John Bandicut is on a grand adventure. After being pressed into service to save the Earth by the mysterious Translator in Neptune Crossing, he's been hurdled out of the galaxy to an immense ship-world where he faces a threat as great as a killer asteroid but with an intelligence behind it. Along with the alien consciousness that lives in his head, Bandicut and his company of new friends risk it all to save the strange world where they've been stranded.

Carver has a knack for writing extended action scenes that make me feel like I'm on a runaway roller coaster ride. This book was no exception in that area. I thoroughly enjoyed Strange Attractors and I'm already reading book three, The Infinite Sea.

On a side note, I see a possible solution to the issue I had with the ending of Neptune Crossing. As I read the final pages of Strange Attractors, I had to pump my fist in the air and shout, "Yes!" ( )

Two become four. Continuing in the same vein, readable, and in places enjoyable, the slow beginning works its way through to a rushed conclusion.

After using him to save the Earth, and utilising the energy from John's impact with the comet, his magic (sorry alien technology) stones transport him to a new location - "normalising" him en route to cope with the new environment. John and robots quickly discover the landscape isn't as peaceful as it appears. They are rescued by their first contact in this new world, a humanoid looking for a friend, and also concerned about the sudden un-peacefulness of the world. John seems completely unfazed by actually meeting an alien - which must be very different from just hearing the voice of one amongst your thoughts. Ik for that is his name, also has 'stones' but it isn't common among this world's population. No explanation is given for how the eventual disparate group gained their stones. But they all band together peacefully and trustingly to deal with this new menace. John doesn't immediately realise he's on another mission for the Translator, but it's obvious to the reader and feels somewhat contrived.

His 'world' is a giant spaceshipmetaworld thing, vast in extent consisting of numerous habitats and races, possibly culled from disasters that engulfed their former homes. No-one knows for sure. John blithely follows his companions around being chased occasionally by a boojum. He isn't shaken, or amazed, by portals; new races of disturbing homology; vast technological prowess, simplistic cultures, or anything else he stumbles upon. Even the reoccurring death of is alien mental companion Charlie, only manages to excite a few paragraphs of confusion.

We learn nothing about his companions, little more about himself, and instead are simply told (not shown) about the wonders of this new environment, and it's new bad guy. That said some of the technology is pretty cool, and the action works quite well especially towards the end. But a bit more attention to detail and characters and a lot less gee whiz flitting around, would have made this good rather than ok. ( )