This was a strange novelle. My first book from this author was Revelation Space, very dense and strong kicking book about the humankind spread between the stars and encountering a grave danger.

Story was fast, although by no means condensed - it is quite a door-stopper :) - but it had impact and very interesting view of both biological, technological and societal aspects of humanity.

I dont want to ruin experience of other readers so I wont go much into the story itself (there is quite a twist in the last third) but when compared to Revelation Space, this one is rather a slow burner. Our protagonist, Scur, war veteran wakes up on board of unknown ship instead on her home-world. To make things worse, this ship is not your standard transport but ship carrying war veterans from both sides and also people that are marked as high risk war criminals.

Story has a lots of twists, and ending gives hope that from ashes humanity can rise up again. Parallel between humans and slow-bullets (devices from the book title) are wonderfully rendered.

That being said, interesting story notwithstanding, book meanders, it seems that story was maybe meant for something bigger but it was published in the given form. Entire book reads like an introductory tale, with a rather hasty ending. Or it could just be me, having read few similar books in succession....

All in all interesting SF story, with very interesting comments on humanity and what makes society a society. But it lacks a ..... punch I guess, I cannot get rid of the feeling this book was supposed to be start of something bigger.

Recommended to fans of adventure SF. ( )

In the aftermath of a galactic war, soldier Scur finds herself waking up on a derelict spaceship with no memory of how she got there. On the ship are other soldiers from both sides of the conflict, all having data capsules named "slow bullets" implanted in their bodies containing fragmented memories, along with some civilians without these "slow bullets". Forced to cooperate, Scur must unravel the mystery of the ship, their fragmented pasts, and a looming threat that could jeopardize everything. It's a tense, claustrophobic thriller set against the backdrop of a shattered universe, exploring themes of war, identity, and the power of memory. ( )

Really 4.5.
Unusual story, brilliant pacing and characterisations. Read in two sessions and feel all the better for it! ( )

At the end of a major war, the worse of the worse, from both sides (known as the Dregs by the crew), are put onto a sleeper ship and sent off to a far flung corner of the galaxy.

One by one the Dregs awaken: and find that something has gone horribly wrong with the ship.   With it's systems failing, the ship has ended up where it should have been but a very long time in the future.

A really good story with the Dregs having to learn to put their differences aside and work together to survive, but some differences need settling first.

Next up in Alastair's list is A Murmuration.

Bye for now. ( )

Romanzetto carino, ben scritto e scorrevole ma infine modesto.
Lo svolgimento molto "indoor" (all'interno di un'astronave alla deriva) è incentrato su tematiche che guardano alle dinamiche sociali, comportamentali, etiche che si creano in gruppi di persone eterogenee, disperate, costrette.
Il finale svela un risvolto narrativo a sorpresa che rientra però nella tematiche care a Reynolds (anzi, direi che ormai appare evidente una sua fissa per quest'idee...). ( )