Norman Spinrad is a science fiction author and critic. His biggest claim to fame is being the author of the script for "The Doomsday Machine," an episode of the original Star Trek TV series. He's had a lot of trouble getting his books published over the years, partly because they deal in controversial subject matter, partly because they simply lack commercial appeal. I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, but after reading The Void Captain's Tale I can easily imagine the attitude of most editors toward his work. Words to the effect of "Naw, we'll pass" were probably sent Norman Spinrad's way on a number of occasions.
In The Void Captain's Tale, which is one of the author's better known works, spaceships traverse interstellar space with the aid of a "jump circuit," a heavily symbolic technology which operates upon the principle of the female orgasm.
And no, you didn't read that last sentence wrong. This is really he premise of the book.
Anyhow, this "jump circuit," which I suppose is part of a "jump drive," is in turn operated by a flight crew working at both a physical and social distance from the female upon whose orgasm the ship's propulsion depends. Things go awry once the captain of this flight crew inadvertently develops an emotional attachment to the woman whose unique sexuality propels their ship toward its next destination. Should he continue utilizing her sex drive out of a sense of duty? Or does a greater destiny lay in store, a destiny which outweighs his sense of responsibility?
Put another way, The Void Captain's Tale is the "French" erotic-philosophical science fiction novel that no one really wanted. The characters speak in a weird patois of English, French and Spanish (NO non-European languages), they act like libertines occupying a salon traveling faster than the speed of light, and they're altogether unlikeable. The main character, the titular Void Captain, spends an inordinate amount of time brooding over his ultimate choice, while his ladylove is a somewhat interesting if underutilized character who might have been better cast as the protagonist.
Oh, and there's a lot of fucking. The author, of course, would never, ever stoop to the word "fucking," but there's a lot of that as well, usually reduced to a kind of tantric exercise that's far from titillating.
All in all it's an extremely difficult book to get through, especially since almost nothing of consequence happens in its first half. IF you can make it through this first half, however, it does have some redeeming features. The "captain's dilemma" at the heart of the story is the kind of nihilistic thing one doesn't often come across in science fiction, and I liked the ironic ending. There's a nice turnabout there, I just wish the rest of the book had been that entertaining.
...maybe this novel would have worked better as an adult film? It would have been a very, very strange adult film, but I could see one of the more ambitious adult film directors doing something more with the concept.
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