(2004) Nick Sagan, Bantam Press, £12.99, hrdbk, 311 pp, ISBN 0-593-051912
Edenborn is Nick Sagan's second novel and a sequel to Idlewild. Eighteen years after the events described in Idlewild, a new menace is presented to the sparse population of Earth. Black Ep is still around and the survivors of the first epidemic are divided between those who want to repopulate the Earth with humans and those who want a genetically enhanced man to be the dominant species. Halloween, the protagonist of the first novel, maintains an isolationism from both groups.
The story is really centred around two people who meet in a virtual reality cyberspace; we only know them by their avatars' names. The character and ethics of this mysterious two are gradually revealed in parallel with the full horror of the epidemic becoming clear, and as the sparse population of the Earth dwindles even further, desperate attempts must be made to save the survivors.
Sagan hasn't let me down. I was eager for more of his writing and the world of Idlewild. This is still excellent storytelling with science thrown in and an extremely compelling read. I'll hold my breath for the next.
Graham Connor
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