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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
Fun, fast-paced action / thriller sci-fi.
Plus there's a crazy goat AI god*
* For some version of god.
Plus there's a crazy goat AI god*
* For some version of god.
Lost my way with this one....kind of hard to rate as I had very mixed feelings about it. Started off brilliantly, but I hate being dumped into SF books where the unique terms and characteristics of the world aren't defined early on. Maybe I haven't read enough SF to figure things out on my own.
Anyway, I got to around 60% and then started skimming as it seemed to drag on a bit. Odd to not rate a DNF a 1 star I know.....but it just got a bit jumbled together, or maybe it's just my distracted mind.
Anyway, I got to around 60% and then started skimming as it seemed to drag on a bit. Odd to not rate a DNF a 1 star I know.....but it just got a bit jumbled together, or maybe it's just my distracted mind.
The setting is interesting, but the story itself seemed to be a bit too... simplistic? Also, I am not sure why the author found it necessary to go into such elaborate descriptions of sex scenes. In general, it was quite an enjoyable read, but not something I would ever reread.
Hakan Veil was sold by his mother, before his birth, to be coded into a hybernating warrior, the kind you put behind a "Break glass in case of emergency" sign -- they call it the Black Hatch. But he got fired because he protected someone it would have been more efficient and cost-effective to kill and now he's stuck on Mars, getting into trouble.
Not space-opera, more space-noir. Great use of simile, tone like Raymond Chandler or many other private dick novels of the mid-20th century.
Not space-opera, more space-noir. Great use of simile, tone like Raymond Chandler or many other private dick novels of the mid-20th century.
If you’d like to be slammed with unrelenting, high octane, neon drenched, favela chic cyberpunk - you’ve come to the right place. Richard Morgan delivers again.
adventurous
medium-paced
Doesn’t hold your attention. Easy to put down. I was spoiled by Kovaks.
4.5 stars.
Pretty minor spoilers ahead.
I read this in pretty short order. (A week or so.) its long, but fast paced, and as far as I remember, there was basically never a dull moment.
Oddly, the sex scenes were the worst parts for me. They all, with one exception, felt pretty contrived to me. More fantasy than in any way realistic, and lots of sex with folks it was clear the protagonist shouldn’t trust. It’s like he got off on it. Which is an interesting twist, but not (that I could tell) one the author planned intentionally.
The action was overall great. But I never quite understood the rules around hacking. Lots of things could be hacked at a distance. But some things needed touch, ...maybe? There is code in the sky, causing the terraforming, sure, I sort of get that, but there are also genetically modified mosquitoes that deliver updates... even though there is also an internet / cell phone built into this guy’s body..?
Speaking of, the Osiris character wasn’t very flushed out either. Was it sentient, or just sophisticated software? Hard to say. After it’s origin story, I really expected it to pop up a lot more frequently, and felt like there were a bunch of places its presence would have made sense, but it remained quiet. And for as many times as it saved Veil’s ass, he sure told it to shut up a lot. I mean, that I kind of get. There was also one exchange where it was trying to get his attention... to divulge important IMMEDIATELY TACTICALLY RELEVANT information, and Veil ignored it. But why didn’t it just say the information instead of trying to get Veil’s attention and costing valuable seconds in the middle of the firefight? That just felt weird to me.
Overall, i only had minor quibbles. May not sound like it, but I did really enjoy this. Kind of superhero sci-fi, but that’s okay.
Pretty minor spoilers ahead.
I read this in pretty short order. (A week or so.) its long, but fast paced, and as far as I remember, there was basically never a dull moment.
Oddly, the sex scenes were the worst parts for me. They all, with one exception, felt pretty contrived to me. More fantasy than in any way realistic, and lots of sex with folks it was clear the protagonist shouldn’t trust. It’s like he got off on it. Which is an interesting twist, but not (that I could tell) one the author planned intentionally.
The action was overall great. But I never quite understood the rules around hacking. Lots of things could be hacked at a distance. But some things needed touch, ...maybe? There is code in the sky, causing the terraforming, sure, I sort of get that, but there are also genetically modified mosquitoes that deliver updates... even though there is also an internet / cell phone built into this guy’s body..?
Speaking of, the Osiris character wasn’t very flushed out either. Was it sentient, or just sophisticated software? Hard to say. After it’s origin story, I really expected it to pop up a lot more frequently, and felt like there were a bunch of places its presence would have made sense, but it remained quiet. And for as many times as it saved Veil’s ass, he sure told it to shut up a lot. I mean, that I kind of get. There was also one exchange where it was trying to get his attention... to divulge important IMMEDIATELY TACTICALLY RELEVANT information, and Veil ignored it. But why didn’t it just say the information instead of trying to get Veil’s attention and costing valuable seconds in the middle of the firefight? That just felt weird to me.
Overall, i only had minor quibbles. May not sound like it, but I did really enjoy this. Kind of superhero sci-fi, but that’s okay.
I continue to be astonished by Morgan's books. Complex, completely immersive, cool characters, deft plotting, spectacular world building.
Some 400 pages long, it feels like I breezed through it. Great to be reading a big book that you can't wait to get back to.
Great to have him back, on Mars or anywhere.
Some 400 pages long, it feels like I breezed through it. Great to be reading a big book that you can't wait to get back to.
Great to have him back, on Mars or anywhere.
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-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
I haven't read them in years, but I loved Mr. Morgan's Takeshi Kovacs novels, which were extremely fresh when first published. This book is like those earlier books, except I didn't like the MC as much and the sex felt even more gratuitous. Here, a sort of supersoldier has to solve a crime/conspiracy on Mars and there are a ton of detailed fight scenes. I don't enjoy fight scenes (boring, for the most part), so there were a lot of scenes here I was just getting through. Huge body count, but there are a few characters standing at the end. A hard sci-fi environment with a hard-boiled detective story layered on top.
Of note, it struck me as peculiar that the author seemingly makes a point of highlighting a major character's Blackness every time she appears in the narrative. I understood that she was Black when she was introduced, and I'd guess most readers would also pick up on that and not need constant reminders.
Of note, it struck me as peculiar that the author seemingly makes a point of highlighting a major character's Blackness every time she appears in the narrative. I understood that she was Black when she was introduced, and I'd guess most readers would also pick up on that and not need constant reminders.
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix