In the near future, "Starfish" by Peter Watts delves into a world where humanity seeks alternative energy sources, focusing on deep sea rifts. The story follows a group of severely damaged individuals who are hired to work in the deep sea vents, adapted with cyborg-like enhancements to survive the extreme conditions. As the rifters cope with their lives in the deep sea, they face the machinations of a corporation that begins to view them as expendable assets. The novel explores themes of isolation, human modification, corporate conspiracy, and the psychological impact of living in such a harsh environment.
The narrative in "Starfish" is described as dark, riveting, and psychologically intense, focusing on the underdogs of society who find solace in the depths of the ocean. The story unfolds as the characters, despite their pasts and bio-engineered bodies, struggle with their humanity and face the challenges presented by their environment. The book keeps readers engaged with its exploration of deep-sea mysteries, the psychological evolution of the characters, and the uncovering of corporate secrets that threaten their survival.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
Content warnings for Starfish include discussions of childhood abuse, social dysfunction, psychological trauma, and the portrayal of anti-social behaviors.
From The Publisher:
Civilization rests on the backs of its outcasts.
So when civilization needs someone to run generating stations three kilometers below the surface of the Pacific, it seeks out a special sort of person for its Rifters program. It recruits those whose histories have preadapted them to dangerous environments, people so used to broken bodies and chronic stress that life on the edge of an undersea volcano would actually be a step up. Nobody worries too much about job satisfaction; if you haven't spent a lifetime learning the futility of fighting back, you wouldn't be a rifter in the first place. It's a small price to keep the lights going, back on shore.
But there are things among the cliffs and trenches of the Juan de Fuca Ridge that no one expected to find, and enough pressure can forge the most obedient career-victim into something made of iron. At first, not even the rifters know what they have in them-and by the time anyone else finds out, the outcast and the downtrodden have their hands on a kill switch for the whole damn planet...
Ratings (4)
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Reader Stats (41):
Read It (4) | |
Want To Read (30) | |
Did Not Finish (1) | |
Not Interested (6) |
What can you read after
Starfish?
About the Author:
Peter Watts lives in Toronto, Ontario.
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