Feral. David Jasso.
Review: Santiago Solans G ª .
Sirius Computer . Transversal. Madrid, 2010. 294 pages.
Far from the world Earth , Rune is a mining colony where the young Marea faces future well structured, comfortable, but not too many options. The company responsible for exploration, Minerspace , has provided the facilities of a large number of amenities, but no longer an existence isolated far, far away from the home planet, where the outputs and distractions are all within the restricted environment. Not much on what a teen can spend their time. In fact, the biggest concern of Marea is the way to seduce Nile , the boy she likes, so that's the hint of their intentions and thus receive their first kiss. But his plans will suffer a tragic turn when the mining colony received a threatening message from an alien race that goes to the place: all the inhabitants will be exterminated.
A galactic civilization, the feral that worships death and whose only apparent purpose of its existence is the eradication of all intelligent life in the vast cosmos dawns. And the more cruel and bloody is the way to get what they feel more fulfilled, since for the confrontation is worthy, to feel that their job is well done, the companies must provide a determined fight, a brave resistance, they should respond to attack with everything they have at their disposal. However, Ferals have an edge because their technology seems to be well above the human. When his ship finally lands on the hangar Rune, the inhabitants of the colony will soon realize that any resistance is futile and will only be left to die with as much dignity as possible.
Feral, a mixture of Alien, The Eighth Passenger, Aliens -and inevitably think of the devastated colony where they come Ripley and marines, Predator , Atmosphere Zero or a number of films Carpenter among others, and all the film references are quite intentional seen the author's narrative style is pure action, dramatic tension rather than terror, horror, deep anxiety, restlessness ... After a start more descriptive laying the foundation of the colony and presenting some of its inhabitants, the story soon goes into a frantic struggle for survival, punctuated by short periods of calm in the methodical task of feral used by the author to give relevant explanations what is happening and intentions of most of the protagonists. The continuous motion, persecution and conflict, are fast-paced and tense while the suffering and fears emerge in humans at the merciless mission Ferals.
Funny face the concept of a race who wants to exterminate all others and, once their sacred mission, immolate herself, and where the notion of the psychopath, the sick, perverted, is the individual who wants to "save" the victims instead of swimming in your blood. No one can judge from the feral human morality, because their concept of right is opposite to ours. They are involved in a mission almost "sacred" where death is so desirable and life just a mistake that should be remedied. What is terrible to contemplate how in the midst of cruelty and ruthlessness of the feral human exist capable of committing the worst atrocities on their fellows without the excuse of lack of empathy alien. Man has always been a wolf to man, and while some become heroes for their actions in pursuit of saving other humans, you have to leave and creeping unleashed their true nature, releasing the inner beast and lowered into a moral pit where their instincts take precedence over the common good or human ties, and where will do anything to survive even before they were genuinely threatened. It is in that character that betrays everything human, mean and manipulative, capable of the worst offenses, and the company Minerspace, always looking for cost benefits they are, where the story becomes moral reflection by showing the darker side of humanity, that part of us who prefer to subdue the fellow, to rise above all rather than live on equal terms with them. The demonstration that the monsters already living among us, without an external enemy sought to address the absolute horror of dehumanization.
Marea , facing annihilation becomes the voice of survival, the irrational impulse to hold one day, one hour, one minute breathing despite the pain, sufrimienbto and conviction of the inevitable end to the rebellion that refuses to see the absolute absence of future output and seeks help with all their limitations survival of those around her, who have lived with, known and unknown ... Is it the image of humanity caring, compassionate, merciful, kind face and the face of terror, however, ends up in hieratic mask that hides the fear inside against which it is very difficult to fight: The end of dreams, hope, love, something that only leaves ash in the heart with the only answer I can give Ferals and his creations: violence against violence, mindless violence, cruel, bloody, dehumanizing, beyond tears and empathy.
is a pity that the prose of Jasso displayed on this occasion less polished than his earlier works, chair and Dog Day , more haste and lack of tension at times, something that should have been especially careful in the genre in which he moves with such mastery. The omniscient narrator is at times too repetitive, too insistent with known or anticipated circumstances and without ongoing reminders. The lack of a cohesive style of a narrative unit also helps to create in the reader's mind a sense of unpolished prose, hurried, with sudden changes of tone, sensitivity and appears to target. Jasso not appear to have found a "voice" consistent with which to tell their story, stylistic coherence and unity to give consistency to the narrative.
There are some dialogues, and see that this is precisely one of the strengths of the author-to squeak in the ear, resulting imposts and false, lacking in life, fluency and credibility. On the other hand, makes mistakes that a rereading would easily solve, such as repeating several times the same word within a paragraph without intent or as a literary alliterative. Little things that hinder the reading, small pebbles on the path of the reader not get the same if they limit the enjoyment.
Along with a good task to create the tension necessary to accompany this story, second to note the creation of the oppressive atmosphere, fear of aliens, restlessness of players and readers, the suspense ultimately Jasso misses, however, part of the science fiction setting, in the scenario running the action, the mining colony that is never shown in detail for the reader to obtain a complete picture of its "geography", as in the description of this future humanity that except for some tecnojerga and the appearance of certain gadgets pesudotecnológicos, is at all practically equal to the present, or the "genesis" of these mutants have to face a challenge Ferals worthy and that seem very " worked" without scientific basis. Not that I advocate at all because the author should have made the science fiction narrative hard , but accepting that the feral have vastly superior, and even incomprehensible (anyone Clarke has lied to?) - the human Jasso should at least have given a coat of varnish that obscures the background seams of the story. As has offered the book seems obvious that his goal was to reach a young audience eager for sensations and not too forward analytical. The "depth" of the stage, certainly is not looking all that mattered or the author but it serves as an excuse to show the dehumanizing conflict, tension and struggle in a place you can not escape and where you can not hope for salvation, the psychological abyss to which the protagonists are doomed and response that everyone, especially Marea , in its interior. And we must recognize that Feral this he gets to shout, offering a series B dripping with blood and hormonal emotions. Too bad, as good series B, on the other hand, the novel has been punished with a cover and a presentation unattractive. Entertainment pure and simple, without further complications if a film does not hesitate to call it "popcorn." And in the mining colony Rune, no one can stop hearing the screams.
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