Teaser

It’s a discovery that could change the world. A crashed spaceship beneath the Pacific. Yet it is not the spaceship that holds the greatest mysteries, but the alien sphere held deep within . . .

Review

Back in February, I read a collection of essays by Isaac Asimov. In one, Asimov reflected on how the science fiction community of the time reacted to the arrival of authors such as Michael Crichton. Crichton, you see, was writing novels with science fictional elements, but was not a member of the science fiction community. This attitude still pervades today. There are many writers who will sit apart from the science fiction community while writing stories that rely on tropes and motifs from the genre. Margaret Atwood springs to mind. It was while reading Asimov’s essay that I realised I’d never read any Crichton. I was not, however, wholly unfamiliar with his works.

Obviously, as a man who was once a dinosaur-obsessed boy, I have seen Jurassic Park. I have also seen the adaptation of Sphere, though at such a young age I have no real memory of it. Ironically, all I remember is a man saying ‘we have the power to forget.’ I’ve had a copy of the novel Sphere floating around my TBR since last October. Recent conversations with a Crichton superfan pushed the book right to the top of my reading list.

Somewhat unsurprisingly, I’m going to agree with Isaac Asimov on this one. Sphere doesn’t feel like a traditional science fiction novel. The spaceship could easily be replaced with a submarine. The titular sphere could just as easily be magical as extra-terrestrial. Don’t get me wrong, this is a science fiction novel, but it would work just as well as a piece of straight horror. And the reason it works as both is because, first and foremost, Sphere works as a psychological thriller. That narrative base is so strong it supports everything that is layered on top.

I don’t read a lot of thrillers, but I still recognise a good one when someone puts it under my nose. The underwater setting (under-utilised in SF) makes for a literally crushing sense of claustrophobia. The rising sense of panic among the three leads is as palpable as it is plausible. Indeed, one of Crichton’s great strengths is creating likeable characters. They’re not necessarily good people, but they feel real, and you feel every threat levelled against them. It genuinely feels like any character could be killed at a moment’s notice, and that this would be a great loss.

Of course, if you’re reading this blog, you’re probably here for the science fiction components of the book. I said earlier that this is not a traditional science fiction novel. Certainly not by the standards of its time (hard SF underwent a renaissance in the 1980s). However, it does hearken back to the earlier days of Weird Tales magazine. Sphere is a book built on mystery, and it’s one that never really gives us any answers. In that, it’s downright Lovecraftian. Now, speaking as a fan of hard SF, I’m a man who quite enjoys answers. But as someone who occasionally dabbles in horror, I do also love a good mystery. In Sphere, the mystery is appealing enough to endure throughout the whole novel. The fact that we’re left with more questions than answers isn’t even annoying. It feels real. That’s the takeaway from Sphere. No matter how outlandish events become, it always feels real.

Oh, and that one line of dialogue I remembered from my childhood? The one that sort of offers a spoiler for the entire book? In almost any other situation, that resolution would feel like a copout. But in Crichton’s hands? It’s the only ending that feels right.

Book Stats

• A Standalone Novel
• First Published 1987
• 371 Pages