Tim's Reviews > Cities in Flight

Blish had some fascinating ideas. Though a lot of the scientific concepts seem very outdated now, it is interesting to track the possibilities embodied in the basic concepts of longevity drugs, and "spindizzies" to move entire cities and planets around the universe at hyper-speeds.

But a lot of the action falls flat, as the reader is expected to believe that the main characters have anticipated the actions of other people and cultures to an impossible degree. The assumption that the main character has contrived events from beginning to end becomes sort of a psychological "deus ex machina" that is embedded in the story all along, but which is hidden from the reader. That approach appears to be nothing more than a clumsy approach to creating a false sense of suspense.

What's more, the fact that the four volumes were not written in chronological order is evident. While Blish claims in the end notes to have cleaned up some of the inconsistencies, even a fairly casual reading reveals inconsistencies, particularly in time frames, that make the story more difficult to grasp.