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Outside
Gamble is a research administrator and takes his job seriously, follows the rules and gets work done. With personal matters, he's far more casual, though always careful to keep a distance between work and play. When he meets Flint, the attraction is immediate, but Flint seems inexperienced and Gamble prefers to steer clear of that.
So when he heads out to a new station, leaving Flint behind, he thinks it's the best decision for everyone. But when he returns, it's to find Flint in dire straits and himself to blame…
So when he heads out to a new station, leaving Flint behind, he thinks it's the best decision for everyone. But when he returns, it's to find Flint in dire straits and himself to blame…
- GenresScience Fiction
166 pages, ebook
First published September 10, 2014
27 people want to read
About the author
Lucy Kemnitzer
14 books8 followersI also write fiction under the pseudonym plumblossom.
I write science fiction and fantasy stories and novels. Sometimes I also write contemporary friendship romances of the lighter sort.
My stories are about decent, imperfect people, trying to do the right thing in difficult circumstances while generally lacking the best equipment. Sometimes that's pretty dramatic, sometimes it's just kind of funny. Or both. I like to write about culture clash and crossed wires. My imagination might take me out among the stars or it might take me down the street.
I hope you'll like peeking into the worlds where my stories go.
My photo was taken in Berlin, at the public park dedicated to Bertolt Brecht. The words are from his magnificent poem "To Posterity."
I write science fiction and fantasy stories and novels. Sometimes I also write contemporary friendship romances of the lighter sort.
My stories are about decent, imperfect people, trying to do the right thing in difficult circumstances while generally lacking the best equipment. Sometimes that's pretty dramatic, sometimes it's just kind of funny. Or both. I like to write about culture clash and crossed wires. My imagination might take me out among the stars or it might take me down the street.
I hope you'll like peeking into the worlds where my stories go.
My photo was taken in Berlin, at the public park dedicated to Bertolt Brecht. The words are from his magnificent poem "To Posterity."
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 5, 2015
*holds head in hands, takes a deep breath*
Okay. Here's my fear. There's only three reviews for this book on GR, and I'm afraid the author is going to read this one. But I don't want to prevaricate about this, so I'm just going to say what I think.
I think Ms Kemnitzer was very poorly served by Less Than Three Press, and they should never have let her put out this book, as it is now.
1) It is frustrating for the reader (i.e. me) to discover they have committed $5.22 (in local currency) to a book about a minor administrative error.
*second deep breath; repeats "Serenity Now, Serenity Now*
I'm trying very hard not to get ranty and shouty here. But it's difficult not to. Because the author builds us up with these little lines along the way to expect . . . .oh, i don't know . . . actual events caused by either MC to influence the plot.
I'm going give the entire plot here, because the mere thought of it is making me excrete excess stomach acid, and if I don't vent I'm going to get an ulcer.
Are you shitting me?
I sat through this book to find out the big mystery, all those sly "ooh ooh ooh something is coming" hints, is about a "serious error in the auto extract." I mean, yeah, great, homage to Kafka: a nightmarian dystopia of bureaucracy, but ill-advised, much?? SERIOUSLY?? Kemnitzer doesn't write well enough to pull a Kafka (not an insult: only Kafka writes as well as Kafka). ¹
And when there are events, they have no relationship to the plot. Every scene should have a purpose: everything contributes to the story. This means you need to identify what story you are telling. What purpose do the scenes with Chook have? What part of the story are they telling? Insight to Gamble's character we didn't get anywhere else? Emotional tension? World-building? Comic relief? Because when the answer is none of the above, it's a sign those scenes need to be reworked, or excised with a sharp and pointy object.
The author didn't think to do something with:
Sexual jealousy in a culture than frowns upon it
Professional rivalry ditto
The "Thick Cloud" mystery, which is built up for 2/3 of the book, and then disappears forever at 75%
Gamble's growing awareness that maybe monogamy (with or without occasional thirds) might be as important to him as his career
Flint's inner tension between wanting a monogamous relationship, and Gamble's insistence on keeping things open.
Tension between 'human nature' and this culture's expectation of total logic in interpersonal relationships.
The dangers of a 'perfect,' computer-controlled, administration system operating without human oversight or the right of appeal (a la Logan's Run)
??
There is so much that could have been done with this book, and instead it does nothing.
I have to share, here, that when I realised what the book was about I felt gypped, upset, frustrated, furious with both myself and the author. I lay in bed trying to sleep, feeling only anger and disappointment. It's an emotional response, sure, but not one an author should ever be hoping to achieve. So I didn't write my review right away. I waited. I am still feeling gypped.
2) What kind of book is this? In a store, who would it sit next to?
It's not a romance
It's not sci fi
Not a space opera
Not a thriller
Sure, you can write books that break genres, but it's a lot easier if you can give the reader something to hang it on. I wish I could have said, "Hey, friend, you should read this great book I just finished about a guy who realises, while he's away on a space expedition to another planet, that his friend-with-benefits is the one he wants, while meanwhile, back on the station, the friend faces that he's never going to get the MC, so he decides to pair bond with one of the guys the MC hooked him up with. It explores ideas of sexual jealousy, social engineering, what happens when your true love doesn't love you back, and there's a sub plot about astrophysics." Why couldn't this have been that book?
"Hey, friend, read this book about a transcription error," said no one ever.
3) The omniscient distant 3rd person pov leaves the reader emotionally removed from the characters. Using this pov to hint that a shocking and unexpected event will be occurring in the near future turned out to be a particularly unwise choice. Most of the book felt like a prologue, and indeed it was, because the story starts at 53%, when Gamble realises he must unravel the puzzling mystery of (drum roll please) "Why are you working in maintenance?" (loc 1219)
Ok, I'm done. Like I said, this is the fault of the editors. There's a reason for going through a publisher and not just self-publishing, and that's because authors can get at least a teaspoonful of professional advice. Kemnitzer was given very poor advice. Outside needs to be pulled, rewritten, and re-released. It is salvageable, but I doubt that will happen.
I 5-starred her The Raw and the Cooked. She has the potential to write well. I do not think this book is indicative of her talent. I would read another by her.
¹ you know else can write gripping fiction about a bureaucratic error? Terry Gilliam. However Brazil would lack a lot of its impact if an MC swooped down 70 minutes in and sorted out the paperwork. If you're going to write a story about a paper-pushing dystopia, then make it a goddamn dystopia.
Okay. Here's my fear. There's only three reviews for this book on GR, and I'm afraid the author is going to read this one. But I don't want to prevaricate about this, so I'm just going to say what I think.
I think Ms Kemnitzer was very poorly served by Less Than Three Press, and they should never have let her put out this book, as it is now.
1) It is frustrating for the reader (i.e. me) to discover they have committed $5.22 (in local currency) to a book about a minor administrative error.
*second deep breath; repeats "Serenity Now, Serenity Now*
I'm trying very hard not to get ranty and shouty here. But it's difficult not to. Because the author builds us up with these little lines along the way to expect . . . .oh, i don't know . . . actual events caused by either MC to influence the plot.
I'm going give the entire plot here, because the mere thought of it is making me excrete excess stomach acid, and if I don't vent I'm going to get an ulcer.
Are you shitting me?
I sat through this book to find out the big mystery, all those sly "ooh ooh ooh something is coming" hints, is about a "serious error in the auto extract." I mean, yeah, great, homage to Kafka: a nightmarian dystopia of bureaucracy, but ill-advised, much?? SERIOUSLY?? Kemnitzer doesn't write well enough to pull a Kafka (not an insult: only Kafka writes as well as Kafka). ¹
And when there are events, they have no relationship to the plot. Every scene should have a purpose: everything contributes to the story. This means you need to identify what story you are telling. What purpose do the scenes with Chook have? What part of the story are they telling? Insight to Gamble's character we didn't get anywhere else? Emotional tension? World-building? Comic relief? Because when the answer is none of the above, it's a sign those scenes need to be reworked, or excised with a sharp and pointy object.
The author didn't think to do something with:
Sexual jealousy in a culture than frowns upon it
Professional rivalry ditto
The "Thick Cloud" mystery, which is built up for 2/3 of the book, and then disappears forever at 75%
Gamble's growing awareness that maybe monogamy (with or without occasional thirds) might be as important to him as his career
Flint's inner tension between wanting a monogamous relationship, and Gamble's insistence on keeping things open.
Tension between 'human nature' and this culture's expectation of total logic in interpersonal relationships.
The dangers of a 'perfect,' computer-controlled, administration system operating without human oversight or the right of appeal (a la Logan's Run)
??
There is so much that could have been done with this book, and instead it does nothing.
I have to share, here, that when I realised what the book was about I felt gypped, upset, frustrated, furious with both myself and the author. I lay in bed trying to sleep, feeling only anger and disappointment. It's an emotional response, sure, but not one an author should ever be hoping to achieve. So I didn't write my review right away. I waited. I am still feeling gypped.
2) What kind of book is this? In a store, who would it sit next to?
It's not a romance
It's not sci fi
Not a space opera
Not a thriller
Sure, you can write books that break genres, but it's a lot easier if you can give the reader something to hang it on. I wish I could have said, "Hey, friend, you should read this great book I just finished about a guy who realises, while he's away on a space expedition to another planet, that his friend-with-benefits is the one he wants, while meanwhile, back on the station, the friend faces that he's never going to get the MC, so he decides to pair bond with one of the guys the MC hooked him up with. It explores ideas of sexual jealousy, social engineering, what happens when your true love doesn't love you back, and there's a sub plot about astrophysics." Why couldn't this have been that book?
"Hey, friend, read this book about a transcription error," said no one ever.
3) The omniscient distant 3rd person pov leaves the reader emotionally removed from the characters. Using this pov to hint that a shocking and unexpected event will be occurring in the near future turned out to be a particularly unwise choice. Most of the book felt like a prologue, and indeed it was, because the story starts at 53%, when Gamble realises he must unravel the puzzling mystery of (drum roll please) "Why are you working in maintenance?" (loc 1219)
Ok, I'm done. Like I said, this is the fault of the editors. There's a reason for going through a publisher and not just self-publishing, and that's because authors can get at least a teaspoonful of professional advice. Kemnitzer was given very poor advice. Outside needs to be pulled, rewritten, and re-released. It is salvageable, but I doubt that will happen.
I 5-starred her The Raw and the Cooked. She has the potential to write well. I do not think this book is indicative of her talent. I would read another by her.
¹ you know else can write gripping fiction about a bureaucratic error? Terry Gilliam. However Brazil would lack a lot of its impact if an MC swooped down 70 minutes in and sorted out the paperwork. If you're going to write a story about a paper-pushing dystopia, then make it a goddamn dystopia.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 12, 2014
This is definitely one of the more unusual science fiction stories I have read. And not really because of the subject matter—lots of stories out there contain space stations and expeditions into the unknown. No, what makes this story different is the combination of the characters and the style in which it is told. Both took me by surprise, and I wasn’t sure what to think of them at first. But that strangeness pulled me in and I wanted to know what was going on to the point I couldn’t put down the book once I had passed the halfway mark.
The best way I can describe it is that ‘Outside’ is a love story without passion, set in humankind’s far future, when we have (according to this version) pretty much outgrown the need for emotions, if not the ability to have them in at least some small way. Everything is regulated, there are procedures for dealing with procedures, and the top people are not adventurers or explorers, but administrators. Bureaucracy is everything, and that even makes sense in an environment where you have to be able to rely on nobody leaving open the airlock, so to speak, if you want to survive. All of that has some curious side effects, and the author did a perfect job at making that world come alive. Even to the point that most of the book reads like a manual, descriptive but very subdued and sensible, until, as I said, it hits about the halfway mark. But even the events and emotions that come up then are somewhat muted compared to what people today would feel, and I found that as fascinating as it was frustrating. I wanted to shake them so they’d wake up to the reality of what was going on, so they would CARE. But of course, that was the whole point, they didn’t care in the same way I did, and that made them almost like aliens.
Gamble is a research administrator and very organized. He knows the system and his job is to facilitate the scientists’ jobs by getting them what they need—be that equipment, lab space, computer time, or people. He loves his life on the space station, and has no interest in going “outside” on one of the many expeditions with the purpose of getting more data. The station has the number of people he likes, the social interaction he prefers, and he keeps his personal and sex life nicely varied. Work and personal life are separated, and he likes to keep it that way even when he meets and gets involved (well, sort of) with Flint. His assignment to lead an expedition “outside” totally surprises him and he does his best to get out of it, but he can’t. And when he comes back, everything has changed. He is not happy about that!
Flint is a junior exogeologist, and loves crunching data. He wants nothing more than to “go outside” (the space station) so he can discover new worlds, and catalogue new phenomena. He applies for expedition after expedition, but is never selected. And once Gamble refuses to take him with him on the expedition he is in charge of, for fear of “personal entanglements”, Flint’s world collapses and he doesn’t even know why. The suffering he goes through is heartbreaking, and his stubborn determination to keep going despite everything was impressive. The final explanation of what happened is ridiculously bureaucratic, and fits this world Flint and Gamble live in perfectly. It made me so angry!
If you like unusual stories written in an unusual style, if exploring a potential future of humans going out into space is your thing and if you’re looking for a read that is as fascinating as it is frustrating at times, then you will probably like this novel.
NOTE: This book was provided by Less Than Three Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
The best way I can describe it is that ‘Outside’ is a love story without passion, set in humankind’s far future, when we have (according to this version) pretty much outgrown the need for emotions, if not the ability to have them in at least some small way. Everything is regulated, there are procedures for dealing with procedures, and the top people are not adventurers or explorers, but administrators. Bureaucracy is everything, and that even makes sense in an environment where you have to be able to rely on nobody leaving open the airlock, so to speak, if you want to survive. All of that has some curious side effects, and the author did a perfect job at making that world come alive. Even to the point that most of the book reads like a manual, descriptive but very subdued and sensible, until, as I said, it hits about the halfway mark. But even the events and emotions that come up then are somewhat muted compared to what people today would feel, and I found that as fascinating as it was frustrating. I wanted to shake them so they’d wake up to the reality of what was going on, so they would CARE. But of course, that was the whole point, they didn’t care in the same way I did, and that made them almost like aliens.
Gamble is a research administrator and very organized. He knows the system and his job is to facilitate the scientists’ jobs by getting them what they need—be that equipment, lab space, computer time, or people. He loves his life on the space station, and has no interest in going “outside” on one of the many expeditions with the purpose of getting more data. The station has the number of people he likes, the social interaction he prefers, and he keeps his personal and sex life nicely varied. Work and personal life are separated, and he likes to keep it that way even when he meets and gets involved (well, sort of) with Flint. His assignment to lead an expedition “outside” totally surprises him and he does his best to get out of it, but he can’t. And when he comes back, everything has changed. He is not happy about that!
Flint is a junior exogeologist, and loves crunching data. He wants nothing more than to “go outside” (the space station) so he can discover new worlds, and catalogue new phenomena. He applies for expedition after expedition, but is never selected. And once Gamble refuses to take him with him on the expedition he is in charge of, for fear of “personal entanglements”, Flint’s world collapses and he doesn’t even know why. The suffering he goes through is heartbreaking, and his stubborn determination to keep going despite everything was impressive. The final explanation of what happened is ridiculously bureaucratic, and fits this world Flint and Gamble live in perfectly. It made me so angry!
If you like unusual stories written in an unusual style, if exploring a potential future of humans going out into space is your thing and if you’re looking for a read that is as fascinating as it is frustrating at times, then you will probably like this novel.
NOTE: This book was provided by Less Than Three Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
July 29, 2015
Disclaimer: I received a copy from the publisher with request for honest feedback.
Overall, I liked this book. The story and themes were enjoyable. The worldbuilding was well done and unique. It felt familiar enough to be graspable, yet alien in a way that makes for good futuristic science fiction. The issues came down to style and author voice, both of which kept me from loving it.
I loved the science fiction side of the story - the space station, 'outside' missions and the way the station was described. I enjoyed the unique culture of the space station, the way relationships were handled (chain marriages, polyamorous relationships, pair bonding, etc). Although the species was never discussed, though I assumed highly futuristic human, they had cultures that were unique from today's human societies.
The relationship / romance side of the story was also enjoyable. I liked how they began, the tension between social and work relationships, what happened to Flint and how it was eventually resolved. There were several interesting side characters as well. Gamble left some things to be desired and came across as a robot emotionally at times, but I can respect that as part of his character.
The story style and author voice is where the story stumbled. As a reader, I felt like I was being 'told' everything. I was 'told' who the characters were, I was 'told' how they acted, I was 'told' what they were doing and why. I was 'told how they felt. It made the book stiff, formal and almost clinical.
The point is that I wasn't 'shown' anything. The characters were not allowed to speak for themselves or show me who they were through their thoughts, actions and words. The 'tell' vs 'show' author style can be hard to balance and nail down sometimes. I think with some revision, this story and its characters could be given more life and make for a more enjoyable read.
Overall, I liked this book. The story and themes were enjoyable. The worldbuilding was well done and unique. It felt familiar enough to be graspable, yet alien in a way that makes for good futuristic science fiction. The issues came down to style and author voice, both of which kept me from loving it.
I loved the science fiction side of the story - the space station, 'outside' missions and the way the station was described. I enjoyed the unique culture of the space station, the way relationships were handled (chain marriages, polyamorous relationships, pair bonding, etc). Although the species was never discussed, though I assumed highly futuristic human, they had cultures that were unique from today's human societies.
The relationship / romance side of the story was also enjoyable. I liked how they began, the tension between social and work relationships, what happened to Flint and how it was eventually resolved. There were several interesting side characters as well. Gamble left some things to be desired and came across as a robot emotionally at times, but I can respect that as part of his character.
The story style and author voice is where the story stumbled. As a reader, I felt like I was being 'told' everything. I was 'told' who the characters were, I was 'told' how they acted, I was 'told' what they were doing and why. I was 'told how they felt. It made the book stiff, formal and almost clinical.
The point is that I wasn't 'shown' anything. The characters were not allowed to speak for themselves or show me who they were through their thoughts, actions and words. The 'tell' vs 'show' author style can be hard to balance and nail down sometimes. I think with some revision, this story and its characters could be given more life and make for a more enjoyable read.
October 1, 2014
This book made my fingertips numb and my heart race. I felt like crying half the time, blushing the other half, but the whole story was amazing.
No regrets buying this.
No regrets buying this.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews