Smoke and Mirrors

by Jane Lindskold

Hiding her telepathic gifts from her many enemies, industrial spy and prostitute Smokey of the planet Arizona senses a deadly nature in a new customer and begins a war of illusion while protecting her... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0380782901
• ISBN13: 9780380782901
• Release Date: January 1996
• Publisher: Avon Books
• Length: 264 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 4.2" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

Excellent, but Needs Sequels

From the back cover, the reader knows that the main character is a telepathic prostitute... yet it is still a shock that in the opening paragraph, she discovers that her current client is not even Human. Thus begins a fantastic and thought-provoking sci-fi novel, set on futuristic terraformed worlds representing the extremes of the climates of present-day Earth. While Smokey and her young daughter both lovingly refer to her profession in admirable terms (Smokey even refers to herself as the best whore on the planet), the sex is very tastefully written and is not gratuitous. In fact, the sex scenes in the novel are essentially required to further drive the narrative, even though many of Smokey's discoveries are made when she is not in a horizontal position. The science presented in Smoke and Mirrors is also intriguing. While not presented with the same level of intricate detail as in a Michael Crichton novel, the science is introduced in easy-to-understand language, and is entirely plausible for the futuristic setting. While the political situation is not given quite the same level of detail, it is definitely prominent, and also itself drives the technological and narrative aspects of the novel. In short, Smoke and Mirrors is an excellent novel. Unfortunately, while the core mystery of the novel is fulfilled at the end, the reader is not - there are several threads which could themselves launch very interesting sequels.

Original.

This book strikes me as being Science Fiction. Smokey, a legal whore on the planet Arizona (aptly named), is a slight telepathic. (She has to touch to read minds, and then it's only what they are conciously thinking.) She uses her job as a prostitute to touch men, and uses telepathy to be a spy. But when she finds an alien mind in one of her clients, she is suddenly being framed for a growing number of murders. She is rescued by her parents, also psi, and is taken to the Psi Underground, where they battle these mysterious alien invaders. I have seen no other book like this. It's good.