Book three in the Rama series is The Garden of Rama. Nichole, Richard, and Michael go about living their lives as they journey to an unknown destination. Along the way, Nichole has three daughters with Richard and two sons with Michael. The Wakefield and O’Toole children have never seen other humans and have never been to their own planet.
After twelve long years, they reach the Node. While there, they are the subjects of many tests. The family learns that there will be a return trip to Earth, but not all of them can go. A mating pair must stay at the Node so the alien intelligence can observe them.
Simone and Michael decide to marry and stay at the Node, despite their age difference. Michael is in his seventies and Simone is only a teenager, but they’re in love and decide to make the best of it. Richard, Nichole, and the rest of the children prepare to make the return trip to Earth. Nichole helped design a human habitat that should have been a utopia, but sometimes things can be too perfect.
The family slept for twenty years during the return voyage. While Nichole and Richard grew more gray, the children developed adult bodies. They learn that they will be expecting the human sample population and make preparations. When everyone is onboard, everything starts off well, but things don’t go as planned.
A powerful criminal co-opts the colony government and life in utopia becomes unlivable. Nichole is imprisoned, tried, convicted, and sentenced to death for not supporting the new regime. Will she survive?
This book started off a little slow because we had to have back story on the major characters from the human sample. We also needed to understand what was happening back on Earth. From the beginning, you can tell things aren’t going to go as planned, but you wonder how it will all play out.
The part I liked best was the family’s time at the node. It was interesting to see the alien creatures and all the artificial intelligence they encountered. I also enjoyed the time Richard spent with the avians, leggies, and the sesile beings. There were hints they existed in Rama II, but it was hard to put together. It was interesting to learn about how their species developed.
I can’t wait to read the exciting conclusion of the Rama series in Rama Revealed.
