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Dana
, September 14, 2007
(view all comments by Dana)
It is hard to describe Neon Lotus without spoilers, because the ending is where all the cool stuff happens. The rest of the book is a slightly flat quest-type adventure that takes the hero and heroine all over Tibet without ever quite engaging the reader fully. It's beautifully written, though; perhaps the reader's detachment is an intentional shadow of the greater detachment sought by Buddhists. I was reminded of Greg Bear's work -- I wanted to know what happened next but didn't particularly care what it would be. At least Laidlaw keeps it moving right along, though. It reads like a standard good vs. evil adventure, set in the Tibet of the next century instead of a fantasy world and with inexplicable technology replacing the magic. Then in the last chapter I hit the first typo, the first awkward phrase, and perhaps the most delightful reversal of all expectations I've ever read.
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