Richard Morgan entertains me, darkly, with each of his books. Broadly within the cyberpunk genre, or an evolved variant thereof, Thirteen evokes Bladerunner in print, without the (at times boring) atmospheric scene-setting of Ridley Scott’s vision.
The number 13 refers to the chromosome where the aggressive instincts which propelled humanity forward (however brutally at times) have been removed from most humans. The officially sanctioned bounty hunter Carl Marsalis is one of the few remnants of genetically altered soldiers who retain the dangerous gene. In addition, these warriors were conditioned from an early age, reminiscent of Ender’s Game. It’s not nature vs. nurture; it’s both.
Marsalis’s mission starts with tracking down a rogue “thirteen,” but the scope expands. Humanity’s brutality, we find, is not limited to this known chromosomal location. Interesting that Thirteen is titled Black Man in the U.K., Morgan’s homeland. Marsalis is black, but his skin color isn’t what makes him an outcast. Morgan could go deeper on this, but leaves the extra comment for the reader to consider.
Altered Carbon, Broken Angels, Market Forces, and now Thirteen… my appreciation only rises.
1 response so far ↓
1 karito // Mar 23, 2011 at 6:14 pm
is this the book that has been banned in italy because its content?
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