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A review by elusivity
Gridlinked by Neal Asher
3.0
Written as a breathless sci-fi thriller, with shifting perspectives to tell the story of Earth Security agent a la 007, Ian Cormac, as he is re-finding his own humanity after 30 years of mindlink to AI. Hounded by the inexplicably-insane terrorist Arian Pelter, Cormac investigates the malfunctioning and explosion of a runcible (teleportation devices which renders time and space meaningless) that destroyed an entire planet.
Set in a world ran by AIs that easily passed version x of the Turing test; Golemns created but possessing personhood, therefore required to pay for their freedom and creation price by service to the companies that constructed them; nerve-blocked surgeries where the flesh is easily peeled apart to get at the bones and organs... Easy and rapid inter-galactic travel via runcible devices... The interference in human history of an alien bio-mechanic creature called Dragon... All very fascinating stuff.
The upside: this is a rapid read.
The downside: plot threads seem somewhat scattered. Some people's motivations are murky and strange. So who, or what, did blow up the planet? And what was up with Dragon?
This is very clearly the first book in a series. Maybe some of my questions will be answered down the line. Given how difficult it was to push through the last 100 pages, I'm in no hurry for Book 2.
Set in a world ran by AIs that easily passed version x of the Turing test; Golemns created but possessing personhood, therefore required to pay for their freedom and creation price by service to the companies that constructed them; nerve-blocked surgeries where the flesh is easily peeled apart to get at the bones and organs... Easy and rapid inter-galactic travel via runcible devices... The interference in human history of an alien bio-mechanic creature called Dragon... All very fascinating stuff.
The upside: this is a rapid read.
The downside: plot threads seem somewhat scattered. Some people's motivations are murky and strange. So who, or what, did blow up the planet? And what was up with Dragon?
This is very clearly the first book in a series. Maybe some of my questions will be answered down the line. Given how difficult it was to push through the last 100 pages, I'm in no hurry for Book 2.