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Emily Plair Saga
Outside
Earth is empty of humans. This surprising observation stymies Rome and his shipmates, crew of the starship come to re-establish contact from the colonies. What could have happened in the 500-years of the non-interference treaty to vanish everyone?
Meanwhile, on Earth, Emily is living her computer-simulated life, along with the rest of Earth’s residents: bodies stored in vast underground chambers, minds living without disease, poverty, or pain. But dramatic change is coming to their carefully regulated virtual world. Impenetrable black walls suddenly cut off cities. Monsters appear, destroying all they touch. Emily’s expertise has her on the front line of the investigation, trying to understand these frightening developments.
When Rome and Emily meet, it seems they’ve found the answers to each other’s mysteries. But as the colonists and Earth engage in tense diplomacy, suppressed histories are revealed, and a tyrant with frightening powers rises. Together, Rome and Emily discover the terrifying secret buried deep underground that threatens the existence of everyone on Earth.
Meanwhile, on Earth, Emily is living her computer-simulated life, along with the rest of Earth’s residents: bodies stored in vast underground chambers, minds living without disease, poverty, or pain. But dramatic change is coming to their carefully regulated virtual world. Impenetrable black walls suddenly cut off cities. Monsters appear, destroying all they touch. Emily’s expertise has her on the front line of the investigation, trying to understand these frightening developments.
When Rome and Emily meet, it seems they’ve found the answers to each other’s mysteries. But as the colonists and Earth engage in tense diplomacy, suppressed histories are revealed, and a tyrant with frightening powers rises. Together, Rome and Emily discover the terrifying secret buried deep underground that threatens the existence of everyone on Earth.
- GenresScience Fiction
290 pages, Paperback
Published April 15, 2017
2 people are currently reading
17 people want to read
About the author
Gustavo Bondoni
216 books41 followersGustavo Bondoni is novelist and short story writer with over three hundred stories published in fifteen countries, in seven languages. He is a member of Codex and an Active Member of SFWA. His latest novel is Test Site Horror (2020). He has also published two other monster books: Ice Station: Death (2019) and Jungle Lab Terror (2020), three science fiction novels: Incursion (2017), Outside (2017) and Siege (2016) and an ebook novella entitled Branch. His short fiction is collected in Pale Reflection (2020), Off the Beaten Path (2019) Tenth Orbit and Other Faraway Places (2010) and Virtuoso and Other Stories (2011).
In 2019, Gustavo was awarded second place in the Jim Baen Memorial Contest and in 2018 he received a Judges Commendation (and second place) in The James White Award. He was also a 2019 finalist in the Writers of the Future Contest.
His website is at www.gustavobondoni.com
In 2019, Gustavo was awarded second place in the Jim Baen Memorial Contest and in 2018 he received a Judges Commendation (and second place) in The James White Award. He was also a 2019 finalist in the Writers of the Future Contest.
His website is at www.gustavobondoni.com
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 18, 2019
A ship from the human civilization on Tau Ceti II heads for Earth, intending to re-establish contact after a treaty-mandated gap of 500 years. Earth is deserted. There are no signs of an apocalypse, or mass graves. Where is everybody?
For the past 500 years, everyone on Earth has been permanently living in a virtual reality world. Free from disease and pain, their bodies are supposedly being taken care of in vast underground chambers. In VR-land, big problems are happening. A huge wall suddenly cuts Denver in half. Monsters are ravaging cities all over the world.
An interface is created, so that the visitors can communicate with the people of Earth, who are less than thrilled to see them. Rome, from the visitors, falls in love with Emily, from VR-land. She is involved in attempts to get the bottom of the computer problems, whatever they are. Are some mainframes about to crash, possibly snuffing out millions of "people"?
Rome asks Emily to return to Tau Ceti with the ship, which has been ordered to leave by an Earth that wants to stay in VR-land. First, they have to find her body. Are those millions of chambers still in nice, neat rows, maintained by an army of robots?
This is a first-rate piece of writing. The author, whose first language is not English, does an excellent job with the characters and storytelling. It is very much worth the reader's time.
For the past 500 years, everyone on Earth has been permanently living in a virtual reality world. Free from disease and pain, their bodies are supposedly being taken care of in vast underground chambers. In VR-land, big problems are happening. A huge wall suddenly cuts Denver in half. Monsters are ravaging cities all over the world.
An interface is created, so that the visitors can communicate with the people of Earth, who are less than thrilled to see them. Rome, from the visitors, falls in love with Emily, from VR-land. She is involved in attempts to get the bottom of the computer problems, whatever they are. Are some mainframes about to crash, possibly snuffing out millions of "people"?
Rome asks Emily to return to Tau Ceti with the ship, which has been ordered to leave by an Earth that wants to stay in VR-land. First, they have to find her body. Are those millions of chambers still in nice, neat rows, maintained by an army of robots?
This is a first-rate piece of writing. The author, whose first language is not English, does an excellent job with the characters and storytelling. It is very much worth the reader's time.
August 25, 2024
Outside is a fun and unique play on a far-future Earth setting and the singularity trope. It's the kind of book that's easy to devour in a few sittings because the pacing is tight and it has the energy and forward momentum of a mystery novel--I kept needing to read "just one more chapter" because I was so curious to learn what was going on.
I will say, early on in the book, I had some doubts about the world's construction. There were aspects of it that didn't quite seem feasible or logical the way they were presented. Without giving spoilers, I'll say that's definitely intentional and if you feel that way, keep reading--all of my questions were suitably addressed by the book's end, and in a very satisfying way.
Readers who are mostly interested in plot and worldbuilding will have no complaints about Outside. That said, folks driven more by characters and relationships may find it less satisfying. I think perhaps the book is a bit over-populated and many characters weren't given enough on-page time for me to really get a sense for their identity, motivations, and other details that would make them read as fully human. That's not a deal-breaker for me personally, and didn't stop me from putting the sequel to this book on my TBR list because the plot and world are intriguing enough I want to spend more time there.
I will say, early on in the book, I had some doubts about the world's construction. There were aspects of it that didn't quite seem feasible or logical the way they were presented. Without giving spoilers, I'll say that's definitely intentional and if you feel that way, keep reading--all of my questions were suitably addressed by the book's end, and in a very satisfying way.
Readers who are mostly interested in plot and worldbuilding will have no complaints about Outside. That said, folks driven more by characters and relationships may find it less satisfying. I think perhaps the book is a bit over-populated and many characters weren't given enough on-page time for me to really get a sense for their identity, motivations, and other details that would make them read as fully human. That's not a deal-breaker for me personally, and didn't stop me from putting the sequel to this book on my TBR list because the plot and world are intriguing enough I want to spend more time there.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews