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A review by frasersimons
Idoru by William Gibson
dark
hopeful
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Probably even more slow than the first in the trilogy, the tech and insights into social constructs resonates all the more deeply today. The emotional complexity in this are more fulfilling than any other Gibson novel I’ve tried yet, too. To marry that with the seemingly vapid and ephemeral of celebrity, intimacy, and a more organic and analog cyberspace—really made this feel like Gibson’s chops were shining through.
Even more bold that it’s in a cyberpunk near future, where people expect propulsive action. The counter culture vs mono culture feels much more rich and nuanced. Not simply rebellion and fight co opting, but tapping into the general intellect in many ways. Where the previous Virtual Light has little to no ramifications on the plot or, really, the social aspects the book interrogates, the high tech part of the low life milieu here is integral to how everyone interacts with their phone, their social media, and the commodification of data that comes with influencers being big business.
The book does fall down somewhat in the usual areas. Most predominately a not altogether convincing portrayal of marginalized cultures, much like rastas in Neuromancer. But it is more developed here too. If I were more familiar with the culture I could critique it better. As is, it just feels off. For a while this book remained four stars, but I just felt it came together so well, and in such a different way than most cyberpunk books, that I just really wanted to set it as a cut above.
Even more bold that it’s in a cyberpunk near future, where people expect propulsive action. The counter culture vs mono culture feels much more rich and nuanced. Not simply rebellion and fight co opting, but tapping into the general intellect in many ways. Where the previous Virtual Light has little to no ramifications on the plot or, really, the social aspects the book interrogates, the high tech part of the low life milieu here is integral to how everyone interacts with their phone, their social media, and the commodification of data that comes with influencers being big business.
The book does fall down somewhat in the usual areas. Most predominately a not altogether convincing portrayal of marginalized cultures, much like rastas in Neuromancer. But it is more developed here too. If I were more familiar with the culture I could critique it better. As is, it just feels off. For a while this book remained four stars, but I just felt it came together so well, and in such a different way than most cyberpunk books, that I just really wanted to set it as a cut above.