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Innerverse
Twenty years after the eastern third of the United States is mysteriously cut off and transformed into a police state of passive humans ruled by a ominous technology, agent Frank Sutter becomes the region's only hope. Original.
- GenresScience Fiction
249 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 1996
71 people want to read
About the author
John DeChancie
55 books109 followersFrom his website:
John DeChancie is the author of over two dozen books, fiction and nonfiction, and has written for periodicals as widely varied as Penthouse and Cult Movies. His novels in the science fiction and fantasy genres have been attracting a wide readership for more than fifteen years, and over a million copies of his books have seen print, many in foreign languages.
John's first work was Starrigger (Berkley/Ace ,1984), followed by Red Limit Freeway (1985) and Paradox Alley (1987), completing the Skyway Trilogy, one of the most imaginative, mind-expanding series in science fiction. Beloved of SF readers around the world, the trilogy has become a cult classic. It is no exaggeration to say that the trilogy has found a place in the hearts of readers along with the works of Heinlein, Asimov, and Clarke. Jerry Pournelle, co-author with Larry Niven of the classics The Mote in God's Eye and Lucifer's Hammer, has compared the series to the best of A. E. van Vogt, and better written. The convoluted plot takes the reader on a mind-bending journey to the end of the universe and back.
His humorous fantasy series, beginning with Castle Perilous, became a best seller for Berkley/Ace. William Morrow published MagicNet, which Booklist said was "a welcome sigh of comic relief ... shamelessly droll, literate, and thoroughly entertaining. Magicnet is the fantasy genre's whimsical answer to Neuromancer." He has also written in the horror genre. His short fiction has appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and in numerous original anthologies, the latest of which is Spell Fantastic. His story collection, Other States of Being, was recently published by Pulpless.com, Inc., an online and print-on-demand publisher.
He currently lives in Los Angeles and is at work writing novels, articles, short stories, and screenplays. His latest book was the short story collection THE LITTLE GRAY BOOK OF ALIEN STORIES published by Borderlands Press. John's most recent short story publication was in the original anthology SPACE CADETS, edited by Mike Resnick and published by LAcon IV, the 64th World Science Fiction Convention. The book was published in both limited and trade hardback editions. The book is available here . He has just completed a mystery novel and information on this new book (something different from anything he has ever written) is forthcoming. He will also have two new film articles in the second big issue of the new cult film magazine MONDO CULT, also forthcoming.
John DeChancie is the author of over two dozen books, fiction and nonfiction, and has written for periodicals as widely varied as Penthouse and Cult Movies. His novels in the science fiction and fantasy genres have been attracting a wide readership for more than fifteen years, and over a million copies of his books have seen print, many in foreign languages.
John's first work was Starrigger (Berkley/Ace ,1984), followed by Red Limit Freeway (1985) and Paradox Alley (1987), completing the Skyway Trilogy, one of the most imaginative, mind-expanding series in science fiction. Beloved of SF readers around the world, the trilogy has become a cult classic. It is no exaggeration to say that the trilogy has found a place in the hearts of readers along with the works of Heinlein, Asimov, and Clarke. Jerry Pournelle, co-author with Larry Niven of the classics The Mote in God's Eye and Lucifer's Hammer, has compared the series to the best of A. E. van Vogt, and better written. The convoluted plot takes the reader on a mind-bending journey to the end of the universe and back.
His humorous fantasy series, beginning with Castle Perilous, became a best seller for Berkley/Ace. William Morrow published MagicNet, which Booklist said was "a welcome sigh of comic relief ... shamelessly droll, literate, and thoroughly entertaining. Magicnet is the fantasy genre's whimsical answer to Neuromancer." He has also written in the horror genre. His short fiction has appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and in numerous original anthologies, the latest of which is Spell Fantastic. His story collection, Other States of Being, was recently published by Pulpless.com, Inc., an online and print-on-demand publisher.
He currently lives in Los Angeles and is at work writing novels, articles, short stories, and screenplays. His latest book was the short story collection THE LITTLE GRAY BOOK OF ALIEN STORIES published by Borderlands Press. John's most recent short story publication was in the original anthology SPACE CADETS, edited by Mike Resnick and published by LAcon IV, the 64th World Science Fiction Convention. The book was published in both limited and trade hardback editions. The book is available here . He has just completed a mystery novel and information on this new book (something different from anything he has ever written) is forthcoming. He will also have two new film articles in the second big issue of the new cult film magazine MONDO CULT, also forthcoming.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 12, 2009
The writing is rather oddly simplistic considering the very adult nature of some of the events and most of the themes in the book. Because of that, I kept expecting there to be something underlying the action that the audience was being kept unaware of... but the plot played out in a fairly straightforward manner. As much as I love John DeChancie's other works, I'm not sure I'd recommend this one.
July 8, 2011
If you love bad movies - and I'm talking MST3K bad - then you'll love this book. Laughable dialogue, non-dimensional characters and ridiculous writing. One of the few books that has literally made me laugh out loud at least once a chapter.
March 15, 2012
This was an intriguing story, but I felt that the ending was a bit of a letdown, rushed in order to tie up everything in too few pages.
The basic premise is that the U.S. has mostly fallen apart, due to a storm of crises. A strange religious movement has swept Mexico, which is staging a guerrilla war in order to gain back the territory lost in the Mexican-American War. This has absolutely nothing to do with the main story, which turns it into a really elaborate throw-away.
The real story is about the eastern seaboard having been taken over by a mysterious authoritarian government with no visible center to it, no spokesman or leader. Oddly, this situation has been this way for years by the start of Innerverse. The story's protagonist is sent in to try to find out what the heck is going on, and of course things do not go smoothly. He encounters Innerverse, a nano-tech utopia gone horribly wrong. Technology which could have been used to free humanity from disease and material want is instead being used to control their every action...for their own good, of course.
The story is interesting, but its problems come from the use of historical cliches that don't quite make sense. Why does so little of the production reach the people? That seems to be a commentary on pre-collapse Soviety Union economics, but it seems like a poor fit. Also, the control system, as described, seemed like it would be less effective the less sane you are, and totally useless on sociopaths or anyone with a skewed sense of right and wrong.
Still, the villain is remarkably creepy, and his motivations are a pretty good case for the danger of good intentions.
The basic premise is that the U.S. has mostly fallen apart, due to a storm of crises. A strange religious movement has swept Mexico, which is staging a guerrilla war in order to gain back the territory lost in the Mexican-American War. This has absolutely nothing to do with the main story, which turns it into a really elaborate throw-away.
The real story is about the eastern seaboard having been taken over by a mysterious authoritarian government with no visible center to it, no spokesman or leader. Oddly, this situation has been this way for years by the start of Innerverse. The story's protagonist is sent in to try to find out what the heck is going on, and of course things do not go smoothly. He encounters Innerverse, a nano-tech utopia gone horribly wrong. Technology which could have been used to free humanity from disease and material want is instead being used to control their every action...for their own good, of course.
The story is interesting, but its problems come from the use of historical cliches that don't quite make sense. Why does so little of the production reach the people? That seems to be a commentary on pre-collapse Soviety Union economics, but it seems like a poor fit. Also, the control system, as described, seemed like it would be less effective the less sane you are, and totally useless on sociopaths or anyone with a skewed sense of right and wrong.
Still, the villain is remarkably creepy, and his motivations are a pretty good case for the danger of good intentions.
September 2, 2012
This would have been a lot better if he hadn't copied the first half almost word for word from his own Castle book. Or it might be the other way around. Talk about lazy!
August 3, 2016
Entertaining. Chilling. Thought provoking. Really enjoyed this one.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews