One of the interesting things about reading a new writer is where the recommendation comes from. In this case, saddened by thinking of the passing of Iain M Banks (also known as Iain Banks for non sci fi works) I followed his praise of Michael Cobley, and the Seeds of Earth that you can see on the front cover. I am sorry to say I did not finish it. I managed about three quarters and cannot be bothered to g o the rest of the way. The basic premise of the book is OK, mankind spread to the stars and struggling to survive, but it is on the details that this book dies. Galaxy spanning ideas of technology, human progress, alien politics etc etc need to hang together, and Cobley sadly veers from the banal to the nonsensical. Ideas about massively advanced technologies tat are subsequently lost as someone fires a rifle to perform an assassination in a culture and future wher such things should not be possible with a rifle, they just shouldn't.
If you do not want it to be a serious thesis, then you need to dress it as a comedy, or a space opera. If you dress it in the serious clothes that hard sf fans like to see an author wearing, you better not forget the pants. This is sadly one to avoid.
