Hadrian's Fall

"So why is it cool to meld detective stories, where things add up, and science fiction, where they (typically) dont? The melding has been around for decades now, even before the first Blade Runner. Maybe cause when they meld, those lousy prognostications might finally make some sense? Call it Space Noir? Which brings me to Hadrians Fall, Ian Roumains astonishingly imaginative novel, set on Mars and with one of the best opening lines since Call Me Ishmael. Forget whether in reality Mars would ever be habitable; Roumain makes you believe that it will be and has created a world (actually two worlds), so real that you could easily lose yourself in either." - From the foreword by Nicholas Meyer (writer/director of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, and author of The Seven-Percent Solution) These are dangerous times on the fourth planet from the sun. Mars, the crown jewel among Earths colonies, has erupted into violence. A group of rebels known as Mars First has launched an uprising against Earths control of the red planet. For Hadrian Stricks, these momentous events are taking place just as his own life is unravelinghes been accused of killing the richest man on Mars, Gerhard De Brecht. Since hes been having an affair with the dead mans wife, its not difficult to understand why the police think hes guilty. Sure, Hadrian has fantasized about killing Gerhard, but he didnt actually do it. Desperate to elude the authorities and prove his innocence, Hadrian hasnt got a clue how to accomplish either. Salvation appears in the form of his old pal Arthur Rittlemeyer, a fellow Colonial Marines veteran who thinks its the perfect time to pull off the biggest heist in Martian history. The authorities, he figures, will be too busy trying to put down the Martian rebellion to bother stopping them from making their big score. All Hadrian has to do is lend Arthur his piloting skills in order to help him rob the richest company on Marsthe De Brecht Corporation . . .