There are times one must wonder why it takes so long to complete a trilogy. Certainly Venus of Shadows begged for a sequel. Let's finish the terraforming of Venus and end this episode of future space history.The novel's central figure, Mahala Liangharad is a test tube descendant (granddaughter) of Iris Angharad. She, too, will work to continue the project, but work is suspended when the Habbers encounter a distant signal suggestive of alien life. Sargent finally explains the notion of Habbers and Habitats, fascinating concepts both. Mahala embarks on a relativistic journey to meet the aliens and returns to Venus 1200 years later, though she only ages thirty years during that time. What she finds on her return may disappoint some, seem predictable or inevitable to others, but I won't provide the spoilers here. suffice it to say while the narration is the most page turning of the works in the trilogy, there is a sense that Ms. sargent had grown bored with The Venus Project and decided to bring things to a fairly hasty conclusion.
