Wilson disappoints

After gushing recently about Robert Charles Wilson, I was thrilled that Axis, the sequel to his Hugo-winning novel Spin, had been reserved for me at the library. I dug in, and... well... it really disappointed; this one won't be taking any awards. Spin had big ideas and great plot tension, but Axis got all wound up and didn't really go anywhere interesting, with slightly wooden characters, a retread plot, and a maguffin that was a total letdown. Better luck next time, Mr. Wilson – maybe a sequel wasn't such a great idea.

Honestly, at times I was a bit confused, thinking I had already read it because it was so similar to Charles Stross's Missile Gap. It had the same lost-continent-on-another-planet shtick, the same weird things popping up out of the sand, and the same pointless roadtrip seasoned with marital strife. But Charlie used those elements to fashion a good story.