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memories and personality. This technology confers many abilities. One is that they can create virtual replicas of themselves (known as "partials" or "ghosts") that contain functional parts of their full personality and are able to operate independently, on their behalf, and then reintegrate their experiences with their original later. In the event of major injury or even death, their implants (if recoverable and undamaged) can be used to "reload" their personalities into artificially reconstructed replicas of their old bodies, or even into entirely new forms. However, many of its citizens are limited to only two "reincarnations" before their personalities are stored in the
Hexamon's memory, where they continue to exist in virtual form. Hexamon technology is also able to reconstruct the bodies of the humans from 21st century, as the Soviet commander Mirsky discovers—when he is fatally shot in the head by his rivals during a confrontation in one of the libraries, the Stone's automatic defense and repair systems are triggered by this act of violence. The system reconstructs Mirsky's shattered skull and brain and resurrects him, but—because he lacks a Hexamon implant—it cannot recover all of his memories, and other physical and neurological functions can only be partially restored.
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inexorable descent into an all-out nuclear war. In the second half of the book, the theme of ideological conflict is continued through the growing tensions between the hardline political officers assigned to the Soviet force, and their more moderate military leader, Mirsky, who (like
Vasquez) gains life-changing insights into the situation that faces them after being exposed to the accelerated learning facilities of the Stone's libraries. These themes are further explored as we learn more about the rivalries between the two major factions of the "Stoners"—the more radical, pro-technology Geshel, and the more conservative and predominantly anti-technological Naderites, named in honor of 20th century consumer rights advocate
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light-speed. Scientists theorize that the shockwave thus generated will protect them from the blast of stellar plasma, while simultaneously sealing open gates along the Way and destroying their enemies, the Jart. The second half of their plan requires the separation of the Stone from the Way. When this is done, two more
Hexamon habitats join the Stone in Earth orbit, at the time just after the Death.
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called it "An impressive and often absorbing enterprise, but patchy and problematic, from the unconvincing characters and poor descriptions to fizzling subplots and the prolonged, dull opening. And even when the narrative finally gathers momentum and excitement, the many dazzling ideas here are never
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The rescuers are intercepted when they near Axis City and reunited with
Vasquez, who is caught up in the politics of the Hexamon. It is presided over by a governing body, the Nexus, loosely divided into two social groups: Progressive Geshels, who embrace body-swapping and life-extending technologies,
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communication), the concept of parallel universes, alternate timelines and the manipulation of space-time itself are major themes in the latter half of the novel. The Way itself cuts across space and time: "gates" may be opened through its surface at regular intervals, which lead to space and worlds
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The descendants of the Stone's creators live a million kilometers into the Way and 1,200 years into
Vasquez's future, in a society called the Hexamon. They have been secretly observing the explorers. Olmy, a humanoid agent of the Hexamon, and his nameless alien Frant colleague, kidnap Vasquez as she
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countries continue into the 21st century. The arrival of the Stone further destabilizes the situation—the
Soviets suspect that the US and its allies are controlling the Stone to gain exclusive access to advanced weapons and technology, and in the first half of the book this accelerates the world's
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At the opening of the novel, in 2005, Judith
Hoffmann, head of the commission that coordinates the exploration of the Stone, recruits theoretical physicist Patricia Vasquez, who arrives at the Stone and receives clearance for all the information discovered by the existing science teams, including
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Information technology and "virtual" realms are another important theme. While being held as a "guest" of the
Hexamon, Vasquez learns more about their culture; she discovers that (if they choose to) its citizens are fitted with implants that can store, transmit and replicate part or of all their
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stated about the characters and the novel: "These are technologically advanced people but they are not terribly bright. The book would be much shorter if they were and the plot would make more sense but the nonsensical technology and settings are really very fantastic, wonderful to imagine but
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The Jart attempt to destroy the
Hexamon by opening a gate into the heart of a star, allowing superheated plasma to enter. To counter the threat, a coalition within the Hexamon seizes control of the Nexus. The first part of their plan involves accelerating some tuberiding human habitats to near
509:, who has become identified with empathy and opposition to nuclear war in the centuries since his death. The Hexamon is threatened by alien invaders called the Jart, who are more adapted to the physics of the Way and live beyond its 2x10^9 kilometer (2 billion kilometer) point.
645:#85, and stated that "this is impressive SF on the most colossal scale, where the concepts are bigger than universes but human beings still matter desperately. Hear that horrid grating noise? It's the sound of America's other hard-SF writers gnashing their teeth in sick envy."
489:, but it turns out the Death is indeed imminent even with the Stone which may have in fact made the political situation worse - the USSR, while protesting restrictions placed upon its scientists, trains space assault teams which attack the Stone triggering the Death and a
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books, with very little character development as a redeeming leaven. It might be a classic, but not all classics stand the test of time too well. This book, despite its scattered points of brilliance, just reads tired, and dated."
675:. But for sheer ideative sugar rush, for the exhilarating sense that you almost understand as scenes of staggering complexity flicker relentlessly through your mind, it’s hard to think of a comparison in modern sf."
462:, with the second and third containing cities that have been maintained by automatic systems for centuries. This small world is dubbed "the Stone" by the Americans, "the Potato" by the Soviets, "the Whale" (
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commented that "what this book is essentially about is the conceptual breakthrough, a keystone trope of science fiction: the change of scale, the revelation of a meaning previously hidden. In
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Since the Stone appears prior to the recorded date of the Death, and there is no record of the Stone's appearance in its libraries, the scientists reason that the Stone may come from an
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is close to discovering secrets of the Stone and the Way. They take her to Axis City, their main settlement. Four of her colleagues search for her using a specially-modified
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the breakthroughs come at you with bewildering speed. Novel-sized ideas are almost thrown away...You do have to concentrate; it’s rather like watching a particularly
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and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and in Bear's projected future (the novel opens in 2005), the cold-war tensions between the Soviet bloc and the
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craft connected to a "tuberider", a device that allows the craft to be hitched to the tubular singularity that runs through the center of the Way.
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has been detected following an anomalous energy burst just outside the solar system. It is an asteroid, and a duplicate of
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Juno has been hollowed out along its long axis, subdivided into seven cylindrical chambers, and rotates to provide
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occupying other timelines, including alternate timelines for the Earth. As a result of
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986:"Millennial Review IX: Eon by Greg Bear (1985)"
1012:"Greg Bear's EON: A Review by Stephen Baxter"
478:—"the Death"—taking place in 2005. Only some
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555:. Unsourced material may be challenged and
60:Learn how and when to remove these messages
245:
883:Review by Charles Dee Mitchell (2014) in
575:Learn how and when to remove this message
234:Learn how and when to remove this message
216:Learn how and when to remove this message
114:Learn how and when to remove this message
729:Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone Magazine
902:
747:Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine
16:1985 science fiction novel by Greg Bear
821:Review by Pascal J. Thomas (1989) in
735:Review by Thomas A. Easton (1986) in
1136:Fiction about artificial intelligence
1086:Internet Speculative Fiction Database
842:Review by Jonathan Dornet (1989) in
708:Review by Pascal J. Thomas (1985) in
7:
1141:Fiction about consciousness transfer
1010:Baxter, Stephen (October 25, 2012).
835:Review by Piet Hollander (1989) in
553:adding citations to reliable sources
154:adding citations to reliable sources
911:"1987 Award Winners & Nominees"
805:Review by Andy Robertson (1988) in
789:Review by Rachel Pollack (1987) in
753:Review by Robert Coulson (1986) in
738:Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact
984:Nicoll, James (January 21, 2000).
874:Review by Tony C. Smith (2009) in
780:Review by Martyn Taylor (1987) in
744:Review by Baird Searles (1986) in
717:Review by Don D'Ammassa (1985) in
407:in 1987. It is the first novel in
96:Knowledge (XXG)'s inclusion policy
14:
1151:Fiction about genetic engineering
1121:Fiction about main-belt asteroids
937:(January 1987). "Critical Mass".
849:Review by John D. Owen (1998) in
828:Review by John Gilbert (1989) in
762:Review by Gene DeWeese (1986) in
699:Review by Faren Miller (1985) in
41:This article has multiple issues.
889:Review by Mark Chitty (2014) in
814:Review by Andy Sawyer (1989) in
798:Review by L. J. Hurst (1988) in
726:Review by Doc Kennedy (1985) in
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343:Print (hardback & paperback)
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865:Review by uncredited (2002) in
858:Review by Tom Clegg (1999) in
141:needs additional citations for
49:or discuss these issues on the
771:Review by Mike Moir (1987) in
439:. Incidentally, a 290 km
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891:Big Sky, #3: SF Masterworks 1
885:Big Sky, #3: SF Masterworks 1
669:-esque episode of the modern
435:are on the verge of a second
1156:Fiction about nanotechnology
1106:1985 science fiction novels
427:In the early 21st century,
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474:libraries that describe a
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1146:Fiction about immortality
720:Science Fiction Chronicle
391:novel by American author
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1161:Transhumanism in fiction
1036:Hromic, Alma A. (2002).
765:Science Fiction Review
652:firmly under control.
466:) by the Chinese and "
405:Arthur C. Clarke Award
1084:title listing at the
403:was nominated for an
1101:1985 American novels
990:jamesdavisnicoll.com
549:improve this section
447:. It moves into an
413:series; followed by
150:improve this article
21:Eon (disambiguation)
19:For other uses, see
1126:Novels by Greg Bear
1116:Fiction set in 2005
723:, #75 December 1985
657:ultimately empty."
589:genetic engineering
458:. The chambers are
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1038:"Eon by Greg Bear"
915:Worlds Without End
705:, #295 August 1985
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456:artificial gravity
816:Paperback Inferno
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517:Major themes
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143:verification
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88:spinning off
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43:Please help
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1047:January 17,
1021:January 17,
995:January 17,
969:January 17,
940:White Dwarf
687:Larry Niven
642:White Dwarf
622:Ralph Nader
613:Berlin Wall
507:Ralph Nader
468:Thistledown
460:terraformed
437:nuclear war
1095:Categories
1016:SF Gateway
920:2009-07-11
897:References
846:, #126-127
792:Foundation
672:Doctor Who
278:Ron Miller
176:newspapers
92:relocating
46:improve it
808:Interzone
635:reviewed
628:Reception
536:does not
449:eccentric
399:in 1985.
393:Greg Bear
322:Publisher
314:Published
268:Greg Bear
52:talk page
860:Galaxies
602:commerce
597:symbolic
565:May 2021
431:and the
416:Eternity
373:Eternity
284:Language
1042:SF Site
880:, No 81
844:A&A
823:Fiction
694:Reviews
682:SF Site
557:removed
542:sources
410:The Way
297:The Way
287:English
190:scholar
943:(85).
868:Vector
852:Vector
825:, #410
783:Vector
774:Vector
667:Moffat
499:V/STOL
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264:Author
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959:"EON"
862:, #15
839:, #65
818:, #77
802:, #70
702:Locus
387:is a
348:Pages
304:Genre
197:JSTOR
183:books
1049:2021
1023:2021
997:2021
971:2021
947:: 8.
830:Fear
639:for
617:NATO
540:any
538:cite
480:NATO
445:Juno
429:NATO
423:Plot
357:ISBN
247:Eon
169:news
1081:Eon
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786:136
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679:on
663:Eon
637:Eon
551:by
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