Frank Kennedy’s superb space opera omnibus of series, set in a fascinating Collectorate of planets, concluded last year. Luckily he has launched a new, markedly different series. Set on a semi-blighted but fantastical planet called Teton, The Rogues of Teton will be a five-book venture, and Blend kicks it off. When a blue-skinned “blend,” an enhanced human created to save the planet, returns to mega-city Vandress (the author’s depiction of this wondrous, scabrous city reminds me of the best of William Gibson) after a lunar prison shift, he struggles to reunite with his son and wife. All three are thrust into the foment of rebellion, a rebellion that somehow is underpinned by forces from beyond Teton. The author is a kinetic stylist and fierce plotter, and the characters (including an evil high official) spring to life from the book’s pages. Blend is a hoot from start to finish.
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