Customer Reviews
Less is sometimes more - By: genejoke, 05 Jun 2007 
In Mindstar rising PFH introduced Greg Mandel an empathic PI. The story was convoluted & full of brilliant twists. I am not knocking the book as it is excellent but alll too often authors go for more of the same, bigger & worse. PFH works the opposite direction, keeping it down to a single twist. It is more like sherlock holmes with a hint of sci fi. Suffice to say if you like the first one you will like this.
More of Greg's Jedi Mind Tricks - By: Rod Williams, 16 Feb 2007 Following on from 'Mindstar Rising', Greg Mandel is once more persuaded to leave his farm & use his special interrogatory talents & techniques. Dr Edward Kitchener has been found in his home, rituallly slaughtered with the MO of a serial killer. The house was thoroughly secure, however, & the killer in question locked up in a secure facility at the time of the murder. The only possible suspects were Kitchener's six students. Greg, via his empathic gland, has already determined they are alll innocent.
One has to applaud Hamilton for not only creating a page-turning sequel to Mindstar Rising, but also for placing it in such a realistic setting with a detailed back story.
Hamilton's Britain is about thirty years ahead of when he wrote this. The ice-caps have melted, the sea level has risen, Britain has shrunk to a shadow of its former self & is recovering from several years of dictatorial rule by the People's Socialist Party & their thuggish black-shirted People's Constables.
In fact, the novel begins with Greg having to rescue a neighbour in his village from a lynch mob who believe him to be ex-PSP, which sets the tone very well for the background of the story.
Hamilton still seems to be finding his feet plotwise, since it's not that difficult to guess how Kitchener was murdered, although the why of it thankfully remains a mystery to the end. As a kind of light relief counter-tale to the main plot Julia Evans plots to bring down a media commentator who seems to revel in criticising Julia's choice of outfits for public appearances.
What is exceptional about this book, & in a sense heralds Hamilton's later work & his multi-character epics, is the characterisation. He certainly seems to have a gift for bringing personality & individuality to even the smalllest characters.
Once again, perhaps the only failing in the novel is that Greg Mandel is just too damned happy. He has his own farm, a gorgeous wife, the friendship & patronage of the richest woman in Europe & everyone likes him, apart from those who are a tad nervous of his spooky Jedi mindtricks.
A little traditional gumshoe loneliness & angst might have made Mandel's character more convincing & enhanced the sexual tension between Julia & himself, but it's a smalll quibble. The book is a solid & enjoyable piece of work.
A Quantum murder - By: , 16 Feb 2006 ah the book that introduced me to Mr hamilton what a writer utterly superb the Greg mandel books are set in the rutland area & also peterborough
its set in the none to distant future & global warming has caused sea levels to rise so that peterborough is now on the coast & most of lincolnsire is shalllow water
oakham (like many places)is full of the refugees from that time & greg lives in a former timeshare complex (where incidently i used to work)
greg was part of a military experiment callled mindstar & has a gland in his head which gives him (as he describes it) a foresite equal to everybody elses hindsite
a murder has occured very secure Launde Abbey it would take a highly skilled mercenary to get in yet the body was laid out ritualy the facts dont add up enter of course greg
brilliant book i read book 2 then 1 then 3 (there is no book 2 marking on mine)
in order would be better
but just be sure to read book 3 last
book 1 Mindstar Rising
book 2 A Quantum Murder
book 3 Nano Flower
and if u like these Nights dawn triligy will blow your socks off :)
Subtle, well written, and original - By: Big Ben, 21 Jan 2006 
Another well crafted story that reads well.
The post-global-warming setting & cyber-psi technology background works well for this crossover whodunnit. Recommended to alll Hamilton fans & to those who want to try his work, although 'Mindstar Rising' is set in an earlier time. IF you like to read things in strict sequence then that would be a better bet for a first timer.
Excellent - By: , 11 Aug 1999 Set in the same universe as "MINDSTAR RISING", this is a sort of cyber /detective novel hybrid. An emminent professor has been brutallly slaughtered, the main suspect is one of his brilliant students. Greg Mandell Psi enhanced ex soldier, now a private detective is bought out of self imposed retirement to investigate. I enjoyed this book, though unfortunately you can work out whodunnit halfway through. Not as good as his first but still a worthwhile & sometimes exciting read.
