In the previous article, I talked about Illium. Here I will talk about the sequel, Olympos.

Here many puzzles are solved. The veil is lifted on certain things, but the root of the problem remains obscure!

Who or what is this Quiet, this unique god that we can distinguish behind Setebos, Prospero and the post-human Greek gods? What is his objective ? Why this fantastic display of energy? Moravecs say that providing quantum energy to the gods for the use they make of it is like using nukes to provide electricity…

The Martian gods come from Earth. Someone on this planet provide them with energy and quantum technology, all so that they could keep quiet (well, so to speak…). It is this entity that the Moravecs must stop to save the solar system. How ? What are all these entities? What are they doing ? The Moravecs return to Earth to stop this madness… And they go in a replica of the Titanic converted into a powered spaceship by atomic Coke cans…

We also discover the secret of Achilles’ invulnerability: the probability of the day, hour, minute and cause of his death is equal to unity, meaning nothing else can kill it.

Achilles who was trapped by Penthesilea, queen of the Amazons, with the help of Aphrodite, Goddess of love (and sex in the broad sense…). Aphrodite provided the Amazon with a perfume based on pheromones and nanocytes to allow it to subjugate Achilles and thus give her an opening during the fight and kill him. Achille will nevertheless kill her, but fall in love with her right after. And then does everything to convince the gods to resurrect the one he killed. And each of these gods to laugh at him:

You, Achille, in love? You who kill, rape, pillage? You who screw girls whenever the urge takes you?
- Yes. The scent of Aphrodite.
- Number nine? You’re well fucked!

And after having found Zeus and having delivered him from Hera’s sleep, he will require his assistance, and be told to get off again:

NO MEMBER OF THE PANTHEON OF IMMORTALS HAS THE RIGHT TO TELL ZEUS WHAT HE SHOULD OR NOT DO, LET ALONE A COMMON MORTAL WITH A PASSION FOR BODYBUILDING.

Zeus will throw him into Tartarus for his insolence. But even here, the demigod remains protected by his quantum improbability.

In this second volume, we also discover what the Voinyx are, these servile semi-organic robots that served humans on Earth for centuries. We see Humanity awakening, inventing again, re-experience the entire human technological adventure, but also survive, fight to protect themselves from the voinyx. We see them rediscover literature, theater, art…

Are we incapable of being creative, witty artistic if our life is protected, as this book claims? Or to On the contrary, as Iain M Banks thinks, in his Culture books, do we always seek to give meaning to our life, to work for common good, even if we are safe?

Everything in this book exudes absurdity and excess. It’s hilarious. It’s alive. It’s beautiful. I loved it…