NEW SCIENCE
FICTION AND FANTASY REVIEWS
Reviews Of
Recently Published Science Fiction And Fantasy Books
March 10, 2014
Biology Is Not Borology
A Review of
Bonnie Doran Dark
Biology (Harbourlight Books, 2014)
$15.99 333 pp ISBN:
978-1-61116-277-6
Reviewer: Forrest W.
Schultz
One of the benefits of
establishing a habitat in outer space is the opportunity to conduct experiments
in a zero-gravity environment. In the book under review the hero, Dr. “Hildi”
Hilebrandt, a CDC vaccinologist, just happens to be in such a habitat, the
International Space Station, when a cure is needed quickly to prevent an
influenza pandemic on Earth, which was started by the villain of the tale, her
brother Chet, from the vial of a super-deadly virus stolen from a CDC lab. His
nefarious deed is the “Dark” referred to in Dark Biology, an excellent
title and quite apropos since Chet was acting under the influence of the
Prince of Darkness!
This Prince has also,
through the production of boring biology textbooks, succeeded in promoting the
widespread notion that biology is boring, for which reason many of the students
in my high school class called it “borology”. This fallacious notion has been
amply refuted not only by the numerous accounts of interesting phenomena in
biological studies, but also in interesting science fiction stories such as the
one reviewed here. This story is also interesting in its portrayal of the
relationships among the characters, especially in how they are affected by
their relationship with God. And there are some interesting episodes in the
trip to and from the ISS. And the story moves along at a good clip, so that the
book is, to use my term, "notwannaputdownable"! Bonnie Doran is a
welcome addition to the ranks of science fiction authors!
