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Sea Change
Renata Black is entertained by the traffic snarl caused by a rogue self-driving house--until she spots the Org's Tiffany Teal paint marking the house's windowsill.
In 2022, GMOs were banned after a biopharmed drug caused the Catastrophe: worldwide economic collapse, agricultural standstill, and personal tragedy for a lawyer and her son. Ten years later, Renata, a.k.a. Caroline Denton, is an operative of the Org, an underground group that could save the world from itself. Their illegal research is performed and protected by splinter cells, which are hunted by the feds.
Now a mole is in the Org. Who would put the entire Org in jeopardy? Renata is the only one who can find out--and she will need to go to her clients in the Quinault Nation for answers.
Nancy Kress (Beggars in Spain, Yesterday's Kin) once again delivers a smart, mesmerizing bio-thriller, with a hard, nuanced look at the perils and promise of technology.
In 2022, GMOs were banned after a biopharmed drug caused the Catastrophe: worldwide economic collapse, agricultural standstill, and personal tragedy for a lawyer and her son. Ten years later, Renata, a.k.a. Caroline Denton, is an operative of the Org, an underground group that could save the world from itself. Their illegal research is performed and protected by splinter cells, which are hunted by the feds.
Now a mole is in the Org. Who would put the entire Org in jeopardy? Renata is the only one who can find out--and she will need to go to her clients in the Quinault Nation for answers.
Nancy Kress (Beggars in Spain, Yesterday's Kin) once again delivers a smart, mesmerizing bio-thriller, with a hard, nuanced look at the perils and promise of technology.
192 pages, Paperback
First published May 22, 2020
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1633 people want to read
About the author
Nancy Kress
453 books903 followersNancy Kress is an American science fiction writer. She began writing in 1976 but has achieved her greatest notice since the publication of her Hugo and Nebula-winning 1991 novella
Beggars in Spain
which was later expanded into a novel with the same title. In addition to her novels, Kress has written numerous short stories and is a regular columnist for Writer's Digest. She is a regular at Clarion writing workshops and at The Writers Center in Bethesda, Maryland. During the Winter of 2008/09, Nancy Kress is the Picador Guest Professor for Literature at the University of Leipzig's Institute for American Studies in Leipzig, Germany.
Excerpted from Wikipedia.
Excerpted from Wikipedia.
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February 26, 2020
Surprisingly, for all my years in sci-fi, I've never read Nancy Kress. I think it has often been a subject/person (me) mismatch, so when Tachyon Publications had a review copy up of Sea Change, a novella that focused on current issues in the environment, I jumped at the chance to give her a try. Expecting sci-fi, this has a strong speculative fiction feel looking at genetically modified foods.
The blurb promises "a smart, mesmerizing bio-thriller, with a hard, nuanced look at the perils and promise of technology," a advertisement it only partially delivers. Lengthy sections of text read like a piece for Sierra Club's magazine, significantly derailing any tension that the spy pretension develops. I wouldn't argue with the 'nuanced,' description, although I'd say it's a pretty one-sided presentation of the advantages. If I remember correctly, the GMOs are in reference to plans, for instance, not animals that might escape enclosures and bread with wild populations (salmon are a hot point issue on this). Lacking such finesse, I'm not sure I would call it particularly 'nuanced,' as much as a 'thought-experiment on what happens with a reactive public and equally reactive politicians.'
Regardless, what I hoped to read was a bio-thriller. Did it deliver? Sort of. The main character, Caroline Denton, is a middle-aged divorced woman who has become an operative in the Org. The Org is an underground group researching and applying genetic modifications and operates along the lines of splinter-cells. Caroline has been a life-long activist, but the Org has been her most serious work since a tragedy. The story moves back and forth between Caroline's earlier life and her current work in the Org as her cell is under attack. I found ignoring most of her internal GMO diatribe kept up the 'thriller' pace.
Prose was clean and focused, which I enjoyed. Caroline, also known in the Org as Renata, and her ex-husband definitely achieved the feeling of real, complicated people to me. In fact, at the end, I had to wonder if the true focus was the GMOs, or if it was more of a character study of Caroline. A quick read with a hopeful ending, it didn't quite scratch my enviro-disaster itch, but it was a solid character reflection.
Oh, and by the way, the moving house makes for a fabulous beginning, but it's a McGuffin. A taxi would have served just as well.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Tachyon Publications for an advance reader copy. All opinions are, as always, my own, inasmuch as the assorted collection of partially remembered data and experiences processed through organic matter can be.
The blurb promises "a smart, mesmerizing bio-thriller, with a hard, nuanced look at the perils and promise of technology," a advertisement it only partially delivers. Lengthy sections of text read like a piece for Sierra Club's magazine, significantly derailing any tension that the spy pretension develops. I wouldn't argue with the 'nuanced,' description, although I'd say it's a pretty one-sided presentation of the advantages. If I remember correctly, the GMOs are in reference to plans, for instance, not animals that might escape enclosures and bread with wild populations (salmon are a hot point issue on this). Lacking such finesse, I'm not sure I would call it particularly 'nuanced,' as much as a 'thought-experiment on what happens with a reactive public and equally reactive politicians.'
Regardless, what I hoped to read was a bio-thriller. Did it deliver? Sort of. The main character, Caroline Denton, is a middle-aged divorced woman who has become an operative in the Org. The Org is an underground group researching and applying genetic modifications and operates along the lines of splinter-cells. Caroline has been a life-long activist, but the Org has been her most serious work since a tragedy. The story moves back and forth between Caroline's earlier life and her current work in the Org as her cell is under attack. I found ignoring most of her internal GMO diatribe kept up the 'thriller' pace.
Prose was clean and focused, which I enjoyed. Caroline, also known in the Org as Renata, and her ex-husband definitely achieved the feeling of real, complicated people to me. In fact, at the end, I had to wonder if the true focus was the GMOs, or if it was more of a character study of Caroline. A quick read with a hopeful ending, it didn't quite scratch my enviro-disaster itch, but it was a solid character reflection.
Oh, and by the way, the moving house makes for a fabulous beginning, but it's a McGuffin. A taxi would have served just as well.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Tachyon Publications for an advance reader copy. All opinions are, as always, my own, inasmuch as the assorted collection of partially remembered data and experiences processed through organic matter can be.
June 11, 2020
'It isn’t the past that creates the future. It’s how you interpret the past.'
I think that climate fiction is one of the most difficult SF sub-genres for any writer to tackle convincingly. At the moment we seem to be in a ‘frog being slowly boiled alive’ scenario. Hence CliFi invariably has to be apocalyptic by nature to grab the jaded reader’s attention. Of course, then it runs the risk of being disconnected from the prevailing reality, so that any message about the need for urgency and individual agency is often lost in the gee-whizz fallout.
CliFi also has to focus mainly on characters to drive the narrative and add a human dimension to the story – and we all know that ideas and characterisation often do not go well together in SF. A recent excellent example of a writer who manages to pull off this difficult balance with aplomb is Paul McAuley in Austral.
Apart from being a CliFi tale that really works – Nancy Kress hones in on the particularly contentious issue of GMO foods – Sea Change is also a master-class in world-building that is both urgent and relevant. It is set in the Pacific Northwest only a decade or so from now, which we all know is a mere eye-blink in SF terms, which prefers to work on a much larger canvas.
In addition to the increasing ravages of climate change, we also gradually learn about a devastating event known as the Catastrophe. In response to this event, the US government establishes the Department of Agricultural Security to crack down on fringe organisations promoting GMO foods. Here the main culprit is simply known as the Org, which is predicated on the idea that reducing food pressure against the backdrop of an increasingly unstable climate can only be achieved by means of gene-modification science.
Our main viewpoint character is Renata Black, a courier that flits like a ghost between the different research cells of the Org. A particularly fascinating aspect of the near-future world that Kress depicts here is that the Internet of Things has inadvertently resulted in a high-level surveillance state (one of the concerns about the tracking apps being developed now for Covid-19 contact tracing, for example, is that these can be used for Orwellian citizen monitoring in the kind of near future that Kress is projecting.)
So the most discrete and private way to communicate clandestinely in this hi-tech world is literally the stuff of spy novels: Dead drops, forged passports, edible messages, etc. This lends a kind of noir sheen to Kress’s world that is very appealing – and also alarmingly recognisable, given the way that the world is going.
This is very smart and thoughtful SF, riffing off of very real current problems, and the unintended consequences of the technology thrown at these problems. (If you’re wondering about the dichotomy of a tech-obsessed genre like SF casting a jaundiced eye on technology, welcome to SF.2, the genre of the future!)
In a powerful and perceptive review at locusmag.com, Russell Letson comments: “The science-fictional side is not that far-out, either: a hard-edged 21st-century cautionary tale of unintended consequences and the fragile, interlocking complexities of climate, biosphere, agricultural systems, and civilization.”
Yes, indeed. My only complaint – and it might seem like a rather strange one given the time pressure we all generally function under in today’s world – is that the book could have been much, much longer. We get such a tantalising glimpse at Kress’s near-future noir-tech world – for example, the breath-taking opening scene of a ‘smart’ house gone rogue and wandering unchecked down a road full of traffic – is that we just want to spend more time there! Even if it ratchets up the temperature of the water and brings us frogs that much closer to the boiling point.
I think that climate fiction is one of the most difficult SF sub-genres for any writer to tackle convincingly. At the moment we seem to be in a ‘frog being slowly boiled alive’ scenario. Hence CliFi invariably has to be apocalyptic by nature to grab the jaded reader’s attention. Of course, then it runs the risk of being disconnected from the prevailing reality, so that any message about the need for urgency and individual agency is often lost in the gee-whizz fallout.
CliFi also has to focus mainly on characters to drive the narrative and add a human dimension to the story – and we all know that ideas and characterisation often do not go well together in SF. A recent excellent example of a writer who manages to pull off this difficult balance with aplomb is Paul McAuley in Austral.
Apart from being a CliFi tale that really works – Nancy Kress hones in on the particularly contentious issue of GMO foods – Sea Change is also a master-class in world-building that is both urgent and relevant. It is set in the Pacific Northwest only a decade or so from now, which we all know is a mere eye-blink in SF terms, which prefers to work on a much larger canvas.
In addition to the increasing ravages of climate change, we also gradually learn about a devastating event known as the Catastrophe. In response to this event, the US government establishes the Department of Agricultural Security to crack down on fringe organisations promoting GMO foods. Here the main culprit is simply known as the Org, which is predicated on the idea that reducing food pressure against the backdrop of an increasingly unstable climate can only be achieved by means of gene-modification science.
Our main viewpoint character is Renata Black, a courier that flits like a ghost between the different research cells of the Org. A particularly fascinating aspect of the near-future world that Kress depicts here is that the Internet of Things has inadvertently resulted in a high-level surveillance state (one of the concerns about the tracking apps being developed now for Covid-19 contact tracing, for example, is that these can be used for Orwellian citizen monitoring in the kind of near future that Kress is projecting.)
So the most discrete and private way to communicate clandestinely in this hi-tech world is literally the stuff of spy novels: Dead drops, forged passports, edible messages, etc. This lends a kind of noir sheen to Kress’s world that is very appealing – and also alarmingly recognisable, given the way that the world is going.
This is very smart and thoughtful SF, riffing off of very real current problems, and the unintended consequences of the technology thrown at these problems. (If you’re wondering about the dichotomy of a tech-obsessed genre like SF casting a jaundiced eye on technology, welcome to SF.2, the genre of the future!)
In a powerful and perceptive review at locusmag.com, Russell Letson comments: “The science-fictional side is not that far-out, either: a hard-edged 21st-century cautionary tale of unintended consequences and the fragile, interlocking complexities of climate, biosphere, agricultural systems, and civilization.”
Yes, indeed. My only complaint – and it might seem like a rather strange one given the time pressure we all generally function under in today’s world – is that the book could have been much, much longer. We get such a tantalising glimpse at Kress’s near-future noir-tech world – for example, the breath-taking opening scene of a ‘smart’ house gone rogue and wandering unchecked down a road full of traffic – is that we just want to spend more time there! Even if it ratchets up the temperature of the water and brings us frogs that much closer to the boiling point.
August 2, 2020
This is a fairly engaging tale of an underground group of scientists and helpers who secretly work to develop genetic engineering solutions to enhance global food crops to address starvation in the developing world. It is 2032, and already global warming has led to widespread desertification, much human and economic devastation from rising seas, and large ocean blooms of toxin producing algae. In the past, agribusiness had focused GMO work more on profit-making than improving the food supply, and lack of care in production of a medicine from a GMO crop led to an unplanned gene transfer with toxic effects that caused many deaths around the world. The extreme reactions of opponents to GMO put the companies out of business and further escalations that lead to food shortages and economic recession.
The novelty of this tale is in making GMO work a subversive, heroic activity. Their goals include producing and disseminating products like salt-resistant carrots, other foods resistant to drought and insect or fungal diseases, and interventions for toxic algae blooms. Another goal is to improve public perception of GMO through an information and social media campaign, including even disinformation to counter the rampant negative propaganda. We follow the personal life of Renata, whose day job is working as a lawyer for Native Americans and causes in Washington State while carrying out covert illegal work under an alias for the “Org.” For the latter, we experience her travel as a courier and communications channel among secret labs and greenhouses. Despite use of a cell structure that limits knowledge of group members and activities, federal police raids and prosecutions of Org members as ecoterrorists lead to the conclusion that they must have a mole in their midst.
Overall, the narrative speaks to the quiet forms of courage and effective action an average woman like Renata can rise to in the face of the impending global threats from climate change. Her struggles in day to day motivation and balancing her work with challenges in her family life demonstrate an admirable form of resilience and creative adaptation. Maybe I am jaded from reading too many thrillers or sci fi adventures, but my emotional engagement in the story and characters was limited. I have a dim memory of liking but not loving her "Beggar's Ride" in the 90s. I suppose you could put her work in the category with Emily St. John Mandel and Becky Chambers as speculative fiction in which the personal lives and interactions are focused on a lot more than dramatic plotting.
This book was provided for review by the publisher through the Netgalley program.
The novelty of this tale is in making GMO work a subversive, heroic activity. Their goals include producing and disseminating products like salt-resistant carrots, other foods resistant to drought and insect or fungal diseases, and interventions for toxic algae blooms. Another goal is to improve public perception of GMO through an information and social media campaign, including even disinformation to counter the rampant negative propaganda. We follow the personal life of Renata, whose day job is working as a lawyer for Native Americans and causes in Washington State while carrying out covert illegal work under an alias for the “Org.” For the latter, we experience her travel as a courier and communications channel among secret labs and greenhouses. Despite use of a cell structure that limits knowledge of group members and activities, federal police raids and prosecutions of Org members as ecoterrorists lead to the conclusion that they must have a mole in their midst.
Overall, the narrative speaks to the quiet forms of courage and effective action an average woman like Renata can rise to in the face of the impending global threats from climate change. Her struggles in day to day motivation and balancing her work with challenges in her family life demonstrate an admirable form of resilience and creative adaptation. Maybe I am jaded from reading too many thrillers or sci fi adventures, but my emotional engagement in the story and characters was limited. I have a dim memory of liking but not loving her "Beggar's Ride" in the 90s. I suppose you could put her work in the category with Emily St. John Mandel and Becky Chambers as speculative fiction in which the personal lives and interactions are focused on a lot more than dramatic plotting.
This book was provided for review by the publisher through the Netgalley program.
January 5, 2020
Three and half stars.
I receive this book from Netgalley in exchange for a honest review, so here we go:
Sea Change in one phrase: In a near future, Renata Black is an illegal activist who fights for her cause despite her own personal circumstances.
I could seem that the author’s personal life is involved in the story. Well, all the authors do this to a greater or lesser degree. In this novel -narrated in first person- you can notice this in the personal issues dealt: divorce, the loss of the loved ones, the stubbornness of not giving up… But in second thought I think that this explanation is better: Renata Black is a very well developed character.
So, the novel can be understood as a good picture of the future quotidian life in the USA after a catastrophic event and I think this is a positive aspect. However, I do no like it. Why? I am not sure, maybe it is about the proportion of personal life /science fiction in the story. In both ways it's interesting, I do not deny this, but together, for me at least, it doesn't work completely.
On the other hand, although at a first glance the main premise of the book may look a bit absurd -there are a lot of stupid things in our world, and they exist and they rule our lives-, actually this is the best part of the book, the issues in which Nancy Kress excels. I mean her accurate hard future speculation due both to her scientific knowledge and her incisive imagination. These are some of the topics dealt: genetic modified organisms vs. natural crops, the danger about a genetic engineering in capitalism, irreversibility of climate change and how to deal with it, power abuse vs. civil society activism and the enemies of liberty (fear, ignorance & fanaticism).
Finally I must note a good aspect and two complaints about this novel. About the former, the absence of bloodshed: violence is not necessary to explain a good story. On the latter: Nancy Kress plays the deus ex machina card in the usual computer hacking way and second (a minor one), the USAcentric perspective, but I understand that this is a lot to explain in a short novel.
I receive this book from Netgalley in exchange for a honest review, so here we go:
Sea Change in one phrase: In a near future, Renata Black is an illegal activist who fights for her cause despite her own personal circumstances.
I could seem that the author’s personal life is involved in the story. Well, all the authors do this to a greater or lesser degree. In this novel -narrated in first person- you can notice this in the personal issues dealt: divorce, the loss of the loved ones, the stubbornness of not giving up… But in second thought I think that this explanation is better: Renata Black is a very well developed character.
So, the novel can be understood as a good picture of the future quotidian life in the USA after a catastrophic event and I think this is a positive aspect. However, I do no like it. Why? I am not sure, maybe it is about the proportion of personal life /science fiction in the story. In both ways it's interesting, I do not deny this, but together, for me at least, it doesn't work completely.
On the other hand, although at a first glance the main premise of the book may look a bit absurd -there are a lot of stupid things in our world, and they exist and they rule our lives-, actually this is the best part of the book, the issues in which Nancy Kress excels. I mean her accurate hard future speculation due both to her scientific knowledge and her incisive imagination. These are some of the topics dealt: genetic modified organisms vs. natural crops, the danger about a genetic engineering in capitalism, irreversibility of climate change and how to deal with it, power abuse vs. civil society activism and the enemies of liberty (fear, ignorance & fanaticism).
Finally I must note a good aspect and two complaints about this novel. About the former, the absence of bloodshed: violence is not necessary to explain a good story. On the latter: Nancy Kress plays the deus ex machina card in the usual computer hacking way and second (a minor one), the USAcentric perspective, but I understand that this is a lot to explain in a short novel.
April 26, 2020
Ahoy there me mateys! I received this sci-fi novella eARC from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. So here be me honest musings . . .
One of the things I have come to appreciate about Nancy Kress’ work is that it always be thought provoking. The concepts are interesting and led to some fun conversations with me First Mate. As a conversation starter, I really enjoyed it. As an entertainment it wasn’t so effective.
Though the title is sea change, the real issue behind this novella is GMO crops. The story postulates what would happen if a GMO pharmaceutical product caused child deaths and the response from the world was to ban all GMO products. This choice seemed odd because the product was a drug and not a food. Yet the focus of the GMO fight is bringing back GMO crops to handle the food shortages caused by climate change of weather patterns.
The book felt like the author was trying to bash ye over the head with how GMO crops are necessary. Part of the issue is because there is an underground resistance trying to engineer them. The main character, Renata, is a member of this organization. And I didn’t like her. She was abrasive, kinda naive, and fanatical. As a crusader, she seemed to latch onto her causes with no real discernment. She doesn’t know what the end goal of her organization is, how it is really structured, or who is involved. Safety first, supposedly. Sure they are trying to create new cultivars but beyond that, what? I would want to know the big picture. Renata just wants to believe that she is participating in a good cause and feel better. I sympathized a bit but still thought she was ridiculous.
The story also had a problem because of the mix of science diatribe and interpersonal drama. There is a subplot dealing with her ex-husband that wasn’t poorly written but could have been removed all together. The past and present are showcased in alternating timelines. I think the story would have been much more powerful taking place only in the present. That said, I actually liked the past sections better and they held me attention more satisfactorily.
The present sections left too many unanswered questions. For example there be a self-driving house. Why? Only one color of paint left. Why? How is the food system run now? How do the poor live? How is the economy actually structured after the Catastrophe? In the other books I have read, it seemed as though Kress had really delved into the ramifications of changes to society across the board.
While I thought the writing itself wasn’t bad, the plot did not work for me. I ended up not caring about any of the characters or the plot itself. It just left me confused overall and unsatisfied. Maybe this would have worked better as a longer novel but I have to admit that I don’t want to particularly hear anymore GMO soapboxing regardless of me underlying interest in the topic.
Still enjoyed some of the intellectual ideas and projections but not enough to reread this book or necessarily recommend it.
So lastly . . .
Thank you Tachyon Publications!
One of the things I have come to appreciate about Nancy Kress’ work is that it always be thought provoking. The concepts are interesting and led to some fun conversations with me First Mate. As a conversation starter, I really enjoyed it. As an entertainment it wasn’t so effective.
Though the title is sea change, the real issue behind this novella is GMO crops. The story postulates what would happen if a GMO pharmaceutical product caused child deaths and the response from the world was to ban all GMO products. This choice seemed odd because the product was a drug and not a food. Yet the focus of the GMO fight is bringing back GMO crops to handle the food shortages caused by climate change of weather patterns.
The book felt like the author was trying to bash ye over the head with how GMO crops are necessary. Part of the issue is because there is an underground resistance trying to engineer them. The main character, Renata, is a member of this organization. And I didn’t like her. She was abrasive, kinda naive, and fanatical. As a crusader, she seemed to latch onto her causes with no real discernment. She doesn’t know what the end goal of her organization is, how it is really structured, or who is involved. Safety first, supposedly. Sure they are trying to create new cultivars but beyond that, what? I would want to know the big picture. Renata just wants to believe that she is participating in a good cause and feel better. I sympathized a bit but still thought she was ridiculous.
The story also had a problem because of the mix of science diatribe and interpersonal drama. There is a subplot dealing with her ex-husband that wasn’t poorly written but could have been removed all together. The past and present are showcased in alternating timelines. I think the story would have been much more powerful taking place only in the present. That said, I actually liked the past sections better and they held me attention more satisfactorily.
The present sections left too many unanswered questions. For example there be a self-driving house. Why? Only one color of paint left. Why? How is the food system run now? How do the poor live? How is the economy actually structured after the Catastrophe? In the other books I have read, it seemed as though Kress had really delved into the ramifications of changes to society across the board.
While I thought the writing itself wasn’t bad, the plot did not work for me. I ended up not caring about any of the characters or the plot itself. It just left me confused overall and unsatisfied. Maybe this would have worked better as a longer novel but I have to admit that I don’t want to particularly hear anymore GMO soapboxing regardless of me underlying interest in the topic.
Still enjoyed some of the intellectual ideas and projections but not enough to reread this book or necessarily recommend it.
So lastly . . .
Thank you Tachyon Publications!
June 1, 2020
Kress’s near-future climate thriller follows Renata Black, mild-mannered Seattle paralegal who is also Caroline Denton, undercover eco-terrorist. The “terror” that Caroline and her compatriots are attempting to inflict on the masses involves growing genetically-modified crops to help mitigate the world’s food crisis (in this speculative 2032, GMOs have been outlawed after big agriculture’s profiteering led to a deadly toxin in children’s medicine). Caroline/Renata discovers there may be a mole in her cell, causing the carefully delineated boundaries of her double life to blur. Kress, a long-established master of conjectural sci-fi, renders a global-scale conflict in intimate terms. The obstacles Renata faces and the choices she makes have deeply personal consequences for her as well as world-changing implications, allowing the author to effectively whittle away the border between the macro and the micro.
February 23, 2020
This novella, offered to me as an ARC from Net Galley, by one of my favorite authors is smart and tightly written. The world she builds is our world -or one soon to be. She uses real science and expects the reader to grasp some fundamentals of the biology of agriculture as well as the politics behind who grows the food and for whom. Maybe that doesn’t sound exciting but the story is compelling and moves quickly. And it makes me want to thank all dedicated activists who work to feed the hungry worldwide. 4.5 stars
August 18, 2024
This is a good near future short novel about the plusses and minuses of the need for genetically modified foods; they're necessary because of climate change and the population explosion, but dangerous because of corporate greed and agribusiness. It's set in 2032, with flashbacks back to 2005, and was sadly a bit dated almost upon publication because of the pandemic. It's the story of a woman who's active in trying to help others after great personal loss in her own life and is a very convincing and moving character study. I think the technological advancements were set too near the current time (for example there's a house walking around confused in a city), and there's too much reliance on initials without explanation. (There's something called D that might be a key and maybe you eat it if the cops are homing in on you, but I really didn't get it.) Kress always entertains, though, and it's a good, quick read of the if-this-goes-on kind.
November 26, 2019
My only previous experience reading the author was with her short story collection Fountain of Age, which had led me to expect smart literary science fiction with well developed greyhaired characters of a certain age and maturity level. To be fair, Sea Change was very much along those lines. A novel of climate themed science fiction, a subgenre very popular now in the way the good science fiction has always mirrored the world around it, offering occasionally all too prescient scenarios, to educate, to warn or (as it seems to do lately) land on obstinately deaf ears. The latest report from United Nations states that the world has failed to lower its poisonous emissions, in fact some countries are stepping it up, yes, that would be US and China. So plenty of reason to be alarmed. Although in this book, the author takes on another controversial subject…GMOs. The entire book and its greyhaired protagonist are dedicated to advocating for GMOs. Mind you, she wasn’t always greyhaired, our protagonist, the story jumps around enough so that we follow an entire life’s trajectory for decades, from college years to present day, set in a near distant future. The trajectory, however, has always been more of a straight line, for she of many names, but originally Renata Black, has always been determined to save the world. The causes have changed over the years, finally landing on promotion of GMOs. To that end, Renata joins an environmental group, whose methods range from education to more aggressive measures. It is when this nameless Org gets threatened by exposure, that things get especially complicated and dangerous. So the main scenario is that in the near future America undergoes an economic and social collapse, following refusal to utilize GMOs. There’s been some poisonings, GMOs get blamed, the kneejerk reaction ensures they are banned, which avalanches into all sorts of terrible things. Renata means to fight the system. She’s willing to sacrifice her marriage or any prospects of future relationships on that altar. And
her son’s tragic death from poisoning is what really sets her on a one way train to radicalization. She becomes something of a fanatic, understandably in a way, but also (for me, anyway) offputting. Kress is a master of mature characters, sure, but this isn’t one of her best characters. I didn’t really like Renata at all and, because she carries the entire story, it affected my enjoyment of the book. I found her singleminded zealotry and self righteous convictions to be distinctly unpalatable. And I know, she can’t help it, it’s how she’s written, she fits the story, the story fits her, but for me it’s difficult to impossible to separate the narrative from the narrator. This is, after all, a Renata’s story. Theoretically her moral rigidity, her lack of personal engagement, her determination are essential to her character’s zealotry, but it might have been more interesting had Renata showed more complexity and dimensions. In fact, outside of her one love affair and her son, who immediately eclipsed that, there just isn’t much to her as a person. And then there’s a fact that the message is so heavy handed in this book. I mean, in a way it almost reads like an elaborate GMO promotion. You know, how some magazines have articles that are essentially sponsored material dedicated to promote a specific product, well, this is a book version of this. The message (loud and clean and neon lettered) is this…use GMOs and feed the world or abstain and starve. So it’s somewhat divisive, depending on where you stand on this, but also reads all too much like proselytizing. Unlikeable protagonist and heavy handed message don’t really make for great reading, despite objectively good writing from an objectively talented author. I suppose, this book would work for some, though, since my opinion on it was so colored by subjective preferences. It reads well and is slim enough to quickly get through. Environmentally minded audience might enjoy this dystopian take on the near future. Or maybe it’d be great for some original activists from the 70s, which if what this book reminded me so much of. The same sort of dogooder at all costs, black and white, mentality that can often lead to dangerous actions. Anyway, this review has gone on long enough. Read the book and judge it for yourself. For me…it didn’t quite work. I wanted more. I wanted to like the plot as much as the writing, etc. Or to care more. Thanks Netgalley.
her son’s tragic death from poisoning is what really sets her on a one way train to radicalization. She becomes something of a fanatic, understandably in a way, but also (for me, anyway) offputting. Kress is a master of mature characters, sure, but this isn’t one of her best characters. I didn’t really like Renata at all and, because she carries the entire story, it affected my enjoyment of the book. I found her singleminded zealotry and self righteous convictions to be distinctly unpalatable. And I know, she can’t help it, it’s how she’s written, she fits the story, the story fits her, but for me it’s difficult to impossible to separate the narrative from the narrator. This is, after all, a Renata’s story. Theoretically her moral rigidity, her lack of personal engagement, her determination are essential to her character’s zealotry, but it might have been more interesting had Renata showed more complexity and dimensions. In fact, outside of her one love affair and her son, who immediately eclipsed that, there just isn’t much to her as a person. And then there’s a fact that the message is so heavy handed in this book. I mean, in a way it almost reads like an elaborate GMO promotion. You know, how some magazines have articles that are essentially sponsored material dedicated to promote a specific product, well, this is a book version of this. The message (loud and clean and neon lettered) is this…use GMOs and feed the world or abstain and starve. So it’s somewhat divisive, depending on where you stand on this, but also reads all too much like proselytizing. Unlikeable protagonist and heavy handed message don’t really make for great reading, despite objectively good writing from an objectively talented author. I suppose, this book would work for some, though, since my opinion on it was so colored by subjective preferences. It reads well and is slim enough to quickly get through. Environmentally minded audience might enjoy this dystopian take on the near future. Or maybe it’d be great for some original activists from the 70s, which if what this book reminded me so much of. The same sort of dogooder at all costs, black and white, mentality that can often lead to dangerous actions. Anyway, this review has gone on long enough. Read the book and judge it for yourself. For me…it didn’t quite work. I wanted more. I wanted to like the plot as much as the writing, etc. Or to care more. Thanks Netgalley.
March 8, 2021
I loved this. The prose is readable and engaging. The world is a near future that is fascinating. The main character is a complex middle aged woman. It talks about the dangers of completely vilifying GMOs.
The narrative skips back and forth in the main character's life. This writing technique isn't always successful, but I felt that it was in this story. It wasn't jarring or irritating to skip around.
I really loved that the main character was a middle aged woman. Reading stories about older (than me) women gives me hope and the feeling that I have a future. It's nice.
The story is very pro-GMO in the sense that science is good and developing GMO's is good for humanity...which very much matches my stance on the issue. You might find this grating if that isn't your stance.
My only issue with this story is that it is very US-centric. The countries and places described as really suffering from food scarcity and stuff are all African, Asian, and South American. Which on some level, it makes sense that nations that have suffered from colonization will suffer first and more from the effects of climate change and stuff....but it also feels white saviory that they are developing seeds for Ethiopia. And it is mega icky when the MC takes her son to India so he can view poverty and starvation and gain some empathy. Then there is a bit of a plot hole where GMO's become illegal in the US and Europe (and Canada, I think)...so they form an underground resistance that keeps on researching...but why didn't they just move their labs to other countries? And why is the fate of the world resting on US scientists being able to develop GMO research. It's like the author doesn't realize or believe that non-white countries have scientists too...
Sexual violence? Yes, the MC works for a law firm that often does pro bono work for native american women who are victims of sexual assault. One case is worked on and described a bit in the story. Other triggers? Death of a child.
The narrative skips back and forth in the main character's life. This writing technique isn't always successful, but I felt that it was in this story. It wasn't jarring or irritating to skip around.
I really loved that the main character was a middle aged woman. Reading stories about older (than me) women gives me hope and the feeling that I have a future. It's nice.
The story is very pro-GMO in the sense that science is good and developing GMO's is good for humanity...which very much matches my stance on the issue. You might find this grating if that isn't your stance.
My only issue with this story is that it is very US-centric. The countries and places described as really suffering from food scarcity and stuff are all African, Asian, and South American. Which on some level, it makes sense that nations that have suffered from colonization will suffer first and more from the effects of climate change and stuff....but it also feels white saviory that they are developing seeds for Ethiopia. And it is mega icky when the MC takes her son to India so he can view poverty and starvation and gain some empathy. Then there is a bit of a plot hole where GMO's become illegal in the US and Europe (and Canada, I think)...so they form an underground resistance that keeps on researching...but why didn't they just move their labs to other countries? And why is the fate of the world resting on US scientists being able to develop GMO research. It's like the author doesn't realize or believe that non-white countries have scientists too...
Sexual violence? Yes, the MC works for a law firm that often does pro bono work for native american women who are victims of sexual assault. One case is worked on and described a bit in the story. Other triggers? Death of a child.
June 6, 2020
“It turns out that it takes only a few months to destroy an entire national economy”.
Doesn't that sound familiar? This sentence in the middle of this novella is very timely, although the cause was different than the virus we are struggling with today. But not that different – it's still a very tiny object that's the cause of it all.
This is a smart, savvy techno-thriller about a near future (2032) when an agribusiness's use of a genetically-modified organism (GMO) turns deadly, turning American society violently against all GMOs. Since most major grains in America are GMOs owned by large agribusinesses, it wrecks the food supply network and consequently the economy.
When GMO use is made illegal, various scientists and activists go underground to develop GMOs that can benefit humankind without causing the type of damage through gene transfer that initiated the ban. The protagonist is one of those activists, a courier in an underground cell that coordinate various small secret laboratories.
The protagonist's personal life re-emerges in the crisis, and we learn why she is so adamant about preventing despoiling the earth and oceans. I liked the fact that she is a hard-shelled person, who recognizes that about herself but can't seem to overcome it. Her sharp personality is a natural result of the trauma in her life.
The frequent jump-cuts between the near future and the near past will challenge the reader to keep up, but connecting the dots between past and future is part of the enjoyment of this novella. This is definitely science fiction with An Agenda, so while it is somewhat polemical, the topic is so interesting and the pace so fast-moving that it goes down well. We really need to think about the future of GMOs; who controls them, what precautions are put in place, and what would be the impact on global food resources if we did away with them.
Doesn't that sound familiar? This sentence in the middle of this novella is very timely, although the cause was different than the virus we are struggling with today. But not that different – it's still a very tiny object that's the cause of it all.
This is a smart, savvy techno-thriller about a near future (2032) when an agribusiness's use of a genetically-modified organism (GMO) turns deadly, turning American society violently against all GMOs. Since most major grains in America are GMOs owned by large agribusinesses, it wrecks the food supply network and consequently the economy.
When GMO use is made illegal, various scientists and activists go underground to develop GMOs that can benefit humankind without causing the type of damage through gene transfer that initiated the ban. The protagonist is one of those activists, a courier in an underground cell that coordinate various small secret laboratories.
The protagonist's personal life re-emerges in the crisis, and we learn why she is so adamant about preventing despoiling the earth and oceans. I liked the fact that she is a hard-shelled person, who recognizes that about herself but can't seem to overcome it. Her sharp personality is a natural result of the trauma in her life.
The frequent jump-cuts between the near future and the near past will challenge the reader to keep up, but connecting the dots between past and future is part of the enjoyment of this novella. This is definitely science fiction with An Agenda, so while it is somewhat polemical, the topic is so interesting and the pace so fast-moving that it goes down well. We really need to think about the future of GMOs; who controls them, what precautions are put in place, and what would be the impact on global food resources if we did away with them.
November 24, 2019
It was my first novel by Nancy kress though I heard the name in some recommendations. I had quite bigexpectations to this one, but unfortuately I didn't much like the novel. While the whole concept of a book is great, for such a short story it was too much tell and too little show for me. First few chapter are most a lot of information throwing at us with not much happening. And there were flashbacks chapters that could be reduced to lesser amount in my opinion.
I expected something fast-paced with a lot of future theory and there are some interesting question asked, but all is overwhelmed but a lot of words and details that not good for a book that is not even 200 pages long.
I expected something fast-paced with a lot of future theory and there are some interesting question asked, but all is overwhelmed but a lot of words and details that not good for a book that is not even 200 pages long.
March 16, 2021
Following the Catastrophe, GMOs were banned, and the world has been slowly falling apart. Renata fights through her membership in the Organization, which works to create GMOs that may someday feed the world.
I was looking forward to this as my first work by Nancy Kress, but I was pretty disappointed. I liked the world-building and the concept, which were both intriguing realistic. However, the character of Renata was really not to my taste. She was a strange mix of abrasive, naïve, and overly dramatic, and I couldn't help but find her annoying. Since the story is deeply intertwined with her own personal journey, I ended up not loving the story. In particular, all of the bits with her ex-husband felt extraneous, and I really disliked their relationship in general.
The plot also felt pretty meandering, for something so short. I prefer my novellas to be a bit more tightly crafted, and this did not fall into that preference. I ended up kind of just floating along, not really hoping for more than the story to eventually end. It did all come together in the end, but only after I'd seriously considered dnfing the whole thing. I hope my next venture with Nancy Kress ends up more successful.
I was looking forward to this as my first work by Nancy Kress, but I was pretty disappointed. I liked the world-building and the concept, which were both intriguing realistic. However, the character of Renata was really not to my taste. She was a strange mix of abrasive, naïve, and overly dramatic, and I couldn't help but find her annoying. Since the story is deeply intertwined with her own personal journey, I ended up not loving the story. In particular, all of the bits with her ex-husband felt extraneous, and I really disliked their relationship in general.
The plot also felt pretty meandering, for something so short. I prefer my novellas to be a bit more tightly crafted, and this did not fall into that preference. I ended up kind of just floating along, not really hoping for more than the story to eventually end. It did all come together in the end, but only after I'd seriously considered dnfing the whole thing. I hope my next venture with Nancy Kress ends up more successful.
September 5, 2024
Brava
Come in altri suoi libri che ho letto, anche in questo l'autrice dimostra intelligenza, affrontando la questione delle biotecnologie da una prospettiva inedita, sicuramente inusuale per il nostro presente, anzi, praticamente rovesciata: nel prossimo futuro del libro a battersi clandestinamente, rischiando vita e libertà per sfamare il pianeta, non sono ecologisti luddisti che vogliono tornare all'agricoltura preindustriale ma, al contrario, un gruppuscolo di attivisti e scienziati impegnati a far ripensare, in un Mondo che li ha resi completamente illegali, la demonizzazione degli OGM o almeno raggiungere al riguardo un approccio più razionale ed equilibrato. Un punto di vista di cui penso ci sia bisogno.
Il libro scorre veloce, è ben congegnato, mette sul tavolo diverse questioni oltre a quella principale, e soprattutto ha una scrittura superiore a quelli di tanti colleghi e colleghe del genere.
Due parole sul titolo italiano.
L'originale, Sea Change, in inglese significa "cambiamento radicale". Da noi è diventato Il mare cambia. Ora, è vero che nel libro la questione del mare c'è, e ha anche un certo ruolo nelle vicende della protagonista, ma è comunque una delle tante che la riguardano, non quella principale. Mi dico che l'editore nostrano abbia optato per una traduzione letterale perché, effettivamente, nel libro c'entra (anche) il mare. Spero vivamente che non sia stato frutto dell'ignoranza di chi ha effettuato la traduzione. Resta il fatto che il titolo italiano risulta comunque più debole e meno incisivo di quello originale, e che non esprime la forte tensione verso un cambiamento globale, quello indicato e auspicato dalla storia narrata.
Pollice verso invece per un minisaggio finale di un autore italiano su intelligenza artificiale e postumanesimo: pieno di affermazioni filosoficamente discutibili e soprattutto di numerosi errori di stampa.
Come in altri suoi libri che ho letto, anche in questo l'autrice dimostra intelligenza, affrontando la questione delle biotecnologie da una prospettiva inedita, sicuramente inusuale per il nostro presente, anzi, praticamente rovesciata: nel prossimo futuro del libro a battersi clandestinamente, rischiando vita e libertà per sfamare il pianeta, non sono ecologisti luddisti che vogliono tornare all'agricoltura preindustriale ma, al contrario, un gruppuscolo di attivisti e scienziati impegnati a far ripensare, in un Mondo che li ha resi completamente illegali, la demonizzazione degli OGM o almeno raggiungere al riguardo un approccio più razionale ed equilibrato. Un punto di vista di cui penso ci sia bisogno.
Il libro scorre veloce, è ben congegnato, mette sul tavolo diverse questioni oltre a quella principale, e soprattutto ha una scrittura superiore a quelli di tanti colleghi e colleghe del genere.
Due parole sul titolo italiano.
L'originale, Sea Change, in inglese significa "cambiamento radicale". Da noi è diventato Il mare cambia. Ora, è vero che nel libro la questione del mare c'è, e ha anche un certo ruolo nelle vicende della protagonista, ma è comunque una delle tante che la riguardano, non quella principale. Mi dico che l'editore nostrano abbia optato per una traduzione letterale perché, effettivamente, nel libro c'entra (anche) il mare. Spero vivamente che non sia stato frutto dell'ignoranza di chi ha effettuato la traduzione. Resta il fatto che il titolo italiano risulta comunque più debole e meno incisivo di quello originale, e che non esprime la forte tensione verso un cambiamento globale, quello indicato e auspicato dalla storia narrata.
Pollice verso invece per un minisaggio finale di un autore italiano su intelligenza artificiale e postumanesimo: pieno di affermazioni filosoficamente discutibili e soprattutto di numerosi errori di stampa.
January 4, 2020
A big story in a small package!
In 2022 a popular antidiarrheal drug made from genetically modified plants causes the death of over a hundred children. Publicity from the event provokes extreme reaction against genetically modified food and similar research and development and brings about The Catastrophe, a world-wide economic and agricultural disaster provoked by anti-science sentiment. Ten years later idealistic Renata (aka Caroline) works in an underground resistance group known as the Org, “a bunch of civilians trying to covertly save the world. One carrot at a time.” A traffic snarl caused by an unoccupied self-driving house provokes an investigation that threatens the Org, and Renata is determined to get to the source. Many groups hate the Org: environmentalists, the religious right, agribusiness, and DAS-Department of Agricultural Security, a cabinet-level department whose job is to “prevent another Catastrophe and protect the American people”, so even identifying the enemy is not an easy task. And identifying a possible traitor within your own ranks is even harder.
Although I very much enjoyed Sea Change, it uses the currently popular structure of flipping between eras. Kress handles this structure better than most, but to me it is an annoyance that I would love to see pass out of fashion.
The main action in the book takes place in 2032. I may have to eat my words twelve years from now, but I think some of the technological changes, like self-driving houses or devices people can put into their eyes to produce a fake retinal scan, are not likely to occur quite that soon. Maybe Kress is more optimistic than I am!
For such a short book there is a lot of meat on the bones in Sea Change, but the author manages it well. Kress builds many features of the story on Renata’s past life, including her relationship with her former husband, who is a well-known actor, and the tragic death of their young son. Her background with a pro bono legal firm has given her ties to the Quinault Nation that are helpful as she investigates the threat to the Org in 2032. The author has also done an impressive job of building an interesting future world. Enough thought has clearly gone into the background that I wondered as I read whether Kress might return to Renata’s world again.
Although I have read a number of Kress’s books, I did not know until I read about her in this book that her work has been translated into nearly two dozen languages, including Klingon! I think I’ll stick to English for my reading, but it is nice to have so many cultures able to enjoy her writing.
My thanks to Edelweiss for an advance copy of this book for review.
In 2022 a popular antidiarrheal drug made from genetically modified plants causes the death of over a hundred children. Publicity from the event provokes extreme reaction against genetically modified food and similar research and development and brings about The Catastrophe, a world-wide economic and agricultural disaster provoked by anti-science sentiment. Ten years later idealistic Renata (aka Caroline) works in an underground resistance group known as the Org, “a bunch of civilians trying to covertly save the world. One carrot at a time.” A traffic snarl caused by an unoccupied self-driving house provokes an investigation that threatens the Org, and Renata is determined to get to the source. Many groups hate the Org: environmentalists, the religious right, agribusiness, and DAS-Department of Agricultural Security, a cabinet-level department whose job is to “prevent another Catastrophe and protect the American people”, so even identifying the enemy is not an easy task. And identifying a possible traitor within your own ranks is even harder.
Although I very much enjoyed Sea Change, it uses the currently popular structure of flipping between eras. Kress handles this structure better than most, but to me it is an annoyance that I would love to see pass out of fashion.
The main action in the book takes place in 2032. I may have to eat my words twelve years from now, but I think some of the technological changes, like self-driving houses or devices people can put into their eyes to produce a fake retinal scan, are not likely to occur quite that soon. Maybe Kress is more optimistic than I am!
For such a short book there is a lot of meat on the bones in Sea Change, but the author manages it well. Kress builds many features of the story on Renata’s past life, including her relationship with her former husband, who is a well-known actor, and the tragic death of their young son. Her background with a pro bono legal firm has given her ties to the Quinault Nation that are helpful as she investigates the threat to the Org in 2032. The author has also done an impressive job of building an interesting future world. Enough thought has clearly gone into the background that I wondered as I read whether Kress might return to Renata’s world again.
Although I have read a number of Kress’s books, I did not know until I read about her in this book that her work has been translated into nearly two dozen languages, including Klingon! I think I’ll stick to English for my reading, but it is nice to have so many cultures able to enjoy her writing.
My thanks to Edelweiss for an advance copy of this book for review.
November 30, 2019
3.5/5
It turns out that it takes only a few months to destroy an entire national economy and to see companies too big to fail go into bankruptcy. In Sea Change Kress touches on a lot of controversial topics, including GMOs, cybersecurity, or social order. Despite its short length, the novella contains powerful ideas, well-researched data, and avoids giving easy answers.
It made me think. And feel stuff. A good thing for sure.
That being said, Sea Change is actually an amalgam of three narratives - one scientific, and two focused on the main character - Renata Black a.k.a Caroline Denton. Personal tragedy drives her current obsessions.
In 2032, she’s a driven operative of the Org, an underground group that could save the world from itself. The present timeline follows her investigation. Chapters set in her past show, beautifully and poignantly, her relationships and personal evolution. I loved this part. I found it moving and elegant.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t get into the present eco-thriller storyline. I found it rather boring and unevenly paced. As a result, I felt immersed and emotionally engaged in one storyline while remaining uninterested in the other one. A tricky situation and the only reason for my rating.
Kress’ writing is superb (clear, economic, precise) but there is one awkward simile I can’t get over (” jaw hard as an erection”).
Overall, I would recommend the book as it combines strong (and plausible) analysis of ecological and economic collapse with personal tragedy and genuine emotions.
It turns out that it takes only a few months to destroy an entire national economy and to see companies too big to fail go into bankruptcy. In Sea Change Kress touches on a lot of controversial topics, including GMOs, cybersecurity, or social order. Despite its short length, the novella contains powerful ideas, well-researched data, and avoids giving easy answers.
It made me think. And feel stuff. A good thing for sure.
That being said, Sea Change is actually an amalgam of three narratives - one scientific, and two focused on the main character - Renata Black a.k.a Caroline Denton. Personal tragedy drives her current obsessions.
In 2032, she’s a driven operative of the Org, an underground group that could save the world from itself. The present timeline follows her investigation. Chapters set in her past show, beautifully and poignantly, her relationships and personal evolution. I loved this part. I found it moving and elegant.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t get into the present eco-thriller storyline. I found it rather boring and unevenly paced. As a result, I felt immersed and emotionally engaged in one storyline while remaining uninterested in the other one. A tricky situation and the only reason for my rating.
Kress’ writing is superb (clear, economic, precise) but there is one awkward simile I can’t get over (” jaw hard as an erection”).
Overall, I would recommend the book as it combines strong (and plausible) analysis of ecological and economic collapse with personal tragedy and genuine emotions.
October 16, 2025
L'intero libro è completamente scomparso dalla mia memoria dopo due giorni... la trama è interessante ma non l'ho trovato una piacevole lettura.
May 11, 2020
3.8 / 5 ✪
https://arefugefromlife.wordpress.com...
The year is 2032. A decade earlier, an event known as the Catastrophe rocked the world. A biopharmed drug—something—caused several the deaths of several children and fanned the flames of resentment already burning against genetically modified foods. In the fallout from the poisoning, protests rage, concluding in GMOs being banned. Ten years later, global warming is no longer debatable. Sea levels have risen, drought and famine rocked the globe, temperatures soar as the ozone slowly fades. Some few still use GMOs, but they are labeled terrorists and are hunted. But these radical outlaws may yet save the world.
Renata is an operative of one of such ecoterrorist cells, from an organization just referred to as “Org”. These brazen men and women work to save the world from itself, artificially engineering crops that will resist disease, flourish with limited water, even grow in salt water. Renata—known as Caroline Denton now—has lived many lives, but this is the most important. This is a cause she will rally behind, a cause she will die for.
Which she may very well have to.
A mole is in the Org, and no one is above suspicion. At only four to a cell, there is very little blame to go around. Renata knows everyone, but trusts no one, for as she keeps secrets of her own from the Org, she assumes they do likewise. And as secrets from her past and personal lives begin to bleed around those from her secret life, she will be confronted by a choice. One that will force her to choose where her loyalties lie, and what she truly desires. In the end, she will visit the one place she can never escape—to the Quinault Nation, the site of her son’s death—looking for answers.
I was presently surprised with just how much I enjoyed Sea Change. Though hardly perfect, it’s a pretty good read; the story begins in the present before jumping back and forth between it and the ghosts of Renata’s past. It does this until maybe the halfway mark, whereupon Renata’s past starts showing up in the present. I was able to cruise right through this—with never a dull moment. While it didn’t drink me in—with details missing or absent, description fuzzy—it never lacked encouragement to read on.
The story is probably its strongest asset; between that of the Org and Renata’s own, hers’ easily won out. But in the end her own story and theirs’ became intertwined. Actually, I guess they always had been. It’s really Renata’s story we’re reading—it’s just that the Org is the life she wants, what she’s most invested in.
Despite bearing the title “Sea Change” and much of the book taking place in and around Seattle and the Olympic Peninsula, there is precious little about sea change. It’s mentioned early on that the sea level has risen, causing the tribe to move further inland, away from the sea. And that’s pretty much it. Nothing is said about Seattle, which sits on the ocean. Nothing about the rest of the world, or how the rise in ocean levels has changed it. In fact, there’s little enough present about the fate of the world at all. Yes, yes, we’re treated to some background on the Catastrophe, the standing of the US, a bit about climate change—but little more.
Honestly, I found the premise surrounding “the Catastrophe” a bit underwhelming. With the pandemic going on, I expected a near apocalyptic event: a great famine, flooding, earthquakes, a virus, something—but it’s just a single genetically modified drug. That kills a handful. Sure, this kicks everything else off, as GMOs even in this day and age are controversial. But it’s not… well, comparatively, I’m not sold on its sheer earth-shattering consequences. Could happen though, I guess.
TL;DR
With adequate characters, a sub-standard setup, and a vaguely eco-thriller backdrop, I really didn’t expect much of Sea Change after the first chapter. I was surprised, then, when the story took off and drank me in. While there’re several reasons I could criticize it (and DO, if you’ve read the above), the fact is I enjoyed the story, especially Renata’s. And since her story is basically the one told—not the GMOs or climate-change thriller we began with—that’s actually a good thing. In fact, I was so invested in this story by the end I was hoping it might continue on for a bit, but alas, t’wasn’t to be. Though, if you don’t enjoy the story like I did, it might be worth DNFing this and moving on. Because, while Renata tells a good tale, it’s really about her, not the world.
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The year is 2032. A decade earlier, an event known as the Catastrophe rocked the world. A biopharmed drug—something—caused several the deaths of several children and fanned the flames of resentment already burning against genetically modified foods. In the fallout from the poisoning, protests rage, concluding in GMOs being banned. Ten years later, global warming is no longer debatable. Sea levels have risen, drought and famine rocked the globe, temperatures soar as the ozone slowly fades. Some few still use GMOs, but they are labeled terrorists and are hunted. But these radical outlaws may yet save the world.
Renata is an operative of one of such ecoterrorist cells, from an organization just referred to as “Org”. These brazen men and women work to save the world from itself, artificially engineering crops that will resist disease, flourish with limited water, even grow in salt water. Renata—known as Caroline Denton now—has lived many lives, but this is the most important. This is a cause she will rally behind, a cause she will die for.
Which she may very well have to.
A mole is in the Org, and no one is above suspicion. At only four to a cell, there is very little blame to go around. Renata knows everyone, but trusts no one, for as she keeps secrets of her own from the Org, she assumes they do likewise. And as secrets from her past and personal lives begin to bleed around those from her secret life, she will be confronted by a choice. One that will force her to choose where her loyalties lie, and what she truly desires. In the end, she will visit the one place she can never escape—to the Quinault Nation, the site of her son’s death—looking for answers.
I was presently surprised with just how much I enjoyed Sea Change. Though hardly perfect, it’s a pretty good read; the story begins in the present before jumping back and forth between it and the ghosts of Renata’s past. It does this until maybe the halfway mark, whereupon Renata’s past starts showing up in the present. I was able to cruise right through this—with never a dull moment. While it didn’t drink me in—with details missing or absent, description fuzzy—it never lacked encouragement to read on.
The story is probably its strongest asset; between that of the Org and Renata’s own, hers’ easily won out. But in the end her own story and theirs’ became intertwined. Actually, I guess they always had been. It’s really Renata’s story we’re reading—it’s just that the Org is the life she wants, what she’s most invested in.
Despite bearing the title “Sea Change” and much of the book taking place in and around Seattle and the Olympic Peninsula, there is precious little about sea change. It’s mentioned early on that the sea level has risen, causing the tribe to move further inland, away from the sea. And that’s pretty much it. Nothing is said about Seattle, which sits on the ocean. Nothing about the rest of the world, or how the rise in ocean levels has changed it. In fact, there’s little enough present about the fate of the world at all. Yes, yes, we’re treated to some background on the Catastrophe, the standing of the US, a bit about climate change—but little more.
Honestly, I found the premise surrounding “the Catastrophe” a bit underwhelming. With the pandemic going on, I expected a near apocalyptic event: a great famine, flooding, earthquakes, a virus, something—but it’s just a single genetically modified drug. That kills a handful. Sure, this kicks everything else off, as GMOs even in this day and age are controversial. But it’s not… well, comparatively, I’m not sold on its sheer earth-shattering consequences. Could happen though, I guess.
TL;DR
With adequate characters, a sub-standard setup, and a vaguely eco-thriller backdrop, I really didn’t expect much of Sea Change after the first chapter. I was surprised, then, when the story took off and drank me in. While there’re several reasons I could criticize it (and DO, if you’ve read the above), the fact is I enjoyed the story, especially Renata’s. And since her story is basically the one told—not the GMOs or climate-change thriller we began with—that’s actually a good thing. In fact, I was so invested in this story by the end I was hoping it might continue on for a bit, but alas, t’wasn’t to be. Though, if you don’t enjoy the story like I did, it might be worth DNFing this and moving on. Because, while Renata tells a good tale, it’s really about her, not the world.
April 11, 2021
This book is perfectly fine. It's well written, the characters are well delineated and evolve just the way they should, and it's got a serviceable ending.
However.
This is a science fiction book. I have real trouble with suspending credibility in many of the books Nancy Kress has written. Beggars in Spain, for instance. People stop needing sleep and, of course, they work and think all day and they become super rich. Are you kidding me? Most people would be super grumpy and tired and snoozing all day long, and they would probably go crazy for lack of sleep. And there's not a book, there're a couple of them. Talk about stretching credibility.
This book? Well, it's about a super-mega-air-quotes "terrorist" group that does GMO just the way it should have been done. Because GMO has been forbidden in America all across de board, and there's Department of Agricultural Security using drones and whatnot to pursue anyone who does that. Do you believe that? Well, neither do I. If GMO is forbidden in America, people who *really, really* want to do that will go to Ghana or Singapore or across the border to Canada.
So, Renata, belongs to such an organization. A lot of exposition ensues. She gets in trouble. There are bits of sci-fi here and there, there's something called D, which I have no idea what it is except an universal remote that seems to be able to open lots of doors, plus you can swallow it to dispose of it -- That's also the thing with Nancy Kress. Most science-fictional artifacts she presents do not seem to be too interesting or imaginative.
And there's global warming and Seattle and more stuff. Plus it's short.
By the end of the book, it reads like a bit of copy for GMO, and feel like the main character, and a host of the other characters, would have been much better served in a plausible milieu. In this book? They just sink.
However.
This is a science fiction book. I have real trouble with suspending credibility in many of the books Nancy Kress has written. Beggars in Spain, for instance. People stop needing sleep and, of course, they work and think all day and they become super rich. Are you kidding me? Most people would be super grumpy and tired and snoozing all day long, and they would probably go crazy for lack of sleep. And there's not a book, there're a couple of them. Talk about stretching credibility.
This book? Well, it's about a super-mega-air-quotes "terrorist" group that does GMO just the way it should have been done. Because GMO has been forbidden in America all across de board, and there's Department of Agricultural Security using drones and whatnot to pursue anyone who does that. Do you believe that? Well, neither do I. If GMO is forbidden in America, people who *really, really* want to do that will go to Ghana or Singapore or across the border to Canada.
So, Renata, belongs to such an organization. A lot of exposition ensues. She gets in trouble. There are bits of sci-fi here and there, there's something called D, which I have no idea what it is except an universal remote that seems to be able to open lots of doors, plus you can swallow it to dispose of it -- That's also the thing with Nancy Kress. Most science-fictional artifacts she presents do not seem to be too interesting or imaginative.
And there's global warming and Seattle and more stuff. Plus it's short.
By the end of the book, it reads like a bit of copy for GMO, and feel like the main character, and a host of the other characters, would have been much better served in a plausible milieu. In this book? They just sink.
July 11, 2020
Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book, in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Let's start with this - I have been a huge Nancy Kress fan ever since I first read Beggars in Spain, years ago. And this book did not disappoint.
Like her other books, there's science involved - I'm not a science person, but it's clearly enough written that I get what she's explaining. Hey, makes me feel smart! Her characters, as usual, are interesting and well developed - even minor characters in the book feel real. Mixed motives, people who are not saints or demons, people who I understand. I may not agree with what they do, but what they do makes sense in the context of the book.
And, most of all, her books always make me think. Even if I start the book with a specific preconception (like about GMO food), she makes me re-think my preconceptions. I like reading that challenges me and makes me reconsider my own biases. No matter how I come out in the end, I like having other ways to think about issues - and Nancy Kress does this very well.
Let's start with this - I have been a huge Nancy Kress fan ever since I first read Beggars in Spain, years ago. And this book did not disappoint.
Like her other books, there's science involved - I'm not a science person, but it's clearly enough written that I get what she's explaining. Hey, makes me feel smart! Her characters, as usual, are interesting and well developed - even minor characters in the book feel real. Mixed motives, people who are not saints or demons, people who I understand. I may not agree with what they do, but what they do makes sense in the context of the book.
And, most of all, her books always make me think. Even if I start the book with a specific preconception (like about GMO food), she makes me re-think my preconceptions. I like reading that challenges me and makes me reconsider my own biases. No matter how I come out in the end, I like having other ways to think about issues - and Nancy Kress does this very well.
August 24, 2021
I usually love Nancy Kress's writing, and she's in good form here. The US economy has been destabilized by an event involving GMO plants, and GMOs are banned. Climate change is also causing big disruptions, and some areas of the world are suffering famines.
Renata, the now-middle-aged daughter of hippie parents, has always been an activist. Divorced from her husband, and grieving the death of her 11-year-old son, she's been working with an underground activist group, the Org. The group wants to genetically modify plants not for profit, but to help people and the environment. After all, the harm was done by big business and agribusiness using questionable GMOs in harmful ways for profit.
In her day job, Renata is a paralegal and helps mostly abused girls and women in the local Native reservation. So she's doubly busy. She has a separate identity, with a name and ID, in the Org, which is composed of small cells in case any of its work is compromised. Kind of cloak and dagger-ish.
The book has sections in the 2032 present, and flashbacks of Renata's life as far back as college in 2005, so the action happens while we are also filled in on her past, including the Event. I can't say more about the plot because it would involve spoilers. But it was fast-moving, though a bit awkward in places. It's under 200 pages and easy to read; I read it in one night.
Renata, the now-middle-aged daughter of hippie parents, has always been an activist. Divorced from her husband, and grieving the death of her 11-year-old son, she's been working with an underground activist group, the Org. The group wants to genetically modify plants not for profit, but to help people and the environment. After all, the harm was done by big business and agribusiness using questionable GMOs in harmful ways for profit.
In her day job, Renata is a paralegal and helps mostly abused girls and women in the local Native reservation. So she's doubly busy. She has a separate identity, with a name and ID, in the Org, which is composed of small cells in case any of its work is compromised. Kind of cloak and dagger-ish.
The book has sections in the 2032 present, and flashbacks of Renata's life as far back as college in 2005, so the action happens while we are also filled in on her past, including the Event. I can't say more about the plot because it would involve spoilers. But it was fast-moving, though a bit awkward in places. It's under 200 pages and easy to read; I read it in one night.
May 27, 2020
I did not love Sea Change, and I felt incredibly guilty for that for several days. Usually I love anything by Nancy Kress, so it took me awhile to come up with the courage to write this review. But it’s one miss out of dozens of novels for this author. The writing was quality work, exactly what I would expect from Nancy Kress. It was the story, the actual plot, that I felt was lacking. It’s as if a lot more thought went into the agenda behind the story (promoting GMO’s) than into creating the story itself. The main character of Renata was extremely unlikable, which is not always a deal breaker. You don’t have to care about the characters if the plot is good enough to hold your attention; unfortunately the plot wasn’t that good. If you’ve never read anything by Nancy Kress, I recommend you read some of her work… just not this one.
***I was provided a free copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.***
Check out my blog for more in depth reviews and recommendations:
http://www.bookgirlsbooknookblog.blog...
***I was provided a free copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.***
Check out my blog for more in depth reviews and recommendations:
http://www.bookgirlsbooknookblog.blog...
January 31, 2021
I will round up to a 3.5. It was refreshing to read some sci fi. There are elements I really liked. Those parts were very believable. However I could not get past the timeline. It's 2035 and we have robots serving as security, flight attendants and drivable houses (legitimate houses on wheels not RVs). That's roughly a decade after the publication date. That was not believable. Plus those factors were not really important to the plot. They were not necessary.
May 4, 2021
This book sets up an interesting near-ish future, develops its main character/narrator really well (including the story of some of her relationships), and then the end of it kind of expands out to show a big change in the world. It's shorter than I thought it would be and moves pretty fast, lots of flashbacks and some future covert action. I'd be interested in seeing more in the setting but I'm not sure if it leads to that.
July 23, 2020
I really enjoyed this novella about genetic engineering and eco-terrorism. I hadn't come across this author before, but I discovered that she has been writing science fiction very successfully for many years. I hunted out some of her older books and really enjoyed reading them.
This little novella was really very good. It is well written. The plot is good and well paced. The characters are real and well rounded. All in all, it was a superb novella and I would recommend it to anyone.
Thank you to netgalley, the publisher and the author for sending me this ARC. These opinions are my own.
This little novella was really very good. It is well written. The plot is good and well paced. The characters are real and well rounded. All in all, it was a superb novella and I would recommend it to anyone.
Thank you to netgalley, the publisher and the author for sending me this ARC. These opinions are my own.
December 12, 2020
3 stars. Disappointing work from an author who usually will explore ideas of right and wrong; here were are presented with the blatant pro-US agribusiness take on GMOs, where we are consistently reminded of starvation in developing countries and presented with GMO foods as a solution, instead of considering the other oppressive systems that affect the levels of hunger in those countries (neoliberal policies? commodity exports to western countries? removal of indigenous knowledge as a result of colonialism?). While the writing is strong as usual, this book fails to really address the complexities of the food system & hunger. I would love of Nancy Kress could take some classes in food studies first!!!
July 6, 2020
Read this Read this review and other Science Fiction/Fantasy reviews at The Quill To Live
Nancy Kress has been on my to-read list for a while. She has a weight to her name, especially when it comes to her treatment of genetics and bio-engineering. I have not made my way to her earlier works yet, but I was presented with an opportunity to read Sea Change, and I decided that something new could be a good entry point. Sea Change is a short read with overt themes, forcing readers to ponder the use of genetically modified foods in preparation for climate change. While I think it handles that discussion with care, I was not entirely enamored with the characters or the story itself.
Sea Change is told through the perspective of Renata Black, an agent of the Org, an underground group of environmental activists, scientists, and farmers who are secretly working on GMO variants of food. After a biopharmaceutical company caused The Catastrophe, GMOs were banned in the United States, and continuing research on them was forced underground. Renata herself is an agent who runs communications between a small splinter cell within the Org. She is in charge of making sure that the secret laboratories stay functional and hidden. Communications are handled through a very specific shade of paint, Tiffany Teal, and in small personal groups to avoid widespread uncovering of the group’s activities. However, Renata is sure there is a mole within her cell, and it’s up to her to make sure the offender is found before real damage is done.
I will be honest, it’s very hard to write about a book like this. If you have read some of my reviews over time, you’ll know I often try to parse through the work and talk about the author’s handling of their more overt themes, focusing on the characters and the development of the theme throughout the book. Sea Change is weird to me because I think Kress handles the themes very well in terms of overall portrayal; she does not beat around the bush when it comes to instilling a specific message. Kress presents facts in such a bare and blatant manner it’s hard to look away. However, I had trouble reconciling this with the rest of the story as portions of it fell flat from a narrative perspective. Chiefly, I had issues with the main character Renata Black.
Renata Black never felt like a full character to me. Part of that might be an issue with the book’s length, but I felt as though a lot of it stemmed from her development. A lot of her dialogue is delivered in a straightforward and factual manner. Every event within her life has a cause and effect stated very plainly through the narration, and very often her interactions with people felt transactional. There is a distinct lack of internal life that felt disruptive and weird. This could have been interesting if Renata herself had something to hide, or she was ashamed of something she was defensive about. It inhabited this weird space where she was talking to the reader and monologuing to herself, but never really accomplishing either. In some ways, there was a lurking sense of depression, but it never really solidified. When she became suspicious of those around her, it just fell flat. I was not in her head, feeling her concerns. While Renata’s life and choices were interesting and daring on paper, I never felt like she was in danger. There was no thrill or anxiety, but neither was there the confidence that comes with experience. The only times I really felt her come through were when she dealt with the people of the Quinault Indian Nation, but even these sections though had a perfunctory vibe to them.
That being said, I think Kress handles science in this book with a level reverence I rarely see. She spends time teaching the reader about the facts and engages with the arguments for and against the topic at hand. Kress does not get overly detailed to a point that turns the reader off, and she employs a laser-like focus when it’s necessary to press a point home. When she describes incredibly weird things within genetic traits that could cause massive problems or be enormous boons, it never feels like a lecture. Kress disengages from the usual “technology good/bad,” and instead contemplates who stands to benefit and who should be making decisions regarding the use of GMOs. It never feels like a clever “both sides” argument either as Kress shows that ordinary everyday people are most often hurt. Power discrepancies are rarely shown in this subtle, but unforgiving way and Kress handles it incredibly well. I particularly enjoyed this “fight with what you have” mentality that was imbued within the different members of the Org and the Quinault Nation. Even though we did not get to see much of the side characters, we at least got to see their strengths and callings be emphasized within their roles.In the rebel groups, everyone was necessary regardless of skill or ability, which felt incredibly important to highlight in the times we are currently living in.
If you’re looking for a book with a targeted message as well as an engaging and educational discussion of a real-world topic, Sea Change is definitely for you. However, if you’re looking for a thriller that tries to balance all of the plates while doing the above, I think this book falls a little short. It’s a decent narrative representation of the dangers and benefits of GMOs, but it can be tough if you don’t buy into Renata Black. Overall, I’m glad I read it, and I look forward to more of Kress’s work because of this.
Rating: Sea Change: 7.0/10
–Alex
Nancy Kress has been on my to-read list for a while. She has a weight to her name, especially when it comes to her treatment of genetics and bio-engineering. I have not made my way to her earlier works yet, but I was presented with an opportunity to read Sea Change, and I decided that something new could be a good entry point. Sea Change is a short read with overt themes, forcing readers to ponder the use of genetically modified foods in preparation for climate change. While I think it handles that discussion with care, I was not entirely enamored with the characters or the story itself.
Sea Change is told through the perspective of Renata Black, an agent of the Org, an underground group of environmental activists, scientists, and farmers who are secretly working on GMO variants of food. After a biopharmaceutical company caused The Catastrophe, GMOs were banned in the United States, and continuing research on them was forced underground. Renata herself is an agent who runs communications between a small splinter cell within the Org. She is in charge of making sure that the secret laboratories stay functional and hidden. Communications are handled through a very specific shade of paint, Tiffany Teal, and in small personal groups to avoid widespread uncovering of the group’s activities. However, Renata is sure there is a mole within her cell, and it’s up to her to make sure the offender is found before real damage is done.
I will be honest, it’s very hard to write about a book like this. If you have read some of my reviews over time, you’ll know I often try to parse through the work and talk about the author’s handling of their more overt themes, focusing on the characters and the development of the theme throughout the book. Sea Change is weird to me because I think Kress handles the themes very well in terms of overall portrayal; she does not beat around the bush when it comes to instilling a specific message. Kress presents facts in such a bare and blatant manner it’s hard to look away. However, I had trouble reconciling this with the rest of the story as portions of it fell flat from a narrative perspective. Chiefly, I had issues with the main character Renata Black.
Renata Black never felt like a full character to me. Part of that might be an issue with the book’s length, but I felt as though a lot of it stemmed from her development. A lot of her dialogue is delivered in a straightforward and factual manner. Every event within her life has a cause and effect stated very plainly through the narration, and very often her interactions with people felt transactional. There is a distinct lack of internal life that felt disruptive and weird. This could have been interesting if Renata herself had something to hide, or she was ashamed of something she was defensive about. It inhabited this weird space where she was talking to the reader and monologuing to herself, but never really accomplishing either. In some ways, there was a lurking sense of depression, but it never really solidified. When she became suspicious of those around her, it just fell flat. I was not in her head, feeling her concerns. While Renata’s life and choices were interesting and daring on paper, I never felt like she was in danger. There was no thrill or anxiety, but neither was there the confidence that comes with experience. The only times I really felt her come through were when she dealt with the people of the Quinault Indian Nation, but even these sections though had a perfunctory vibe to them.
That being said, I think Kress handles science in this book with a level reverence I rarely see. She spends time teaching the reader about the facts and engages with the arguments for and against the topic at hand. Kress does not get overly detailed to a point that turns the reader off, and she employs a laser-like focus when it’s necessary to press a point home. When she describes incredibly weird things within genetic traits that could cause massive problems or be enormous boons, it never feels like a lecture. Kress disengages from the usual “technology good/bad,” and instead contemplates who stands to benefit and who should be making decisions regarding the use of GMOs. It never feels like a clever “both sides” argument either as Kress shows that ordinary everyday people are most often hurt. Power discrepancies are rarely shown in this subtle, but unforgiving way and Kress handles it incredibly well. I particularly enjoyed this “fight with what you have” mentality that was imbued within the different members of the Org and the Quinault Nation. Even though we did not get to see much of the side characters, we at least got to see their strengths and callings be emphasized within their roles.In the rebel groups, everyone was necessary regardless of skill or ability, which felt incredibly important to highlight in the times we are currently living in.
If you’re looking for a book with a targeted message as well as an engaging and educational discussion of a real-world topic, Sea Change is definitely for you. However, if you’re looking for a thriller that tries to balance all of the plates while doing the above, I think this book falls a little short. It’s a decent narrative representation of the dangers and benefits of GMOs, but it can be tough if you don’t buy into Renata Black. Overall, I’m glad I read it, and I look forward to more of Kress’s work because of this.
Rating: Sea Change: 7.0/10
–Alex
October 22, 2020
I picked this up after seeing the author speak at a virtual convention. It intrigued me, because it is hard science fiction about a field in which I used to work: plant genetic engineering. Upon reading it, I find even more connections to my old life--one of the key goals mentioned many times in the text is engineering plants for disease resistance without agrochemicals, and that had been my goal for ten years of my life. (I soon learned a whole lot of basic science needed doing first, and I had to leave the field before I could implement any of the ideas that came out of my basic science.) Moreover, algal blooms also play a prominent role in this story, and I spent part of the last three years of my science career working on toxic algae. All this is to say that it's unlikely anyone has reviewed this book who is as qualified to comment on the science as I am, so I'll do that first before jumping into the characters, plot, etc.
Overall, she does an excellent job with plausibility. The goals of the scientists in the latest parts of the timeline were similar to goals of academic plant biotech in the 90s, and generally no more ambitious or less feasible than the academics' plans were (sans politics that killed them). The algal biotech uses approaches not possible today but feasible on the timeline she envisions, at least in my opinion. The small details rang true.
Except for two things. (1) These scientists making transgenic plants weren't making final products that could be grown on a large scale. Kress neglected the role of plant breeders. Transformed plants are generally not in an ideal genetic background, and often, you need multiple backgrounds: some corn seeds are specialized for specific regions of Iowa. The engineered traits would have to be bred into a background with good agronomics and other desirable traits. With molecular-assisted breeding (by that time, aided by whole genome sequencing), this would be faster than it is historically, but it would still be an inescapable step, and it isn't plausible that these centers had tech ready to go without ever interacting with a plant breeder. (2) The Catastrophe, the central event of backstory, is implausible. It wouldn't have happened. Kress admits it needed a series of events, each wildly implausible but not impossible. However, it also would have required a regulatory affairs division of the company responsible for the key product to be absent. That division does the experiments needed to get FDA approval of every step. The product responsible for the Catastrophe would have been flagged. I find this to be the one big event in this book that keeps it from being plausible hard SF.
However, as a reader, I don't give a damn. The POV character was engaging. She had enough complexity to her storyline to have me truly bond with her. The various levels of human intrigue were plenty to get my mind rolling on trying to anticipate plot twists (that I didn't anticipate). The mother-son angle, the husband-wife angle, the woman-on-a-mission angle: all very strong. It's a page turner--I read it in about four hours.
The politics at the end sounded believable (and again, I have some cred in saying this--among other things, I once debated Greenpeace's spokesman for GMO issues on national radio). The uncertain outcome was wise--it is a big unknown. And it leaves the possibility open for a sequel.
If Kress writes it, I'll read it. I'd love to spend more time with her POV character.
Strongly recommended.
Overall, she does an excellent job with plausibility. The goals of the scientists in the latest parts of the timeline were similar to goals of academic plant biotech in the 90s, and generally no more ambitious or less feasible than the academics' plans were (sans politics that killed them). The algal biotech uses approaches not possible today but feasible on the timeline she envisions, at least in my opinion. The small details rang true.
Except for two things. (1) These scientists making transgenic plants weren't making final products that could be grown on a large scale. Kress neglected the role of plant breeders. Transformed plants are generally not in an ideal genetic background, and often, you need multiple backgrounds: some corn seeds are specialized for specific regions of Iowa. The engineered traits would have to be bred into a background with good agronomics and other desirable traits. With molecular-assisted breeding (by that time, aided by whole genome sequencing), this would be faster than it is historically, but it would still be an inescapable step, and it isn't plausible that these centers had tech ready to go without ever interacting with a plant breeder. (2) The Catastrophe, the central event of backstory, is implausible. It wouldn't have happened. Kress admits it needed a series of events, each wildly implausible but not impossible. However, it also would have required a regulatory affairs division of the company responsible for the key product to be absent. That division does the experiments needed to get FDA approval of every step. The product responsible for the Catastrophe would have been flagged. I find this to be the one big event in this book that keeps it from being plausible hard SF.
However, as a reader, I don't give a damn. The POV character was engaging. She had enough complexity to her storyline to have me truly bond with her. The various levels of human intrigue were plenty to get my mind rolling on trying to anticipate plot twists (that I didn't anticipate). The mother-son angle, the husband-wife angle, the woman-on-a-mission angle: all very strong. It's a page turner--I read it in about four hours.
The politics at the end sounded believable (and again, I have some cred in saying this--among other things, I once debated Greenpeace's spokesman for GMO issues on national radio). The uncertain outcome was wise--it is a big unknown. And it leaves the possibility open for a sequel.
If Kress writes it, I'll read it. I'd love to spend more time with her POV character.
Strongly recommended.
May 23, 2020
I'm grateful to Tachyon for providing me with an advance e-copy of Sea Change.
In a near-future USA, beset by economic difficulties and climate collapse, Renata is an agent for a mysterious opposition group, the Org. Seeing the Org's identification mark - a particular shade of paint - on a vehicle, she steps in to handle what may be a major breach in security.
The fact that the "vehicle" is a self-propelled GPS guided house makes the opening sentence ('The house was clearly lost') one of the weirdest I've recently come across. That is, though, the only fantastical aspect to this deeply convincing fable. As we get deeper into Renata's - she is the narrator of the story - life, we learn about the catastrophe that has ruined the US: basically a bit of GM-gone -wrong. The explanation of that is wholly convincing, as also the political consequences (a drastic turn against GM, meaning that Renata's "rebel" group is pro GM and determined to do it right, against the desire of most of the population. Their agenda is to combat rising sea levels, temperatures and hunger. In age when 'anything can be hacked' they operate like spies from the 1940s, all dead letter boxes, recognition signs and absolutely no tech.
That was quite a lot for me to swallow, being instinctively suspicious of GM technology, but that didn't prove a barrier to falling into, and enjoying, this book. There is so much here to enjoy. Wrapped up with Kress's story of how the world went bad there's a tender, infuriating, on-off love story between Renata and her ex-husband Jake, an actor: Kress really captures that can't-be-together, can't-be-apart thing that haunts some couples (in one place, early in the chronology, Renata compares Jake to Richard Burton: fateful, given his and Elizabeth Taylor's stormy relationship).
There's a narrative of Native rights (or perhaps I should say wrongs) - Renata's cover identity, protecting her as a courier for the Org, as as a lawyer taking large pro-bone cases for Native Americans and through her voice Kress narrates the legal bind in which they find themselves when seeking justice (whether defending themselves or prosecuting those from outside who wrong them). There's also a tragic strand about a young boy whose death is tied up with the environmental themes heres.
It's a lot to pack into 192 pages and that inevitably means there are places where the narration has to fill us in on those legal niceties, or a decade of economic turmoil, or the highs and lows of Renata's and Jake's relationship. Yet the narrative drive and the interest never flag, and there's a genuine sense of jeopardy here right till the last page - as well as a mystery concerning Renata's cell in the Org.
The book also has some sharp writing and insights. 'Minutes nailed by', for example, or 'Childhood doesn't really end until both your parents die' or 'It isn't the past that creates the future. It's how you interpret the past.' Or - and getting his back to the point - 'Anyone who would trust online celebrity sites would believe in leprechauns, elves and the wholesomeness of high-fructose corn syrup'.
All in all a plausible future, credible, relatable characters and a great deal to think about in this one. I'd strongly recommend.
In a near-future USA, beset by economic difficulties and climate collapse, Renata is an agent for a mysterious opposition group, the Org. Seeing the Org's identification mark - a particular shade of paint - on a vehicle, she steps in to handle what may be a major breach in security.
The fact that the "vehicle" is a self-propelled GPS guided house makes the opening sentence ('The house was clearly lost') one of the weirdest I've recently come across. That is, though, the only fantastical aspect to this deeply convincing fable. As we get deeper into Renata's - she is the narrator of the story - life, we learn about the catastrophe that has ruined the US: basically a bit of GM-gone -wrong. The explanation of that is wholly convincing, as also the political consequences (a drastic turn against GM, meaning that Renata's "rebel" group is pro GM and determined to do it right, against the desire of most of the population. Their agenda is to combat rising sea levels, temperatures and hunger. In age when 'anything can be hacked' they operate like spies from the 1940s, all dead letter boxes, recognition signs and absolutely no tech.
That was quite a lot for me to swallow, being instinctively suspicious of GM technology, but that didn't prove a barrier to falling into, and enjoying, this book. There is so much here to enjoy. Wrapped up with Kress's story of how the world went bad there's a tender, infuriating, on-off love story between Renata and her ex-husband Jake, an actor: Kress really captures that can't-be-together, can't-be-apart thing that haunts some couples (in one place, early in the chronology, Renata compares Jake to Richard Burton: fateful, given his and Elizabeth Taylor's stormy relationship).
There's a narrative of Native rights (or perhaps I should say wrongs) - Renata's cover identity, protecting her as a courier for the Org, as as a lawyer taking large pro-bone cases for Native Americans and through her voice Kress narrates the legal bind in which they find themselves when seeking justice (whether defending themselves or prosecuting those from outside who wrong them). There's also a tragic strand about a young boy whose death is tied up with the environmental themes heres.
It's a lot to pack into 192 pages and that inevitably means there are places where the narration has to fill us in on those legal niceties, or a decade of economic turmoil, or the highs and lows of Renata's and Jake's relationship. Yet the narrative drive and the interest never flag, and there's a genuine sense of jeopardy here right till the last page - as well as a mystery concerning Renata's cell in the Org.
The book also has some sharp writing and insights. 'Minutes nailed by', for example, or 'Childhood doesn't really end until both your parents die' or 'It isn't the past that creates the future. It's how you interpret the past.' Or - and getting his back to the point - 'Anyone who would trust online celebrity sites would believe in leprechauns, elves and the wholesomeness of high-fructose corn syrup'.
All in all a plausible future, credible, relatable characters and a great deal to think about in this one. I'd strongly recommend.
May 21, 2020
***3.5 Stars rounded up***
I received a complimentary ARC copy Sea Change by Nancy Kress from NetGalley & Tachyon Publications in order to read and give an honest review.
To give the author credit, the book is well-written, clever and the author does write realistic, multifaceted and mature characters ...
This was the first work of fiction I have read from Nancy Kress. In the past I had read her non-fiction books on writing as part of a workshop I had taken and really enjoyed them. I was really looking forward to reading this novella and although well-written in many ways, it just wasn’t what I expected. Coined a bio-thriller, although interesting wasn’t as dynamic or “thrilling” as advertised. The author bases an espionage story around the benefits of GMO’s over traditional agriculture but much of it felt like a huge info dump interspersed with an interesting mystery and very character driven story. To give the author credit, the book is well-written, clever and she does write realistic, multifaceted and mature characters.
The Protagonist, Renata Black is driven by her beliefs, all her life she has been championing for good, always looking for a cause even to the point of ruining her marriage to her Hollywood bound husband. When her son dies because of a water issue attributed to agricultural run-off she makes promoting GMO’s her new mission.
Set in the future, an incident ten years prior involving an bio-pharmaceutical incident resulting the deaths of children causes major GMO companies to disappear and agriculture with pesticides and fertilizers to become the norm. Looking for a cause to help her deal with her grief of losing her son she joins “The Org” as operative Caroline Denton. The Org, a pro-GMO, ultra-secretive , underground organization is working to bring back GMO's to reduce starvation and ecological disasters around the world. When not working as an operative as Renata she works as a paralegal for a lawyer prosecuting rape cases for the Quinault reservation, where her son passed away.
The story opens with Caroline getting to investigate a runaway self-driving house blocking traffic and its operator/owner believed to be an Org operative is missing, and it appears to be the result of a mole in “The Org”. When a splinter cell gets raided and her name becomes known, Caroline/Renata is hunted by the government and labelled a terrorist.
The hunt for the missing operator, a case involving the rape of a Quinault teenager and her grief over losing her son are the plot-lines running through this novella, but they all felt overshadowed by too many info dumps revolving around GMO’s which in my opinion took away from the story of this short novella. Reading is subjective and although I found Sea Change hard to immerse myself in, doesn't mean it won't be appreciated by someone else.
I received a complimentary ARC copy Sea Change by Nancy Kress from NetGalley & Tachyon Publications in order to read and give an honest review.
To give the author credit, the book is well-written, clever and the author does write realistic, multifaceted and mature characters ...
This was the first work of fiction I have read from Nancy Kress. In the past I had read her non-fiction books on writing as part of a workshop I had taken and really enjoyed them. I was really looking forward to reading this novella and although well-written in many ways, it just wasn’t what I expected. Coined a bio-thriller, although interesting wasn’t as dynamic or “thrilling” as advertised. The author bases an espionage story around the benefits of GMO’s over traditional agriculture but much of it felt like a huge info dump interspersed with an interesting mystery and very character driven story. To give the author credit, the book is well-written, clever and she does write realistic, multifaceted and mature characters.
The Protagonist, Renata Black is driven by her beliefs, all her life she has been championing for good, always looking for a cause even to the point of ruining her marriage to her Hollywood bound husband. When her son dies because of a water issue attributed to agricultural run-off she makes promoting GMO’s her new mission.
Set in the future, an incident ten years prior involving an bio-pharmaceutical incident resulting the deaths of children causes major GMO companies to disappear and agriculture with pesticides and fertilizers to become the norm. Looking for a cause to help her deal with her grief of losing her son she joins “The Org” as operative Caroline Denton. The Org, a pro-GMO, ultra-secretive , underground organization is working to bring back GMO's to reduce starvation and ecological disasters around the world. When not working as an operative as Renata she works as a paralegal for a lawyer prosecuting rape cases for the Quinault reservation, where her son passed away.
The story opens with Caroline getting to investigate a runaway self-driving house blocking traffic and its operator/owner believed to be an Org operative is missing, and it appears to be the result of a mole in “The Org”. When a splinter cell gets raided and her name becomes known, Caroline/Renata is hunted by the government and labelled a terrorist.
The hunt for the missing operator, a case involving the rape of a Quinault teenager and her grief over losing her son are the plot-lines running through this novella, but they all felt overshadowed by too many info dumps revolving around GMO’s which in my opinion took away from the story of this short novella. Reading is subjective and although I found Sea Change hard to immerse myself in, doesn't mean it won't be appreciated by someone else.
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