Queen of Angels (novel)
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Cover of first edition (hardcover)
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| Author | Greg Bear |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Science fiction novel |
| Publisher | Warner Books |
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Publication date
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1990 |
| Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
| Pages | 420 pp |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 20854171 |
| 813/.54 20 | |
| LC Class | PS3552.E157 Q44 1990 |
Queen of Angels is a 1990 science fiction novel written by Greg Bear. It was nominated for the Hugo, Campbell and Locus Awards in 1991. It was followed by a sequel, "/", also known as Slant.
Queen of Angels describes our world just prior to the binary millennium (2048 AD) through several parallel (and to some degree interlocking) tales. Nanotechnology has transformed almost every aspect of American society, and its application to psychology, psychiatry, and neuroscience has resulted in new techniques for mental "therapy" that have created new forms of social stratification. Increasingly, individuals are "therapied" - that is, by means of "nano-therapy", they are turned into well-integrated personalities capable of productive work and constructive social interaction which does not threaten the social order. Therapied individuals have access to the best jobs. There are two other classes: the "high naturals", who possess such a positive mental makeup that they don't need any therapy, and the "untherapied", who find themselves increasingly marginalized.
The central unifying element involves a famous writer, Emmanuel Goldsmith, who has committed a gruesome series of murders, a crime almost unheard of in the age of therapy. One storyline involves Mary Choy, a high natural police detective assigned to the case to track down and arrest the murderer. Mary is a transform - she has chosen to have her body extensively altered by nanotechnology, both to enhance her abilities as a policewoman and for aesthetic reasons.
A second storyline involves Richard Fettle, a good friend of the murderer, also an untherapied writer, who must come to terms with what happened to his friend and how his life—and that of artists, and all of the untherapied—must change. The third plot line concerns Martin Burke, a pioneer in psychotherapy who uses a technique which allows him to directly enter and interact with a patient's psychology - the "Country of the Mind" - through a sort of virtual reality. Although in a position of disgrace at the story's opening, Dr. Burke is given the opportunity to use his technique to explore Goldsmith's mind, which turns out to be one of the most fascinating and dangerous minds imaginable.
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