Mosman Readers

"Book lovers never go to bed alone"

Orion by Ben Bova

Orion, first published in 1984, is the first of the Orion series by Ben Bova and chronicles the many lives of John O'Ryan, a marketing executive who has the ability to consciously control his body on a cellular level. When a bomb goes off while he is dining in a resturant he learns of his true identity. He is Orion, the hunter.

Once I got into it, which I admit took quite some time, I actually really enjoyed the book. There was the occasional temptation to throw it across the room when the usually intelligent Orion takes chapters of text to realise an obvious plot-point that has been staring him in the face. On the other hand I enjoyed the detailed forays into historical settings and mythology mixed with the philosophising of the meaning of life in a meaningless world that is common in Science Fiction (and the little bit of romance didn't hurt either).

While I did eventually quite enjoy the book, I doubt I'll be scouring the shelves for the second one, Vengeance of Orion (1988) and have decided to return my attention to books that were published after my birth.