Harmonies of the 'Net

'NetWalkers #3

by Jane S. Fancher

Disaster in the 'Net

The star-spanning 'Net is crashing--collapsing under its own unwieldy weight, its vital database losing bits and connections at an alarming rate. The politicians and technocrats that depend on it are desperate.

Desperate enough to come looking for the boy they dispatched on a mission larger than they knew, and for the prankster who exploits are notorious among programmers on the 'Net.

Stephen Ridenour--tormented boy genius and survivor of HuteNamid's secrets--has found a refuge from the civilization whose bigotry almost destroyed him.

Wesley Smith--genius, seducer, joker, and certifiable loose cannon--has captured the ultimate prey and isn't about to set it loose. And no one realizes what can be done is already a dead issue . . .

Genres: Science Fiction

378 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published November 1, 1992

About the author

On October 24, 1988 in Oklahoma City, OK, at a suggestion from SF author C.J. Cherryh, I began writing. I kept writing because two hours after starting, I had to find out what happened. A little over a year later, I was the startled owner of a three book contract based on the rough draft of my first novel.

I've been writing ever since.

What appeals to me about writing in general is the constant challenge. I'm a generalist and writing is the one thing that will happily use every bit of information and experience you have to put into it. It's constant problem solving, method acting and soul-searching all rolled up into one 24/7 job.

What I love about writing SF/F is...everything. I love the optimism of believing there is a future for humanity. I love the challenge of imagining what that future might be. But most of all, I love the thrill of exploring that future with the interesting and courageous people I find living in it.

But SF/F has another, less obvious, appeal: the ability to write with a social conscience without preaching. It lets writers create worlds in which they can shed light on aspects of current society in a less charged environment. Its a way to help raise awareness without pointing fingers at anyone.

Yes, I have same gender relationships. Yes, I have gender-identification-challenged characters. Yes, sex and obsessive attraction are definitely issues in my books, as are power and its use and abuse. But the genre's one-step-removed perspective also lets me explore the human ramifications of a too-effective educational system (be careful what you wish for), or the curious problems of being siblings and growing up with the kind of misconceptions only close association can create, or what it means to a culture to lose an entire generation's knowledge.

Can you do this in contemporary fiction? Absolutely. But SF/F lets you add extreme ramifications...like what if those sibling misconceptions were suddenly stripped away with the ability to know exactly what those sibs were thinking? What if the educational system were so effective, the subsequent misinformation threatened the very fabric of the universe itself?

In my contemporary vampire fantasy...I hesitate to call it urban fantasy, because in all honesty, it hasn't the right tropes...I'm enjoying exploring the perspective of virtual immortality and what might make life worth living after three thousand years.

And with SF/F you can do all this while have a rip-roaring adventure! What more can a writer ask for?

My formal educational background is in Math, Physics, Astrophysics and Anthropology. I've raised and trained horses, flown planes, and at 51, took up figure skating. I love building things, from costumes to computers, model ships to koi ponds. I play a little guitar, some piano and like to sing.

I actually got started in the publishing world doing art. I worked on WaRP Graphics' Elfquest, helping with inking on the last few volumes of the original black and white, also helping with the colors in the original color volumes. After that, I moved on to my own project, an adaptation of C.J. Cherryh's first novel, Gate of Ivrel.

These days, after many years away from art, I find myself returning to it to do covers for my newest venture, Closed Circle Publications. A couple of years ago, C.J., Lynn Abbey and I decided to join the ebook movement and bring out both our orphaned backlist and some new works that weren't quite what NY was looking for but which our loyal readers were demanding.

I absolutely love hearing from my readers. My blog should echo here, but feel free to join us at:
http://www.janefancher.com/TheCaptain...

Reviews

[Speedtribes · Rating 1 out of 5]

I suppose it would make a difference to read the previous two installments-- or as I hear it, two books and prologue in the rewritten version that will be coming out-- however, I'm not entirely certain I care enough to do so.

The cover compares her writing to CJ Cherryh. I don't see it, no matter how many years they've worked together.

Perhaps this sort of story was ingenious when it first came out, however, anyone that's dipped in fandom for long enough will recognize the old hurt-comfort trope of sexually abused-yet-extremely-talented pretty boys preyed on by evil evil people and saved by the dashing old man (And dashing older man's bits) with a bow to the occasional female friend.

I'm not entirely certain I even understood what this 'Net was. I don't think it was ever clearly explained-- at least not up to where I read to-- and I was hampered by my own recognition of the term as a dated reference to the internet. That 80-early 90s feel didn't help in the least, and kept me from accepting that the story might take place in the far far future.

[Joe Young · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wesley Smith and his protege, Stephen Ridenour are both gifted programmers. Stephen is also a remarkable beautiful boy and had been used by the administrators at the Vandereaux, the student academy. Stephen was an orphan and had no political levers to advance his position in the hierarchy, only his remarkable programming ability, personal beauty and sensitivity to the net. The story traces the challenges faced by a politically weak student among upper classmates who take advantage of the weak and use them unmercilessly. Wesley vacillates between being a sympathetic supporter of Stephen and a suspicious critic thinking Stephen uses his abilities to manipulate his peers. Stephen goes on an Indian like spirit quest with a native on the planet and makes contact with an entity in the mountain that is intent on straightening out the connections on the net to prevent failure and subsequent ruin throughout the system. Deep story with entertaining value.

[Haldoor42 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this series a lot, even though some of the technical stuff seemed quite esoteric and I found it hard to follow. The author did tend to be a little vague on the sexual front, and tended to allude to some injuries so circuitously that I found it hard to fully understand exactly what had been done, although it could be said she was avoiding graphic descriptions. Personally, I would have liked a little more explanation, although overall I understood enough to follow the story.

[Teri Dluznieski · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved the story. I especially love when sci-fi/ fantasy delve into the ineffable, the spiritual and cosmic realms for which there are no ultimate, quantifiable answers. I suspect this is a series I will hope the author revisits at some point, to update the timelines of these people and their paths.