Evergreen

by Bruce Golden

The planet Evergreen is ripe for exploitation, and corporate Earth is only too happy to harvest the lush timber and mining resources to provide luxury goods for a world whose own resources were long ago eradicated.
Like the frontier towns of early America, Evergreen draws the misfits, the outcasts, and the unwanted of Earth, who exist as little more than slaves to pay off the huge costs of their trip to this magnificent wilderness. But others have come as well--a priest obsessed with finding the City of God, an exobiologist convinced she has found what may be the next species capable of reaching true sapience, an archaeologist whose young wife is torn between her love for him and her lust for her stepson, and a man seeking vengeance.
There is one other player in this game of greed and desire and retribution. That player has grown more and more certain that the creatures that have infected it must be destroyed.

Genres: Science Fiction

281 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Novelist, journalist, satirist, Bruce Golden's short stories have been published more than 130 times across 20 countries and in 30 anthologies. Asimov's Science Fiction described his second book, "If Mickey Spillane had collaborated with both Frederik Pohl and Philip K. Dick, he might have produced Bruce Golden's Better Than Chocolate." The same reviewer said of his novel Evergreen, "If you can imagine Ursula Le Guin channeling H. Rider Haggard, you'll have the barest conception of this stirring book, which centers around a mysterious artifact and the people in its thrall. Reminiscent of the work of Robert Silverberg, this planetary romance will introduce lucky readers to a world both magical and spooky, yet ultimately as tangible as your own backyard.” His Dancing with the Velvet Lizard, with 33 stories, is one of the largest collections of speculative fiction ever published. His latest novel, Red Sky, Blue Moon, follows Vikings and Native American Sioux when they're transported to another world by aliens. http://goldentales.tripod.com

Reviews

[Gwen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Part sci-fi, part Western, this story follows several people from Earth on the forested planet of Evergreen. Some are harvesting timber, some are on scientific or religious expeditions, some have agendas of revenge, but each have their own past and their own story to tell. But what if the planet itself is sentient and doesn't want them there? Fascinating and unlike any book I've read before. I want to explore more by this author.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm glad I picked this one up. What a great science fiction read. I don't want to give it away, but I'll say it's got great characters and a unique concept. It makes me want to read whatever else this author wrote.

[Alan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mineral rich forested planet ripe for harvesting. A puzzling archaeological find. A religious Eldorado quest. This intriguing and entertaining Semiosis-lite Rider Haggard-esque novel poses the questions – who are the real aliens? who are the real monsters? Enjoyable contemporary SF ecofiction with an unexpected ‘you’ve got to be kidding me’ ending.

[Jim Raymond · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best science fiction books I've read. I plan on reading more by this author for sure.

[Steven · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm one of those people who likes to commit to a book. I'm usually pretty picky about what I read, so when I decide I'm going to read it, I'm in for the long haul. When I started Evergreen, I thought maybe I'd made a mistake.

At first, it seemed kind of gimmicky -- some scenes seemed pulled directly from recent entertainment media -- the movie Avatar and the TV series Deadwood came to mind -- but I have to admit that it grew on me over time. The general idea of a plant-based planet-wide intelligence evolving seemed really cool, but the whole story was a bit disjointed. Story lines seemed to be woven in just to bring about later events, but without real bearing on the characters and their motivations. The planet's ecology was way too simplified. There were also too many characters to keep track of -- only one or two really had my sympathies. It just seemed that there were a lot of stories here, any of which could have been expanded on in interesting ways.

I also had trouble suspending my disbelief in several places. Example -- people had been on this planet for nearly a century and they hadn't gotten around to studying life on a microbial level. Wouldn't that be the first thing people did? And I don't for a minute believe that a bunch of people could ride a log several miles down a flume without it rolling over on them. No way. Maybe in the Magic Kingdom...

The ending was quite exciting, though.

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read other books by this author I liked, but this one blew me away. It's one of the best scifi novels I've read--and I've read quite a few. I've always liked quest stories, and that's at the heart of this book, as a well-drawn assortment of characters journey into the heart of a forest darkly. The world of Evergreen is brilliantly conceived, the plot is both mysterious and exciting, but, at its heart, this is a character story, about revenge, redemption, and obsession.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

By far my favorite from this author. He creates a beautiful, intriguing world that hided a dark intelligence. To say more would be to give it away, but it has a great assortment of characters and a subtle environmental theme.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the environmental theme embedded in this story of adventure, revenge, and redemption. Golden creates a world that's beautiful on the surface, but carries a dark secret underneath all that beauty. Great characters, and a page-turning plot.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was great. I'd never heard of the author, but now I want to read everything he's written.