Reviews

Nexus by Ramez Naam

soneerae's review against another edition

2.0

There was a bit too much technical/science jargon for my tastes. Made the story drag out and knocked me out of the story quite often. The set-up of chapters/sections was a bit disjointed as well. I liked the story itself but not how it was told.

jemerson02's review against another edition

adventurous reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

haahu's review against another edition

5.0

Excellent thought exercise on trans/post-humanism, wrapped in a decent action story. 10/10 would augment my brain if the technology was available.

tacanderson's review against another edition

5.0

This is an amazing book. First the premiss is kind of mind blowing but the writing and story development are really solid. The characters are rich and not cliche. The author's own socio-political views are strong in this book but probably because of the strong Buddhist themes, it's not too preachy or polarizing.

I'm seeing a real trend in the cyberpunk, speculative fiction genre around nanotech and enhanced cognition. William Hertling's [b:The Last Firewall|18305964|The Last Firewall (A Singularity Novel)|William Hertling|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1376236926s/18305964.jpg|25798891]. These two books actually have a lot in common with each other.

Nexus really pushes the boundary on speculative fiction, especially when you consider the author's own past and technical background with tech and nanontech, the book might not seem so crazy after all.

altoid's review against another edition

3.0

While I had initially finished this book with a sense of wonder for things to come, looking back on the story now I find it's lost a lot of the spark it had while I was reading it. Nothing has really stuck after having a few months to simmer on it, but there's no denying this book is quite the page turner. Starting out the gate with a large warehouse party that promptly gets crashed, our rebellious protagonists, with all their government-hatred, seem to change their tones on a dime, giving into the wishes of a mysterious and powerful government agency. A tale of changing allegiances and allies who become enemies, Nexus suffers from cliche as the two leads trot around the globe in search of a mysterious figure who has the ability to mind- and body-control anyone they please. Again, while the book is engaging all the way through, its after soaking in the various plots and schemes that I realize how tried and true most of the story already is.

gullevek's review against another edition

4.0

Pretty solid science fiction book. A quick read and very readable and also a quite good story overall.

justasking27's review

adventurous challenging tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

henkka's review against another edition

4.0

Really solid near future sci-fi thriller. Plenty of spy intrigue and action to keep pages turning, but the book also plays with really cool nanotechnology that allows people to have trans-human capabilities. It was also nice that the author had pretty positive outlook on the impacts of technology, which seems to be surprisingly rare in sci-fi writing.

paulataua's review against another edition

5.0

Best science fiction novel I have read in ages. A drug that can link minds and potentially usher in a new post humanity pitted against those who those who want to prevent that. Just enough science and just enough social commentary wrapped up in a page turning thriller. Certainly a writer I will return to in the future.

jessring's review against another edition

3.0

There was a lot to like in this book. The open source versus authoritarian control debate over a nano-drug brought up some great subplots. Buddhist philosophy in a recreational drug to military philosophy in a mind control weapon. I loved the view on how mankind was evolving along with the drug evolving out on the street.

My biggest problem was the pacing of this book. There were a lot of parts where I was just waiting for the next chapter. The writing just didn't pull me in.