Least favourite of the series
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I would just like to reassure people wo are possibly reading the series out of order that this book is not representative of the others. This book starts off following the the same interesting premise as the others, namely the interaction of a group of humans with an adavanced society who is technologically and physically light years away from them, of whom they know little about but who they are prepared to trust with their lives. I personally loved the first book, liked the second one - more for the story than the actual writing, but this one was a disappointment. The beginning was interesting, the New Eden part book was rubbish and the ending really sparked my interest and made sure I will read the next one. I disliked the New Eden part so much as I thought it became a book about politics and petty humans who had no point in the book, it lost the sci fi track that I enjoyed so much in the other books and could have been set in any town in the world. I appreciate that the authors may have been making the point that the humans were not yet ready for extra solar system travel and contact with other species but this wasn't where I thought the book was going and for me it seemed to get a little more on track at the end.
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One of the worst books I have ever read!
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The first book in the series, Rendezvous with Rama, is a classic and the sequel (Rama II - largely written by Gentry Lee rather than Clarke)is pretty good, but this one is abysmal - thoroughly unenjoyable.
For reasons I won't go into, I had to read it - but would normally have tossed it away after about 50 pages.
Long-winded, rambling and disjointed. The major themes of coping with a limited gene pool and how humans will ruin a 'New Eden' have been dealt with far more competently (and concisely) by many other authors.
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Mixed feelings about these Rama follow-ups
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Well, after finishing this one, my feeling is confirmed, namely, it was a mistake to follow up the absolute classic "Rendezvous with Rama" with further sequels.
There are two reasons why I think it's a mistake to do this (i)The sequels are almost never as good as the first book, and are often a bit disappointing, and (ii)The many questions left by the first book, which are best left to the imagination, are answered in a different way, which is unsatisfying. Incidentally I feel exactly the same way about the three sequels to 2001:A Space Odyssey.
I am not quite sure what part Mr Gentry Lee played in this (Clarke and Lee are named as joint authors) but it seems that a lot of Clarke's ideas have been diluted. For instance, in Clarke's earlier novels, he has space travel acting as a catalyst to improve the human condition, so that problems such as war, drug addiction etc become largely things of the past. But in this book, without giving too much away, most of the humans are the same old dirty rotten scoundrels that they were before space travel ever came along! Pity.
Anyway, Garden of Rama tells what happens after Rama II, when the second massive alien spaceship is attacked with nuclear weapons. There are a few people still on board, who are not rescued. Can they survive? Where will the Rama ship take them? And what will happen when they get there?
It's a good read, mostly, with some interesting aliens and just about enough action and intrigue to pull the novel into shape. But I can't help thinking that it would have been far better to just leave the original Rama novel as a one-off classic.
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Momentum of series regained
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In Rama II, the authors had to slow down a little, as they had to introduce a new set of characters, rediscover the old set, and populate a world (not easy tasks!). Now, the momentum is back. c Through their wonderful writing and realistic characters, the best and worst of humanity is displayed, and new species become believable. This is highly recommended for science fiction fans. No matter how the strange the scenes depicted, the reader feels that it could happen.
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Humans and Aliens in Eden
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This tremendous series continues with the third book in the Rama series. At the end of Rama II three astronauts we left trapped in a huge cylindrical spacecraft heading off towards one of our closest stars. The first fifth of the novel is presented in the form of Nicole des Jardine's diary and is probably the highlight. It tells of their 12 year journey to "The Node" - a giant space station built by the creators of Rama. There are no warp-drive shortcuts here, Clarke and Lee brilliantly tell the story of how the astronauts start a family, not knowing how long their journey will last and their efforts (often painful) to create genetic diversity amongst their offspring. As the returned and refitted Rama craft returns to pick up more human specimens, the book takes a breather for about 100 pages, delving you into the lives of many new characters through deep and often uninteresting characterisation. The completed colony accelerates off into space again, but 'New Eden' is not without it's problems as the des Jardine descendents and cross sections of global society struggle to integrate. With an excellent plot, but pondering middle section "The Garden of Rama" succeeds overall, but you're left wondering about the sudden change in the colony with Nakamura takes power. We're back to full form in the last 100 pages with Wakefield investigating the other species on the ship while other events unfold in the human habitat. This is where the story picks up again but is rushed. The conclusion is pretty moving and makes you instantly want to pick up the final book "Rama Revealed."
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