I don't really know what to think about this book, because I'm not sure how much of it is serious, and how much is tongue-in-cheek. It takes place in a future where the state is run by Soc(iologists), Psyc(hologists), and the Church (led by a mechanical pope, a huge computer in a monstrous church building). People have their life and careers regulated by their family status, with the state assigning partners and keeping tabs. Also, there are starships that are only used to bring prisoners to the planet Hell. Apparently their history diverged from ours when Jesus didn't die young, but instead marched on Rome, successfully. (The divergance is tiny for a change like that, but hey.)