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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
First half is a bit slow going but gets there in the end. Not as fun as Halting State.
Another though-provoking near-future outing from Mr Stross. He does an excellent job of immersing you in the slightly-dystopian future of Scotland and England as his protagonist Liz Kavanaugh tries to figure out who is killing off criminals in odd ways.
adventurous
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Another brilliant near-future adventure/mystery story from Charles Stross! Really enjoyed this one, the AI and ARG themes are good and the story is really fun.
Some people complain about the second-person narration, but I didn't mind.
It's an OK science fiction / near future story, diverting entertainment, but nothing extraordinary.
It's an OK science fiction / near future story, diverting entertainment, but nothing extraordinary.
I took way, way too long to finish this. It would have had more of an impact at a quicker pace.
I was so looking forward to this book. I wanted to like it!
To call it a dead end job would be an understatement, policing the weird and sordid life of internet porn was like being in the U bend of her career as all the unpleasantness of life flowed past. This was DI Liz Kavanaugh's life now, but when a fetish nut dies on her watch, the Rule 34 squad goes from an irrelevance to high profile. This first death is just the tip of the fatberg as more start dying in the most bizarre ways possible and the more Kavanaugh finds out about the case and the links to organised crime, the less she wants to know…
This is loosely a sequel to Halting State with Kavanaugh being the only character who has made it from that book. There are all sorts going on in this future police thriller; in it, he crams all sorts about the possibilities of pervasive state monitoring, a psychopath loose and the way that the criminals work across states. The writing point of view doesn't always make it the easiest book to read, however, it is highly entertaining with some typical surreal moments and the pace varies from sluggish to fairly brisk. I liked it but didn't love it.
This is loosely a sequel to Halting State with Kavanaugh being the only character who has made it from that book. There are all sorts going on in this future police thriller; in it, he crams all sorts about the possibilities of pervasive state monitoring, a psychopath loose and the way that the criminals work across states. The writing point of view doesn't always make it the easiest book to read, however, it is highly entertaining with some typical surreal moments and the pace varies from sluggish to fairly brisk. I liked it but didn't love it.
Didn't like it, primarily because I found it difficult to read so much second person narrative.
I usually enjoy Stross with some simple reservations, and this book is no different. Interesting concepts, and well told, (though doing the whole book in second person present is odd to say the least). The problem is that I can never escape the feeling that he is relying too much on the classic cyberpunk tropes, It's not blatant, they're just lurking in the background.
Recommended
Recommended