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nigellicus's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
5.0
Okay, this is getting ridiculous. READ FEWER BOOKS IS NOT A SIGNAL TO READ MORE.
Soldiers and mercenaries from a previous war are digitally resurrected in a distant star system to quash an outbreak of machine sentience. Naturally, there's a lot more going on than that, the previous war perhaps not being as previous as assumed, or hoped, or lied about, but it'll do for starters. While the soldiers come to terms with their new reality, the robots come to terms with their new-found freedom. Smart well-rendered space-opera.
Soldiers and mercenaries from a previous war are digitally resurrected in a distant star system to quash an outbreak of machine sentience. Naturally, there's a lot more going on than that, the previous war perhaps not being as previous as assumed, or hoped, or lied about, but it'll do for starters. While the soldiers come to terms with their new reality, the robots come to terms with their new-found freedom. Smart well-rendered space-opera.
trisha_clay's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
breadandmushrooms's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
sbisson's review
4.0
Recent Reads: The Corporation Wars Dissidence. Ken MacLeod's new saga is as much a treatise on free will and economics as a story of a post-capitalist robot rebellion. Deep, fascinating stuff that crosses Hofstadter and Dennett with Capek and Asimov.
brianrenaud's review
2.0
I generally enjoy MacLeod's work, but I didn't find the characters or plot in this one to be very interesting.
I own this in a trilogy omnibus form, so I might someday bring it up again on the kindle and try the second novel in the series. But I wouldn't go out of my way to, say, check it out of the library.
I own this in a trilogy omnibus form, so I might someday bring it up again on the kindle and try the second novel in the series. But I wouldn't go out of my way to, say, check it out of the library.
davidscrimshaw's review
4.0
Satisfying action sci-fi.
No talking cats, but there's robots who become sentient. Almost as good.
And the meta-physical pondering of what it means to be human is all very absorbable.
It's book one in a series. Book #2 seems to be out, but I don't see any sign of Book #3.
No talking cats, but there's robots who become sentient. Almost as good.
And the meta-physical pondering of what it means to be human is all very absorbable.
It's book one in a series. Book #2 seems to be out, but I don't see any sign of Book #3.
roba's review
3.0
Some really interesting ideas about living in sims and consciousness here. And it's nice to think of MacLeod discussing them with his friend Iain Banks, as I'd guess he did... something of Banks' presence shines through. It's let down a bit by some confusingly described space melees, dweeby AI-endowed robots (I was picturing the Short Circuit robot and some Cybermats... doubt that's what MacLeod was intending), and ultimately I found it a bit disengaging when it seemed like every level of reality described might be a simulation. Just like life. But MacLeod pulls it back enough at the end for me to carry on with the series. Just like The White Mountains.