The Last Outpost and Other Tales

Adani's first collection of 13 SF tales celebrates familiar golden age themes. In stories like "Alanna's Hair" and "Caretaker Gods," far-future technology divides humanity into the determinedly advanced and the deliberately primitive. Long-forgotten ancient technology causes trouble in "Prismatrix," "Mirage," and "Tomb." Humans and aliens find no common ground in these stories; extraterrestrials prefer to use us for entertainment, as in "The Head of Saint Mark," or spare parts, whether the sensory appendages of "Beneath the Alien Shield" or fresh new souls in "Harvest." This is journeyman work for the most part, imaginative but somewhat lacking in characterization and plot. While Adani's work isn't particularly new or memorable, fans of old-fashioned SF will find it moderately entertaining. (Sept.)