re:mote voices: literature

Title: Pollen
Author: Jeff Noon
Publisher: Ringpull

Pollen would appear to be a follow up to Jeff Noon's Vurt, though whether it counts as a direct sequel or just same environment I can't say not having read Vurt. This is the second novel by Noon I've read and while I wasn't overwhelmed by that other one I remained curious about his reputation. So coming upon this at the right time I picked it up and read it quickly which is normally a good sign that I at least enjoyed it to some degree. Noon's writing style is lyrical in many ways, lending it a fluid readability. However I started to lose interest a little and feel that he is perhaps likely to go over the score which put me off. Though I still maintained enough interest to finish the book.

Vurt is a kind of virtual reality, which has allowed people to experience their dreams and is the latest form of entertainment, replacing those of the past. But there is more to it as the dream people become increasingly real and want to break through to reality. The city of Manchester is where the vurt was first developed and as such the walls between reality and the other world are at their thinnest. With which a powerful vurt character determines to break through to reality. To do so he makes a deal with the head of the city's cab company - who runs a map which the cabs and police both rely on. This leads to the growth of conspiracy and the spread of a strong viral pollen which is affecting the people of Manchester and effecting the changes of the vurt. But in these times not everyone can experience vurt; certain people have a genetic condition that means they can't dream, meaning they can't access these virtual dreams. This puts the cop Sibyl Jones and cab driver Boda in a unique position as they find themselves in direct conflict with the conspiracy.

The characters of the story build well within the flow, and are woven together. There is a good range in who the characters are and what roles they play within the whole. All aided by the idea of inter-species breeding that has occurred - one of the core ideas is the fertility drug that was released into the city. This resulted in unnatural sexual encounters and from there, unexpected offspring. So the city is populated by crosses between humans, corpses, robots, vurt and dogs! Particularly of relevance is the offspring of corpses - male offspring are ugly undead things cast off as zombies in the wasteland. Where as the females like Sibyl and Boda are attractive and human-like, but with the ability to harness their dark side and communicate through the shadow of death that lies in us all.

Noon's ideas of virtual tech are fleshed out and diverge from the standard plug ins and interfaces, though the suggestion of a palpable other reality strikes comparisons to Michael Marshall Smith for me. The writing is as strong as the ideas are, the whole having a certain "cyber" reference point, but in a way that is distinct and stands up in its own right.

RVWR: PTR
September 2000