Outre Mer


Michael Puttré
Lulu (2006)
ISBN 9781430300960
Reviewed by Debra Gaynor for Reader Views (11/06)


Earth has reached the stars and began colonization and also destruction.  A war was fought against the “Grey’s,” an evil alien race that has been capturing humans since the 1940’s.  The war was won but the humans don’t quite trust the “Taken,” those that were abducted and returned.

The “Taken” have been quarantined on Outre Mer where the Duran live.  Eventually some politicians decide that it was a bad idea and they plot to remove the “Taken” to another planet.  But the “Taken” have no desire to leave.  Humans attempt to isolate the “Taken” form the Durrani.  They do not want the two races mixing.  It is decided that all the “enlightened” Durrani must be exterminate but the Durrani that have not been exposed to the “Taken” may be allowed to live as long as they remain unenlightened.

The main plot is the struggle for the “Taken” and the Durrani to remain free, but the plot has many twists and angles, there are many other paths for the reader to explore.

Fisher is just one of many whose purpose is to destroy by fire other planets.  For seven years Fisher has planned his defection.  He has destroyed worlds and hated every minute of it.  His escape plan takes him toward the sun but a terrorist waits to destroy him.  Gustavo manages to destroy their ship and Fisher survives. “If Richard did his work well then Marten would step forward to become the biggest mass murderer in recent history.  Somehow, Marten knew, the infamy would be his.  The media would focus on the former Phalangist who engineered the euthanizing of tens of thousands of intelligent Durrani people.  The fact that this was done to ensure the persistence of hundreds of thousands of other Duran in their natural state would be academic footnote at best.  The defector smiled darkly at the thought that Richard, nice guy that he was, would have his revenge whether he wanted it or not.”

Jannie, a Durrani, has been assimilated into modern society.  He has a long furry tail, saucer eyes; he seemed to be all snout and teeth, he has been given a set of mechanical hands to wear on his paws.  He thought the human face expressive.  “There had been a time, early in his training, when Janni’s mannish colleagues invited him to play poker.  He lost money for a while as he picked up the game.  Then he learned how to read faces, and the invitations to live games stopped coming.” “My name is Janni. I am Durrani, a native of Outre Mer.  I have a mind.  I believe that I have a soul.  I am a person…You do not have to annihilate us.  Please, let us live.  Let us live and we will leave Outre Mer….The land is not important.  Do what you want with it.  Do what you must.  Our lives are important.  You do not have to kill us.  You can choose not to…As I choose not to kill you now…You can choose to let us live.”

The Durrani people are marked for destruction by a small group of politicians and operatives, each with their own agenda.

The characters are amazing.  They have depth and are multifaceted; they are very real in that they are not totally good or totally bad.  The author has made use of his background and offers his readers, technology and scientific descriptions.

Whether by coincidence or on purpose, Mr. Puttré; forces his readers to look deep in their soul for the prejudice hidden there.  Perhaps once they come to light we will overcome them and learn to truly love our fellow man.

Mr. Puttré offers his readers a unique blend of sci-fi, romance, fantasy, political intrigue, and historical context.  He leaves us with much to ponder.  The cover entices the reader to enter in with a promise of adventure waiting.  I recommend “Outre Mer” for those that enjoy science fiction, political intrigue, romance, space opera, fantasy and a really good book to curl up with.

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