JUNCTION REVIEW- i have a blog so i might as well post this here edition
Junction by Daniel M. Benson is a true work of speculative science fiction, in all senses of the phrase.
When a wormhole in Papua New Guinea is discovered by outsiders, world leaders put together a small team of experts to be the first to introduce the world to whatever waits within it. Together, this team explores not one, but five unique alien biomes, each complete with their own wildlife, atmosphere, and other dangers-- and all rooted in hard science. From animals that bleed alcohol, to plants that float with helium, no matter how fantastic the concept, everything feels plausible. If alien life was discovered tomorrow, I wouldn't be surprised at all if environments like these were actually flourishing out there somewhere, just out of reach.
It has a diverse cast, lead by Daisuke Matsumori, a guarded famous Japanese wildlife TV personality and his hot-headed Australian biologist love interest, Anne Hathaway. The main characters contain a good mix of people who know what their looking at, laymen who can discover along with the reader, and people with enough foresight to see what everything is worth long term. The book contains all the components of a fast-paced who-dun-it as well-- danger, romance, mystery, humor, intrigue, murder, and political tension. I won't go through a beat-by-beat synopsis here, but the speculative aspect of the story does not end at the aliens. There is a thread throughout the book of what will the world powers do once word of this place gets back to them that also feels eerily familiar enough to be real.
All in all, the heart of this book is the love of science and what might be out there. Everything else about the story has been carefully picked to showcase this as best that it can, or else not get in the way of it. This results in an entertaining and imaginative read for mystery and action lovers, and a real treat for any hardcore sci-fi fan.
