Transgalactic

March 7, 2016
Gunn's sequel to Transcendental starts in medias res with very little explanation of what has gone before. His protagonists, Riley and Asha, citizens of a galaxy-spanning federation, have been "translated" to separate worlds. Riley goes to a violent jungle planet whose carnivorous, dinosaur-like inhabitants immediately take him for a god. Asha is greeted by small, Eloi-like humanoids who insist they live utopian lives. Neither alien species has space travel. The protagonists try not to let these experiences distract them from their quests: Riley to kill the prophet of a philosophy called Transcendentalism, and Asha to achieve something even more mysterious. Having been rendered virtually superhuman by their translation, both humans soon find ways to escape their planets, searching for each other and purusing their individual goals. Gunn has written an old-fashioned and deeply philosophical space opera. The pace of this middle book sometimes lags, and it never really comes to a satisfying conclusion, but it should nonetheless particularly appeal to fans of Arthur C. Clarke who are willing to wait and see what happens in book three.

January 1, 2016
Sequel to what was possibly Gunn's best ever, Transcendental (2013)--and second of a projected trilogy. Previously, we learned that a galactic civilization, comprising Johnny-come-lately humans and many alien species, mostly tries to avoid war and get on with business despite the stultifying bureaucracy that seems to run things. War veteran Riley's powerful and mysterious employers required him to prevent aliens from achieving transcendence through the agency of an ancient alien machine. Among Riley's fellow travelers was Asha, a human female with inexplicable capabilities. When after great trials Riley and Asha finally reached the Transcendental Machine, they found it instead to be a matter-transmission device, one that transmits only a being's essence, leaving the flaws behind. Now, having been "translated" by the machine, Riley and Asha possess superior intellectual and physical powers but find themselves on separate planets, in unknown locations, with no means to communicate. Riley, deposited on a jungle planet inhabited by stone-age carnivorous dinosaurs, discovers an ancient spaceship left by the machine builders and sets off, determined to find Asha and learn who his erstwhile employers are and what they intend. In alternate chapters, Asha, transmitted to a planet inhabited by tiny, seemingly sexless humanoids, borrows a ship from the elephantlike Dorians, who fortunately maintain an embassy there, and heads into space intending to find Riley and learn who's really controlling the Federation council and why they're enforcing mediocrity and risk avoidance. Both threads peter out. The creamy-smooth narrative, emphasizing the smothering sense of bland predictability, serves simply to inch the plot toward the final installment. Transcendental was a very tough act to follow, and, not altogether unexpectedly, Gunn falters.

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March 15, 2016

In this follow-up to Transcendental, Riley and Asha have gone through the Transcendental Machine. The device gave them powers beyond most humans, but left them separated on different planets. Now the two try to find each other.--MM

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2016
In the follow-up to Transcendental (2014), Gunn follows the continuing story of lovers and adventurers Riley and Asha. Having successfully entered the Transcendence Machine, a matter transportation device that also transforms its users physically and mentally, the couple must now try and seek each other out after being randomly transported to opposite ends of the galaxy. Their quest takes place in an accomplished if traditional space opera setting, with the genre's hallmarks of well-realized alien cultures, powerful AIs, and easy interstellar travel. Dialogue can occasionally feel dry or expositional, but with the narrative's focus on ideas and social systemsparticularly on Asha's convictions about the need to transform galactic societythis doesn't seem out of place. While an enjoyable read on its own, some characters as well as the history of Riley and Asha's relationship and quest may seem mysterious to those who have not read the earlier novel. All in all, of interest to most readers, and those looking for more classic exercises in the genre may particularly enjoy it.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)