TERMINATION SHOCK

4 stars out of 5

This is a book with an important message, but by no means can I call it an easy book to read. For starters, there are way too many characters, several of which go by different names part of the time, and too many different location settings to make things very confusing if you don't pay close attention. Couple that with more than 700 pages, and well, getting through the whole thing requires serious commitment.

That said, though, it's worth making the effort, especially if you have an interest in climate change. It takes place in the post-COVID but not-too-distant future, when the world is reeling from the effects of global warming. Everywhere are scenes of impending doom, like devastating, land-altering floods, superstorms and infestations of critters like feral pigs (yes, you read that correctly). The story centers around groups of people from different countries who are seeking ways to rectify (make that survive) the dire situation. At the beginning, the Queen of the Netherlands is on her way to Texas when a storm forces a crash landing of the airplane she's piloting. On her way to meet up with some kind of secret conference with a wealthy Texan who may have devised a way save humanity, she must keep her true identity secret.

The rest follows several characters on their journey toward save-the-earth enlightenment, which includes the awareness that whatever solution is found may help some, but at the expense of others. Obviously, there's much more action and food for thought going on here (at 736 pages, a lot more), but I'll keep those details to myself so other readers can discover them firsthand. My thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to read and review a pre-release copy.

Termination Shock by Neal Stephenson (William Morrow, November 2021); 736 pp.