Spectrum (novel)

Last updated
Spectrum
SpectrumCover.png
Author Sergei Lukyanenko
Original titleSpectr, Спектр (Russian)
Country Russia
Language Russian
Genre Science fiction
Publisher AST
Publication date
2002
Media typePrint (Hardback)
Pages490
ISBN 5-17-014364-8
OCLC 51150595

Spectrum is a science fiction novel by Russian writer Sergei Lukyanenko, taking place in the near future. Contact with aliens allowed humanity to travel between planets through portals. The Keymaster civilization not only provides new technologies to the world but also makes sure that their conditions are fulfilled to the letter: unrestricted access to the Gates for all who are willing. Payment for their use is an unusual story told to a Keymaster by the traveler. The main character of the novel is a private investigator who solves his clients' problems on other planets.

Contents

His main strength is his ability to make up the necessary stories needed to gain passage to alien worlds. This earned him the nickname "the Walker" from those who know of him.

Plot summary

His life changes when a wealthy man walks into his office and asks him to find his missing daughter. After a short investigation, the Walker finds her on Library - a world full of ancient ruins. Before he can bring her back, however, she dies in a freak accident. A clue leads him to another alien planet where he finds her alive and well. Soon he discovers that the same woman exists on several other worlds, each is connected to the other. One by one, they are killed in seemingly random, totally unrelated events. It is to the Walker's great surprise when he finds himself becoming attracted to his client's daughter. It's a race against time, as the Walker desperately tries to save the identical copies of the woman, only to have them die in his arms. Can he save the last one before she perishes and, in the process, uncover a massive conspiracy going back thousands of years with the Keymasters in the middle?

Features

Each of the 7 parts of the novel starts with a word of the Russian mnemonic (see Roy G. Biv) which helps to remember the spectrum colors: "Kazhdy Okhotnik Zhalaet Znatj Gde Sidit Fazan" (Every hunter wants to know where a pheasant sits; K - Krasny, red; O - oranzevy, orange; Zh - zholty, yellow; Z - zelyony, green; G - goluboy, blue; S - siniy, indigo; F - fioletovy, violet). Each part includes something on food, cooking and gourmet ideas. Each planet has something of the corresponding color (e.g., the Preria features orange sky and the first human met by the Walker, is a red, even orange-covered kid). In the Orange part, there appears a "cowboy" whose name is not revealed but it's hidden in the paragraph describing him; by reading only capital letters you get the name "Semetskiy" (for several years, Russian and Ukraininan SF writers included a character of this name who had to be killed in this or that way. The real Semetskiy is a well known Russian SF fan, works in book selling business and a good friend of Sergey Lukianenko and many other writers.)

Planets

The main character visits 7 alien planets (8, including the Keymasters' homeworld) throughout the novel, one in each chapter.

Library

This planet is not a home to any native race. The entire world is made up of many rocky islands, separated by thin canals. Each of those islands features from one to several hundred stone obelisks. There is a letter written on each obelisk. Library is home to about a thousand sentients, 300 of them being human. Most of these are scientists, engaged in futile attempts to decipher the alien writings on the obelisks. Many of these are unable to return home, as they lack storytelling skills. The only forms of native life are three species of algae and nine species of marine animals, living in canals. All of these are inedible and non-aggressive.

Prairie II

This planet was colonized by the United States and appears to be an idealized version of the American Old West. It is populated by over 20,000 colonists. However, it is also home to a native race of sentient humanoids (called Indians by the colonists), who live in a primitive agrarian society.

Arank

Homeworld of the humanoid Aranks, who are physically indistinguishable from humans. The Aranks possess highly advanced technology, second only to the Keymasters, and centuries ahead of Earth. Most of their needs are satisfied freely. The Aranks are a wise and good-natured race. They possess a unique trait — they do not understand the concept of the meaning of life. Other concepts such as religion, soul, and God are all foreign to them. In fact, they privately consider the other races' obsession with these concepts to be ridiculous. Despite this, the Aranks are still an emotional and friendly people. Their laws forbid them from giving technology to races that are not sufficiently advanced to properly use it, with one exception. By Arank law, attempted murderers lose all their property to their would-be victims, including their spouses (the victim has the right to refuse). This supersedes the technology non-proliferation law.

Marge

This world is populated by a race of marsupial hermaphrodites called the Dio-Dao. Their lifespan is extremely short by most races' standards — only six months. However, the parents are able to pass on half of their memories to their children. The parent dies immediately after giving birth. Those who have failed to get pregnant live slightly longer (no more than a month). Despite their short lives, the Dio-Dao adore bureaucracy. The Valley of God is an area on Marge devoted to all religious cults of the galaxy with most of the followers and priests being Dio-Dao. The planet's true name is Fakyu; "Marge" (vernacular for "Planet") is an American name (for obvious reasons).

Bezzar

A unique planet, completely covered by a thin layer of water with extremely high surface tension, allowing anyone to walk on it as if on land. The planet is populated by the Bezzarians, who are sentient 6.5-foot amoebae, the only known sentient single-celled organisms in the galaxy. The Bezzarians are quite advanced in the fields of biotechnology and space travel (their ships don't physically move through space; they simply shift their spatial coordinates). They also have a very low temperature tolerance. Humans can only survive on Bezzar for no more than twenty-four hours due to the planet's unique properties.

Shealy

Home to the Shealy, a race of sentient flightless birds, who have learned to completely suppress their minds after reaching adulthood. This way, they are free of troublesome thoughts and bad emotions. All adult Shealy act only in accordance with their reflexes, gained during childhood.

Talisman

This uninhabited planet is covered by a 600-foot layer of fog, which converts solar radiation into electricity, which is then transferred to the ground. This energy powers the constant synthesis and destruction of matter in small artificial chambers known as safes. These safes are usually staked out by prospectors from all over the galaxy, hoping to find something of value during the usual cycle of matter synthesis; however, the cases of someone getting rich because of this are quite rare.

Related Research Articles

<i>The Dark Side of the Sun</i> 1976 novel by Terry Pratchett

The Dark Side of the Sun is a science fiction novel by Terry Pratchett, first published in 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pierson's Puppeteers</span>

Pierson's Puppeteers, often known just as Puppeteers, are a fictional alien race from American author Larry Niven's Known Space books. The race first appeared in Niven’s novella Neutron Star.

The concept of self-replicating spacecraft, as envisioned by mathematician John von Neumann, has been described by futurists including physicist Michio Kaku and has been discussed across a wide breadth of hard science fiction novels and stories. Self-replicating probes are sometimes referred to as von Neumann probes. Self-replicating spacecraft would in some ways either mimic or echo the features of living organisms or viruses.

<i>Battlelords of the 23rd Century</i>

Battlelords of the Twenty-Third Century is a paper and pencil science fiction role-playing game designed by Lawrence R. Sims and first published in 1990. The game's newest tagline is Roleplaying in a Galaxy at War. The Battlelords of the Twenty-Third Century license was later sold by Optimus Design Systems (ODS) to SSDC, Inc. in September 1999. In 2017, SSDC granted exclusive rights to produce games set in the Battlelords Universe to 23rd Century Productions, LLC. Subsequently, 23rd Century Productions, LLC. launched a successful Kickstarter campaign to fund the Kickstarter Edition, also known as the Revised Edition, of Battlelords of the 23rd Century.

The Noon Universe is a fictional future setting for a number of hard science fiction novels written by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky. The universe is named after Noon: 22nd Century, chronologically the first novel from the series and referring to humanity reaching its noon in the 22nd century.

The mythology of the Stargate franchise is the historical backstory of the Stargate premise, which centers around xeno-mythology as experienced by humans during episodic contact. In the fictional universe of the franchise, the people of Earth have encountered numerous extraterrestrial races on their travels through the Stargate.

The Void Trilogy is a space opera series by British author Peter F. Hamilton. The series is set in the same universe as The Commonwealth Saga, 1,200 years after the end of Judas Unchained.

<i>Dirge</i> (novel) 2005 novel by Alan Dean Foster

Dirge (2000) is a science fiction novel by American writer Alan Dean Foster. The full title is sometimes shown as Dirge: Book Two of The Founding of the Commonwealth.

<i>The Stars Are Cold Toys</i>

The Stars Are Cold Toys and Star Shadow are two 1997 books of a space opera series by Russian science fiction writer Sergey Lukianenko. It is a first-person narration, told by a pilot Pyotr Khrumov, who attempts to prevent destruction of the planet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stars and planetary systems in fiction</span>

The planetary systems of stars other than the Sun and the Solar System are a staple element in many works of the science fiction genre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ancient astronauts in popular culture</span>

Ancient astronauts have been addressed frequently in science fiction and horror fiction. Occurrences in the genres include:

References