Soulminder

Imaginative and thought provoking

Timothy Zahn is my favorite writer. He seldom lets me down and this book was no different. The story is about a new technology where a person's soul can be captured at the moment of death. I found this book to be quite reminiscent of Asimov's first Foundation novel. Like Foundation, the book is broken up into isolated vignettes that focus on a specific dilemma or crisis point. Zahn's is seven distinct chapters that each contain their own story arc and can be read separate from the rest of the novel. Also like Foundation, there is very little in the way of character development. The people who populate the vignettes are disposable and are present only to tell the vignette. The real character of the novel is the Soulminder system and in each chapter we see how Soulminder has evolved and changed, similar to how psychohistory was a character. I found the concept of Soulminder fascinating and loved how Zahn addressed so many goods and evils that could arise from this technology. Each chapter played out quickly, but not rushed. Unlike so many other Zahn novels, he did not delve deeply into details and descriptions. But, there was no need to. Again, the main character is technology and there is no deep, complex plot. I think this novel was Zahn's way of describing a technological idea and then debating its values and troubles. I enjoyed the social, theological, and moral discussions. My only gripe is that I would have liked a few more chapters, as I can see other facets of Soulminder that can be addressed. Read more