by K.W. Jeter
Tor 1987
This is my first Jeter, and I was impressed with the literary writing style, psychedelic without slipping into nonsense. Makes me long to read something he writes that has a good story.
The concept is strong. Some students, led by a cult like figure, take an experimental drug that creates a hive mind. Some members of the group commit a series of murders, and years later the members are either on the run or on parole. On member, Mike Tyler, is trying to move on with his life, taking medication to quiet the effects of the original drug.
Another former member has evidently kidnapped Tyler's kid, who Tyler believed to have been dead for years. Tyler stops his meds to reconnect with the hive mind and rescue his son.
The book has a promising premise, and I'm a sucker for stories that reveal more backstory as the main story moves forward. The promise was unfounded, and by about a third of the way in the story has revealed pretty much everything it intends to. The past murders aren't explained, and the present plot starts and stops with Tyler's kid getting snatched. I was prepared to forgive the lengthy exposition and internal dialogue in exchange for something happening, but it never did.
Available for Kindle from Amazon.
Paperback from AbeBooks.
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