Prior to the letter B of the French SF, there was Barjavel. Now there also Curling, a great man like that. I would describe his novels human SF or humanist. For Mr. Curling does not lead us to faraway explorations of the universe, flanked by robots and questionable scientific explanations. No. He gives us what I see as the essence of SF: transpose the daily life of the human species in a world reorganizing disorganized. The Fire of God is an example and a good example. In the fire of God it deals with the theme dear to him: the quest for the meaning of life, reduced to the essential, uncluttered constraints and called civilized reflexes. The man refocus on himself and on others; it refocuses the middle of nature upset that highlights the good and the bad sides of each other. In short, we think a bit to the main characters of Orson Scott Card, they too seeking their truth.
So should we read? Yes yes yes, even and especially if you have negative preconceptions about SF. Then you can quickly on to his other novels.
