In New York 2140, Kim Stanley Robinson (Shaman), one of the greatest living science fiction writers, presents a drastically changed city that retains many of its eternal charms and perils. In his vision, climate change has resulted in the First Pulse and the Second Pulse, massive sea level rises fueled by polar ice sliding into the ocean. After a period of devastating flooding, New York has adapted and survived as the newly christened "SuperVenice"--a city linked by boats, sky bridges and dirigibles rather than roads.
The novel's complex plot revolves around the mysterious disappearance of two coders from the partly submerged MetLife building, which leads to wide-ranging investigations. These turn up various threats that target the building, including sabotage, a hostile takeover attempt and machinations by cutthroat corporations.
Sporting a diverse cast of characters and a bracing, rarely cynical tone, New York 2140 is some of Robinson's nimblest writing to date. More traditional characters are occasionally interrupted by a "citizen" who provides a witty, fourth wall-breaking running commentary: "a New Yorker interested in the history of New York is by definition a lunatic, going against the tide, swimming or rowing upstream against the press of his fellow citizens, all of whom don't give a s**t about this past stuff."
The trials and travails of Robinson's characters range from goofy to darkly topical--Robinson has cleverly replaced subprime mortgages with "submarine mortgages," for example. Through it all, though, his 2140-era New York City remains as delightfully confounding as the present iteration. --Hank Stephenson, bookseller, Flyleaf Books, Chapel Hill, N.C.