Reviews

The Goliath Stone by Matthew Joseph Harrington, Larry Niven

gfmatt's review against another edition

1.0

This is a libertarian old dude fantasy with a thin veneer of science fiction enacted by one dimensional characters who are never in any real danger. It's a fast read because there is no substance to engage the reader.

lyleblosser's review against another edition

3.0

A light, funny and optimistic glimpse into a possible future. Classic Niven characters and neat extrapolation into what might be possible with nanotechnology. If only the real future would turn out this way!

royvdb's review against another edition

challenging funny lighthearted slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.5

blackwolf294's review

1.0

DNF!

It is a rare occurrence for me to not finish a book. I have tried so hard to stick with this one, but when I'm a third of the way in and still don't understand what is going on, I just can't bring myself to finish it. Normally, I will finish even a book I don't really like just to see how it ends, but since I didn't even understand what was happening, I had no reason to stick with it. There are words on the page, but they mean nothing to me. Where is the plot? The whole time I was so confused! The entirety of what was supposedly happening (was there anything?) was completely lost in the jargon and sloppy writing. Not even the dialogue was clear. The premise is promising, but the writing in this one is not great.

arocle's review against another edition

1.0

Messy, disjointed, too much awkward sexual innuendo and characters I actively disliked. I guess the nanos were kinda nice...

wrenes's review against another edition

Some interesting concepts, but poorly written story. Boring. Combines the worst of Niven without the excuse of having been written in the early 90's. 

Not worth reading.

tlockney's review against another edition

2.0

This was a tough one. Parts of it, I loved, but for the most part, it's just a love song to Heinlein wrapped up in some semi-interesting ideas. Or, more correctly, it's a love song to Heinlein's political and social philosophy. And, as much as I enjoyed his writing when I was younger (I should probably revisit to see if it still holds up), I found his take on the world not so appealing. Oh well.

bob_muller's review against another edition

3.0

An enjoyable read, especially if you're a Heinlein fan, whether or not you agree or disagree with the philosophy (Michael where are you when we need you). But the allusions don't make up for lack of plot, lack of character development, and lack of common sense. I found the most interesting their ability to promote science and engineering and deny global warming all in the same sentence. No faster-than-light, though :).

falinter's review against another edition

3.0

The book was pretty good! It moves very fast and the references and jokes are thrown at you equally quickly.
I would say it's closer to 3.5/5 stars. They spent a lot of time in the book being amazed at what nanomachines were doing can do would do. It made me very curious to know what society at large would be like after the changes were finalized.

speljamr's review

2.0

I thought there was much potential for this book based on the overview of the story, I couldn't have been more wrong. I don't think I've ever read a Larry Niven book that has left me this disappointed. The story is supposed to be about nano tech that is launched into space to retrieve an asteroid and bring it within Earth orbit, and that part of the story is at least there, but it is surrounded by a whole lot of crap.

To start with, the authors clearly have sex on the brain. There was far more than was necessary to tell the story. Then you have to get around the constant pushing of extreme libertarian wet dream ideas. I have a bit of a libertarian streak in me, but this was more of the extreme end of the ideal, and not very likely to ever be true. Then there is the story in the story of the nano tech let loose on the population and controlled by one single man, and it's treated in the book like this is a good and ethical thing; That's more likely exactly the kind of thing that would scare people half to death about the possibilities of nano technology and has some real deep philosophical questions on ethics buried in it.

In the end I'm glad this ride is over as it was like reading snippets of interesting sci-fi embedded in a whole lot of mediocre thriller writing (the dialogue was difficult to get through at times). Thankfully, if you decide to try this one out it will be over very fast.