BROOKE, Keith

(1966-)

   UK writer who began publishing sf with "Adrenotropic Man" for Interzone in 1989, and whose first novel, Keepers of the Peace (1990), depicts in singularly gloomy terms the slow evisceration of a group of soldiers sent down from near space to police a fragmented USA. The Expatria sequence - Expatria (1991) and Expatria Incorporated (1992) - has elements of the PLANETARY ROMANCE in that its story takes place upon, although it does not materially affect, the eponymous colony planet; in the first volume, the young protagonist must both defend himself against the charge that he has murdered his father and attempt to prevent his fellow colonists from descending into barbarism, while at the same time awaiting a rescue ship (upon whose approach turns the plot of the second volume). KB has already demonstrated ample talent and energy, but has yet to focus them.

   JC