Venomous Lumpsucker by Ned Beauman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5* with caveats.

This novel has a very specific purpose in mind. Sure, it may lead us to several different conclusions and does a great job handing us the options, but at its core, it's a Eco-SF novel. What is that? It's an agenda piece. And just because I'm one hundred percent its side, it doesn't mean I can't recognize it for what it is.

It's about species death--and the Extinction Machine we're still enabling.

Now, the novel reads just like a good tecnho-thriller with some fairly humorous elements, but don't get mixed up on that. It also shines a sharp spotlight on the kinds of economic and legislative fuckery that is so good at lip service while giving away the whole pie. You know the whole carbon-credit chicanery that goes on now? If you can purchase enough credits, or earn enough credits with the proper lip service, then you can go ahead and pollute and cause cancer to your heart's content? Well, apply the same idea to "extinction credits". Each with a dollar amount, tradable on the stock market.

And yeah, that couldn't possibly be abused, right?

Fast forward through a travel-adventure techno-thriller with an trader of such credits and a suicidal scientist to find a single, dwindling species--and we've got plenty of misadventure and the kinds of reveals to make anyone rage.

Modern con men, abuse of wealth and power, and the total betrayal of ethics.


So, again, 5* with caveats. It reads wonderfully, is informative, funny, and has interesting characters--but it's close to, if not exactly, a satire. The fact that I can't figure out whether it's overstating facts or not is just plain scary.

So, it's not exactly fun--it's terrifying.

My synesthesia tastes almonds--and I can't tell if it's poison or not.


Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews might be interested in reading my own SF, I'm going to be open to requests. Just direct message me in goodreads or email me on my site. I'd love to get some eyes on my novels.

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