Review: Commonwealth Saga, by Peter F. Hamilton
The Commonwealth Saga is published in two halves, Pandora's Star and Judas Unchained. These two books could be put into several categories, but I think space opera is the most appropriate. If you don't know what space opera is, then these books are probably not for you.
In a nutshell, the Commonwealth Saga is this: In the distant future, humans have proliferated through the galaxy through wormholes when they stumble upon super hostile aliens and then depend mostly on a terrorist group and super old hippies to save civilization.
That might be an oversimplification, but if you're forced to give an elevator pitch to a distracted publishing agent, that's basically what you're left with. If there's one thing I like in this world, it is irony. And oversimplifying an epic like the Commonwealth Saga in 35 words or less, followed by a review in 400 words or less... well, it's ironic and fun. Note: the two books average about 800 pages each - quite large.
The good: This is a big story. I love a big story that I can submerse myself in for a long time, with lots of characters, locales, and plot twists. I also enjoyed some of the sociological implications of having wormholes that allow us to expand to other habitable worlds, only to have each one develop completely differently while still being part of the overall civilization. The ongoing mysteries were fun, the character collisions were amusing and the science part of the fiction was intriguing. Bravo.
The bad: I can totally understand how the anachronisms in the books can be explained, but I still don't like them. I don't like the idea of people driving a '57 Chevy in the year 2380, when they have neural implants, biogenesis, wormholes, hyperspace, robotech suits, etc. And who would still be smoking tobacco? Stop it. Moving on, I would have also preferred better section or chapter breaks. Everything was kinda just jammed together, which didn't accomplish anything good. Lastly, I know it's difficult to really resolve every single thread in a story this complex, but I can still complain that it felt open-ended. See? Just did it.
Bottom line: If you like PFH, or crave space opera, the Commonwealth Saga is worth the slog. Otherwise, tread at your own peril. I myself give it 3 of 5 stars.
Product link: Pandora's Star
