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firper617's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
bhgold1711's review against another edition
Was not interested at all in the story or characters. It was a slog of a first 100 pages mixed in with some misogyny and just awful characters, and honestly, I don't trust Neal Stephenson anymore.
julibexkens's review against another edition
1.0
Did not finish (got to page 350). Liked it at times, but often one little interesting snippet was wrapped in so many pages. I kept waiting for a twist to make me go "aha! Now we are talking." Didn't come.
I loved The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O., I'm very glad that Neal Shusterman has evolved a lot as author since Cryptonomicon.
I loved The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O., I'm very glad that Neal Shusterman has evolved a lot as author since Cryptonomicon.
11corvus11's review against another edition
DNF. If this was a 250 page book and not an 1100 page book, I might have finished. I get that he's going for an immersive experience by using language that soldiers may have used at the time, even in the third person and even when not referring to them. But, frankly, I just don't wanna read 1100 pages of racial slurs and edge lord misogyny. I grabbed this because I love cyberpunk and planned on reading Snow Crash. This was another one of Stephensons books I saw recommended. I actually think it's well written. Just not for me.
sarah_beth_books's review against another edition
challenging
slow-paced
4.0
https://youtu.be/t5OC8R-LNpY
jclermont's review against another edition
5.0
Very geeky, especially for the cryptography and history buff. I thought the development of the story across two different time periods was very well done.
rbixby's review against another edition
4.0
First Stephenson book I read. Loved the eccentric characters and the way the author weaved the stories of the two generations together.
The Captain Crunch scene alone is worth the price of admission.
The Captain Crunch scene alone is worth the price of admission.
gilles's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
While this book had some interesting moments, it was far too long with too many tangents that had no bearing on the plot. It's already a sprawling story that can be difficult to follow without side plots being introduced that don't have a lot of bearing on the main story threads besides world building. I generally don't mind world building, but it needs to serve the narrative, and I'm not sure a lot of this did. Many of the threads that seemed irrelevant did come together in the end, but I feel this could've been a much tighter story. There were also entire chapters devoted to the horniness of main characters and it was dropped in throughout the rest of the novel as well, which I could've done without.
yates9's review against another edition
3.0
Command of prose and plot / nifty translation of the technologies of cryptology to fiction / exciting war action…
The author does a great job at building a world that can carry deep description of the early computers, their mathematical drivers, the asymmetric competition for information and espionage.
The problem is a consant flipping of place, time and character through complications that are built just to drive forward. Almost everyone dies and we end on climax with little resolution.
At best what i see is a kind of technoidealism that crypto technology of all sorts means power to the “good guys” because it can only develop when open to criticism/scientism. And yet the author buries the loss of life worn through the book, in the end all that seems to matter is gold.
But maybe i misunderstood… I read the book and then tried to understand why i read the book and could not answer this.
The author does a great job at building a world that can carry deep description of the early computers, their mathematical drivers, the asymmetric competition for information and espionage.
The problem is a consant flipping of place, time and character through complications that are built just to drive forward. Almost everyone dies and we end on climax with little resolution.
At best what i see is a kind of technoidealism that crypto technology of all sorts means power to the “good guys” because it can only develop when open to criticism/scientism. And yet the author buries the loss of life worn through the book, in the end all that seems to matter is gold.
But maybe i misunderstood… I read the book and then tried to understand why i read the book and could not answer this.
dale_in_va's review against another edition
2.0
I ended up giving up on ths book about 3/4 of the way through.
The vignettes are vaguely interesting, albeit a bit overwrought with the male gaze for me. I got past the midpoint of the book and I still don't know where the plot is going, if there is a plot. I seems as if the various storylines are leading somewhere, but I don't know where and I don't know if I care. Perhaps it is because I can't relate to the characters on any level. They aren't really admirable characters and the science while there, doesn't seem to be driving the plot.
So not sure if this would be an entertaining novel for someone, but for me, I don't really love war stories, nor stories about not-quite enlightened young men during their sexual awakenings discussing women in not so flattering ways. I only picked this up because I liked Seven Eves quite a bit, but I decided to move on to something more tolerable.
The vignettes are vaguely interesting, albeit a bit overwrought with the male gaze for me. I got past the midpoint of the book and I still don't know where the plot is going, if there is a plot. I seems as if the various storylines are leading somewhere, but I don't know where and I don't know if I care. Perhaps it is because I can't relate to the characters on any level. They aren't really admirable characters and the science while there, doesn't seem to be driving the plot.
So not sure if this would be an entertaining novel for someone, but for me, I don't really love war stories, nor stories about not-quite enlightened young men during their sexual awakenings discussing women in not so flattering ways. I only picked this up because I liked Seven Eves quite a bit, but I decided to move on to something more tolerable.