I liked Raphael Carter's novel a lot. In an article I wrote for a
reference book last year I picked it as one of the two best first sf
novels of the year, the other being Mary Doria Russell's Tiptree-Award
winning The Sparrow.
I really liked Carter's style; it's a bit ornate, but beautiful. And I
also liked the way the various pop-in modules worked, particularly the
African ones.
The last part of the book is talky by conventional sf standards, but I
saw it not so much as a narrative lump, but rather as a kind of "My Dinner
with Andre"-style conversation or Platonic dialogue between a couple of
fascinating people.
The gender-bending material is interesting, particularly if you know
something about Carter him/herself. Check out Carter's home page. It
should be easy to find through any search engine.
Mike
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