Of course what made him all the more appealing to me was that he shares many of those attributes that I had so admired in Riki-Tiki-Tavi all those years ago; not only is he brave and a good fighter, he's also smart. Many a good strong fighter has gone down in battle because they don't have the ability to think three steps ahead of their adversary. That's not a problem for Pepper, for like any good mongoose knows, his survival depends on being able to anticipate where the cobra's fangs are going to strike before they do - so he can be somewhere else.

Yet it's actually Timas, the young man who serves his city by walking on the surface of Chilo in a dangerously old environmental suit, who is the most interesting character in the book. He's spent his whole life being conditioned to believe that no sacrifice is too big to make in order to preserve both his city and the status allocated his family because of the work he does. They are given preferred housing, access to better food, and whatever luxuries are available to the city because Timas risks his life on a weekly basis.

Racked with guilt every time he eats at the thought that he might gain weight and no longer be able to fit in the environmental suit, he has become a bulimic. After every meal he forces himself to throw up in a desperate attempt to stay small. Timas' struggle to overcome the emotional blackmail of his parents and his community is as interesting a battle as the one that rages between The Swarm and Chilo's defenders. Its the added dimension that elevates Sly Mongoose out of the ordinary and into the worth reading category.

With Sly Mongoose, Tobias Buckell has written more than just another two dimensional space adventure. While it contains plenty of action, and enough plot twists to satisfy anyone's need for excitement, it's his ability to create convincing and interesting characters that makes this book really worthwhile.

Sly Mongoose will be published this August by Tor Books, and is available for pre-order at most on line retailers.