Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Book Reviews
Book Review: The Prefect
By Sandy Amazeen
Jun 17, 2008, 1:32 GMT

Tight police work, subterfuge and a constant tension level combine for one fine space opera in Reynold’s latest Revelation Space series. In the aftermath of a brutal attack on the Ruskin-Sartorious Bubble that left nearly a thousand occupants dead, Tom Dreyfus a law enforcement officer known as a prefect was assigned to investigate. He was to track down the perpetrators while figuring out the possible motive before other Bubbles came under attack. What he comes to suspect is worse then anyone had imagined as control of the Glitter Band could be at stake.

As Tom works on his investigation, deputy field prefect Thalia Ng busily works on installing and testing a patch to prevent voting fraud, a serious problem that already cost several lives. Meanwhile, supreme prefect Jane Aumonier has unaccountably been removed from office at a time when field personnel need her abilities the most and what she ends up enduring is beyond imagining.

Reynold’s adds to the history of the Glitter Band, particularly the Rust Belt and Chasm City in such a way as to allow readers new to his work to jump in and enjoy the tale. The interwoven subplots provide plenty of substance to this inventive story while the main antagonists remain elusive enough to figure in future additions to the series. An altogether satisfying sci-fi adventure with enough real detective work to lend a realistic feel.