Scan barcode
klieber's review against another edition
2.0
Too many questions left unanswered, along with a major aspect of the plot clumsily closed off toward the end of the book. Plus, overall writing style made the book difficult to get into. It was more of a grind than a pleasure to finish.
rpmiller's review against another edition
4.0
An unusual story made up of unusual parts. Quite a pleasure reading about things I am not as familiar with. In this case, a former band of musicians, the systema of chinese-cubans, the spoils of the war on terror and then there is Bigend and the blue ant.
smalljude's review against another edition
2.0
I'm rereading all the William Gibson's one after the other, and I have to admit Spook Country felt a little flat to me. I couldn't engage with the characters as I have with the other books - something was missing. The ending was better than I expected, and it wrapped all the situations up fairly nicely, but I still feel it was not as strong as the previous books.
robsonjv's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book, though the ability to suspend disbelief required increasing levels of will as the the story progressed and more details were revealed. Early in the book your brain works hard to discern patterns and analyze clues, but this turns out to be wasted effort, given the highly implausible ending. Gibson has an excellent eye for detail, and a real talent for dialog, and the book is a fun read.
ellstar's review against another edition
3.0
I really wasn't as engaged in the multi-character-threaded environment that Gibson is usually known for. Hollis Henry was very much a blank slate, guided by a completely disinterested ennui towards the world. Tito was the only interesting character in the novel and learning his backstory and his current progression was what really kept the novel flowing.
It just didn't really excite me or click, it wasn't a bad read, just not very memorable.
It just didn't really excite me or click, it wasn't a bad read, just not very memorable.
pkadams's review against another edition
4.0
What makes William Gibson a favorite author is his ability to make you look at life with a different prism. Every time he does it, I realize I've been overlooking something or not thinking about it in the same way. His way is always more interesting and seems to see the present from a future perspective. What I find difficult though is getting into his books as you spend a good part of them disoriented and confused.
As with Pattern Recognition, William Gibson approaches the present like it is the future. As one reviewer said,
Now that the present has caught up with William Gibson's vision of the future....he has started writing about a time--our time--in which everyday life feels like science fiction."
His prism is the science fiction prism and gives you that future shock that you get when say you realize that you don't use index cards to take notes for papers any more you use zotero or other online note taking application, you have a personal trainer that is a computer program - WiiFit, or when you lose a computer file and you use Time Machine to retrieve it. Gibson is a genius at making you realize you are living in the future.
As with Pattern Recognition, William Gibson approaches the present like it is the future. As one reviewer said,
Now that the present has caught up with William Gibson's vision of the future....he has started writing about a time--our time--in which everyday life feels like science fiction."
His prism is the science fiction prism and gives you that future shock that you get when say you realize that you don't use index cards to take notes for papers any more you use zotero or other online note taking application, you have a personal trainer that is a computer program - WiiFit, or when you lose a computer file and you use Time Machine to retrieve it. Gibson is a genius at making you realize you are living in the future.
dancarey_404's review against another edition
4.0
I didn't bookmark it at time time, so I can no longer find it. But while reading Spook Country, I ran across a paragraph that just made me stop, savor it, and think to myself, "Now, this is why I read Gibson."
It is a near-certainty that I will re-read this book soon. (Re-reading is a rarity for me.) And I may well raise my rating to 5 stars at that point. Gibson's beautiful prose, quirky characters, and tech-rich plots just delight me.
hmfriggz's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
jpineau_k's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0