Artefact

February 15, 2016

Capt. Conrad Harris commands an elite squad in the SOP (Simulant Operations Programme). He and his team link to remote avatars who fight battles in situations no other soldier could survive. Of course, the simulants don't usually survive either, but they tend to take out a number of the enemy Krell before they die. Harris has perished so many times in his simulant bodies that others have started calling him Lazarus. Chosen to go deep into Krell space to check on a science station observing an alien artifact that might be the key to defeating the Krell, Harris and company are soon fighting for their lives in their own skins. VERDICT The use of remote bodies has been done before (the film Avatar for example), but debut author Sawyer digs into the psychic damage simulant operators like Harris suffer from by dying repeatedly. While at times the dialog is a bit cliched, the novel works best with its action and battle scenes. For fans of Robert Heinlein, John Scalzi, and Joe Haldeman.--MM

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