A rare collaboration
Die hard traditional Arthur Clarke fans will probably be put off a bit by the essentialy gratuitous sex details that, in my opinion, do not add significantly to the story development, but seem to have been added to increase sales to a post-1970s American audience. It is almost possible to discern which chapters were written by which author. Except for those distractions, it still very much bears the stamp of Clarke's genius as the seeminghly disparate pieces of this cosmic SF adventure "bolero" come together like seperate trains moving through a switchyard maze to the inevitible collision at the "Aha moment" where it all makes sense. Over all, a very good read.