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pelevolcana's review against another edition
4.0
I really liked the idea of disposable clones and what society would do with them. I think most of my gaming friends would enjoy this book.
nicohvi's review against another edition
2.0
The overly complex and convoluted plot which reaches an unsatisfactory conclusion takes away from the amazing and creative setting which Brin has envisioned. The philosophical implications that are discussed in the book provokes you into thinking about what the concept of a 'soul' truly encompasses.
Great setting, some amazing dialogue, poor plot.
Great setting, some amazing dialogue, poor plot.
sisyphus_dreams's review against another edition
4.0
This is a tough book to review.
It's good. Quite good. But David Brin has written better.
Kiln People is extremely clever, funny, original, and memorable. It presents a very original idea: a future society in which people can temporarily spin off copies of themselves in clay duplicates, "inloading" the memories from those golems at the end of the day. And in that setting, it incorporates a nicely-handled detective story, as well as more puns and obscure references than you can shake a stick at.
At the same time, there's no denying that it's not first-rate Brin. For any other writer (except the greatest ones), I'd give this book a strong 4.2. But I expect more from Brin, so I'll give it a 3.8.
It does tend to get a bit metaphysical and
It's good. Quite good. But David Brin has written better.
Kiln People is extremely clever, funny, original, and memorable. It presents a very original idea: a future society in which people can temporarily spin off copies of themselves in clay duplicates, "inloading" the memories from those golems at the end of the day. And in that setting, it incorporates a nicely-handled detective story, as well as more puns and obscure references than you can shake a stick at.
At the same time, there's no denying that it's not first-rate Brin. For any other writer (except the greatest ones), I'd give this book a strong 4.2. But I expect more from Brin, so I'll give it a 3.8.
It does tend to get a bit metaphysical and
henryarmitage's review against another edition
4.0
I thought this was one of the author's better works.
The science fiction part of the premise is there is a cloning-like technology that allows people to make short-lived copies of themselves. They last about 48 hours. Then it's possible to upload the memories of the clone back to the person before it expires. So essentially a person can be in two places at once.
Then there's a ripping Raymond Chandler detective story set in this world.
Great plotting, lots of twists and turns.
There are elements of humor that get a little cheesy at times, mainly endless word play on 'ditto' and other terminology of the cloning technology (e.g. 'ditective').
The science fiction part of the premise is there is a cloning-like technology that allows people to make short-lived copies of themselves. They last about 48 hours. Then it's possible to upload the memories of the clone back to the person before it expires. So essentially a person can be in two places at once.
Then there's a ripping Raymond Chandler detective story set in this world.
Great plotting, lots of twists and turns.
There are elements of humor that get a little cheesy at times, mainly endless word play on 'ditto' and other terminology of the cloning technology (e.g. 'ditective').
lauralandsbaum's review against another edition
3.0
Slow start. More of a tangled who dunnit than science fiction. Premise is novel but execution drags.
lisarue's review against another edition
4.0
Funny and exciting and complicated and deep in exploring the possibilities of creating live-for-a-day duplicates of one's self.
kgagne's review against another edition
4.0
I'd been wanting to reread Altered Carbon — then along comes David Brin and scratches the same itch. I enjoyed his take on cloning people and the multiple characters he created. My only complaints were that there was a lot of exposition, such that one character had to be literally tied down to listen to it all; the last few chapters were a metaphysical slog; and some of the mysteries had solutions the reader never could've guessed. But I still thoroughly enjoyed it and gave me a new appreciation for the likes of Surrogates, Dollhouse, and even 6th Day.
yonitdm's review against another edition
4.0
Wonderfully immersive world! I enjoyed the philosophical questions raised, some even in passing. The variety of colorful characters were interesting without overburdening the plot. The end went a bit further into than I felt necessary, bit overall a great read.
jewzaam's review against another edition
5.0
Picked this up in an airport many years ago with no context or recommendation. It was more than worth it! It is an interesting twist on automation and fun to read. Gets a little weird but I've come back to read it a couple of times. Highly recommend it!