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In Nekropolis, Maureen F. McHugh tackles gender issues in a way that hearkens to some of Ursula K. LeGuin’s best work. Nekropolis is at it’s heart the story of a forbidden love. Hariba is a Moroccan woman sometime in the future who has had some type of behavior modification (jessing) performed which transforms her into the perfect servant. In the house of her owner, she meets a Harni — a man-made organism that looks and acts much like a human but is not quite human. Hariba falls in love, and the Harni apparently falls for her too. The plot of the novel follows their struggle to find a way to make a life together in a society in which their love is taboo. Unfortunately, that’s also where the novel goes astray. To me, the most interesting aspect of the story is the nature of their relationship. Harni’s are created to do everything they can to please humans, indulging their every whims. It brings into question how genuine the feelings the Harni claims to have for Hariba actually are. That issue is only really explored in what turns out to be a denouement which lasts far too long after the main plot has resolved. The “action/adventure” plot involving their attempt to escape Morocco takes over the novel and pushes the more interesting relationship issues to the side, only to be resurrected in a whirlwind epilogue that feels forced and too brief to contain the story that needs telling. Additionally, the epilogue lacks the emotional punch it should have, as all the tension built up in the action/adventure plot has been resolved, leading to a very strange rhythm to the novel. This book could have been so good. Ms. McHugh has the capability to write the book I’d hoped this would be — she succeeded in China Mountain Zhang and Mission Child in raising fascinating issues regarding the human condition, but unfortunately for those of us impressed with her previous work she misses the mark with Nekropolis.
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