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3.53 AVERAGE
3.53 AVERAGE
adventurous
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
This was pretty good. There were times when I had a hard time putting it down, and then other times when I just wanted to be done reading it.
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This book gives you exactly what it advertises: a dystopian cyberpunk techno-thriller. I enjoyed the read and will continue to tune in for the rest of the series.
Good post apocalyptic read. The main character is interesting and the world is well developed. The Electric Church itself is a really interesting idea.
Quirky and interesting, although not as plausible as some others in this general genre. A noir punk action story set in a dystopian near-future setting - the characters are intriguing and the plot is good; I'd have given it five stars if the setting had been more believable.
Actually a 2.5 star book for me. It is a basic cyberpunk grimefest which is fine as far as it goes. My main issue was the repetitiveness of the main character. If he isn't reminding you how much he hates the cops or that he is old at age 27, (although there are a number of characters that are older) then he's explaining what a badass he is. It just took me out of the story a bit.
There is nothing groundbreaking here, a lot of the ideas have been kicked around before by the cyberpunk books. But the story is fast and fun, and the characters are likeable. Lots of gun fights, speakeasies, and anarchy mixed in with the high-tech aspects.
This is a very entertaining quick read. Would not consider it deep character development, but good action sequences.
The Electric Church is noir flavored scifi. Avery Cates is a gun-for-hire in a grim future. Earth has been unified under an oppressive government called the System, and the vast majority of people squat in the ruins of once great cities, committing petty crimes, living fast, and dying young. At 27, Cates is an old veteran. People over 50 are basically mythical. Cates gets drawn in a plot by the head of Internal Affairs for the System Cops to assassinate the head of a new religion called the Electric Church. The Electric Church preaches a doctrine of salvation through cybernetization, machine immortality to contemplate their sins. At their rate of growth, they'll be the biggest religion in 5 years, and the only religion in 10, if they aren't stopped.
The story moves quickly through the standard noir beats, with the coolest scifi ideas compressed into the last few chapters. My main problem is that the writing is repetitive, and commits the cardinal sin of telling and not showing. Cates's first person monologue is the only voice of the book, and he drones on about how ordinary cops are bad and the elite System Security Force are worse, how creepy the Electric Church cyborg Monks are, how crapsack the world is, and how much of tough and smart criminal he is. All words better spent showing this, rather than telling us.
The story moves quickly through the standard noir beats, with the coolest scifi ideas compressed into the last few chapters. My main problem is that the writing is repetitive, and commits the cardinal sin of telling and not showing. Cates's first person monologue is the only voice of the book, and he drones on about how ordinary cops are bad and the elite System Security Force are worse, how creepy the Electric Church cyborg Monks are, how crapsack the world is, and how much of tough and smart criminal he is. All words better spent showing this, rather than telling us.
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No