Greatwinter

The "Greatwinter" Series is a sequence of science fiction novels by Sean McMullen. In Australia, the home country of the author, the first book was released as two separate novels, "Voices in the Light" and "Mirrorsun Rising". In the United States, the series was a trilogy, composed of the following books:

*"Souls in the Great Machine"
*"The Miocene Arrow"
*"Eyes of the Calculor"

The series is set in the 40th century, with action taking place in both North America and Australia, called "Australica". The "Greatwinter" Series has certain steampunk-like elements, such as a rejection of electrical and steam or combustion technologies throughout the series, focusing instead on wind-, solar-, or man-powered devices and technologies. This is achieved through the plot device of orbiting machines which destroy anything detected as electronics, assumed created during a war at some point earlier.

Outline Background (Warning: Spoilers)

In the early 21st century a scientific experiment is carried out in Sydney, Australia to recreate a recently discovered ancient whale, or cetacean, using preserved DNA. The experiment backfires with apocalyptic effects. The whale had been an member of an ancient species with telepathic powers. It escapes with 2 other cetaceans and teaches other cetaceans how to use its ancient weapon of telepathy to devastate the human race that has caused so much harm to them. Copying the emotional longings of one of the scientists it felt, the recreated whale creates a telepathic "Call" that makes humans and most large mammals walk lemming like towards the source of the Call, the ocean. Society is quickly devastated as the majority of the population literally walk to their death in the ocean. Military attempts to destroy the cetaceans come to nothing, but are also diluted due to various world powers believing the Call is a pre-emptive attack by others and launching strikes.

At the same time, a ring of manned nuclear satellites used to enforce world peace is in place. The military commander, seeing the world collapse into chaos and not understanding its full nature, overrides all human operators, and programs the system to destroy all vehicles over a certain size, or moving over a certain speed, and all electronic signatures. This does nothing to stop the cetaceans, and leaves a satellite defence system in place for millenia that will keep the survivors in the technological dark ages by force.

The main surviving scientist links up with other survivors and, seeing that birds are not affected by the Call, engages in a genetic experiment to try to give the next generation immunity from the Call by blending bird DNA with humans. Millenia later their descendants will be immune, but also ignorant of their origins, and feared by all "normal" humans although believed to be a myth.

While these events were underway, a long term project to counteract glabal warming was underway. Robotic miners on the moon were manufacturing a space based ring of mirrors that would also diffuse the sun and cool the Earth. Slowed by the collapse of civilisation it continues its task, also building a computer control system that will eventually become sentient.

It is this world 20 centuries later, having adapted to these new rules of existence which it has forgotten the causes of, that change begins to come to in the trilogy.

Literary Comment

As an entry into the steam punk genre, there are several interesting characteristics of this series. The first is the building of an entirely human powered computer used to calculate probabilities in battle. The second is that it is an externally enforced technology limitation, and in the later books the machine enforcing the limitation becomes a more direct part of the plot. Electronics can be shielded from its sensors, and in the end of the series, the machine reaches an accommodation with humanity, paving the way (presumably) for future generations to return to more sophisticated technology. Many readersWho|date=April 2008 were put off by "The Eyes of the Calculor" because the former hero warden-killer had become the villain. Glasken became a woman which was also controversial.Fact|date=April 2008