The Road To Sinharat - Leigh Brackett

Novelette

Number of words : 13000
Percent of complex words : 6.7
Average syllables per word : 1.4
Average words per sentence : 12.8


READABILITY INDICES

Fog : 7.8
Flesch : 74.1
Flesch-Kincaid : 6.1




CHARACTERS

Dr Matthew Carey

A Low Canaller on the run. Against the Rehabilitation Project.

Derech

Owes Carey, so helps him get away.

Howard Wales

Earth Interpol man.

Alan Woodthorpe

Rehabilitation Project administrator.

Arrin

Martian woman of the old school, travels with them.


PLACES

Jekkara Low Canal

Full of black water.

Barrakesh

Low Canal city.

Kesh

Martian dryland area.

Shun

Martian dryland area.

Sinharat

The Ever-Living. The Forbidden city.

Valkis

Martian Low Canal city.

Kahora

Martian city.

Kharif

Suffered from the Ramas by proximity.


RACES

Ramas

Ancient Martian immortals by body transfer.

Shunni

Martian Dryland tribe.


CONCEPTS

Low Martian

Common dialect.

High Martian

Ancient language.


ORGANISATIONS

United Worlds Court

Body for justice.

Rehabilitation Project

Carey tried to sabotage this project to irrigate Mars.

Council of City-States

Martian political body.

United Worlds Planetary Assistance Committee

Rehabilitation organisation.


PLOT

Dr Matthew Carey has done his best to hinder and slow down the Rehabilitation Project, but now is on the run, with the Interpol variant after him. An old acquaintance helps him escape, and they go on the run in the desert along with a Martian woman.

The end up in Sinharat, and see that this sort of thing has happened before, with the Ramas - and the Dryland tribes are willing to go to war over the Rehabilitation Project. When Wales catches up to Carey and realises the precarious situation and they see some Rama history tapes he agrees it is a bad idea, and tells the chiefs they will shut down the Project.


3.5 out of 5