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Spatterjay #2
The Voyage of the Sable Keech
Sable Keech is a walking dead man, and the only one to have been resurrected by nanochanger. Did he succeed because he was infected by the Spatterjay virus, or because he came late to resurrection in a tank of seawater? Tracing the man`s last-known seaborne journey, Taylor Bloc wants to know the truth. He also wants so much else – adulation, power, control – and will go to any lengths to achieve them. An ancient hive mind, almost incomprehensible to the human race, has sent an agent to this uncertain world. Does it simply want to obtain the poison `sprine` that is crucial to immortality – and, if so, maybe Janer must find it and stop it. Meanwhile, still faced with the ennui of immortality, Erlin has her solitude rudely interrupted by a very angry whelkus titanicus, and begins the strangest of journeys. Deep in the ocean the Spatterjay virus has wrought a terrible change that will affect them all. Something dormant for ten years is breaking free, and once again the aftershocks of an ancient war will focus on this watery world. And Sniper, for ten years the Warden of Spatterjay, finally takes delivery of his new drone shell. It`s much better than his old powerful engines, more lethal weapons, thicker armour. He`s going to need them.
432 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 2006
125 people are currently reading
1326 people want to read
About the author
Neal Asher
139 books3,064 followersI’ve been an engineer, barman, skip lorry driver, coalman, boat window manufacturer, contract grass cutter and builder. Now I write science fiction books, and am slowly getting over the feeling that someone is going to find me out, and can call myself a writer without wincing and ducking my head. As professions go, I prefer this one: I don’t have to clock-in, change my clothes after work, nor scrub sensitive parts of my body with detergent. I think I’ll hang around.
Source: http://www.blogger.com/profile/139339...
Source: http://www.blogger.com/profile/139339...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 132 reviews
February 11, 2019
Does anyone remember the time when SF was all about the weird and wonderful? When it was all about the strangest aliens and incomprehensible worlds? When awe met terror, spiced it up with truly amazing worldbuilding, and then threw us into a really F***ed up world?
I do. I've been chasing that feeling ever since I was a kid... and then I read these Spatterjay books and I'm an 8-year-old again, getting terrified out of my mind by all the things I imagine might be out there if not exactly terrified by what I'm actually finding.
What would my 8-year-old self do upon finding Spatterjay?
Hmmm... I might have to rave about it right until the point I was put away in the children's psychiatric ward. :) What could be more horror driven than a world where nothing dies because the spatterjay virus keeps rebuilding EVERYTHING there? Just think about the most horrible creatures that you could find there, especially in Asher's mind... *ahem hooder ahem* or think about the old 1000 year old boat captains who never die... who just get stronger... or how about the truly unfortunate victims who get chopped up and spread to the four corners to become fish bait only to later become mindless living husks as part of even stranger creatures... or become stranger swimming creatures themselves. *shiver*
Or in this case, Sable Keech. The re-living. Walking corpses with AI crystals and programming keeping them alive... only to be yanked back into the living world thanks to this special virus. :)
Truly. This kind of imagination is extraordinary. Not only does Asher explore so many avenues and throw in some of the most amazing characters, he does it by writing novels about high-tech pirates and undead captains and many-limbed monsters not limited to the Prador. :)
As an adventure, it's awesome. As a visual extravaganza with enough scathing creativity making me wish this was a full-budget Hollywood special-effects monstrosity to drool over for years, it's even more than awesome. I'd give my left nut to see this on the screen.
Just saying. My mind would be blown.
I do. I've been chasing that feeling ever since I was a kid... and then I read these Spatterjay books and I'm an 8-year-old again, getting terrified out of my mind by all the things I imagine might be out there if not exactly terrified by what I'm actually finding.
What would my 8-year-old self do upon finding Spatterjay?
Hmmm... I might have to rave about it right until the point I was put away in the children's psychiatric ward. :) What could be more horror driven than a world where nothing dies because the spatterjay virus keeps rebuilding EVERYTHING there? Just think about the most horrible creatures that you could find there, especially in Asher's mind... *ahem hooder ahem* or think about the old 1000 year old boat captains who never die... who just get stronger... or how about the truly unfortunate victims who get chopped up and spread to the four corners to become fish bait only to later become mindless living husks as part of even stranger creatures... or become stranger swimming creatures themselves. *shiver*
Or in this case, Sable Keech. The re-living. Walking corpses with AI crystals and programming keeping them alive... only to be yanked back into the living world thanks to this special virus. :)
Truly. This kind of imagination is extraordinary. Not only does Asher explore so many avenues and throw in some of the most amazing characters, he does it by writing novels about high-tech pirates and undead captains and many-limbed monsters not limited to the Prador. :)
As an adventure, it's awesome. As a visual extravaganza with enough scathing creativity making me wish this was a full-budget Hollywood special-effects monstrosity to drool over for years, it's even more than awesome. I'd give my left nut to see this on the screen.
Just saying. My mind would be blown.
January 17, 2012
Oooh boy, where to start. Having loved the HECK out of The Skinner, I think my expectations for Voyage may have been a bit too high. Let's see.
The Good
We're back on Spatterjay with its tremendous fauna, whose cast includes a 20-metre tall whelk with eyes the size of dinner plates. Whoa. Plus, of course, attendant leeches and the rest of Hooper's carnivorous food chain. Also, hooders. HOODERS! Awesome.
The Bad
While in The Skinner, we were introduced to said food chain via a story unfolding alongside the main plot, this time round every chapter starts with an entry from an encyclopedia on the planet's wildlife - which might be interesting to first-time visitors, but to me, it wasn't new, and therefore a bit...boring.
The Good
Yay for the Old Captains. Asher doesn't waste many words to describe them or build up their characters, but the thing is, he doesn't have to. By their actions, they rule the very pages they're on. Brilliant.
The Bad
Taylor Bloc. Is. Boring. Booooooring. Zzzzzzzz BORING! Seriously, I couldn't care less for the guy, and whatever he wants or doesn't want or how he'd get it or what, he's just annoying. In an un-enaging and, I think, unintentional, way. Boring. Shame, really.
The Sad
In fact, now that I think about it, the whole book is a bit...slow. Nothing happens for ages, while we are treated to detailed descriptions of how Vrell rebuilds his ship. Taylor Bloc just annoys everyone. The "mystery" surrounding Isis Wade and Zephyr is never intriguing enough, and the giant-whelk subplot, while initially amusing, just seemed like page filler in the end.
There's no real pay-off at the end, everything just peters out and even the "twist" (if John Styx was meant to be one) wasn't at all surprising, and basically, the entire voyage of the Sable Keech was a HUGE WASTE OF TIME. For everyone involved.
The Skinner is so amazing. This one...isn't.
The Good
We're back on Spatterjay with its tremendous fauna, whose cast includes a 20-metre tall whelk with eyes the size of dinner plates. Whoa. Plus, of course, attendant leeches and the rest of Hooper's carnivorous food chain. Also, hooders. HOODERS! Awesome.
The Bad
While in The Skinner, we were introduced to said food chain via a story unfolding alongside the main plot, this time round every chapter starts with an entry from an encyclopedia on the planet's wildlife - which might be interesting to first-time visitors, but to me, it wasn't new, and therefore a bit...boring.
The Good
Yay for the Old Captains. Asher doesn't waste many words to describe them or build up their characters, but the thing is, he doesn't have to. By their actions, they rule the very pages they're on. Brilliant.
The Bad
Taylor Bloc. Is. Boring. Booooooring. Zzzzzzzz BORING! Seriously, I couldn't care less for the guy, and whatever he wants or doesn't want or how he'd get it or what, he's just annoying. In an un-enaging and, I think, unintentional, way. Boring. Shame, really.
The Sad
In fact, now that I think about it, the whole book is a bit...slow. Nothing happens for ages, while we are treated to detailed descriptions of how Vrell rebuilds his ship. Taylor Bloc just annoys everyone. The "mystery" surrounding Isis Wade and Zephyr is never intriguing enough, and the giant-whelk subplot, while initially amusing, just seemed like page filler in the end.
There's no real pay-off at the end, everything just peters out and even the "twist" (if John Styx was meant to be one) wasn't at all surprising, and basically, the entire voyage of the Sable Keech was a HUGE WASTE OF TIME. For everyone involved.
The Skinner is so amazing. This one...isn't.
February 15, 2015
3 Stars
Neal Asher is one of my favorite authors and Skinner book one of the Spatterjay series was fantastic. The Voyage of the Sable Keech, book two was simply just OK. Where book one was an original piece of a science fiction horror creature feature, this one is simply just more. I really would have thought that I would enjoy this one more as all the cool creatures, characters, and The Captains are back for another adventure. Instead, The Voyage of the Sable Keech just feels long. It is crazy that a book with so much action, killings, and violence could actually feel slow.
The plot line and story arc of The Voyage of the Sable Keech was almost boring. The one thing that could have been called a twist was worse than obvious to a point that it was almost insulting. Too much time was spent with Buell and not enough with The Old Captains or with Sniper. The chapters that had the giant mother whelk were exceptional and freaking cool.
Overall I am disappointed with this book and might have a tough time moving in to the next book in the series. Not much really happens worth talking about. I guess the best thing I can say is that if you haven't read The Skinner than pick that one up for sure, it is awesome. This one is just meh......
Neal Asher is one of my favorite authors and Skinner book one of the Spatterjay series was fantastic. The Voyage of the Sable Keech, book two was simply just OK. Where book one was an original piece of a science fiction horror creature feature, this one is simply just more. I really would have thought that I would enjoy this one more as all the cool creatures, characters, and The Captains are back for another adventure. Instead, The Voyage of the Sable Keech just feels long. It is crazy that a book with so much action, killings, and violence could actually feel slow.
The plot line and story arc of The Voyage of the Sable Keech was almost boring. The one thing that could have been called a twist was worse than obvious to a point that it was almost insulting. Too much time was spent with Buell and not enough with The Old Captains or with Sniper. The chapters that had the giant mother whelk were exceptional and freaking cool.
Overall I am disappointed with this book and might have a tough time moving in to the next book in the series. Not much really happens worth talking about. I guess the best thing I can say is that if you haven't read The Skinner than pick that one up for sure, it is awesome. This one is just meh......
March 30, 2015
2.5 stars
While it had some interesting scenes and, like always, war drones and Old Captains rock, The Voyage of the Sable Keech was mainly mind-blowingly boring. Yes, that is right. It is certainly one of the weaker books in the series. It was as if Asher was so fascinated with Spatterjay world, which he caught so well in the previous book, that he couldn't let it go. When the big part of the book revolves around murderous fish, the main antagonist is a boring, mustache-twirling villain and one of the characters is schizophrenic in two bodies, after a while your interest has to rapidly diminish. It is good then that the next book moves in the other part of the universe - one with a few laws - the infamous Graveyard.
While it had some interesting scenes and, like always, war drones and Old Captains rock, The Voyage of the Sable Keech was mainly mind-blowingly boring. Yes, that is right. It is certainly one of the weaker books in the series. It was as if Asher was so fascinated with Spatterjay world, which he caught so well in the previous book, that he couldn't let it go. When the big part of the book revolves around murderous fish, the main antagonist is a boring, mustache-twirling villain and one of the characters is schizophrenic in two bodies, after a while your interest has to rapidly diminish. It is good then that the next book moves in the other part of the universe - one with a few laws - the infamous Graveyard.
September 6, 2011
Good fun. I just finished a Greg Egan novel and I needed something lighter. Not that this is fluff. Asher has built an intriguing and complex set, filled it with interesting and complex characters, started them going in mostly-credible ways, and figured out some plot complications to nudge the plot along.
He may have overdone it a little with the enormous cast of nasty creatures, but I'll credit him for a lot of work in figuring out how they must all interact.
The Old Captains are a great idea. Sniper is one of my favourite SF characters in recent years; I can't wait to read "Orbus" and see what he will do with his new friend (telling you more would be a spoiler). And the sails are fascinating, especially the one who is not like the others.
If a few of the situations are a tad implausible, well, heck gosh, just read faster. This IS just for fun, remember.
If you don't like the occasional gory action, perhaps another book would suit you better. But if you read "Skinner" you already knew that.
He may have overdone it a little with the enormous cast of nasty creatures, but I'll credit him for a lot of work in figuring out how they must all interact.
The Old Captains are a great idea. Sniper is one of my favourite SF characters in recent years; I can't wait to read "Orbus" and see what he will do with his new friend (telling you more would be a spoiler). And the sails are fascinating, especially the one who is not like the others.
If a few of the situations are a tad implausible, well, heck gosh, just read faster. This IS just for fun, remember.
If you don't like the occasional gory action, perhaps another book would suit you better. But if you read "Skinner" you already knew that.
March 29, 2023
Sable Keech est un mort vivant, en quelque sorte, depuis 700 ans, réanimé sur Spatterjay, probablement par le virus natif de la planète. Celle-ci devient une sorte de pèlerinage pour des personnes dans une situation similaire. Mais d’autres sont aussi à la recherche de cette fontaine de jouvence, dont un Prador se réveillant d’un long coma, et Sniper, une IA censée protéger la planète.
Du pur Asher condensé avec tous ses thèmes et gimmicks : des IA, des langoustes bouffeuses d’hommes vicieuses, de l’action, un peu de romance parce que quand même on est pas des bêtes, des super armes trop puissantes, bref, tout ce qu’il faut pou vous faire passer un bon moment.
Du pur Asher condensé avec tous ses thèmes et gimmicks : des IA, des langoustes bouffeuses d’hommes vicieuses, de l’action, un peu de romance parce que quand même on est pas des bêtes, des super armes trop puissantes, bref, tout ce qu’il faut pou vous faire passer un bon moment.
August 8, 2022
The Voyage of the Sable Keech is the sequel to Neal Asher's acclaimed Skinner, set again on the Line planet Spatterjay: a world of many monsters, some of them human. So pull up a stool, matey, pour a mug of seacane rum, and listen to more salty tales of titanic man-eating whelks, leeches the size of sperm-whales, swarms of vicious rhinoworms, glisters and heirodonts....
Spatterjay is a hellhole, in the fine old SFnal tradition of Harry Harrison's Deathworld, where life is hard, men are harder, and predators are big, fierce and very, very hungry. Spatterjay is a waterworld, with wooden ships and exotic-alloy men, men to match their monsters: the Hoopers, the Old Captains, infected with a leechborn virus that makes them almost immortal, and very, very strong. The Old Captains date back to the days of the Prador Wars, almost a thousand years ago. The Prador are not nice. They make Larry Niven's Kzin look like house cats. And you'll be learning some nasty secrets about the Prador's murderous, incestuous, impenetrable royal politics....
The Voyage of the Sable Keech carries over most of the cast of Skinner, and is told in the same overlapping, multi-viewpoint mosaic style. Which gets confusing at times, even to the author. But Asher is as feverishly inventive as ever, and keeps those pages turning -- a good thing, too, with 500+ of 'em to turn!
This isn't quite the book that Skinner was -- but then, few are. If you're new to Asher, that's still the place to start. If you liked Skinner, you'll definitely want to read The Voyage of the Sable Keech too. As the cover blurb says, this is SF with the volume turned up. Recommended.
Spatterjay is a hellhole, in the fine old SFnal tradition of Harry Harrison's Deathworld, where life is hard, men are harder, and predators are big, fierce and very, very hungry. Spatterjay is a waterworld, with wooden ships and exotic-alloy men, men to match their monsters: the Hoopers, the Old Captains, infected with a leechborn virus that makes them almost immortal, and very, very strong. The Old Captains date back to the days of the Prador Wars, almost a thousand years ago. The Prador are not nice. They make Larry Niven's Kzin look like house cats. And you'll be learning some nasty secrets about the Prador's murderous, incestuous, impenetrable royal politics....
The Voyage of the Sable Keech carries over most of the cast of Skinner, and is told in the same overlapping, multi-viewpoint mosaic style. Which gets confusing at times, even to the author. But Asher is as feverishly inventive as ever, and keeps those pages turning -- a good thing, too, with 500+ of 'em to turn!
This isn't quite the book that Skinner was -- but then, few are. If you're new to Asher, that's still the place to start. If you liked Skinner, you'll definitely want to read The Voyage of the Sable Keech too. As the cover blurb says, this is SF with the volume turned up. Recommended.
May 22, 2021
Druhý díl série Spatterjay už sice postrádá ten "WOW" efekt prvního setkání, který má Stahovač, pořád je to ale jízda. Posuďte sami: pouť lodi plné nemrtvých na cestě za vzkříšením, okořeněná mutovaným mimozemšťanem, vážně nasranou obří škeblí a především mým oblíbencem, vysloužilým bojovým robotem Snajprem. Pečlivě zamícháno šéfkuchařem Asherem a výsledkem je fakt pekelná bujabéza :)
Edit 22.5.3021 - dnes už bych asi dal o hvězdičku míň než při prvním čtení, přece jen je to druhý díl a Stahovač je Stahovač... ale celá trilogie Spatterjay je v rámci tohohle žánru vysoký nadprůměr a ani tahle knížka není výjimka.
Edit 22.5.3021 - dnes už bych asi dal o hvězdičku míň než při prvním čtení, přece jen je to druhý díl a Stahovač je Stahovač... ale celá trilogie Spatterjay je v rámci tohohle žánru vysoký nadprůměr a ani tahle knížka není výjimka.
June 25, 2011
I gave it four stars not because it's brilliant, but because it's pure Asher. The followup to The Skinner. It's the same story. Not really, but sorta. There are almost all the same major players as last time, strange sea creatures, drones, Prador, etc, etc, etc. A bunch of stuff is happening and everyone has a hidden agenda. As the story unfolds all those agendas are revealed as all events and actions merge to become a great climax. Sounds pretty normal for an Asher book huh? Reads like a movie huh? Yup. Nothing groundbreaking. Just good old fashioned fun.
August 17, 2009
Further awesomeness from Asher. Continues with the adventures of our friends from the Skinner, and adds some good plot twists. Plus a hooder, and a really big whelk. Slightly insane characters and hive minds also come in for a share of the action, and our favorite war drone takes delivery of a new body. Loved it!
May 3, 2014
The second book set on the world of Spatterjay. The setting manages to combine old style pirates with far future tech and an incredibly dangerous ecology. Asher's writing style is a joy to read and there are some great characters in here (especially the AIs). I also love the little snippets about what the local wildlife is doing (mostly eating each other). A brilliant book by a brilliant author.
May 4, 2017
Such an amazing imagination - how do you create an entire universe and all the life-forms that evolve in it? Great story and interesting characters - and a great blurring of the lines between alive and not quite... The Hive mind didn't quite impress me, but otherwise this series is highly recommended - along with pretty much anything Mr Asher writes.
April 15, 2025
So, another novel that I really should have read five or six years ago, as Asher returns to the "Monty Python on crystal meth" world of Spatterjay, featuring a whole raft of POV characters; most of whom are coping with personal issues of major existential import. Nominally most important is one Taylor Bloc, one of Asher's take on the concept of a zombie, who has a clever scheme to revivify himself in the same fashion as Sable Keech, and who now reads as a satirical composite take on our own class of wannabe overlord "tech bro" entrepreneurs. His agenda is nominally driving the plot; at least Bloc thinks so.
This is as opposed to the Prador Vrell, another survivor of the first book, and whose agenda is simply to get off the damn planet before it kills him. This exercise in competency porn, Prador-style, will not be as easy as it looks. As for myself, I can always make time to read Asher's chronicle of the ghastly shenanigans of the Prador species.
Responding to other reviewers of this novel, yes, it is a bit bloated, as one would expect with more than half a dozen POV characters, but Asher was really coming into his own in this book in terms of his ability to build an intricate plot machine that blows up real good. I will not be taking the better part of a generation to get to the third book in this set.
This is as opposed to the Prador Vrell, another survivor of the first book, and whose agenda is simply to get off the damn planet before it kills him. This exercise in competency porn, Prador-style, will not be as easy as it looks. As for myself, I can always make time to read Asher's chronicle of the ghastly shenanigans of the Prador species.
Responding to other reviewers of this novel, yes, it is a bit bloated, as one would expect with more than half a dozen POV characters, but Asher was really coming into his own in this book in terms of his ability to build an intricate plot machine that blows up real good. I will not be taking the better part of a generation to get to the third book in this set.
May 15, 2025
The Splatterjay series has some of the most in-depth science fiction world building around, but its wild how we have all this world building yet still no plot that's actually worth caring about. It just feels like nothing of note happened at all in Voyage of the Sable Keech. Surely Orbus has to be an absolute belter to make the series worthwhile?
April 11, 2024
How did “John Styx” fool any of the reifs
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 14, 2013
Not quite as kinetic, horrific, and high-paced as the first book in the series, but good enough to have me buying the third in the series by the time I was half way through it.
Plenty of wince-inducing brutality, coated in grim humour, set in one of the most voraciously aggressive ecosystems I've read of.
When I finish the third book I'm confident I'll move on to more of Asher's work.
Plenty of wince-inducing brutality, coated in grim humour, set in one of the most voraciously aggressive ecosystems I've read of.
When I finish the third book I'm confident I'll move on to more of Asher's work.
December 1, 2019
This second journey into the world of the skinner is excellent, with interesting characters. Some of them might have been more developed (in depth, not length). Slightly less achieved than the first issue, much hesitation btwn 4 and 5 stars.
Short: you loved the #1, you'll enjoy #2 but probably feel slightly disappointed.
Short: you loved the #1, you'll enjoy #2 but probably feel slightly disappointed.
January 7, 2015
Full review on my podcast, SFBRP episode #261.
September 22, 2021
Dva krat som zmazal prakticky napisanu recenziu (vlozte double facepalm kapitana Picarda, pretoze jeden zjavne nestaci...).
V skratke bolo to super, lepsie ako jednotka a trojka bola najlepsia zo serie. Ozaj prekvapive :) recenzie doplnim az budem mat nervy pisat ich znovu :D
V skratke bolo to super, lepsie ako jednotka a trojka bola najlepsia zo serie. Ozaj prekvapive :) recenzie doplnim az budem mat nervy pisat ich znovu :D
April 4, 2023
Rapid, pacy, galloping.
March 30, 2020
Meine Hassliebe mit Neal Asher setzt sich fort. Nach dem originellen Cowl war ich gespannt auf die Fortsetzung zu Skinner, die eine Rückkehr nach Spatterjay bedeutet. Worum geht's?
Reifikationen sind Menschen, die gestorben sind und durch Geräte künstlich am Leben gehalten werden. Totes Gewebe bleibt tot, aber der Zerfallungsprozess des restlichen Körpers wird gestoppt. Normale Menschen betrachten sie mit Abscheu, weil sie keine echten, lebendigen Menschen mehr sind. Sable Keech war der erste, der durch das Spatterjay Virus und merkwürdigen Umständen wieder zum Leben erwacht ist.
Taylor Bloc, selbst eine Reifikation, hat ein riesiges Schiff auf Spatterjay bauen lassen und Gleichgesinnte um sich gesammelt. Zusammen wollen sie die gleiche Reise wie Sable Keech machen mit der Hoffnung auf Wiedergeburt. Das Schiff wird von 3 Segel angetrieben, darunter das exzentrische, verrückte Segel Zephyr. Die Hoppers stellen wie gewohnt die Besatzung.
Doch das ist nicht alles. Das Prador Schiff aus dem Vorgänger wurde nicht komplett vernichtet und ein Nachkomme hat überlebt und sich durch das Virus verändert. Es hat nur ein Ziel: weiterleben und dem Planeten entkommen, doch das Raumschiff ist stark beschädigt und muss repariert werden, was unter den wachsamen Augen des Warden und Snipers sehr schwierig wird...
Im dritten Subplot macht sich ein Riesen Whelk auf die Suche nach Erlin, um den Tod seiner Jungen zu rächen.
Der Einstieg in das Buch war für mich sehr schwer. Die ersten 80 Seiten bestehen aus Rückblenden und Zusammenfassungen für Leser, die The Skinner noch nicht kennen. Für alle anderen sind es Wiederholungen, die man geduldig überstehen muss. Es dauert außerdem einige Zeit, bis die drei Handlungsstränge in Gang kommen. Sie beginnen an unterschiedlichen Orten und wechseln realtiv häufig - ein Stilmittel dass ich bereits in anderen Büchern kritisiert habe. Ich finde, dass dadurch die Atmosphäre und die Identifikation mit den Charakteren leidet, und genau das ist hier der Fall.
Nachdem diese Phase geschafft ist, geht es endlich zur Sache. Taylor Bloc ist nicht nur manipulativ, er hat auch eine eigene Schutztruppe um sich gescharrt, um seine Interessen konsequent durchzusetzen. Die Reise geht los und man stellt schnell zwei Sachen fest: erstens ist Spatterjay trotz aller Vorbereitung eine verdammt gefährliche Welt und zweitens gibt es einige Gruppen, die ihre eigenen Interessen verfolgen. Die Charakterisierung ist sehr gut gelungen und die Handlung entpuppt mehr Tiefe, als man ihr auf den ersten Blick zugetraut hätte.
Am besten hat mir der Handlungsstrang um den Prador gefallen. Da er auf sich alleine gestellt ist fehlt zwar das Gegenspiel zu anderen Pradors, aber auch so bekommt man faszinierende Einblicke in die Psyche dieser Alien Kultur. Die Brutalität und Zielstrebigkeit ist unheimlich, trotzdem drückt man ihm die Daumen das sein Unternehmen gelingt.
Der dritte Handlungsstrang konzentriert sich auf ein wahrhaftes Ozeanmonster, dessen Intelligenz sich langsam entwickelt und es zu außergewöhnlichen Taten befähigt. Mich hat dieser zoologische Ausflug recht schnell gelangweilt, weil bereits in den Einleitungen zu jedem Kapitel auf die Tierwelt eingegangen wird und man irgendwann gesättigt ist, so originell das ganze auch ist.
Wenn man sieht, was für Zutaten Neal Asher zusammengemixt hat, kann eigentlich nur etwas gutes herauskommen, oder? Die Antwort ist leider nein. Wie schon beim Vorgänger folgt dem schleppenden Beginn zwar ein überragender Mittelteil, wo sich die Handlung entwickelt und die Personen überaus bemerkenswert und lebendig agieren. Der Schluss fällt dagegen wieder ab und las sich sehr zäh. Das Zusammenführen und Auflösen der Plots ist recht platt und un-originell, ich hätte mir etwas intelligenteres gewünscht. Schade ist auch, dass der Prador am Ende nicht mehr die Rolle spielt, die er zu Beginn hatte.
Fazit: Der ungewöhnliche Schauplatz mit der genau ausgearbeiteten Fauna auf Grundlage des Spatterjay Virus heben das Buch aus der Masse heraus. Die Handlung hätte Potential für wesentlich mehr gehabt, Neal Asher schafft es aber nicht, Tempo und Spannung hochzuhalten und die drei Handlungsstränge vernünftig zu vereinen. Trotz aller Kritik habe ich mir bereits sein neuestes Buch Hilldiggers bestellt. Nichts geht über eine gesunde Hassliebe.
Reifikationen sind Menschen, die gestorben sind und durch Geräte künstlich am Leben gehalten werden. Totes Gewebe bleibt tot, aber der Zerfallungsprozess des restlichen Körpers wird gestoppt. Normale Menschen betrachten sie mit Abscheu, weil sie keine echten, lebendigen Menschen mehr sind. Sable Keech war der erste, der durch das Spatterjay Virus und merkwürdigen Umständen wieder zum Leben erwacht ist.
Taylor Bloc, selbst eine Reifikation, hat ein riesiges Schiff auf Spatterjay bauen lassen und Gleichgesinnte um sich gesammelt. Zusammen wollen sie die gleiche Reise wie Sable Keech machen mit der Hoffnung auf Wiedergeburt. Das Schiff wird von 3 Segel angetrieben, darunter das exzentrische, verrückte Segel Zephyr. Die Hoppers stellen wie gewohnt die Besatzung.
Doch das ist nicht alles. Das Prador Schiff aus dem Vorgänger wurde nicht komplett vernichtet und ein Nachkomme hat überlebt und sich durch das Virus verändert. Es hat nur ein Ziel: weiterleben und dem Planeten entkommen, doch das Raumschiff ist stark beschädigt und muss repariert werden, was unter den wachsamen Augen des Warden und Snipers sehr schwierig wird...
Im dritten Subplot macht sich ein Riesen Whelk auf die Suche nach Erlin, um den Tod seiner Jungen zu rächen.
Der Einstieg in das Buch war für mich sehr schwer. Die ersten 80 Seiten bestehen aus Rückblenden und Zusammenfassungen für Leser, die The Skinner noch nicht kennen. Für alle anderen sind es Wiederholungen, die man geduldig überstehen muss. Es dauert außerdem einige Zeit, bis die drei Handlungsstränge in Gang kommen. Sie beginnen an unterschiedlichen Orten und wechseln realtiv häufig - ein Stilmittel dass ich bereits in anderen Büchern kritisiert habe. Ich finde, dass dadurch die Atmosphäre und die Identifikation mit den Charakteren leidet, und genau das ist hier der Fall.
Nachdem diese Phase geschafft ist, geht es endlich zur Sache. Taylor Bloc ist nicht nur manipulativ, er hat auch eine eigene Schutztruppe um sich gescharrt, um seine Interessen konsequent durchzusetzen. Die Reise geht los und man stellt schnell zwei Sachen fest: erstens ist Spatterjay trotz aller Vorbereitung eine verdammt gefährliche Welt und zweitens gibt es einige Gruppen, die ihre eigenen Interessen verfolgen. Die Charakterisierung ist sehr gut gelungen und die Handlung entpuppt mehr Tiefe, als man ihr auf den ersten Blick zugetraut hätte.
Am besten hat mir der Handlungsstrang um den Prador gefallen. Da er auf sich alleine gestellt ist fehlt zwar das Gegenspiel zu anderen Pradors, aber auch so bekommt man faszinierende Einblicke in die Psyche dieser Alien Kultur. Die Brutalität und Zielstrebigkeit ist unheimlich, trotzdem drückt man ihm die Daumen das sein Unternehmen gelingt.
Der dritte Handlungsstrang konzentriert sich auf ein wahrhaftes Ozeanmonster, dessen Intelligenz sich langsam entwickelt und es zu außergewöhnlichen Taten befähigt. Mich hat dieser zoologische Ausflug recht schnell gelangweilt, weil bereits in den Einleitungen zu jedem Kapitel auf die Tierwelt eingegangen wird und man irgendwann gesättigt ist, so originell das ganze auch ist.
Wenn man sieht, was für Zutaten Neal Asher zusammengemixt hat, kann eigentlich nur etwas gutes herauskommen, oder? Die Antwort ist leider nein. Wie schon beim Vorgänger folgt dem schleppenden Beginn zwar ein überragender Mittelteil, wo sich die Handlung entwickelt und die Personen überaus bemerkenswert und lebendig agieren. Der Schluss fällt dagegen wieder ab und las sich sehr zäh. Das Zusammenführen und Auflösen der Plots ist recht platt und un-originell, ich hätte mir etwas intelligenteres gewünscht. Schade ist auch, dass der Prador am Ende nicht mehr die Rolle spielt, die er zu Beginn hatte.
Fazit: Der ungewöhnliche Schauplatz mit der genau ausgearbeiteten Fauna auf Grundlage des Spatterjay Virus heben das Buch aus der Masse heraus. Die Handlung hätte Potential für wesentlich mehr gehabt, Neal Asher schafft es aber nicht, Tempo und Spannung hochzuhalten und die drei Handlungsstränge vernünftig zu vereinen. Trotz aller Kritik habe ich mir bereits sein neuestes Buch Hilldiggers bestellt. Nichts geht über eine gesunde Hassliebe.
August 14, 2016
Neal Asher's "The Voyage of Sable Keech" (2006) is the 12th novel in his "Polity Universe" series and the 2nd in his "Spatterjay" sub-series. Even though the book reads very much like the other books in the "Polity" series, I do have a couple of issues that are probably related to "book time" vs "author time." In "Dark Intelligence," Asher brings up a "relationship" between Hooders and Jain technology that should have affected some behavior in this book. "Dark Intelligence," though situated 3 books before this one in "book time" was written 9 years after it in "author time." Similarly, all the stuff that happened on the planet Masada in the previous several books should have flat-out precluded the relevant actions in this book. Again, those books come earlier in the timeline, but we're written well after this book. That's not a big problem, but it is the first time these kinds of chronological discrepancies have shown up in the series (a pretty amazing feat, considering how these books were written). More irritating, though, is the intelligence Asher gives to a whelk that's fairly central in this story. That just doesn't follow along with what he described in the previous "Spatterjay" book. Still, I'm happy with the book and am rating it at a Very Good 4 stars out of 5. But, if I could, I'd have dropped it down half a star to 3-1/2 stars.
November 24, 2015
While not nearly as good as The Skinner, still a good book, and a deeper look into the world of Spatterjay. Most rewarding are the unorthodox characters of an abandoned Prador, and probably the best character in the book a giant whelk (sea monster). The passages about the whelk are always interesting following its inner battles between instinctual impulses vs rapid consciousness brought on by the need to learn and seek revenge. One particular sequence would have Japanese tentacle fans squealing with glee.
Sadly this book follows an inconsistent arc, if it can even be called an arc. Bloc, one of the living dead who is apparently an antagonist takes up way too much of the book. Where Keech was a constant source of interest in The Skinner, Bloc is not only unlikable, but a flat dullard. The book ends... then goes on for another 100 pages in some attempt to wrap everything up, and the lack of structure is like this sentence - inconclusive, not properly thought out.
And yet, I still thought the journey was worth taking to continue following these characters, their adventures, and future possibilities. Which leads me into the next book, and I sincerely hope is an improvement.
Sadly this book follows an inconsistent arc, if it can even be called an arc. Bloc, one of the living dead who is apparently an antagonist takes up way too much of the book. Where Keech was a constant source of interest in The Skinner, Bloc is not only unlikable, but a flat dullard. The book ends... then goes on for another 100 pages in some attempt to wrap everything up, and the lack of structure is like this sentence - inconclusive, not properly thought out.
And yet, I still thought the journey was worth taking to continue following these characters, their adventures, and future possibilities. Which leads me into the next book, and I sincerely hope is an improvement.
February 3, 2009
Disclaimer: I haven't finished the book.
This book is the sequel to The Skinner, which I really enjoyed. And it has all the same cool stuff as the first book -- sailing ships, a virus that renders people practically immortal, a planet full of lethal wildlife, reanimated dead people, and so forth. The problem is, I got more than a third of the way through this rather thick paperback and there doesn't seem to be anything new yet. It's the same world and mostly the same characters with a few new faces, and a designated bad guy who so far seems less than compelling. I put it down and don't know if I'll go back to it. The biggest disappointment for me is that the eponymous Sable Keech, who was my favorite character in the first book, doesn't even make an appearance.
This book is the sequel to The Skinner, which I really enjoyed. And it has all the same cool stuff as the first book -- sailing ships, a virus that renders people practically immortal, a planet full of lethal wildlife, reanimated dead people, and so forth. The problem is, I got more than a third of the way through this rather thick paperback and there doesn't seem to be anything new yet. It's the same world and mostly the same characters with a few new faces, and a designated bad guy who so far seems less than compelling. I put it down and don't know if I'll go back to it. The biggest disappointment for me is that the eponymous Sable Keech, who was my favorite character in the first book, doesn't even make an appearance.
September 17, 2023
Neal Asher loves his mentally unstable characters and pew pew weapons. I was so bothered by the fact that the ecology snippets at the start of each chapter read like they should link but they didn't! Fun themes in this one though. I just found it less enjoyable because the world building was already established and the best characters had less central roles. Also, poor whelk.
August 30, 2013
One more great adventure taking place on the Spatterjay planet.
Read
December 25, 2022Following on from the events in The Skinner (see my review) we are back again on Splatterjay. Now the last book left a few loose ends and even though Splatterjay has moved on in the last ten years those ends are immediately obvious. But we are here to follow the construction and the inaugural voyage of the Sable Keech, which, unsurprisingly, brings together the cast of The Skinner as well as a few interesting additions.
Now Asher is kind and clever writer as you don’t need to have read The Skinner in order to understand or enjoy this, but I think you should, so I’m not going to spoil it for you by revealing too much of the background to The Voyage of the Sable Keech. Suffice to say Splatterjay is a very dangerous place to be in that book and it focuses on unfinished business.
This time we focus on Taylor Bloc, a reification, who sets sail on a voyage of resurrection for himself and his fellow Kladite followers. As this is happening Janer is working for a hornet hive mind to stop another hive mind agent from obtaining deadly sprine. And to top it off Erlin upsets a whelkus titanicus causing it to rise from the deep. And that’s not all as the prador, Vrell, turns up in the Prologue and sticks around becoming a target for a much bigger threat.
The wonder in Asher’s writing is how he lays down several threads, like the ones above (though there are more revealing ones), and starts twisting them all together. Even the seemingly superfluous but educationally insightful chapter openings on Splatterjay’s flora and fauna are important pieces in the puzzle.
And Splatterjay and the changes in biology caused by its virus to its evolution is very much an overriding personality in this connected series. On first sight it is a backwards place that doesn’t allow the technology of the Polity to have become widespread, which is why the Sable Keech has to rely on sails, both fabric and living, rather than turbines and grav-motors. But by having world that doesn’t have all the Polity’s technology it makes for a much more exciting and primal tale.
This is every much a tale of survival in a brutal and unforgiving environment. Most of the inhabitants are infected with the Splatterjay virus which bestows long-life and resilience on its host but it will also make dramatic mutations on them if they are injured or near death like morphing a tongue into that of a leaches or replacing a lost head with a leaches mouth.
The theme of life, death and survival are explored from several angles in individual stories that come together on the Sable Keech’s voyage. The hive mind agent that Janar is chasing mission is seemingly to obtain sprine, the only thing that can kill Hoopers, the name of Splatterjay’s humanoid inhabitants, outright. Sprine is also an important part of the world’s burgeoning economy. Erlin continues her struggle with having a long, and maybe immortal life. And the prador, Vrell’s, immediate survival is under-threat from a much bigger enemy.
You can tell that biology, its implications and evolutions, are a passion of Asher’s (and if they aren’t he does a great job of faking it) and what makes this stand out from a run-of-the-mill SF novel to one of mastery is that his characters are dense and weighty, his environment feels like a scientific possibilities and his storytelling skills keeps everything tight, flowing and gripping.
I’m curious about where he’s going to take the next one, Orbus as I’ve got no idea what he has planned (and no I don’t want to read the blurb to find out ;))
Now, so far, I’ve not mentioned the audio side, which isn’t in anyway any comment on William Gaminara’s reading. In fact it should be seen as a ringing endorsement as he really brought everything to life. He gives all the characters their own voice and inflection. With my favourite the personalities of Sniper when played off against the Warden. Gaminara has in some ways spoiled this series as I’m fixated on listening to him read Orbus to me rather than read it myself. He has definitely added another dimension to Asher’s work and one I greatly enjoy.
The Voyage of Sable Keech is not all plain sailing by any means. You don’t need sickbags, unless you’ve got a weak stomach, just hold on tight and enjoy the ride.
Now Asher is kind and clever writer as you don’t need to have read The Skinner in order to understand or enjoy this, but I think you should, so I’m not going to spoil it for you by revealing too much of the background to The Voyage of the Sable Keech. Suffice to say Splatterjay is a very dangerous place to be in that book and it focuses on unfinished business.
This time we focus on Taylor Bloc, a reification, who sets sail on a voyage of resurrection for himself and his fellow Kladite followers. As this is happening Janer is working for a hornet hive mind to stop another hive mind agent from obtaining deadly sprine. And to top it off Erlin upsets a whelkus titanicus causing it to rise from the deep. And that’s not all as the prador, Vrell, turns up in the Prologue and sticks around becoming a target for a much bigger threat.
The wonder in Asher’s writing is how he lays down several threads, like the ones above (though there are more revealing ones), and starts twisting them all together. Even the seemingly superfluous but educationally insightful chapter openings on Splatterjay’s flora and fauna are important pieces in the puzzle.
And Splatterjay and the changes in biology caused by its virus to its evolution is very much an overriding personality in this connected series. On first sight it is a backwards place that doesn’t allow the technology of the Polity to have become widespread, which is why the Sable Keech has to rely on sails, both fabric and living, rather than turbines and grav-motors. But by having world that doesn’t have all the Polity’s technology it makes for a much more exciting and primal tale.
This is every much a tale of survival in a brutal and unforgiving environment. Most of the inhabitants are infected with the Splatterjay virus which bestows long-life and resilience on its host but it will also make dramatic mutations on them if they are injured or near death like morphing a tongue into that of a leaches or replacing a lost head with a leaches mouth.
The theme of life, death and survival are explored from several angles in individual stories that come together on the Sable Keech’s voyage. The hive mind agent that Janar is chasing mission is seemingly to obtain sprine, the only thing that can kill Hoopers, the name of Splatterjay’s humanoid inhabitants, outright. Sprine is also an important part of the world’s burgeoning economy. Erlin continues her struggle with having a long, and maybe immortal life. And the prador, Vrell’s, immediate survival is under-threat from a much bigger enemy.
You can tell that biology, its implications and evolutions, are a passion of Asher’s (and if they aren’t he does a great job of faking it) and what makes this stand out from a run-of-the-mill SF novel to one of mastery is that his characters are dense and weighty, his environment feels like a scientific possibilities and his storytelling skills keeps everything tight, flowing and gripping.
I’m curious about where he’s going to take the next one, Orbus as I’ve got no idea what he has planned (and no I don’t want to read the blurb to find out ;))
Now, so far, I’ve not mentioned the audio side, which isn’t in anyway any comment on William Gaminara’s reading. In fact it should be seen as a ringing endorsement as he really brought everything to life. He gives all the characters their own voice and inflection. With my favourite the personalities of Sniper when played off against the Warden. Gaminara has in some ways spoiled this series as I’m fixated on listening to him read Orbus to me rather than read it myself. He has definitely added another dimension to Asher’s work and one I greatly enjoy.
The Voyage of Sable Keech is not all plain sailing by any means. You don’t need sickbags, unless you’ve got a weak stomach, just hold on tight and enjoy the ride.
May 11, 2024
8.5/10 stars
My full review on my blog.
Returning to Spatterjay is always an exciting venture; in many cases, lethally so. In the sequel to the explosive, addictively gory The Skinner, Asher revisits the old hunting grounds and the old acquaintances and spins yet another fabulous tale, leading us all toward quite surprising vistas and resolutions.
The Voyage of the Sable Keech is vintage Asher at his most ebulliently, absurdly grotesque. A ship of the dead on her maiden voyage sailing toward a holy destination, named after the one reification that managed to claw back to life and attempting to retrace Keech’s steps in what amounts to a doomed pilgrimage; I was waiting to read the ship was made of the dead people’s fingernails, but thankfully was spared – though the backstory of the wood of which the ship was made is a treat anyway ;). A riff on the Moby Dick themes, this time with a gigantic mollusk determinedly hunting people, first for vengeance, and then for sport, until more pressing matters take precedence. An internal conflict of a dying hive mind playing out between two sides’ personifications in the shape of near-indestructible and very, very lethal golems. A ship of masochists, run by a sadist, locked in a never-ending circle of violence, since neither the crew nor the captain can die – until they are all kidnapped and imprisoned by a creature even stronger than them. A hooder, smuggled on-world by a scheming undead gangster as a means of controlling his unruly clients and investors alike… You get the gist, I wager, so enough of the juicy details, let’s take a broader look at Asher’s goals.
Because this time around Asher gleefully changes tack. Where the first book in the Spatterjay series was about righting ancient wrongs, this second installment gets the maritime setting and sails to the world’s end. Giant molluscs, leeches, riveting information about the life cycles of the weirdest of Spatterjay creatures, under- and over- sea and air battles… what else would you need? He does go overboard at times, but intentionally and with full control: one aspect of the story serves as an illustration to another one; one evolutionary path illuminates the changes happening to some other creature half a world away.
[...]
The Voyage of the Sable Keech is explosive fun, full of literary references, biological flights of fancy which nevertheless remain within the limits of plausibility, non-stop gory action, and gleeful descriptions of whatever Asher’s feverish and boundless imagination could have come up with. It’s a middle book which takes a substantial risk of changing the established course, and while it makes it for a ride a tad more bumpy than usual, it is a real pleasure witnessing where Asher takes his yarn and what new ideas he’s able to bring to the table while joyfully demolishing another world.
My full review on my blog.
Returning to Spatterjay is always an exciting venture; in many cases, lethally so. In the sequel to the explosive, addictively gory The Skinner, Asher revisits the old hunting grounds and the old acquaintances and spins yet another fabulous tale, leading us all toward quite surprising vistas and resolutions.
The Voyage of the Sable Keech is vintage Asher at his most ebulliently, absurdly grotesque. A ship of the dead on her maiden voyage sailing toward a holy destination, named after the one reification that managed to claw back to life and attempting to retrace Keech’s steps in what amounts to a doomed pilgrimage; I was waiting to read the ship was made of the dead people’s fingernails, but thankfully was spared – though the backstory of the wood of which the ship was made is a treat anyway ;). A riff on the Moby Dick themes, this time with a gigantic mollusk determinedly hunting people, first for vengeance, and then for sport, until more pressing matters take precedence. An internal conflict of a dying hive mind playing out between two sides’ personifications in the shape of near-indestructible and very, very lethal golems. A ship of masochists, run by a sadist, locked in a never-ending circle of violence, since neither the crew nor the captain can die – until they are all kidnapped and imprisoned by a creature even stronger than them. A hooder, smuggled on-world by a scheming undead gangster as a means of controlling his unruly clients and investors alike… You get the gist, I wager, so enough of the juicy details, let’s take a broader look at Asher’s goals.
Because this time around Asher gleefully changes tack. Where the first book in the Spatterjay series was about righting ancient wrongs, this second installment gets the maritime setting and sails to the world’s end. Giant molluscs, leeches, riveting information about the life cycles of the weirdest of Spatterjay creatures, under- and over- sea and air battles… what else would you need? He does go overboard at times, but intentionally and with full control: one aspect of the story serves as an illustration to another one; one evolutionary path illuminates the changes happening to some other creature half a world away.
[...]
The Voyage of the Sable Keech is explosive fun, full of literary references, biological flights of fancy which nevertheless remain within the limits of plausibility, non-stop gory action, and gleeful descriptions of whatever Asher’s feverish and boundless imagination could have come up with. It’s a middle book which takes a substantial risk of changing the established course, and while it makes it for a ride a tad more bumpy than usual, it is a real pleasure witnessing where Asher takes his yarn and what new ideas he’s able to bring to the table while joyfully demolishing another world.
June 28, 2020
Set on the planet of Splatterjay which is full of vicious fauna, Taylor Bloc builds a vast sailing vessel to Little Flint, an island which might help the reifications, in fact the walking dead, to be resurrected to full humanity. A sailing ship is required as as the dominant species, the intelligent Sails, do not permit powered craft. In fact, these vast beings are happy, for a consideration and written contract to provide the propulsion using their vast wings. Splatterjay has been settled by humans in the long past who have attained virtual immortality through ingesting the Splatterjay virus. The planet is a protectorate of the Polity, Asher's version of Iain M. Banks culture. It too is overseen by AIs, in this case as a protectorate by an AI warden. Things are complicated by a Prador space vessel which lies, in a state of disrepair at the bottom of the ocean. The Pradors have been in a long war against humanity, but at the time of this book there is an uneasy peace. However, the Pradors, who are crustacean like creatures, are not really nice to know, either towards humans or towards their own kind. The book is so full of detail that it is difficult to take in completely at one reading. The author commences each chapter with a description of one of the nasty forms of life found on the planet. Among many, these include giant whelks which can reach 20 metres in height, we are told. One such features throughout the narrative as she attempts to obtain vengeance for the destruction of one of her 100s of offspring who had been dissected by one of the books characters. The book is apparently the 2nd in a series about Splatterjay, but this is not apparent from the cover. It's only when I searched for it on Goodreads that I found this out. However, i don't think it's necessary to have read no.1 in the series before this, although I shall search it out.
September 26, 2018
Perhaps almost inevitably this did not quite live up to my expectations the first time of reading, and its still not as enthralling as the Skinner (#1 in the series) for me on my return to it, but nonetheless pretty good. We return to the world of Spatterjay alongside Janer and the hive mind; Erlin manages to enrage a giant whelk that pursues her and Ambel's ship around the seas; and reifications are converging in their hundreds, under the leadership of arch-villain Taylor Bloc and aboard the humungous ship The Sable Keech on pilgrimage to the Little Flint where they hope to undergo the same resurrection that Keech attained in The Skinner. We also have Prador activity on the seafloor and in orbit, and Sniper returns to amuse and destroy. For me Asher manages to keep the same sense of action, tech and fascinating biology, but its just a little too similar to The Skinner.
All the plotlines are well-handled, and the introduction of the hooder is pleasing for those who enjoyed the biology of Masada (what about a gabbleduck?!), but there probably isn't much more that can be written for this world as it stands. Which is a big shame because it is a fantastic creation. 4.5 stars if I could.
All the plotlines are well-handled, and the introduction of the hooder is pleasing for those who enjoyed the biology of Masada (what about a gabbleduck?!), but there probably isn't much more that can be written for this world as it stands. Which is a big shame because it is a fantastic creation. 4.5 stars if I could.
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