BOOK REVIEW: Cosmopath by Eric Brown

Cosmopath by Eric Brown
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Necropath Jeff Vaughan is sent to investigate the disappearance of a crew on Canopus VII, where he discovers an underground city and a new alien race. 

Having been sent to Canopus VII to find out what happened to a lost crew, Necropath Jeff Vaughan finds himself drawn into a deepening mystery not only as to the fate of the crew but also the intentions of his benefactor.

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This is the final installment in Brown's Bengal Station series and it's a fine and fitting finale to what was, for me, one of the better "low-key" sci-fi series that I've read. I say low key because, as with much of Brown's other work, the story reads easily and is reminiscent of a fun pulp-style story from the sci-fi golden age. I mean this as a compliment, because there is a huge amount of enjoyment packed in there.

Cosmopath continues the story of Jeff Vaughan who is a telepathic investigator stationed on an orbital station above the Bay of Bengal. He's a likeable character and sticks with Brown's standard modus operandi of main characters who have no shortage of personal battles and vices that lend validity to and enrich the story. I guess it's because I can relate to Vaughan's internalizing and can see myself reacting in similar ways.

Also of huge enjoyment are the alien species and interplanetary space opera elements that are right up my alley, and we spend a large portion of this book enjoying the wonders of a planet light years away from Earth and home to a fantastic ecosystem and marvelous creatures.

It's all here, the elements that make up fun and enjoyable science fiction adventure. In most other reviews that I've written of Brown's work I've made the statement "Brown fails to disappoint", and I unashamedly say it again. I'm not sure how to put it any other way, but simply said, Brown is one of the best authors in the science fiction field today, and should go down as one of the greats, in my humble opinion.

Highly recommended, and definitely a series that I'd suggest for either a newcomer to science fiction or a seasoned fan who appreciates fun and easy to read stories.

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