"Exciting Retrieval Artist novel"
In the far distant future, the moon and Mars have been
colonized although the red planet is controlled by the
alien Disty. All the different alien and human species
belong to the federation and each member must obey all the
laws of all the species or suffer the consequences. On
mars the dead body of a human is found when the Disty are
excavating the ground; according to their laws they are
contaminated and blame the humans for what they think is
their deliberate deception. Aisha Costard, forensic anthropologist, comes from Earth
to Mars to examine the body before traveling to Armstrong
Dome on the moon to meet the retrieval artist Miles Flint
in the hopes that he can identify the corpse so that the
Disty can perform the decontamination rituals. On Mars, a
mass grave is found underneath where the skeleton was
found. The Ditsy go berserk tearing the planet apart in
order to find a place to live. Miles looks for a solution
that will end the possibility of war between the humans
and the Disty knowing if he fails, humanity will be
slaughtered. Kristine Kathryn Rusch has written another exciting
Retrieval Artist novel that reveals to readers much of the
cultural mindset of an alien species. The negotiations and
diplomatic maneuvering of the two races to avoid an all
out conflict is similar to the 1970s roundtable Viet Nam
negotiations. Miles is an important character seeking the
solution to the problem but there are other prime
protagonists who have an even bigger role in dealing with
the Disty. The audience will find this science fiction
mystery an excellent who-done-it due to the prominent role
the aliens play. Reviewed by Harriet Klausner
Posted May 2, 2005
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted January 25, 2007
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