone's surprise, Van takes up the offer. But what Van Humphries will find on Venus will change everything--our understanding of Venus, of global warming on Earth, and his knowledge of who he is.
This is where Van Humphries must go. Or die trying.
His older brother perished in the first attempt to land a man on Venus, years before, and his father had always hated Van for surviving when his brother died. Now his father is offering a ten billion dollar prize to the first person to land on Venus and return his oldest son's remains.
To everyone's surprise, Van takes up the offer. But what Van Humphries will find on Venus will change everything--our understanding of Venus, of global warming on Earth, and his knowledge of who he is.
347 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2000
43 people are currently reading
1410 people want to read
About the author
Ben Bova
715 books1,036 followersBen Bova was born on November 8, 1932 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1953, while attending Temple University, he married Rosa Cucinotta, they had a son and a daughter. He would later divorce Rosa in 1974. In that same year he married Barbara Berson Rose.
Bova was an avid fencer and organized Avco Everett's fencing club. He was an environmentalist, but rejected Luddism.
Bova was a technical writer for Project Vanguard and later for Avco Everett in the 1960s when they did research in lasers and fluid dynamics. It was there that he met Arthur R. Kantrowitz later of the Foresight Institute.
In 1971 he became editor of Analog Science Fiction after John W. Campbell's death. After leaving Analog, he went on to edit Omni during 1978-1982.
In 1974 he wrote the screenplay for an episode of the children's science fiction television series Land of the Lost entitled "The Search".
Bova was the science advisor for the failed television series The Starlost, leaving in disgust after the airing of the first episode. His novel The Starcrossed was loosely based on his experiences and featured a thinly veiled characterization of his friend and colleague Harlan Ellison. He dedicated the novel to "Cordwainer Bird", the pen name Harlan Ellison uses when he does not want to be associated with a television or film project.
Bova was the President Emeritus of the National Space Society and a past President of Science-fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA).
Bova went back to school in the 1980s, earning an M.A. in communications in 1987 and a Ph.D. in 1996.
Bova has drawn on these meetings and experiences to create fact and fiction writings rich with references to spaceflight, lasers, artificial hearts, nanotechnology, environmentalism, fencing and martial arts, photography and artists.
Bova was the author of over a hundred and fifteen books, non-fiction as well as science fiction. In 2000, he was the Author Guest of Honor at the 58th World Science Fiction Convention (Chicon 2000).
Hollywood has started to take an interest in Bova's works once again, in addition to his wealth of knowledge about science and what the future may look like. In 2007, he was hired as a consultant by both Stuber/Parent Productions to provide insight into what the world is to look like in the near future for their upcoming film "Repossession Mambo" (released as "Repo Men") starring Jude Law and Forest Whitaker and by Silver Pictures in which he provided consulting services on the feature adaptation of Richard Morgan's "Altered Carbon".
http://us.macmillan.com/author/benbova
Bova was an avid fencer and organized Avco Everett's fencing club. He was an environmentalist, but rejected Luddism.
Bova was a technical writer for Project Vanguard and later for Avco Everett in the 1960s when they did research in lasers and fluid dynamics. It was there that he met Arthur R. Kantrowitz later of the Foresight Institute.
In 1971 he became editor of Analog Science Fiction after John W. Campbell's death. After leaving Analog, he went on to edit Omni during 1978-1982.
In 1974 he wrote the screenplay for an episode of the children's science fiction television series Land of the Lost entitled "The Search".
Bova was the science advisor for the failed television series The Starlost, leaving in disgust after the airing of the first episode. His novel The Starcrossed was loosely based on his experiences and featured a thinly veiled characterization of his friend and colleague Harlan Ellison. He dedicated the novel to "Cordwainer Bird", the pen name Harlan Ellison uses when he does not want to be associated with a television or film project.
Bova was the President Emeritus of the National Space Society and a past President of Science-fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA).
Bova went back to school in the 1980s, earning an M.A. in communications in 1987 and a Ph.D. in 1996.
Bova has drawn on these meetings and experiences to create fact and fiction writings rich with references to spaceflight, lasers, artificial hearts, nanotechnology, environmentalism, fencing and martial arts, photography and artists.
Bova was the author of over a hundred and fifteen books, non-fiction as well as science fiction. In 2000, he was the Author Guest of Honor at the 58th World Science Fiction Convention (Chicon 2000).
Hollywood has started to take an interest in Bova's works once again, in addition to his wealth of knowledge about science and what the future may look like. In 2007, he was hired as a consultant by both Stuber/Parent Productions to provide insight into what the world is to look like in the near future for their upcoming film "Repossession Mambo" (released as "Repo Men") starring Jude Law and Forest Whitaker and by Silver Pictures in which he provided consulting services on the feature adaptation of Richard Morgan's "Altered Carbon".
http://us.macmillan.com/author/benbova
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 168 reviews
June 27, 2025
Hard sci-fi pioneering space exploration at its very best!
Martin Humphries, a fabulously wealthy industrialist living on a lunar colony, passionately despises his second son, Van. Cruelly labeling him as "the runt" and bullying him relentlessly as a directionless, untalented weakling, Humphries blames Van for the death of his wife during Van's birth and, in fact, resents him for even being alive. Humphries' beloved eldest son, Alex, who Van also loved dearly, lost his life in the first manned exploration of the surface of Venus. When Humphries announces that he is terminating his son's stipend and that he is offering a $10 billion prize to the first person who recovers his beloved Alex's remains from Venus, it is quite clear that Van, who is without any other means of support, is being manipulated and forced by his own father into choosing a path that will likely lead to his death. The waters become muddied and the fight for that almost unimaginably large prize becomes a heated race when Lars Fuchs, a rock rat from the Asteroid belt and Humphries' long time corporate foe, announces he is also making a play for the prize.
Venus won't win any prizes when it comes to literary status. Nor does it convey any subliminal moral messages, political satire, mystical symbolism or any of those other things that deep thinkers often consider necessary for a novel to be deemed truly great. But if you're looking for a hard-driving plot with palpable suspense and superb hard science fiction supported by a wealth of current hard scientific fact, then Venus is a novel you'll want to read. Bova's ability to weave science seamlessly into a fast-paced plot is simply wonderful - orbital and celestial mechanics, plate tectonics, volcanism, planetary evolution, chemistry, biology, physics, aerospace engineering, rocketry and more. In fact, it's safe to say that Venus, with a hostile surface environment straight out of Dante's Inferno, is the major character in the novel!
But, let's take nothing away from the rest of the novel. Bova's characters, in a word, succeed! They evoke emotions in a reader fully ensnared in the action who will care about what happens. His heroes have their flaws and weaknesses but they're likable and they develop meaningfully over the course of the novel. His villains are despicable but they too evolve in an understandable human way. The dialogue is appropriate to the environment of a quasi-military space exploration vehicle. And the twist ending - well, suffice it to say that there is one! Let's not give anything away other than to say it will bring a smile to most reader's faces!
Highly recommended.
Paul Weiss
Martin Humphries, a fabulously wealthy industrialist living on a lunar colony, passionately despises his second son, Van. Cruelly labeling him as "the runt" and bullying him relentlessly as a directionless, untalented weakling, Humphries blames Van for the death of his wife during Van's birth and, in fact, resents him for even being alive. Humphries' beloved eldest son, Alex, who Van also loved dearly, lost his life in the first manned exploration of the surface of Venus. When Humphries announces that he is terminating his son's stipend and that he is offering a $10 billion prize to the first person who recovers his beloved Alex's remains from Venus, it is quite clear that Van, who is without any other means of support, is being manipulated and forced by his own father into choosing a path that will likely lead to his death. The waters become muddied and the fight for that almost unimaginably large prize becomes a heated race when Lars Fuchs, a rock rat from the Asteroid belt and Humphries' long time corporate foe, announces he is also making a play for the prize.
Venus won't win any prizes when it comes to literary status. Nor does it convey any subliminal moral messages, political satire, mystical symbolism or any of those other things that deep thinkers often consider necessary for a novel to be deemed truly great. But if you're looking for a hard-driving plot with palpable suspense and superb hard science fiction supported by a wealth of current hard scientific fact, then Venus is a novel you'll want to read. Bova's ability to weave science seamlessly into a fast-paced plot is simply wonderful - orbital and celestial mechanics, plate tectonics, volcanism, planetary evolution, chemistry, biology, physics, aerospace engineering, rocketry and more. In fact, it's safe to say that Venus, with a hostile surface environment straight out of Dante's Inferno, is the major character in the novel!
But, let's take nothing away from the rest of the novel. Bova's characters, in a word, succeed! They evoke emotions in a reader fully ensnared in the action who will care about what happens. His heroes have their flaws and weaknesses but they're likable and they develop meaningfully over the course of the novel. His villains are despicable but they too evolve in an understandable human way. The dialogue is appropriate to the environment of a quasi-military space exploration vehicle. And the twist ending - well, suffice it to say that there is one! Let's not give anything away other than to say it will bring a smile to most reader's faces!
Highly recommended.
Paul Weiss
July 7, 2020
I've always seen Bova's books on the shelves in the bookstore, but I've never really had a desire to pick them up. The titles never really drew me in; the synopsis on the back of the books never really caught my interest--in fact, they hinted at plots which were very familiar within the genre written by other authors. Furthermore, I had a tendency to stay away from the veteran hard sci-fi writers (Asimov, Heinlein, Clarke, etc.) because their works seemed, to me, dated & out of touch with the changing times. Regardless, I have read some of their works & have taken an interest in reading others who I've never read before. Bova is one of those authors.
So where to start?
I looked into Bova's career as a writer of science fiction & found him to be exactly what I thought he was: a writer who aligns himself with the classical styles of the forefathers of science fiction. I then looked into what was considered to be his best works & discovered they were pretty much rated all the same--though some received harsher criticism than others.
It was when I noticed his novels named after planets & began to read about his series he has dubbed: "The Grand Tour"--novels which would take the reader into the future where Humans have begun to explore, mine for resources & colonize our home solar system. The idea of each book being a stand alone novel yet part of a great web--connected by each novels events & characters--captured my interest due to such a massive undertaking.
To pick which novel to start with, I decided to go with a planet which hasn't been represented in science fiction much: Venus. Every author seems to go directly to Mars or Jupiter but we don't see anyone taking a trip to Venus, Mercury, Uranus or Neptune for that matter. Good old Mars--the planet which is considered by many to have once been a lush & water-logged like our planet, Earth. There are countless sci-fi novels about Mars & Bova is one of those authors who is guilty of visiting the red planet within his Grand Tour--it gets old. Venus had always captured my interest when I studied astronomy & I felt I should start there.
I'll spare you the plot set up since this site will have it for you and others who have read this novel have provided it within their reviews as well. Let's get to the meat of the matter: Bova as a science fiction writer.
I found Bova's novel to be entertaining, full of hard science fiction, and it's setting familiar--like I've been here before. That's when I realized this book could have been written by Clarke--the familiar feel of 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY & it's sequels permeated this book. The prose was superficial--no "wow" factor--and I found the characters to be die-cut from stock with no real depth to them. Sure, the main character is the 1st person narrator but I found him to be shallow as the rest of the cast. Nevertheless, it still held my interest to find out how the mission to Venus would turn out. There was enough action to keep you turning the pages but even the action didn't really have me on the edge of my seat--a little disappointing really--but the endgame is what kept me going. I had to find out the novels resolution. I also enjoyed the description of the planet and how it is still a mystery even though the book takes place in the future--Venus is ignored in real life exploration as well as in science fiction. Bova takes great pains to reveal the mysteries of Earth's sister planet and these are the passages I enjoyed more than most of the others.
Will I continue to read Bova? Yes. Will I read more of his novels within "The Grand Tour". Yes. I have my eyes on MERCURY and SATURN. Bova has revealed to me that he isn't the greatest writer of science fiction, but he's not the worst. He isn't too complicated in his presentation of science and this makes his novels less difficult to get through like so many writers of science fiction of today. Don't shy away from Bova. He won't bite.
So where to start?
I looked into Bova's career as a writer of science fiction & found him to be exactly what I thought he was: a writer who aligns himself with the classical styles of the forefathers of science fiction. I then looked into what was considered to be his best works & discovered they were pretty much rated all the same--though some received harsher criticism than others.
It was when I noticed his novels named after planets & began to read about his series he has dubbed: "The Grand Tour"--novels which would take the reader into the future where Humans have begun to explore, mine for resources & colonize our home solar system. The idea of each book being a stand alone novel yet part of a great web--connected by each novels events & characters--captured my interest due to such a massive undertaking.
To pick which novel to start with, I decided to go with a planet which hasn't been represented in science fiction much: Venus. Every author seems to go directly to Mars or Jupiter but we don't see anyone taking a trip to Venus, Mercury, Uranus or Neptune for that matter. Good old Mars--the planet which is considered by many to have once been a lush & water-logged like our planet, Earth. There are countless sci-fi novels about Mars & Bova is one of those authors who is guilty of visiting the red planet within his Grand Tour--it gets old. Venus had always captured my interest when I studied astronomy & I felt I should start there.
I'll spare you the plot set up since this site will have it for you and others who have read this novel have provided it within their reviews as well. Let's get to the meat of the matter: Bova as a science fiction writer.
I found Bova's novel to be entertaining, full of hard science fiction, and it's setting familiar--like I've been here before. That's when I realized this book could have been written by Clarke--the familiar feel of 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY & it's sequels permeated this book. The prose was superficial--no "wow" factor--and I found the characters to be die-cut from stock with no real depth to them. Sure, the main character is the 1st person narrator but I found him to be shallow as the rest of the cast. Nevertheless, it still held my interest to find out how the mission to Venus would turn out. There was enough action to keep you turning the pages but even the action didn't really have me on the edge of my seat--a little disappointing really--but the endgame is what kept me going. I had to find out the novels resolution. I also enjoyed the description of the planet and how it is still a mystery even though the book takes place in the future--Venus is ignored in real life exploration as well as in science fiction. Bova takes great pains to reveal the mysteries of Earth's sister planet and these are the passages I enjoyed more than most of the others.
Will I continue to read Bova? Yes. Will I read more of his novels within "The Grand Tour". Yes. I have my eyes on MERCURY and SATURN. Bova has revealed to me that he isn't the greatest writer of science fiction, but he's not the worst. He isn't too complicated in his presentation of science and this makes his novels less difficult to get through like so many writers of science fiction of today. Don't shy away from Bova. He won't bite.
March 9, 2016
(june 2004) i can't believe i actually finished this. it was horribly written, and i barely cared about the hysterical characters--particularly the snivelling protagonist--to bother to turn the pages. still, the science (fiction) kept me reading til the lurid and quite predictable, comic book ending.
January 17, 2025
A page turner that doesn't quit. This was a great idea for a book, filled with action, emotion, suspense, well developed characters, and a trip to Venus. A highly entertaining read, sci-fi that to my mind is totally plausible.
May 4, 2012
Martin Humphries, a hedonistic and cruel billionaire lost his favorite son to the planet Venus. Alex's remains still lie somewhere on the surface of the planet. Martin offers a $10 billion prize to the person who goes to Venus and returns with his son's body. At the same time he cuts off his other son, Van, whom he detests. With no source of income, Van decides to go after the prize, having a ship built and gathering a crew. Since it's still his father's money paying for the ship, Van has to take a captain of his father's choosing. Then he finds out that there will be competition for the $10 billion as his father's hated rival Lars Fuchs is also going to Venus. After a disaster on his ship, Humphries ends up on Fuchs' craft where a revelation shakes up Humphries fragile world. Despite everything, he and Fuchs continue to search for the remains as they battle creatures they have discovered living in the sulphuric acid clouds of the planet.
For me, Venus was too much about the characters and their relationships and not enough about the planet Venus. I expected more science and got a soap opera. Another problem for me was that I hated all the characters. I didn't care whether any of them survived or not. Even the main character Van Humphries was whiny and unmotivated. He grew up some during the story but not enough for me to care about him. In the end I wished Venus had been more about Venus.
For me, Venus was too much about the characters and their relationships and not enough about the planet Venus. I expected more science and got a soap opera. Another problem for me was that I hated all the characters. I didn't care whether any of them survived or not. Even the main character Van Humphries was whiny and unmotivated. He grew up some during the story but not enough for me to care about him. In the end I wished Venus had been more about Venus.
October 25, 2011
I am not entirely sure why some readers disliked this book -- It's got a great plot, well developed characters, and is overall a great read. Are there better books out there; sure, but this is a great book in it's own right. It's like a really well made B-movie, a bit cheesy at times, but overall great entertainment. Just suspend some disbelief and enjoy the ride, it is fiction after all. It's a good book to take on a ride or on a trip, it will make the time fly by.
October 28, 2019
Just finished my first Ben Bova book. Even though it’s nearly 20 years old, I actually really enjoyed it. I don’t want to give away anything but I really liked the directions Bova took the story. I’ll definitely return to The Grand Tour series in the near future! A solid 4 stars! Overall, it was fun, light, and well paced.
January 6, 2025
Wow!! This book was so good that I was floored by it. The really neat thing is that I just discovered Ben Bova, and he wrote a freaking TON of books!! I hope they are all like this. Although this could be a standalone book, it makes me want to go back to the beginning of the series. There are characters and events that are mentioned that I'm super curious about. Anyway Happy New Year to me, having found this treasure trove of a series. I'm going back to the Mars book, or possibly to the very first book in the series (the timeline is a little confusing). I'm just diving right in to this stuff!
August 25, 2019
Memory is such a tricky thing. It golden-hues the gilded. It makes serious mistakes. Like thinking all those grand names from the past are still grand.
About ten pages into this, I was ready to toss it across the room. With some astonishment, because this was Ben Bova, Ben freakin’ Bova! one of those grand names from my scifi obsessed youth, up there with Heinlein and Asimov and Clarke and what the heck? It was terrible. Poorly written, ridiculous plot, even more ridiculous stock characters: the wimpy petulant spoiled brat who Becomes a Man; the eeevil and cruel CEO of a murderous ruthless space conglomerate; the not-so-love interest; and a pirate. Yep, a pirate. Exactly the kind of puerile nonsense I would have loved at the beginning of the space age when silly puerile books thrilled all of us geeks. Had to be a mistake, so I gave it an additional fifty pages and, man, throw it across the room already...but it's Bova! Bova! That’s like throwing Asimov across the room! So I kept going.
Should have thrown it across the room.
Van Humphries is the wimpy puffball spoiled brat son of Martin Humphries, the eevil CEO, who hates Van for inexplicable reasons that become explicable towards the end but are so ridiculous it makes you laugh out loud. At any rate, Van’s brother, Daniel, who Martin loves in exactly the opposite intensity he hates Van for reasons that will also become laugh-out-loud explicable later, dies on an expedition to Venus and Martin offers ten billion dollars to anyone who can go down there and collect the remains. Yes, Martin is that rich. Inexplicably, Martin then cuts Van off from his allowance and lifestyle, so wimpy, incapable, soft and fatally-diseased Van (pernicious anemia. Which makes no sense. You’ll see why), decides he’ll take up his father’s challenge. Ridiculous enough for you?
Hold my beer.
Every five pages or so the book reminds you who is who and why they’re going to Venus and why Venus is dangerous and how much Martin hates Van and Fuchs the pirate hates Martin and everyone hates each other except the inexplicably all- Asian crew which can’t speak English, but they do hate Fuchs and, later. Van. For inexplicable reasons. I guess the only way to turn what should have been a six or seven page story into a 300-plus novel is keep saying the same things over and over. And over. Only a 12 year old in 1966 could appreciate this mess. Or someone whose memory is failing.
Like me. Somehow, over the decades, I converted Bova into a master of the craft when, more accurately, he is a master of the edit, selecting stories for, and cleaning up, the pulps and the anthologies I loved back then. Still got my original copies of The Science Fiction Hall of Fame. That’s where I really know him from. Not where I thought I knew him from.
Which is why we should never, ever convict someone solely on witness testimony.
About ten pages into this, I was ready to toss it across the room. With some astonishment, because this was Ben Bova, Ben freakin’ Bova! one of those grand names from my scifi obsessed youth, up there with Heinlein and Asimov and Clarke and what the heck? It was terrible. Poorly written, ridiculous plot, even more ridiculous stock characters: the wimpy petulant spoiled brat who Becomes a Man; the eeevil and cruel CEO of a murderous ruthless space conglomerate; the not-so-love interest; and a pirate. Yep, a pirate. Exactly the kind of puerile nonsense I would have loved at the beginning of the space age when silly puerile books thrilled all of us geeks. Had to be a mistake, so I gave it an additional fifty pages and, man, throw it across the room already...but it's Bova! Bova! That’s like throwing Asimov across the room! So I kept going.
Should have thrown it across the room.
Van Humphries is the wimpy puffball spoiled brat son of Martin Humphries, the eevil CEO, who hates Van for inexplicable reasons that become explicable towards the end but are so ridiculous it makes you laugh out loud. At any rate, Van’s brother, Daniel, who Martin loves in exactly the opposite intensity he hates Van for reasons that will also become laugh-out-loud explicable later, dies on an expedition to Venus and Martin offers ten billion dollars to anyone who can go down there and collect the remains. Yes, Martin is that rich. Inexplicably, Martin then cuts Van off from his allowance and lifestyle, so wimpy, incapable, soft and fatally-diseased Van (pernicious anemia. Which makes no sense. You’ll see why), decides he’ll take up his father’s challenge. Ridiculous enough for you?
Hold my beer.
Every five pages or so the book reminds you who is who and why they’re going to Venus and why Venus is dangerous and how much Martin hates Van and Fuchs the pirate hates Martin and everyone hates each other except the inexplicably all- Asian crew which can’t speak English, but they do hate Fuchs and, later. Van. For inexplicable reasons. I guess the only way to turn what should have been a six or seven page story into a 300-plus novel is keep saying the same things over and over. And over. Only a 12 year old in 1966 could appreciate this mess. Or someone whose memory is failing.
Like me. Somehow, over the decades, I converted Bova into a master of the craft when, more accurately, he is a master of the edit, selecting stories for, and cleaning up, the pulps and the anthologies I loved back then. Still got my original copies of The Science Fiction Hall of Fame. That’s where I really know him from. Not where I thought I knew him from.
Which is why we should never, ever convict someone solely on witness testimony.
December 12, 2022
This is a story written by an old man with old ideas, but at least he has a lot of them. In an adventurous planetary exploration story, we see the weakling son of an obscenely ultra-rich capitalist scum-dog, rise to the challenge of going to Venus to collect his deceased Astronaut brother's remains from the planet surface.
It's a treacherous mission, so you don't expect to get through the whole story without losing some characters along the way, to the perils of ... space stuff. Some of the characters are women.. so the main character gets to eye everyone up... enjoy rubbing against boobs while moving through narrow spaceship corridors, and get away with kissing women who are pretty enough, without them even complaining much. It's all a bit ew.
It's important to know that the reason he doesn't find any of the scary, sneaky Asian women attractive, is not because they have a guttural barking language that he can't understand, and not because he's Racist, but because they just aren't that pretty. I would have had serious issues finishing this book if I had been reading it as a paperback, rather than an audiobook, because it's impossible to track text when you are eyerolling this hard.
The main character is utterly insecure, and there is almost some character growth as he steps up to take leadership roles.. but it certainly doesn't show in his relationships, or his attitudes toward others. During the story he learns some dark personal history that allows him to understand himself better, but even after his toil and epiphanies, he is still just a lame jerk.
The way that the Green Party (environmentalists) is depicted leaves me wondering what Bova thought the motivation of environmentally focused Parties is. These parties are not Trying to Destroy Business, but rather responding to the very real threat of total ecological collapse, and the end of human life on Earth. I'm not sure which readership or audience he is trying to appeal to here.
Maybe doing reading challenges where I read a book because it starts with a certain letter of the alphabet, are not a good way to choose good books.. or maybe I'm doing it wrong.
It's a treacherous mission, so you don't expect to get through the whole story without losing some characters along the way, to the perils of ... space stuff. Some of the characters are women.. so the main character gets to eye everyone up... enjoy rubbing against boobs while moving through narrow spaceship corridors, and get away with kissing women who are pretty enough, without them even complaining much. It's all a bit ew.
It's important to know that the reason he doesn't find any of the scary, sneaky Asian women attractive, is not because they have a guttural barking language that he can't understand, and not because he's Racist, but because they just aren't that pretty. I would have had serious issues finishing this book if I had been reading it as a paperback, rather than an audiobook, because it's impossible to track text when you are eyerolling this hard.
The main character is utterly insecure, and there is almost some character growth as he steps up to take leadership roles.. but it certainly doesn't show in his relationships, or his attitudes toward others. During the story he learns some dark personal history that allows him to understand himself better, but even after his toil and epiphanies, he is still just a lame jerk.
The way that the Green Party (environmentalists) is depicted leaves me wondering what Bova thought the motivation of environmentally focused Parties is. These parties are not Trying to Destroy Business, but rather responding to the very real threat of total ecological collapse, and the end of human life on Earth. I'm not sure which readership or audience he is trying to appeal to here.
Maybe doing reading challenges where I read a book because it starts with a certain letter of the alphabet, are not a good way to choose good books.. or maybe I'm doing it wrong.
January 22, 2018
I was shocked to find that Venus was part of a huge series, but read that I didn't necessarily have to read the other books in order to read the story. I agree because I had no issues with understanding what was happening; the author did a good job of world-building and explaining character backgrounds. However, after reading what the other novels were about I can't help but feel that I may have enjoyed it more if I had read more of the books set prior to the events of this book.
I liked this book, but I didn't find any of the characters interesting and at times the plot was quite predictable. The focus of the story seemed to shift suddenly during the last chapter of the book which left me feeling a bit confused. I'm sure it would have made more sense if I had read some of the other novels. Also, the MC had some racially insensitive inner thoughts as well as a little bit of fat-shaming. I was really craving a space opera, but this was all that I had on my shelf to satisfy my hunger. It filled my belly up a bit, but just didn't leave me feeling satisfied.
I liked this book, but I didn't find any of the characters interesting and at times the plot was quite predictable. The focus of the story seemed to shift suddenly during the last chapter of the book which left me feeling a bit confused. I'm sure it would have made more sense if I had read some of the other novels. Also, the MC had some racially insensitive inner thoughts as well as a little bit of fat-shaming. I was really craving a space opera, but this was all that I had on my shelf to satisfy my hunger. It filled my belly up a bit, but just didn't leave me feeling satisfied.
August 25, 2008
I almost didn't finish this one. In fact, I only stuck with it because I'd paid for a used copy. It just isn't a very good book. The main character is a typical protagonist, except the fact that he has a debilitating illness; there's your typical skeptical, asshole character, a villain, a love interest, etc... I found myself being able to predict the plot too easily and just not really caring what happened to ANYONE in the book. I got it because I'd heard a bunch of stuff about Bova being one of the "masters" of scifi. Well, I guess I'll give him the benefit of the doubt since it's the only book by him I've read. If he is a master, then I guess this means masters can make some pretty big mistakes in their career.
June 6, 2021
Full review on my podcast, SFBRP episode #457.
Luke and Juliane discuss the reasons Venus by Ben Bova feels so dated, despite being written in 2000.
https://www.sfbrp.com/archives/1858
Luke and Juliane discuss the reasons Venus by Ben Bova feels so dated, despite being written in 2000.
https://www.sfbrp.com/archives/1858
August 10, 2019
This was a whole bunch of fun. I will definitely be looking for more of the Grand Tour novels.
December 7, 2023
Not bad! One of the better sci-fi stories I've read this year.
There were definitely some cringe-inducing moments though, such as the forced and tacked-on romance subplot (which gives MAJOR incel vibes in 2023). But for the most part, I enjoyed this book for what it is: as an uncomplicated and surface-level space exploration story that doesn't try and make any grand revelations about the human condition.
This was a good $5 thrift store find in Vancouver, if I recall correctly! I'd be happy to read another of his books if I ever come across one.
There were definitely some cringe-inducing moments though, such as the forced and tacked-on romance subplot (which gives MAJOR incel vibes in 2023). But for the most part, I enjoyed this book for what it is: as an uncomplicated and surface-level space exploration story that doesn't try and make any grand revelations about the human condition.
This was a good $5 thrift store find in Vancouver, if I recall correctly! I'd be happy to read another of his books if I ever come across one.
August 13, 2019
Playboy takes his father's bait of a 10 billion dollar reward to claim his bother's ashes from the hellish surface of Venus. Very entertaining. I wanted to read more Ben Bova (I read this 20 years ago="retro reviews") and I think I will.
June 16, 2025
Mega-rich tycoon Martin Humphries has offered a reward of $10 billion to anyone who goes on a mission to Venus and recovers the body of his son Alex, whose spacecraft crashed there three years earlier. To Martin's surprise, his other son, socialite Van, accepts the challenge. One powerful incentive for accepting the challenge is that Martin has told Van that his allowance will be cut-off on Van's 25th birthday, less than a month away.
A nice set up for a space adventure about a voyage to a distant planet. And "Venus" offers everything that you could ask for in such an adventure: Lots of futuristic space-travel technology, detailed descriptions of the planet in question, an intrepid crew, and one crisis after another on the trip to and from the planet.
Unfortunately, he also saddles his story with a protagonist who is difficult to care about. Van Humphries is a prep school, trust fund baby. He calls himself a planetary scientist but he's never done any actual science. He has no real friends on Earth, just hangers-on who sponge off of his wealth, all of which comes from his father.
He spends most of the trip to Venus whining about the hardships that he has to endure, while the crew of his ship does most of the work. As he's the owner of the ship the crew all work for him. This doesn't stop him from hitting on Marguerite Duchamp, a sexy young member of the crew and also the daughter of the captain of the ship, Desiree Duchamp. Van doesn't show very good judgment in this situation, to say the least.
Things get worse when they're forced to transfer to a rival ship, also seeking the prize money. The rival ship is crewed mostly by Asians, and when they talk among themselves he simply refers to it as an "Asian language"--he never bothers to find out what language the crew actually speaks. At various points he describes their language as "jabbering," "guttural mutterings," and "sibilant." He never actually calls them "inscrutable," but he gets pretty close to that. He views the Asians with suspicion, perhaps because they have the nerve to speak in a language (whichever one it is) that he doesn't understand. As this goes on for quite a while in the novel, I began to feel like I was reading a Fu Manchu novel from the 1920's, rather than a science fiction novel published in 2000.
Another key plot point that recalled thrillers from the '20s was Van's need for periodic blood transfusions due to his anemia. Apparently none of the 14-member crew of Asians on the rival ship are suitable blood donors, leaving one other person on board the ship who can provide the transfusions--the captain--but only at the risk of his own life.
While there's some good science fiction to be had in "Venus," the hoary plot devices and the annoying protagonist keep this book from being the exciting SF adventure that it could have been. It might have worked better had it not been written in the first person from Van Humphries point of view. But as it is, we're stuck inside his entitled, spoiled brat head for the entire journey.
A nice set up for a space adventure about a voyage to a distant planet. And "Venus" offers everything that you could ask for in such an adventure: Lots of futuristic space-travel technology, detailed descriptions of the planet in question, an intrepid crew, and one crisis after another on the trip to and from the planet.
Unfortunately, he also saddles his story with a protagonist who is difficult to care about. Van Humphries is a prep school, trust fund baby. He calls himself a planetary scientist but he's never done any actual science. He has no real friends on Earth, just hangers-on who sponge off of his wealth, all of which comes from his father.
He spends most of the trip to Venus whining about the hardships that he has to endure, while the crew of his ship does most of the work. As he's the owner of the ship the crew all work for him. This doesn't stop him from hitting on Marguerite Duchamp, a sexy young member of the crew and also the daughter of the captain of the ship, Desiree Duchamp. Van doesn't show very good judgment in this situation, to say the least.
Things get worse when they're forced to transfer to a rival ship, also seeking the prize money. The rival ship is crewed mostly by Asians, and when they talk among themselves he simply refers to it as an "Asian language"--he never bothers to find out what language the crew actually speaks. At various points he describes their language as "jabbering," "guttural mutterings," and "sibilant." He never actually calls them "inscrutable," but he gets pretty close to that. He views the Asians with suspicion, perhaps because they have the nerve to speak in a language (whichever one it is) that he doesn't understand. As this goes on for quite a while in the novel, I began to feel like I was reading a Fu Manchu novel from the 1920's, rather than a science fiction novel published in 2000.
Another key plot point that recalled thrillers from the '20s was Van's need for periodic blood transfusions due to his anemia. Apparently none of the 14-member crew of Asians on the rival ship are suitable blood donors, leaving one other person on board the ship who can provide the transfusions--the captain--but only at the risk of his own life.
While there's some good science fiction to be had in "Venus," the hoary plot devices and the annoying protagonist keep this book from being the exciting SF adventure that it could have been. It might have worked better had it not been written in the first person from Van Humphries point of view. But as it is, we're stuck inside his entitled, spoiled brat head for the entire journey.
August 25, 2012
Venus by Ben Bova is part of the author’s Grand Tour series, which deals with the exploration of the planets in our solar system. Venus is the nearest planet to Earth and about the same size as Earth. However, it is closer to the Sun than Earth and Bova describes Venus as “the most hellish place in the solar system.” Its atmosphere is dominated by sulfuric acid and carbon dioxide, with only negligible traces of oxygen and nitrogen. The surface temperatures are well above 450 degrees Celsius (nearly 900 degree Fahrenheit) and the atmospheric pressure at ground level is equal to the pressure more than a kilometer below the surface of an ocean on Earth. In addition, Venus rotates around its axis so slowly that a single Venusian day is 225 Earth days. The “hellish” environment has prohibited Earthlings from establishing any colonies on Venus and even from exploring the planet. Unmanned probes have gathered some information, but all of them ceased their data transmission within very short time frames after entering the Venusian atmosphere. However, three years ago Alex Humphries and his crew made the voyage to Venus and he attempted to land on the Venusian surface, but no one survived that voyage. Now Alex’s father, a very wealthy, powerful and ruthless industrialist/business man has offered a reward of ten billion dollars to anyone who succeeds in locating his son’s remains and returning them to Earth. Van Humphries, Alex’s younger brother, accepts the challenge even though he has no realistic experience that would indicate he could be successful in such a venture and he has a serious blood condition that requires regular medication. However Van embarks on the recovery mission to Venus because his father previously informed him that he will no longer support him and Van needs the money, and also because he loved his older brother. As usual, Bova weaves a complex story including much plausible scientific data and action. Van and his crew encounter much hardship, danger, and tragedy in the Venusian atmosphere, beginning shortly after they descend into the upper atmosphere and discover that something is eating away the hull of their ship. During the trip, Van evolves into a strong leader who accepts responsibility for decisions and risks his life for the mission. In addition, he must risk accepting the help of Lars Fuchs, a bitter enemy of his father and a competitor in the competition to retrieve Alex’s body and win the $10 billion reward. Venus is another very enjoyable and well-crafted space exploration adventure. The characters are very well developed, unique, and believable. This book provides much tension and suspenseful action and it kept me reading with enthusiasm until the very satisfying conclusion.
January 16, 2009
If there is one thing that I have come to expect of Ben Bova it is that he can take any fantastically unbelievable idea and make it so real that you actually think that it could happen. This is the case with Venus.
Van Humphries is the last living son of Martin Humphries, having outlived his brother who died a few years before on a trek to the venusian surface to try to discover how a runaway greenhouse could explain the sudden warming on Earth. But his father hates him beyond reason. He's the runt in the family with a terrible anemia that he has to take medicine for to keep in check. Then comes his father's award--a billion dollars to anyone who can bring back the remains of his beloved son. To make matters more interesting, Martin Humphries has cut off all of Van's funding and in desperation Van signs up to win that billion dollars. But Van isn't the only one that wants the prize...
Enter Fuchs, an asteroid belt entrepreneur who lost everything he owned because of Martin Humphries, including his wife. Claiming a billion dollars could right his life and give him the vengeance he has always wanted.The story is riveting to say the least. I think this book is possibly better than Mars, but it's such a close match I find it hard to make the decision. Everything from the way Bova designs the ships that take them to Venus and ultimately the ships that get them to the surface to his description of Venus in such a realistic manner made this book one of the best reads I've had in a while. I don't want to give anything away, but the way he describes Venus' clouds, surface, winds, etc. really give you the image of how dangerous this planet is.
Venus is written in first person and I found that in this case it worked perfectly. I've known a few instances when I hated first person, but again, the same as with Old Man's War, it worked very well here. Bova's style is not profound in any sense of the word, and he likely won't be winning any 'best writer ever' awards, but he has such a way to tell a scifi story to make you really believe in what is going on. There is little that I had to dispel belief for. This is something I've come to know Bova for--realism. There are a lot of twists and turns that you don't expect too, and I won't give any of them away simply because that would ruin the book.
Pick this book up. You can probably find it online for cheap--it's been out for a while. It is a fascinating read.
Van Humphries is the last living son of Martin Humphries, having outlived his brother who died a few years before on a trek to the venusian surface to try to discover how a runaway greenhouse could explain the sudden warming on Earth. But his father hates him beyond reason. He's the runt in the family with a terrible anemia that he has to take medicine for to keep in check. Then comes his father's award--a billion dollars to anyone who can bring back the remains of his beloved son. To make matters more interesting, Martin Humphries has cut off all of Van's funding and in desperation Van signs up to win that billion dollars. But Van isn't the only one that wants the prize...
Enter Fuchs, an asteroid belt entrepreneur who lost everything he owned because of Martin Humphries, including his wife. Claiming a billion dollars could right his life and give him the vengeance he has always wanted.The story is riveting to say the least. I think this book is possibly better than Mars, but it's such a close match I find it hard to make the decision. Everything from the way Bova designs the ships that take them to Venus and ultimately the ships that get them to the surface to his description of Venus in such a realistic manner made this book one of the best reads I've had in a while. I don't want to give anything away, but the way he describes Venus' clouds, surface, winds, etc. really give you the image of how dangerous this planet is.
Venus is written in first person and I found that in this case it worked perfectly. I've known a few instances when I hated first person, but again, the same as with Old Man's War, it worked very well here. Bova's style is not profound in any sense of the word, and he likely won't be winning any 'best writer ever' awards, but he has such a way to tell a scifi story to make you really believe in what is going on. There is little that I had to dispel belief for. This is something I've come to know Bova for--realism. There are a lot of twists and turns that you don't expect too, and I won't give any of them away simply because that would ruin the book.
Pick this book up. You can probably find it online for cheap--it's been out for a while. It is a fascinating read.
July 22, 2021
It's hard to read this novel in 2021. A lot of stuff certainly would not have flown in today's sci-fi publishing market. The book makes sure you knew the relative attractiveness of the female characters and of course the most attractive women are also the most important to the plot. That would be one thing but the book also knocks down the rest by pointing up how unattractive they were to the MC. At first, I merely thought this was a product of the perspective of the MC, who is a spoiled rich kid whose moral compass never grew since his father was not much of a role model and his closest friends were just feeding off his wealth. However, that becomes harder to square as the book goes on when the MC and the 'girl' are given preferred treatment over the pre-existing incredibly more experienced Lucifer crew. There is in-story justification but it rings a bit hollow and feels more like a product of three 'civilized' people feeling a stronger kindred together than with the uncivilized foreigners.
The story was fine enough and delivered on expectations of explorers having an adventure. But there are just so many eye-rolling aspects of this book I have to ding it.
The story was fine enough and delivered on expectations of explorers having an adventure. But there are just so many eye-rolling aspects of this book I have to ding it.
October 2, 2007
Though I often consider myself more keen on good characterization and dialogue than a fast-moving plot, when it comes to science fiction, I tend to reverse my usual preferences. The unlikely hero in this book is granted with a sort of late bloomer-coming-of-age story, but many of the other characters never really become more than vaguely enigmatic. The plot however, doesn't really stop moving as the characters are catapaulted into one danger after another. Van Humphries must risk his life to embark on a recovery mission to Venus in order to finally sever ties with his controlling and cruel father, and make a fresh start. Problem is, Venus happens to be just about the most hostile planet out there, Van is inexperienced and sickly, and his chief competitor for the ten billion dollar reward is ruthless and has all the advantages he doesn't. Realistic detail about the dangers of Venus, and the technology involved to get everyone there is useful and unfolds naturally, unlike many novels where it feels awkwardly plugged in, and it never bogs down the pace. Story comes first here, and all in all, it's not a bad one to while an afternoon away.
April 21, 2013
Another in Ben Bova's 'Grand Tour' series, but this one is pretty much a stand alone and has little relation to other books except the general solar system exploration theme. Some characters are apparently from the Asteroid Wars books, but as I have not read any of them it didn't matter to me.
I'm a sucker for a decent scientific exploration story, so all of this series are pretty fascinating from my point of view. This one is about a mission to Venus (obviously) and a subsequent trip down through the clouds to the surface. Written in 2001, the description of Venus is fairly consistent with modern scientific theory and known facts. Ben Bova weaves and entertaining, although occasionally implausible, story and does a good job of proposing technology to explore Venus. Characters were decent, with one major plot twist that I did not see coming.
The book more or less wraps up as a stand alone. There is one loose end so there is always an opening there for a sequel if he ever decides to write one. I didn't enjoy this one as much as I did the 'Mars' books, but still a slightly above average and enjoyable read.
I'm a sucker for a decent scientific exploration story, so all of this series are pretty fascinating from my point of view. This one is about a mission to Venus (obviously) and a subsequent trip down through the clouds to the surface. Written in 2001, the description of Venus is fairly consistent with modern scientific theory and known facts. Ben Bova weaves and entertaining, although occasionally implausible, story and does a good job of proposing technology to explore Venus. Characters were decent, with one major plot twist that I did not see coming.
The book more or less wraps up as a stand alone. There is one loose end so there is always an opening there for a sequel if he ever decides to write one. I didn't enjoy this one as much as I did the 'Mars' books, but still a slightly above average and enjoyable read.
March 31, 2009
This was so laughably bad that I refrained from giving it just one star since it had me cracking up so often. Picked this out from the shelf while doing some light weeding (those fiction shelves are getting too crowded!)... The blurb inside the flap caught my attention. It contained what is quite possibly my favorite sentence of the past couple years: "Late in the twenty-first century, Van is the sickly, fearful second son of a tyrannical corporate tycoon." How could I not read this based on that alone?
Dim characterizations and cliche plot twists were the running theme of this novel. Metal eating bugs, plate tectonics, paternal revelations, cryonics, and global warming also made appearances. Hilarious, but not recommended.
Dim characterizations and cliche plot twists were the running theme of this novel. Metal eating bugs, plate tectonics, paternal revelations, cryonics, and global warming also made appearances. Hilarious, but not recommended.
November 4, 2015
During the Reagan period Ben Bova had written his Kinsman series, a science fiction piece beginning with 'Star Wars' planning on the moon. I'd liked the politics, the relevance and the main character--liked it so much that Bova's name had impressed itself on me enough to cause me, years later, to pick up this much later novel.
Although there's some relevance to contemporary politics here as regards climate change, this book is mostly about Venus, a character portrayed with about as much depth as the human explorers of its atmosphere and surface. The science is plausible enough, but the plotting and the protagonist are too shallow to engage much interest.
Although there's some relevance to contemporary politics here as regards climate change, this book is mostly about Venus, a character portrayed with about as much depth as the human explorers of its atmosphere and surface. The science is plausible enough, but the plotting and the protagonist are too shallow to engage much interest.
December 15, 2020
It took me a few tries to finally get into this one. This was mainly due to the novel's slower start. Once the book got rolling, though, I found myself enthralled by this adventure through the clouds of our sister planet, Venus. While the characters were not the deepest, the intense action and science based hard sci-fi goodness made up for this. If you're looking for extremely deep characters or story, don't expect it here. But if you love hard sci-fi and want to begin the journey into Bova's dubbed "The Grand Tour" of our solar system, or if you have ever dreamed about flying through the vastness of the many planets in our solar system this is a great place to start.
January 7, 2019
This is my first ever science fiction novel read and I absolutely loved it. This is one of my favorite books ever. It's a page turner right from the beginning through to the end. There's plenty of action and the characters feel so real like they are your friends. There's twists throughout and you don't know what to expect on their journey to Venus and what will happen when they get there.
I'm definitely reading more from Ben Bova and would highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to read a fictional book set in space.
I'm definitely reading more from Ben Bova and would highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to read a fictional book set in space.
December 19, 2017
When I first started reading this novel, the storyline seemed somewhat simplified - and a throwback to the pulp sci-fi stories (which isn't necessarily a bad thing). Bova's story is a quest to explore Venus, but thankfully turns into an interesting page turner. Yes, things seem to happen to easily in the beginning, but the characters and plot grow on you. By the middle of the book, it becomes a page turner. It's definitely worth picking up!
June 23, 2020
As usual with Bova there are both physical (relating to the planet Venus) and personal problems to solve (who is the protagonist's Father - etc.)
Put together they make this book an excellent part of the Grand Tour series,
Put together they make this book an excellent part of the Grand Tour series,
September 22, 2020
Another space noir. I am impressed by Bova's willingness to make the vast majority of his characters unlikeable.
April 23, 2021
Ben Bova books are exactly what I long for in science fiction. I hope someone out there picks up his mantle. I couldn't help but read this with a pang of sorrow.
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