Review: Infinity Beach, by Jack McDevitt
Overall rating: 4/5
Infinity Beach is a classic Jack McDevitt story, with many elements his readers will recognize: mysterious events that happened years ago, false reputations, the search for truth, stark moral choices, general societal decay, and a personal struggle with mediocrity. It is also full of McDevitt’s twists, unusual perspectives on the world, unexpected dangers and opportunities, and a general sense of irrational optimism. In short, if you are a Jack McDevitt fan, you already know you should read this novel. If you have not read McDevitt yet, then see the rest of my review for an idea of what you’re missing.
Like much of McDevitt’s fiction, Infinity Beach starts out with a puzzle. Twenty-seven years before the book’s timeline, an expedition left the home planet of Greenway in search of extraterrestrial life. The expedition was led by an eccentric billionaire, one of the few remaining people who still believes there are alien intelligences out there with whom we can communicate. The rest of the world, evidently, has decided that humanity is alone in the universe, or at least the galaxy. Coincidentally, the majority of people are content to lead lives of leisure, free from the drudgery of work, and interstellar travel is becoming rare.
Of course, something goes wrong during the expedition. After suffering a jumpdrive malfunction early in the trip, the expedition is forced to return to Greenway. Two members of the expedition — both female — disappear after their return. Shortly thereafter there is a mysterious explosion near the home (and vacation home) of the other two expedition members, the billionaire, who perished in the explosion, and the ship’s pilot, who survived in obscurity. There was some suggestion in the past that the two events were connected, but if so it was never proved.
So begins the story. The protagonist, Kim Brandywine, is a professional astronomer, fund raiser for a SETI project, and sister of one of the women who disappeared in the expedition. Her interest in SETI, coupled with her personal connection to the tragedy, leads her to research the past and discover what really happened. Naturally she is blocked at every turn by people who would rather let the past remain in the past. And just as naturally, she is undeterred, regardless of the personal risks — and very real costs — involved.
The story works on multiple levels. The mystery itself is captivating, hooking the reader even more with each clue that Kim is able to uncover. But the book, like all McDevitt novels, is much more than that. A major aspect is Kim’s growth, from a young astronomer, resentful of her mediocre talents as a researcher, to her search for everlasting fame, to her success unraveling the mystery, to her acceptance of who she is. Other characters also undergo significant change throughout the story.
Another aspect is the First Contact itself. First Contact has been explored in many science fiction stories, and it is hard to believe that any author could find any new material to use here. But McDevitt does find a new twist, two of them in fact. One twist is nature of the aliens themselves, quite unlike anything one may expect. The other is the form of First Contact. But to say more would be to give away to story and rob you of the pleasure of reading it in McDevitt’s own words.
But the most fascinating aspects, to me, are the choices that the characters have to make. Kim is forced to make difficult choices, often with unreliable information, and with the potential to wreck her life or to turn her into someone she would not want to be. Other characters have similar choices, some rather painful and brutal. And it is the consequences of these choices that really propel the story. As a reader, I find myself asking what I would do in a similar situation, wondering what mistakes the characters are making. This is the type of active process one expects from a good book.
Infinity Beach is a terrific novel. It gets off to a slow start — one unfortunate Amazon reviewer stopped reading a third of the way through, missing the fantastic resolution — but once it gets going, it is a terrific read. I strongly recommend it.