Science, Religion and Our Emerging Culture

Unholy Domain
By Dan Ronco
ISBN-10: 1601640218
ISBN-13: 978-1601640215
Hardcover, 352 pages
April 1, 2008
Kunati
Reviewed by Sabrina Williams for Breeni Books

Unholy Domain, Dan Ronco’s sequel to the technological thriller Peacemaker, picks up the story ten years into the aftermath of the destructive computer virus. In 2012, the Peacemaker virus halted the infrastructure of the world long enough to send the economy into chaos, cause widespread panic, and drive the world into a catastrophic depression. In 2022, the world is still permeated with a sense of desperation, mob thugs are calling the shots, and security is practically nonexistent.

The world is divided into two fundamentalist sects: the Technos, who embrace all forms of technology and will not bat an eye at installing an implant into their own brains; and those who cling to the comfort of religion, namely members of a militaristic cult known as The Church of Natural Humans. A few people choose to remain in the center and allow the two factions to battle it out, hoping they will eventually cancel each other out.

In the midst of chaos, one man is struggling to understand the father he barely knew. David Brown, son of the man posthumously charged with unleashing Peacemaker upon the world, has managed to survive society’s wrath for his father’s transgression. Attending college and already mastering the field of robotics, David still has to periodically react to repressed anger from people who continue to suffer the consequences of Peacemaker.

An unexpected preprogrammed message from Raymond Brown arrives for David. Created by Raymond to be delivered to his son in the event of his death, the message indicates that the man labeled as a murderer was actually trying to prevent Peacemaker from attacking. Could Raymond Brown have actually been a savior, rather than a terrorist? David ditches his studies and heads out to find people who associated with Raymond while he was alive. He has to find the truth about his father’s identity, and he intends to do this by building a portrait of Raymond Brown based on the accounts of those who knew him. But digging into the past will only put David’s life in danger, because someone wants the truth about Peacemaker to stay buried with Raymond.

Unholy Domain builds on a common mistrust of technology to create a world ravaged by unchecked scientific advances. By the time David begins to explore the truth surrounding Peacemaker, governmental regulations do little to control those who would make technology their theology. Ronco shows the danger of extremes, and how fanaticism in any form could result in the eventual downfall of man.

Much of the book is based on events that transpired in Peacemaker, so Ronco spends a great deal of time explaining and incorporating the dynamics of his first novel. And he really has to, because there are so many characters and relations that without this bit of background, the reader would become overwhelmed. Some pretty intricate networks operate above the law in Ronco’s reality. All of these associations tend to get a bit tedious after a while, so thankfully the reader can find escape in a series of masochistic torture and murder scenes.

While the character associations are tangled and numerous, I was disappointed by the lack of techological intricacy. Having read about Ronco’s engineering and computer science expertise, I expected more thorough exploration of robotics and electronics. Granted, Ronco’s novel is set in the immediate future, and the technology is already just within our grasp now, so it definitely has the quality of realism. Very similar to Asimov’s Sonny in iRobot, Ronco’s humanoids are just beginning to recognize the possibility of consciousness., and they are largely unsure of themselves. Regarless, they play a secondary role in the novel, with the real threat lying in fanatical humans.

Ronco is a magnificent storyteller, and the chapters are concise and polished. He just has a tendency to let the narrative get mired in detail, which can easily lose a reader. The character of David could use some development, as I never really became sympathetic to his cause. It is also difficult to determine who exactly is meant to be the protagonist, for I cared much more about the motivations of the crazed martyr Moesha than I did for orphaned prodigy David.

Unholy Domain is a novel full of suspense, despite a few hurdles. The battle between science and religion will keep the reader glued to the pages, determined to find out which side prevails. It is really two novels in one, as the reader relives the horrors of Peacemaker to understand the self-discovery of David Brown. The end has a tidy little allusion to a third novel. For readers who enjoy watching mankind self-destruct, albeit begrudgingly, Unholy Domain will entertain.