This a murder mystery set on Ganymede a moon of jupiter. The book is full of. fascinating characters and plot twists I will read more of this author's works. This one of the works Asimov or Heinlein would be reading if they were alive today.This is universe where space travel is the norm. Yet the solar system is still a mysterious and strange place. It's solar system in which there has been war that billions of combatants and non combats have died in a war where no side could claim victory. The story focuses on refugees from this war and what happens them as they live rebuilt lives and stumble in a mystery spans decades and lives of the living and the dead. ( )

It's five years after the Great War that killed nine billion people in the Solar System, but violence hasn't ceased. It's just returned to the traditional forms of individual murder for profit and paranoia
.
The targets in question are haldane Lola Belman, a therapist trained in the aracana of the mathematical underpinnings of the brain, psychotropic drugs, and medicine, and her patient who seems to be suffering a severe bout of false memories.

Unlike its prequel _Cold As Ice_, there are not a lot of neat scientific concepts here. The plot is not driven by scientific exploration and corporate and political intrigue but mostly by the suspense of the characters trying to figure out things the reader knows already, specifically who's trying to kill them and why. And those characters are generally a more interesting lot than those in the earlier novel. The only overlap in the cast is with the best character: the Bat, an obese and extremely private genius who delights in solving all sorts of puzzles from scheduling conflicts in the spaceship transportation network to murder. Here we see him twenty years earlier in his career.

Essentially, if you like a good, suspenseful science fiction tale with a bit of hard science, this novel is for you. Sheffield has created, in these books, a universe of adventure, discovery, and intrigue about 90 years in the future. Each stands alone, and the books can be read in any order. ( )

A darn good read, with the bonus of an appearance of 'Rustum Battachariya' (BAT) who was a key character in 'Cold as Ice'. Surely BAT is the most enjoyable character that Sheffield created, and I will happily read any book in which he is present. Ganymede Club takes place some time before 'Cold as Ice' and shares the setting with that novel and 'Dark as Day', though it can be happily read as a stand alone.

It delivers good pacing, and a strong desire to find out what on earth (or on Ganymede) is going on. It is Hard SF much less dense on the science front than 'Cold as Ice'. Thoroughly enjoyable. ( )

As usual, Sheffield has produced an enjoyable, well-paced hard sf story. The Ganymede Club is set in a universe created in another novel, but Sheffield does a fine job giving us the history of this future, and I never felt that not having read the other book detracted from the experience.

The book is a thriller with some very interesting characters, including one of the best portraits of the socially dysfunctional I've ever seen. Unfortunately, the main viewpoint character, Lola, is rather dull, though her job as a "haldane" (a kind of drug- and machine-assisted psychotherapist) should provide more interest. I won't include any spoilers here, but I did feel cheated by the author's failure to explain certain details.

Overall, though, the book's an exciting ride, if nothing that will stretch your brain too much. Unlike some hard sf writers of his generation, Sheffield never focuses on the rivets at the expense of the characters. Anyone who enjoys near-future space adventure should like The Ganymede Club. ( )